Whereas, the ASUCI Code of Ethics "establishes a conduct agreement for all employees, officers, and representatives of the Associated Students of the University of California, Irvine, and will be upheld by both its membership and by all formal authorities who are responsible for reviewing conduct violations in the organization,”

Whereas, the current Code of Ethics fails to address online conduct,

Whereas, section III of the ASUCI Code of Ethics outlines the values that officers of ASUCI are expected to uphold,

Whereas, section III (Values) reads:

"Officers of ASUCI have a duty to behave in a courteous and ethical manner at all times. As such, they shall set an example of the highest caliber for those who work with them.

To promote these behaviors within the student body, ASUCI and its officers shall use principles of honesty, integrity, respect, commitment, and service as a personal and professional guide.

HONESTY

- Honor our personal obligation to be sincere and forthright by dealing fairly and truthfully with others

INTEGRITY

• -  Maintain our beliefs and values despite changing circumstances and challenging environments

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• -  Respect our reputation and that of the Associated Students by avoiding unethical behaviors and the circumstances that encourage them

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RESPECT

• -  Embrace the diverse perspectives and accomplishments of others, knowing that it is the personal and cultural variations among people that enrich us individually and as a society

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• -  Take pride in our university by protecting our facilities and their surroundings

COMMITMENT

• -  Maintain the highest standards of performance, conduct, and cooperation with our fellow students, faculty, staff, and co-workers

• -  Perform our duties with due diligence and make a continuous effort towards improvement

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SERVICE

-  Make advocacy and representation for the interests of the student body our highest priority

-  Recognize that the ability to represent the student body is a privilege and our first responsibility is to further the interests of our constituents"

Whereas, the sanctions for not complying with the ASUCI Code of Ethics read,  "Officers who are found to be in violation of this Code of Ethics are subject to punitive sanctions as outlined in the ASUCI Constitution, Bylaws and Hiring Policies contained in the ASUCI Resource Manual"

Whereas, all ASUCI officers and their constituents are equal in value,

Whereas, the ASUCI Code of Ethics demands that "Public officials must also strive to act with integrity, high moral character, fairness and honesty in all of our dealings to maintain public trust, as even the appearance of impropriety jeopardizes our ability to serve our student population."

Let it therefore be resolved that the ASUCI Code of Ethics be amended to include the following clauses, inserted as the tenth clause in Section IV: Standards of Conduct, with the aforementioned sanctions still applying:

1. No officer of ASUCI shall engage in any form of electronic harassment or cyberbullying or anything falling into the "miscellaneous crimes" category under California law.

   1. Electronic harassment is defined as any type of hate speech, sexual remarks, or rumors, identity theft, false victimization, spread through the use of the internet, cell phones, or other electronic means.

      1. Ex.: Officers may not create fake posts under another student's (or students') account(s)

   2. “Harassment” means a knowing and willful course of conduct directed at a specific person that a reasonable person would consider as seriously alarming, seriously annoying, seriously tormenting, or seriously terrorizing the person and that serves no legitimate purpose. [California Penal Code, Part 1, Title 15, Chapter 2, Section C, Subsection 1]

   3. Libel is defined as the published purporting of information with the intent of upsetting another person; written defamation.

   4. Slander is defined as the spoken purporting of information with the intent of upsetting another person; spoken defamation.

2. Officers of ASUCI are encouraged to avoid disparaging remarks, libel and slander.

   1. Libel is defined as the published purporting of information with the intent of upsetting another person; written defamation.

   2. Slander is defined as the spoken purporting of information with the intent of upsetting another person; spoken defamation.