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Volume 128 Issue 56
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Thursday, December 4, 2014
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Kansan.com | The student voice since 1904
DAY IN THE LIFE
Day in the Life is an exploration of the daily lives of KU students, faculty and staff. The section, composed entirely of features on people in the KU community, focuses on what makes someone's typical day unique and how the University fits into their lives.
WEEKEND EDITION
Head to KANSAN.COM and follow the link to see exclusive content.
Student Senate adjusts language of election code
MIRANDA DAVIS
@MirandaDavisUDK
Student Senate executives are hopeful that small adjustments to the current election code will help streamline next semesters' Student Senate elections.
Two election reform bills were heard by members Wednesday night and passed unanimously in Rights Committee and University Affairs Committee.
If both bills pass in full senate next week, all of this semester's election reform will have passed and all modifications to Student Senate rules and regulations will be in place before election season begins in the spring semester.
Will Admussen, government relations director and a co-author of the bill, said the goal was not to overhaul the code, but to make small adjustments. He said that way, students have the opportunity to learn and execute it from year to year.
"It's a continuation of election code that was generally good with improvements, that while they are critical, aren't going to materially alter the entire elections code," Admussen said.
The changes are small but clarify key parts of the election code that was changed drastically last fall. It makes adjustments to the requirements of poster and banner sizes. In addition, it adds intent clauses into the sanctioning process.
It's a continuation of election code that was generally good with improvements, that while they are critical, aren't going to materially alter the entire elections code."
WILL ADMUSSEN Co-author of bill
The bill changes the language of section 7.4.11.6.7. to add "intentional" violations of the section 7.4.3, which deal with campaign finances. Admussen said this is to help remove disqualifications if someone makes a clerical error on the financial reports. He said a small error shouldn't warrant the entire disqualification of a
coalition, which is the rule as it stands now.
"The way rules are interpreted is never going to be perfect," Admussen said. "So this year, with the knowledge of what happened last year, with the knowledge of all the complaints filed, we can make the rules better."
The bill also redefined the term "benefit" as it concerns elections and clarifies that coalitions cannot accept gifts of benefits as donations from outside sources.
Many of the changes stem from last spring's election, which was riddled with issues as the Elections Commission worked to interpret the new language of the election code. This resulted in the disqualification of one of the coalitions and a re-election at beginning of this semester to remedy the situation.
Admussen said the changes will ensure justice for the student body and make it easier for coalitions to interpret the rules and avoid unintentional mistakes.
JAMES HOYT/KANSAN
Student senators sit in the front row of a meeting on Aug.27. Student Senate discussed changing the language of current election code Wednesday night.
Edited by Amelia Arvesen
JAMES HOYT/KANSAN
ice skaters make laps around the ice rink by the Lawrence Public Library on Vermont Street on Dec. 3.
Downtown ice skating rink already popular with locals
AARON GROENE
@WatchTheGroan
Growing up in Lawrence, freshman Maddie York took annual trips to Crown Center to ice skate during the holiday season. This year, Lawrence ice skaters won't have to make that trek to Kansas City, as the community ice skating rink opened Friday.
"I was really excited because I love to ice skate." York said. "I feel like a lot of people get bored in Lawrence and feel like they have to go to Kansas City to do a lot of things, but this is another place for families to go and have fun."
Snuggled on the small
jimmy Gibbs, recreational operations manager for Lawrence Parks and Recreation, said 400 people used the rink on opening day and 1,300 used it over the extended weekend, both of which exceeded expectations.
"We knew we would have a lot of folks out, but 400 in a short period of time was fantastic," Gibbs said. "It was really well received by the community. We knew a lot
plaza between the Lawrence Public Library and the parking garage on the 700 block of Vermont Street, the skating rink is already a popular attraction.
CURRENT HOURS
SEE SKATE PAGE 2A
Monday/Wednesday/Friday:
10:30 a.m.-8 p.m.
Tuesday/Thursday: 1-8 p.m.
Saturday: 10:30 a.m. to 8
p.m.
Dec. 20-Jan 5 hours:
Monday - Friday: 4-8 p.m.
Saturday: 10:30 a.m. to
8 p.m.
Sunday: 1-6 p.m.
Sunday: 1-6 p.m.
Dec. 25/Jan. 1:
CLOSED
Dec. 24/31 hours:
10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
66 employees newly eligible for health care
MCKENNA HARFORD
@McKennaHarford
The University has offered health care to 66 employees, including students, faculty and staff, for the upcoming year. These employees are newly eligible under the Affordable Care Act.
"We had a low number of people eligible and the eligibility was largely decided with the old policy," Ola Faucher, director of Human Resources, said.
Human Resources passed a policy that limits student employees to working 20 hours a week during the school year and 40 hours during the break.
"One can speculate that in general, student employees work within the hours established," Faucher said. "If they worked significantly outside of [the policy] then the numbers would be higher. So one could
In order to ease the transition, this year the policy allows for departments to decide if students can work up to 29 hours a week.
Faucher said that Human Resources hasn't received any complaints about the policy and that low number of people eligible for health care is a good sign.
SEE HEALTH PAGE 2A
KORA requests continue for student group
MIRANDA DAVIS
@MirandaDavisUDK
The student group that requested documents from the University has received only part of the Kansas Open Records Act (KORA) request it filed to the University in September.
Schuyler Kraus, a senior from Allen, Texas, said the University has only provided documents pertaining to some of the request. She said the University told her it would provide the rest once it was finished processing those documents.
"I'm expecting that it will happen eventually, I'm confused as to why it's taking to long to produce that information," Kraus said. "I understand that there's probably a lot of correspondence that needs to be reviewed for the redaction process but its been a few months."
Kraus is president of Students for a Sustainable Future, the student group who submitted a comprehensive Kansas Open Records Act request
According to a press release from the department, "Officers seized all known bank accounts, on-site cash, business inventory and personal property assets belonging to owners Bradley L. and Jennifer R. Remington." The restaurant has been sealed and a public auction will be held where the assets will be sold to pay the remaining debt.
Wheat State Pizza on 23rd and Louisiana has been seized by the State because of $42,000 worth of unpaid state taxes.
Wheat State Pizza shut down for not paying taxes
This is not a new situation for the 23rd Street restaurant however, as the Remingtons only became the owners after the previous owner went through a similar situation in 2010. A Kansas Department of Revenue press release from August of that year reveals that the previous owner, Ryan Murphy, had Wheat State Pizza locations in Lawrence, Baldwin City, and Emporia all seized for failing to pay almost $234,000 in sales taxes and withholding taxes. The restaurant was then purchased by the Remingtons, whose debts date back to that same month.
SEE KORA PAGE 2A
Wheat State Pizza on W. 23rd Street was seized Tuesday by the Kansas Department of Revenue for failure to pay more than $42,000 in outstanding state taxes over the past four years.
JAMES HOYT/KANSAN
Both press releases emphasize that such action is a last resort utilized only after all other methods of retrieving the debts fail.
"Only after several unsuccessful attempts does the department take the action of seizing assets," according to the press release, "which in this instance resulted in the business being closed."
SPORTS 1B
SUDOKU 6A
CRYPTOQUIPS 6A
OPINION 4A
— James Lamb
CLASSIFIEDS 10B
CROSSWORD 6A
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