Senate Chair Jonathan Grunin thinks Student Association Treasurer Justin Neuwirt should be recalled from his position for "withholding constitutional rights from the various [finance] committee members." He said Neuwirt is doing a disservice to students.
During the high tensions of SA election season, drama extended beyond conflicts among the e-board. Some senators are displeased with the way Neuwirt handled an alleged recording of a finance committee meeting. The accusations have caused a fissure in the already disjointed SA.
Grunin, a member of the finance committee, claims Neuwirt removed Grunin's proxy, Alana Barricks, from a finance committee meeting on March 22 under the belief she recorded a previous meeting illegally.
The recording never existed, according to Grunin and Barricks.
Neuwirt said a member of Black Student Union (BSU) informed him on Wednesday that there wasn't a recording. Neuwirt didn't think the information was important.
"The fact of the matter is that it affected the finance committee," Neuwirt said. "Regardless of whether there was a recording or not, BSU had clear knowledge of what was going on. So why does it matter?"
Over the past four years, senators have been sending text messages from the finance committee to their friends in respective clubs regarding their budgets, according to Grunin.
"There is nothing against the rules for that," he said.
Forward Party presidential candidate Carson Ciggia, who is on the finance committee, disclosed he believed it was Barricks who recorded the meeting during The Spectrum'sendorsements. Ciggia has since apologized to Barricks for the accusation, stating a member of BSU had also told him there was no recording and the club was using it as a scare tactic.
Barricks, a BSU member, said she was unaware and not part of the plan. She also said Ciggia's apology seemed half-genuine.
BSU - the club with the largest budget at UB - was discussed at the allegedly recorded meeting. Grunin said Neuwirt was seeking to reduce the budget of BSU solely because it had too much money. Barricks said she tried to provide the committee with as much information as she could about the club during the meeting.
Regardless of how the information was released, BSU found out about the contents of the finance committee meeting. Forward delegate candidate Robin Murray left his ticket, and BSU withdrew its support from Forward. Murray didn't respond to interview requests.
Neuwirt said he didn't want to accuse anyone of recording the meeting because he lacked sufficient evidence. Neuwirt said multiple people confirmed the person recording and he acted accordingly.
Grunin and other senators claim Neuwirt violated the SA Constitution, but Neuwirt said he was acting in the best interest of SA and believes he didn't break any explicit rules.
At a finance committee meeting on March 18, Barricks was a proxy for senator and SA president-elect Nick Johns.
Neuwirt said finance committee meetings shouldn't have any conflicts of interest. He said if he was an active member in a club, he would excuse himself from the meeting. He added certain members have come in with their own political interests.
Joshua Anbar, a senator and the SISH coordinator on the finance committee, felt once a committee member was accused of recording the meeting, it had to be taken seriously to uphold the integrity of the finance committee.
"If it did instill confidence in the institution of the finance committee, then at the end of the day, I could see it as a necessary action," said Robert Golightly, senator and sports coordinator on the finance committee.
After the initial finance committee meeting, Grunin asked Barricks to proxy for him at the next meeting. Barricks said Grunin informed her he had heard she might be kicked out of the meeting but sent her anyway.
This wasn't the first time Neuwirt took issue with Grunin's proxy. Just before spring break, senator Michael Calliste was a proxy for Grunin at a finance committee meeting. Grunin said Neuwirt didn't approve and called Calliste "politically motivated and biased," something Grunin and Calliste deny.
At the beginning of the next finance meeting, March 22, Neuwirt called for the dismissal of Barricks. Barricks left without arguing to avoid any confrontation.
Neuwirt, who noticed the members in the room were apprehensive from his decision, made a motion to appeal his decision to dismiss Barricks. He said only one person raised a hand.
Barricks found out from "asking around" that she was dismissed for allegedly recording the previous meeting.
In a Facebook message sent at 3:47 a.m. Saturday, Barricks asked Neuwirt to explain why she was kicked out. The Spectrum received copies of the conversation from Barricks.
Neuwirt responded to the message later that morning, saying it wasn't an attack on her. Instead, he was trying to "protect the integrity of the committee and consequently the budget of the Student Association."
He said he couldn't prove anything. He also said she might believe he didn't have the right to act the way he did, which he said "admittedly, that may be the case."
He also wrote in the message that he received physical threats from members of a club in his office and they said they had direct knowledge of conversations from the meeting. Neuwirt said they admitted to hearing the recordings. Senators later confirmed the club in question was BSU.
"I shouldn't have to watch my back on campus when walking with people I care about because my job as treasurer and my direct interested (sic) of what is best for the Student Association," Neuwirt wrote in the Facebook message.
He said the committee should not be used as a "bargaining chip," in the message.
"But again, I have no proof of anything so I will apologize for my actions that may have offended you." Neuwirt wrote in the message. "I was just acting on what I thought was best for the organization."
Neuwirt told The Spectrum the rules are vague and allow for interpretation and for that reason, he apologized to the individual and allowed the member to come back to future meetings.
Barricks responded to the Facebook message saying, "I understand why did what you did even if I don't agree with it."
It isn't against the rules to record a finance meeting unless the committee is in executive session, according to Grunin.
Vice President Adam Zimnicki agrees, but he noted a member must inform the rest of the committee they're being recorded.
Grunin believes Neuwirt should be suspended for multiple transgressions, including the dismissal of Barricks. Neuwirt said Grunin made a statement that he will try to recall Neuwirt from his position as treasurer, possibly at the next Senate meeting.
Grunin didn't wish to comment on the notion.
The next Senate meeting is scheduled for Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. in Student Union room 145E.
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