Appointments, personal vendettas and resignations were all on the agenda for the Student Association Senate meeting Sunday.

In a 17-15 vote, with one abstention, the senate waived the second reading of a bill concerning executive appointees drafted by senator Jeff Meyer. Suspension of the second reading on this bill will allow the senate to vote sooner to approve the bill.

The bill read that acting executive staff members must be approved within two weeks by the senate. If the acting executive staff members are approved, they will receive payment for the previous two weeks of work. If they are not approved, they will not be compensated for their work.

“We do have vacancies currently in the executive staff and those will be filled,” Meyer said. “I want to make sure the proper procedures are followed and that this body has a hand in determining how and when and who will fill those positions.”

However, senators had differing opinions on the bill.

Senate speaker Kevin Miller spoke out against the second reading and the wording of the bill.

“What happens if over the summer, someone is appointed and the senate does not approve?” he asked. “Do they forfeit their entire pay for the summer?”

Sen. Quinesha Colbert agreed.

“To me, some of the wording is contradictory,” she said during debate. “The first part of the bill says they will not receive any money, but then it says that they have to forfeit what they earn.”

Some senators thought the bill was necessary, though.

“I understand the urgency of this bill and I think we should hold [the executive staff] accountable to us,” Sen. Brad Kuhn said during the meeting.

Sen. Kevin O’Kelly, who removed his name as co-author of the bill, brought up several points for the Senate to consider before approving the bill.

The point he emphasized most was the payment process.

“I can understand the two weeks because you could have someone sitting in office for a month and getting paid,” O’Kelly said. “And that’s not right.”

The Senate also heard reports from the executive staff. During these reports, Mike Gotthardt, director of academic affairs, read a prepared statement regarding an undisclosed situation involving the University Programming and Activities office.

“I currently know of one such witch hunt attempting to remove a prominent student leader, a student who has done nothing wrong,” Gotthardt said.

“UP&A should refrain from acting on personal biases against students,” he added. “This immature, selfish behavior of those guilty individuals sets a terrible example for students to follow. If those employees of UP&A do not fix their current behavior, I will point them out publicly.”

He declined to comment on the alleged student in UP&A or to comment any further on the situation.

Near the end of the meeting, SA President Troy Caldwell informally announced the resignation of two executive staff directors, Courtney Crawford and Sarah Hammer.

“I chose to resign because of the working environment,” Crawford said in a previous interview. “It was interfering with my school work.”

Hammer was not available for comment on her resignation.

The SA Senate will not meet again until Jan. 20, 2002.