Campus
Senators at the Wed., Jan. 13 Associated Students Senate meeting passed A Bill to Amend the Legal Code of the Office of the Student Advocate (OSA) with a vote of 23-0-0. The bill will allow the Student Advocate General, fourth year art and global studies major Joseline Garcia, to create new positions for community organizing in the office. Numerous students supported the cause, citing that it would help them better serve the student community.
The University of California received a record 206,339 freshman and transfer applications for the Fall 2016 term, the Associated Press reported Monday. While all nine campuses saw an influx, UCLA received more than half of the total submissions, which represent a 6.4 percent increase systemwide since last winter and the UC’s twelfth consecutive year breaking its own applicant record. The UC plans to enroll 5,000 more students this fall than it did leading into the current academic year.
Gov. Jerry Brown’s $170 billion budget proposal, in effect starting July 1, 2016, will include a $125 million increase to the University of California’s general fund, according to San Jose Mercury News. An additional $171 million from the state’s “rainy day fund” will go toward reducing the UC’s steep unfunded pension liabilities. The UC, CSUs and California community colleges will each receive a one-time subsidy for maintenance, and tuition across the board will likely remain flat this fall.
Isla Vista
On Mon., Jan. 11, the Instagram account of Giovanni’s Pizza in IV posted a picture of the owner purportedly announcing the closing of his business in three days due to a leasing dispute. Part of the caption read, “Let’s make the next 3 nights amazing!” Customers swarmed into the business for the following days, with a party serving as the culmination on Thurs., Jan. 14. A post on the UCSB subreddit mentioned rumors that the business was not closing, and that it will reopen under different management.
Members from the California Highway Patrol, Santa Barbara County, IV Foot Patrol, the Recreation and Parks District, UCSB and IV community held the IV Downtown Business Association (IVDBA) meeting on Thurs., Jan. 7 to discuss traffic flow in IV — specifically Pardall Rd. and its intersections. Talking points included the possibility of roundabouts, lights and bridges for bikes, according to notes taken by Jay Freeman, Vice President of the IVDBA. Overall, education to incoming freshmen and current students was given major emphasis to reduce bike accidents in IV.
National
Floods and mudslides appeared throughout the drought-ridden Southern California region — including Goleta and Santa Barbara — after several days of heavy rain caused by the El Niño weather phenomenon. The 101 Freeway saw partial northbound lane closures at the State Beaches offramp in Ventura when earth from adjacent hills, scorched by the Christmas Day wildfire that burned 1,200 acres, slid onto the road as a result of the downpour, according to The Los Angeles Times. Since the start of September, downtown Santa Barbara has received more than four inches of rain, with the county-wide rainfall rate at about 85 percent of normal, reports the Santa Barbara Independent