Students debate new legislation as members of student legislature in State and Local Politics class

The resolution under consideration during the recent session of the New York Student Legislature at Alfred University had been proposed by Colin Jacques, a second-year student, majoring in political science and studying the legislative process in Assistant Professor of Political Science Desmond Wallace's State and Local Politics class.

Colin, a resident of Middleton, NY, had seen a local law passed in his hometown mandating the distribution of garbage and recycling receptacles to each residence in the municipality. His own bill would require every municipality "within New York State" to extend the same service to residents.

"I liked how that turned out in Middleton," Colin says. "It's something I really care about."

Colin's bill passed, along with dozens of other bills drawn up by students in Wallace's course, which Wallace has been teaching annually since he joined Alfred University's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in 2019. His legislative sessions are designed to acquaint students with the complexities of the legislative process, from the drafting of individual bills to their debate and enactment.

His recent student legislature sat in session for two days, from Saturday, Nov. 22 through Sunday, Nov. 23. Students in the class had divided themselves into four delegations: The Blue Bird Delegation; The Dropouts Delegation; The Fiat Lux Delegation; and the Procrasti-Nation Delegation. Each delegation had elected its own leader, and Associate Professor of Criminal Justice Michele Lowry served as Governor to welcome the delegates and encourage a lively session ("May your debates be vigorous, your deliberations thoughtful, and your experience enriching," she wrote in welcoming the delegates.).

Saturday's session lasted from 9 am to 4 pm, while Sunday's session ended at 3 pm. The seven-hour session Saturday was "exhausting," recalls senior Alex Beaird, a marketing major with a minor in political science, who proposed a bill calling for a two-percent increase in the state sales tax on gasoline and smoking tobacco. Alex argued his bill would raise a significant amount of state tax revenue. "I wanted to nickel and dime down the cost of state government," he says. The bill passed.

So did Colin Jacques's proposal. In general, students over the years have been supportive of each other's proposals, although there are always one or two pieces of legislation that generate a dust-up. This year, a bill decriminalizing the act of jaywalking was voted down after vigorous debate.

The two-day legislative session covered a wide array of proposals, ranging from tougher sentencing requirements for convicted sex offenders to legalizing the medical use of psilocybin mushrooms, to requiring financial literacy courses in New York's high schools.

Additionally, students' legislative packages included a copy of New York State's constitution and a guide to parliamentary procedures, a condensed version of Roberts Rules of Order.

Looking back on the two-day session, Alex Beaird described it as a positive exercise and a good learning experience. He has been educating himself in the complexities of local politics, even attending meetings of the Alfred Village Board of Trustees. "I'm learning about how the money is spent,' he says.