CSU By-elections: Community Action Fund Created

QPIRG Gets Fee Levy Increase

NewsVince Morello — Published November 18, 2016

About 700 students voted during polling from Nov. 15 to 17, according to the CSU’s Chief Electoral Officer, Stephani Moukhaiber. Quorum was 450 undergraduate students.

All but two councillor candidates were elected to the CSU council. Seven candidates ran for the five Arts and Science seats, one candidate ran for the John Molson School of Business seat. No one ran for the one Fine Arts seat, or the two independent seats on council.

The students voted in favour of increasing Quebec Public Interest Research Group at Concordia’s fee levy by 8 cents per credit, bringing the total up to 39 cents per credit.

The CSU is also now mandated to actively pursue Concordia University to divest from fossil fuels and its related industries, and students and voted in agreement with Divest Concordia’s campaign and demands.

The amendment to the Special By-Law I was also passed, creating the Community Action Fund. As it stands now, the CSU takes $3.80 per credit as a fee levy. $1.00 of that is goes towards the Student Space, Accessible Education and Legal Contingency Fund, which, as of the end of the 2015-2016 academic year, held $3 million according a draft of the CSU’s financial audit of that year.

The CAF will take a portion of the SSAELC fund’s annual interest, amounting to roughly $50,000 to $75,000 to fund campaigns that fall under the CSU’s position book, but that aren’t necessarily Concordia-based.

The full results are as followed:

Fossil Fuels Divestment Campaign—PASSED
“Do you, as a Concordia undergraduate student, mandate the Concordia Student Union to actively support the fossil fuels divestment campaign until such time as Concordia University commits to full divestment from fossil fuels and related industries?”
Yes: 493
No: 131
Abstentions: 78

Concordia University Investments—PASSED
“Do you, as a Concordia undergraduate student, agree with Divest Concordia’s demand that Concordia University remove all its investments that are currently tied to the fossil fuel and related industries and reinvest this money in a socially and environmentally responsible manner”
Yes: 554
No: 108
Abstentions: 45

QPIRG Concordia—PASSED
“Do you agree to increase the fee levy of QPIRG Concordia by eight cents per credit to a total of 39 cents per credit indexed to inflation in accordance with the Consumer Price Index for Canada, effective January 2017?”
Yes: 438
No: 191
Abstentions: 74

Community Action Fund—PASSED
“Do you, as a Concordia undergraduate student, agree with the amendment to the CSU Special Bylaw I, as outlined in the document “Amendment to Special Bylaw I?”
Yes: 426
No: 77
Abstentions: 206

Council

Arts and Science

Julia Sutera Sardo (Elected)
Yes: 185
No: 95
Abstentions: 129

Agunik Mamikonyan (Elected)
Yes: 159
No: 81
Abstentions: 159

Gregory Laplante
Yes: 124
No: 72
Abstentions: 193

Sara Betinjaneh (Elected)
Yes: 136
No: 65
Abstentions: 186

Rowan Gaudet (Elected)
Yes: 128
No: 64
Abstentions: 179

April Tardif-Levesque (Elected)
Yes: 151
No: 65
Abstentions: 175

Andra Luchian
Yes: 94
No: 76
Abstentions: 206

John Molson School of Business

Omar Riaz (Elected)
Yes: 60
No: 8
Abstentions: 9