Section(s) Affected

• 9.1, 12.8

Old Section(s): 

9.1. Any proposal to increase the student levy, or any issue on which a majority of council feels it necessary, shall be brought to referendum.

12.8. The total fee for the Innis Residence Council will be $61.14, and will be charged to all full-time students living in Innis Residence.

Proposed New Section(s): 

9.1. Any proposal to increase the student levy (except for cost of living increases as outlined in 12.8.1), or any issue on which a majority of council feels it necessary, shall be brought to referendum.

12.8 The total fee for the Innis Residence Council will be $61.14 per academic year (or $30.57 per fall/winter session), and will be charged to all full-time students living in Innis Residence.

12.8.1. On an annual basis, starting in the 2023-24 school year, the council may apply a cost of living increase to this fee.

12.8.1.1 A cost of living increase requires a two-thirds (2/3) vote in favour by the Council and will take effect in the following school year.

12.8.1.2 A cost of living increase may be at most (or equal to) the December-over-December Ontario consumer price index as measured by Statistics Canada.

Rationale: This will allow future IRCs to increase the IRC fee (currently $61.14 per academic year (or $30.57 per fall/winter session) ) by an amount less than or equal to the December over December Ontario Consumer Price Index (which has a historical average of 2.86% over the past 100 years). Comparable student organizations such as the Innis College Student Society (ICSS) and the Chestnut Residence Council already have a similar clause in their constitution. This does not involve a price increase for next year (23-24), nor does it necessitate an annual increase in fees. It will instead allow future IRCs, when a need arises, to increase the fee with a council vote rather than a building-wide referendum in order to keep up with inflation. As a council, we've experienced rapid increases in costs over the last few years, with catering, residence t-shirts, and expenses related to our annual semi-formal of particular note. This measure will allow future councils to continue to provide excellent programming and events to the students of Innis Residence without financial constraints.

Section(s) Affected

• 4.3.2.2,3,4,5,7

Old Section(s): 

4.3.2. Vice-President Internal

4.3.2.2. Oversees all committees, including the selection of committee chairs.

4.3.2.3. Responsible for creating and maintaining an inventory of all material resources owned and overseen by the IRC, which will be handed over during transition.

4.3.2.4. Responsible for overseeing the maintenance and replacement of the material resources owned by the IRC. Should these items need to be replaced, it is the responsibility of the Vice-President Internal to ensure this is completed. The purchasing of new material resources by the IRC will also fall under the responsibility of the Vice-President Internal.

4.3.2.5. Responsible for the coordination of the House Representatives including distribution of the application process, chairing the selection meetings, acting as an advisor, and coordinating with House representatives. 

4.3.2.7. House Representatives will be selected through an application process. Applications will be created and decisions will be made by a panel of IRC Executives overseen by the Vice President Internal (both newly elected and currently serving executives are eligible to sit on the panel).

Proposed New Section(s): 

4.3.2.2. Responsible for the management of the purchase, maintenance, and replacement of material resources owned by the IRC.

4.3.3.3. Responsible for the selection of the House Representatives, Junior House Representatives, and Committee Co-chairs. An application process shall be created and distributed by the current Vice President-Internal and a blind review process be used to make decisions, as outlined in Article 15.

4.3.2.4. Responsible for the coordination and advising of the House Representatives, Junior House Representatives, and Committee Co-chairs.

Clause removal: 4.3.2.7 (hiring)

Rationale: The current subsections of the VP internal position are overly broad and repetitive; condensing repetitive sections and clarifying the scope of the position enables the maximization of the council's efficacy.

Section(s) Affected

• 4.3.5.1-5

Old Section(s): 

4.3.5.1. Responsible for the organization of all IRC-sponsored social events.

4.3.5.2. Responsible for holding meetings concerning social events within the residence, when necessary.

4.3.5.3. If applicable, organizes at least one event with Junior Representatives.

Proposed New Section(s): 

4.3.5.1. Responsible for the organization of all IRC-sponsored social events, including but not limited to:

4.3.5.1.1. A welcome back event near move-in day in the first semester that includes IRC T-shirt purchase and distribution to all residents and residence staff.

4.3.5.1.2. A dinner for all six houses with the current Innis College Principal.

4.3.5.1.3. A welcome back event for the second semester.

4.3.5.1.4. An annual semi-formal event

4.3.5.3. Responsible for advising other IRC members in the planning and execution of all non-House Olympics residence-wide IRC-sponsored social events.

4.3.5.4. Responsible for communication with non-IRC entities, such as caterers, as required for event organization.

Rationale: Explicitly defining the major events under the purview of the VP Social allows for a clearer understanding of the duties of this role. Further, succinctness and reorganization is a prerequisite for a readable section.

Section(s) Affected

• 6.4.3, 6.4.4

Old Section(s): 

6.4.3 Each committee has one (1) vote collectively.

6.4.4 Social Media-Marketing Directors have one (1) vote collectively.

Proposed New Section(s): 

6.4.3 Each committee has one (1) vote per co-chair to a maximum of two (2) votes collectively.

6.4.4 Social Media-Marketing Directors have one (1) vote per director, to a maximum of two (2) votes collectively.

Rationale: Currently, committee co-chairs and the Social Media-Marketing Directors get one (1) vote per portfolio, whereas each house (Junior House and House Representatives) has two (2) votes. For an equitable distribution of votes across the council, committees should have equal voting weights as each house - two (2) votes collectively.

Section(s) Affected

• 7.5

Old Section(s): 

No person shall accept or hold more than one IRC position that bears voting rights at a time, except in the case that a House Representative or Executive Officer accepts a co-chair position for a committee, or a committee co-chair accepts a co-chair position for another committee, in which case they must relinquish their ability to vote on behalf of a committee of their choice.

Proposed New Section(s): 

7.5. No person shall accept or hold more than one IRC position that bears voting rights at a time

Rationale: Prior amendments render this clause inconsistent with other subsections pertaining to House Representatives and the executive officers, wherein it is specified that they cannot hold dual positions. Further justification for this clause modification is a council-wide dedication to avoiding overcommitment, hence the expansion to all members of the council.

Section(s) Affected

• DNE

Old Section(s): 

5.4.10 Junior Representatives will be selected through an application process Applications will be created and decisions will be made through a blind selection process by the Vice President Internal and existing House Representatives.

Proposed New Section(s): 

(Removal of section 5.4.10)

Article 15: Hiring Protocol

15.1 The Vice President - Internal shall be responsible for the selection of the House Representatives, Junior House Representatives, Committee Co-chairs. A public application process shall be created and distributed by the current Vice President-Internal and a blind review process must be used to make decisions. 

15.1.1 All incoming executive members may choose to participate in the activities described in 15.1. All outgoing council members may choose to participate in the activities described in 15.1 upon agreement from the incoming executive members.

15.1.2 All House Representatives may choose to participate in the activities described in 15.1. for the Junior House Representative positions.  

15.1.3 Any current IRC member applying for the non-executive positions listed in 15.1 for the next council year are not eligible to participate in the hiring process in any capacity.

15.2 The application process for House Representatives and Committee Co-chairs for the upcoming academic year shall begin during the winter semester and remain open at least 48 hours after the results of the executive elections are announced.

15.3 The application process for Junior House Representative position shall begin on or after first-year move-in. 

15.3 No more than six (6) House Representatives in total and two (2) co-chairs per committee shall be selected before first-year move-in. Additional House Representatives and co-chairs shall be selected, if needed, by a public application process that will begin after first-year move-in.

Rationale: There is a need for a consistent, unbiased hiring process outlined in the constitution. The outlined blind review process facilitated by the VP Internal thus allows more people to be involved in the hiring process, without compromising on fairness, and the above timeline enables a proactive council without excluding first years.

Section(s) Affected

• 5.2.1

Old Section(s): DNE

Proposed New Section(s): 

5.2.1. All Junior House Representatives must live in the house they were selected to represent for the duration they hold office.

Rationale: Current IRC practice is to have one Junior House Representative per house, representing the house in which they live. In order to continue equitable representation on the council for future years, said practice should be outlined in the constitution.

Section(s) Affected

• Definitions (suite events)

• 5.2, 5.3.3, 5.3.4, 5.4, 6.4.2, 7.4.1

Old Section(s): all instances of the term "Junior Representative"

Proposed New Section(s): "Junior House Representative"

Rationale: A syntactical change throughout the constitution that will mitigate the confusion arising from a variety of terms implemented in years prior regarding the Junior House Representative position.