The Student Government Association (SGA) voted to recognize a resolution to support both the New Jersey State Assembly Bill No. 2762 and the New Jersey State Senate Bill No. 1866, which call for the amendment of the drug free school zone law within the state of New Jersey at the Oct. 28 meeting.

The resolution, written by senator At-Large Kevin Schroeck, senior criminology major, passed by majority vote after a brief, but intense discussion on whether it is the SGA’s responsibility to support bills of this nature.

“We have talked to (director of Advancement) Stacy Schuster from external affairs about this bill,” said SGA Vice President Brianne Stratton.

“This bill cornered concern from the administration and it might be borderline not the responsibility of the SGA to support this bill as it goes to the state,” she said.

Essentially, both bills presented in the state Assembly and the state Senate were created to alleviate the sentencing by giving courts the ability to waive or reduce the minimum term of parole eligibility for offenders or place them on probation, as well as give judges the ability to order drug treatment in lieu of imprisonment.

Despite the bill’s significance for the College campus’s state policies, SGA President Billy Plastine vetoed the bill. Senators overrode the veto and voted again in order to ensure its passage.

“This is such an important bill for our campus,” said Vice President of Legal and Governmental Affairs Olaniyi Solebo, sophomore political science major, “I am definitely in support of it.”

The SGA recognized STAND, a lobbying group for anti-genocide legislation in Darfur, Burma, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Club representative Senator of Culture and Society Chris Morris, sophomore political science major, said the group “is part of the anti-genocide coalition and lobbies for legislation which includes money for relief.”