Other council members disagreed, saying that such an amendment would weaken student position on the Ad Board and go against the intent of the bill.

“We want to make this an integral part of the Ad Board,” Andrew C. Stillman ’06 said. “We want them to be taken just as seriously as Faculty.”

The council also passed two grants packages that included nearly $10,000 worth of funding to students groups.

After deciding on the grant packages, Ad Board bill and the referendum, over a dozen council members left the meeting that was running later than expected. The meeting had started at 7:30 p.m. and was slated to end at 10 p.m. according to an e-mail prior to the meeting. But at 10 p.m., the council had yet to tackle the Green Grants Bill. The proposed legislation would provide a monetary incentive for student groups that promote environmental sustainability through their activities.

“[The bill will] help our student groups become more aware of their impact,” said co-sponsor Teo P. Nicolais ’06.

The 10 p.m. exodus left some council members wondering if the council met quorum of 26 members, which is necessary to conduct business.

“This is the most ridiculous thing ever,” said Jason L. Lurie ’05 after he and Mahan, who was chairing the meeting, differed in the number of individuals they counted in the room.

Lurie contested Mahan’s ruling that quorum was reached, though the requisite 26 members were in the room.

The council continued to be plagued with calls for “quorum” throughout the remaining 30 minutes of debate on the Green Grants Bill, though a quorum was always present. Eventually, Mahan ended the meeting at 10:45 p.m., after only 24 members were remaining.

At one point during the meeting, Lurie and council member Joseph R. Oliveri ’05 left the room and refused to be counted for quorum in an apparent protest.

Lurie’s behavior, which caused a significant disruption in the meeting and caused Mahan to exit the room momentarily, was called “unbelievable” by some council members.

Council members motioned to censure Lurie for his conduct, but the issue was never voted on.

While debate was going on, Jason D. Park ’05 spoke against the Green Grants Bill. He said the bill goes against the structure of the council and could overfund certain student groups—some of which already may receive full funding—at the expense of others.

“The bill proposes to take $750 away from groups that aren’t getting funded,” said Park, who is also a Crimson editor. “If the termbill argument is valid then we don’t have any kind of extra money to be giving away.”

—Staff writer Jeffrey C. Aguero can be reached at aguero@fas.harvard.edu.