The student senate convened on Wednesday and approved a bill clarifying the obligations of Irish Gardens and other student union businesses to the senate and student union Financial Management Board.
The bill, titled “An Order to Amend the Constitution Regarding Student Union Businesses,” spelled out the responsibilities of the bouquet business in the basement of LaFortune Student Center.
“This process began at the end of the last term — so in spring — and there have been many meetings, many long debates and conversations about what this should look like,” student union parliamentarian Sam Robinson told the senate. “We’ve tried to make this a very collaborative thing between Irish Gardens, the Financial Management Board and the rest of the student union to ensure that no one feels as though their toes are being stepped on.”
Irish Gardens exists as a “student union business,” according to Robinson, meaning the two have a give-and-take relationship under the constitution, wherein Irish Gardens contributes a portion of its net profits to the student union, and the senate corrects any debts Irish Gardens may accumulate over the course of a fiscal year. This meant Irish Gardens was technically part of the student body; however, the two bodies had been operating separately for several years. This meant the student union was not supporting the group, and a portion of Irish Garden’s net profits was not being transferred to the student union’s carry-forward account.
“Right now, we just don't think it's really fair to them as they're working really hard to grow their business. They want to use those profits for growth. We think it would be fair for them to keep a portion of their profits,“ Robinson said. “The only thing that’s going to change is they will now be contributing to the student union, because for the last five years, they’ve been operating totally separately.”
In the spring of 2025, the student senate passed SO2526-08, which temporarily suspended Irish Garden’s obligations to the senate while the body could draft new legislation to clarify these responsibilities. This resulted in Wednesday’s legislation, which amends the “operational guidelines” and “financial obligations of Irish Gardens as a Student Union Business.”
Among other provisions, it amends the constitution to state that “any net profits, made in that year only, shall be transferred to the student union carry-forward account at the end of the fiscal year in alignment with the policies set forth by the Financial Management Board,” departing from the original phrasing by excluding the phrase “in that year only,” and clarifying the Financial Management Board as the body tasked with setting such policy.
It also adjusts the nomination deadline for student business managers from March 1 to April 1 of any given year, allowing Irish Gardens to operate more effectively in the weeks surrounding Valentine’s Day, which is “their busiest season” according to student union treasurer Kelsey Casella, and “aligns better with their business model.“
Several senators had questions regarding the legislation and operations of Irish Gardens. Junior class council president Aleah Applin inquired about the specific wording of “any net profits,” wondering whether Irish Gardens would be able to retain a portion of its profits. Robinson clarified the wording surrounding the legislation.
“That final clause … that has that ‘any net profit’ language — that is meant to restrict the Financial Management Board from taking retroactive action against the savings that Irish Gardens currently has,” Robinson said. “That clause is not meant to take all of the net profits. What it’s meant to do, in the case that Irish Gardens has savings from last year, is clarify that the Financial Management Board cannot vote to take those savings that happened last year and put them into the carry-forward account.”
Other senators in the room were curious about how Irish Gardens was spending its profits. Tess Brennan, manager of the Irish Gardens, told the senate the business intended to use the profits to expand its operations and improve its services for students.
“We have a lot of areas of growth in mind, so we’re not just going to be keeping the cash and collecting it. We’re going to give it back to the community,” she said. “Our biggest area that we’re looking into is collaborations with Campus Ministry, providing funeral flowers, Easter flowers, wedding flowers and more.
Brennan said Irish Gardens sought to expand to Holy Cross College, offer new products and connect with more residence hall events like SYRs or formals.
After questioning, the senate moved to a vote on the bill, which passed decisively. After SO2526-11 was approved, the senate also voted on SO2526-12, which would make the student union historian a non-voting member of the body. It passed unanimously, without debate or questioning. With its passage, the session adjourned.
