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San Antonio celebrates a night of art at Luminaria pg 6
Independent Student Newspaper for the University of Texas at San Antonio
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Two members of a suspended UTSA fraternity have been charged with hazing in connection with partial nudity, drinking “questionable” liquids and skin burning that required medical treatment.
{Texas} A UT/Texas Tribune poll found that respondents would favor incumbent Rick Perry to hypothetical challenger Greg Abbott in a gubanatorial primary by a 3-1 margin.
{Nation}
Twelve former FAMU students now face manslaughter charges from the Novebmber 2011 hazing death of Drum Major Robert Chapman Jr.
{World}
Fighting in Syria spilled into western Iraq, resulting in the death of 48 Syrians and 9 Iraqi soldiers.
{History} This week in 1996, UTSA’s softball team was ranked by USA Today as one of the top 25 teams in the country for the first time in program history.
{Science} Initial reports suggest that a Mississippi baby born with HIV may have been cured of the disease under the care of doctors at the University of Mississippi.
UTSA will take on Utah State on Saturday, March 7. The men play the Aggies at 6 p.m. in Logan at 8:05 p.m., while the women play in the Convocation Center with a 6:00 p.m. tipoff.
Issue 8
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Student Government Elections are March 5 and 6. See why candidates for the Executive Board think you should consider them when you vote on ASAP. Pages 2-3
‘Legalize marijuana,’ SGA says to Legislature Resolution asks that increased tax revenue be used to offset cuts to higher education Matthew Duarte News Editor
news@paisano-online.com On Feb. 21, UTSA Student Government Association (SGA) passed a resolution calling on the Texas Legislature to legalize marijuana and use the subsequent tax revenue to offset spending cuts made to higher education. “Marijuana legalization is picking up a lot of steam,” said COLFA Senator Jacob Lostoski, who authored the bill. “Nineteen states and D.C. have legalized marijuana for medical use. These are numbers that, 20 years ago, would be nonexistent,” Lostoki told The Paisano. According to the Texas Tribune, the National Organization to Reform Marijuana Laws (NORML) contended that decriminalization of marijuana in Texas would save the state $750 million per year, while also saving 50,000 people from having an arrest on their criminal record. Proposals in the Legislature to lessen the penalties for marijuana possession include a recent bill by Rep. Harold Dutton (DHouston), who introduced HB 184 on Feb. 6. The bill would reclassify possession of up to one ounce of marijuana as a Class C misdemeanor, which would mean that individuals caught carrying small amounts of marijuana would no longer face up to 180 days in prison. While six states have legalized marijuana for medical purposes, Colorado and Washington became the first to legalize it for recreational use. Despite the legalization and decriminalization in many different states, it remains classified as a Schedule I drug under federal law—thus, it is still a federal crime to posses or sell the drug. On Feb. 26, Attorney General Eric Holder announced that the Justice Department is review-
ing the federal response to state laws that legalize marijuana. “We are, I think, in our last stages of that review and are trying to make a determination as to what the policy ramifications are going to be—what our international obligations are. There are a whole variety of things that go into this determination,” Holder said, according to Politico. The SGA resolution stated that former Attorney General Jocelyn Elders has expressed support for marijuana legalization. SGA’s resolution also noted that, while 1,200 people in the U.S. die each year from tobacco use, there is no evidence to support the notion that marijuana use is fatal. “People should have the right to use marijuana if they choose to because they’re not harming anyone else, and a lot of evidence suggests that they’re really not doing any major harm to themselves either,” Lostoski said. The resolution does not solely focus on marijuana, as Lostoski noted. “We are also offering a solution to help fund our schools and get us closer to the funding that we need if we want to become Tier One,” Lostoski said. From fiscal year 2010-2011 through fiscal year 2012-2013, Texas cut funding to UTSA from $281 million to $260 million, despite the increased student enrollment. SGA’s resolution anticipates funding for UTSA to drop by 10 percent in 2014. Compounding the problem of decreased state funding, said Lostoski, is the Hazelwood Act, which “requires state universities and colleges to cover tuition and mandatory fees for up to 150 credit hours for qualified veterans,” according to the San Antonio Express-News. The program has gained popularity since it was expanded by the Legislature in 2009 to allow those who qual-
ify to transfer their credit hours to a dependent younger than 25. Since 2009, UTSA has gone from waiving $1.5 million in fees linked to the Hazelwood Act to $7.6 million, according to the Express-News. That number is expected to top $8 million next year, Lostoski stated. According to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, more than $110 million in fees were waived by universities across the state in 2012 as a result of the Hazelwood Act. Because the Legislature does not provide relief to universities for fees waived under the Hazelwood Act, many lawmakers have begun to call it an “unfunded mandate,” according to the Express-News. The SGA resolution contended that, according to a recent Gallup poll, 62 percent of 18 to 29-year-olds favor marijuana legalization. However, although the national numbers seem to indicate that the Legislature may eventually hear a marijuana bill—that same Gallup poll found that 50 percent of respondents favor legalization, an increase from 23 percent in 1985—gaining support in Texas could be an unlikely prospect. According to a 2011 Texas Lyceum poll, just 33 percent of residents in the Lone Star State favored legalizing marijuana. However, Lostoski is confident that the momentum in the national polls will continue to grow. “As the facts are getting out there, and as we’ve studied marijuana more, we’ve learned more about it. And as the public learns, as well, I think popular support will only increase,” Lostoski said. Although it carries no legal weight, the resolution will be presented by SGA to members of the Texas Legislature in the coming weeks. All resolutions passed by SGA represent the stance of the entire student body.
President Barack Obama signs into law the Budget Control Act of 2011, which required Congress to cut $16 trillion over 10 years or face the automatic spending cuts known as the sequester.
Economy to suffer as Congress fails to prevent sequester David Glickman News Assistant
news@paisano-online.com On March 1, President Obama signed into law $85 billion dollars in federal budget cuts for the current fiscal year. The cuts, known as the sequester, are part of a provision created in the 2011 debt ceiling deal. Due to the inability of Congress to agree on how $16 trillion in cuts over the next 10 years would take shape, the sequester went into automatic effect, with half the cuts to the military and half to domestic programs. President Obama, in a press conference on March 1, referred to the cuts as “dumb” and “arbitrary.” He blamed Republicans for the sequester, saying, “They’ve allowed these cuts to happen, because they refused to budge on closing a single wasteful loophole to help reduce the deficit.” On “Meet the Press” on Sunday, March 3, Speaker of the House John Boehner countered this argument saying “Over the last 10 months, House Republicans have acted twice to replace the sequester… we’ve known about this for 16 months. And yet even today, there’s no plan from Senate Democrats or the White House to replace the sequester.” For months, economists have been warning of the negative effects the sequester would bring should it go into effect. While they do not think it will trigger a second recession, there are concerns that it will slow the econ-
omy further. As Henry Aaron, senior fellow of economic studies at the Brookings Institution, said, “[The sequester is] pushing policy in exactly the wrong direction. At a time when the economy still needs a stimulus to promote recovery rather than restrictive policies to prevent overheating.” Jared Bernstein, senior fellow at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, said, “If the sequester takes affect and stays in effect for the year, I suspect it will lower real GDP growth by .5 percent points and lead to the loss of between 500,000 and 700,000 jobs. No, I don’t think it will lead to a recession, I just think it will lead to slower growth than would otherwise be.” Texas and San Antonio are expected to be affected by the sequester due to the large military presence. As the San Antonio Express-News reported, at least 5,000 military personnel will lose their jobs, and furlough days for those at Joint Base San Antonio already being cut. KENS 5 reported that Texas’ military could lose as much as $1.7 billion dollars by October, and the 80,000 unemployed Texans could see their benefits drop in the coming months as well. Currently, no new bills have been proposed to manage or change the effects of the sequester. The cuts are expected to affect the national parks, social security, jobs in both the military and public sector and in several other areas, according to the New York Times.
Immigration reform has significant impact on Texas economy, students Beth Marshall Contributing Writer
news@paisano-online.com
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March 5, 2013
Pete Souza/The White House
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Volume 48
In the debate over the issue of undocumented immigration in Texas, state legislators are exploring solutions such as increasing border patrol and delaying the amnesty process for illegal applicants. San Antonio Congressman Pete Gallego said, “Most people don’t really care where the idea comes from. They want action, they want something to happen, and they’re tired of the prolonged conversation,” according to the Houston Chronicle. Federal immigration poli-
cies have already been debated and adjusted several times. The most recent “fix” was the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. The act’s purpose was to provide undocumented immigrants with the opportunity to apply for citizenship. To obtain this status, the applicant required a clean criminal record, knowledge of American history and the English language and proof of U.S. residency since Jan. 1, 1982. Economic concerns are always present when debating illegal immigration. The San Antonio Express-News asserted, based on data compiled by the Center for Migration Studies
of New York, that “the number of undocumented immigrants entering Texas has plummeted to its lowest point in more than two decades thanks to the nation’s wounded economy and beefed-up border security.” As of 2010, illegal immigrants make up about 6.7 percent of the population of Texas, according to the Pew Hispanic Research Center. This number not only affects the economy, but also public education. Paying tuition to go to a public college is a standard, and students who are Texas residents pay ‘in-state’ tuition prices. While students coming from other states or countries can
pay double this price or more, tuition and fees for an in-state UTSA student is about $8,400 for 2012-2013. Out-of-state and international students are expected to pay approximately $16,500 in tuition and fees. As tuition for a college education increases, financial aid increases in importance as well. According to the Dallas News, “Nearly 2,500 students who are in the country illegally received more than $9.5 million in-state higher education grants in fiscal year 2010.” The Dallas News also noted that “there were 16,476 illegal immigrant students paying resident tuition rates, meaning more than one in seven get state
financial aid as well.” This affects the aid that in-state residents receive, as well as how much aid other U.S. citizens can receive. State Rep. Bill Zedler (R-Arlington) said that “for every dollar we give to someone who is here illegally, that’s a dollar less that we’re giving to someone who’s here legally.” Currently, the House of Representatives is working on a bipartisan bill that would allow undocumented immigrants to stay in the U.S. as long as they have a clean criminal record. In addition, undocumented immigrants must pay certain tax penalties to gain full citizenship.