KWB Omnibus

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I was bored and for some reason my boredom leads towards productivity, so I wrote a complete redraft of all laws that I consider relevant, based for the most part on the law index that I provided within my initial draft Charter.

I am not saying that this proposed omnibus should be taken as a final form, or frankly that it should be given any consideration at all if it proves not to be well liked, but I figured that, having finished it, I should share it so that others may give their thoughts.

That being here, and emphasising yet again that I still think that a significantly reduced government would have been more interesting as far as future governance goes, even at the expense of activity within the Great Council, I present the Kringle Was Bored (KWB) Omnibus.

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Charter of the South Pacific CHARTER OF THE SOUTH PACIFIC

The Coalition of the South Pacific, representing the nations within its diverse community, convenes to establish a fundamental law for the region, to uphold democratic principles and individual rights, and to provide for the security and welfare of the community.

1. Supremacy and Sovereignty

(1) The Charter is the highest law of the region and holds supremacy over all other laws and regulations.

(2) The Coalition holds sole sovereignty over the South Pacific and it cannot be dissolved, nor can its nature or structure be altered other than through the process provided by this Charter.

2. Rights and Freedoms

(1) Members of the South Pacific, who have joined the region in good faith, are guaranteed the following rights in all matters except the reasonable enforcement of moderation rules under Article 9, Section 2:

  1. To freedom of expression, of association, and of the press.
  2. To petition government officials and receive prompt and adequate response.
  3. To reside in the region and use its offsite venues without arbitrary ejection or ban.
  4. To not be subject to bills of attainder or ex post facto laws.
  5. To vote and hold public office, subject to reasonable restrictions prescribed by law.

(2) Members are guaranteed the exercise of any rights not listed in this section without being subject to arbitrary restrictions.

3. The Assembly

(1) The Assembly is the supreme legislative authority of the Coalition and has the sole power to amend this Charter, pass laws on all matters of regional interest, pass treaties and declarations of war, recall government officials, and establish further regulations to conduct its proceedings.

(2) The Assembly passes amendments to this Charter with a three-fifths majority, and all other measures with a simple majority, of all valid votes cast, excluding abstentions, subject to all other regulations prescribed by law.

(3) The Assembly elects a presiding officer from among its own to maintain civility, guide legislative debate, administer the legislative process, represent its institutional interests, and perform other functions prescribed by law.

(4) The Assembly consists of all voters admitted by its presiding officer who meet and continue to meet all the qualifications prescribed by law.

4. The Delegate

(1) The Delegate is the head of state and ceremonial leader of the Coalition, elected for a term of six months in a manner prescribed by law to promote regional unity and values, uphold regional security, and perform those tasks that due to game mechanics cannot be performed by others.

(2) The Delegate, who has been lawfully elected or who lawfully succeeded to the office, is the sole nation allowed to hold the seat of World Assembly Delegate.

(3) The Delegate casts votes on proposals and all other measures before the World Assembly as directed by the Prime Minister or, in the absence of any such direction, as prescribed by law.

5. The Executive

(1) The Prime Minister is the head of government, elected for a term of three months in a manner prescribed by law to set, direct, and implement policy related to foreign affairs, defence, community development, and all other areas related to the regional growth and interests.

(2) The Prime Minister may appoint ministers with the approval of the Assembly to assist with the formulation and implementation of executive policy, and they hold their office for the duration of the executive term and at the pleasure of the Prime Minister.

(3) The Prime Minister may issue further regulations to facilitate the conduction of executive affairs.

(4) The Prime Minister may issue regulations to address immediate and pressing issues arising from ambiguities or gaps in the law, but such regulations will be reversed if the Assembly does not ratify them within a week of their issuance.

6. The Judiciary

(1) The High Court is the supreme judicial authority of the Coalition and has the sole power to perform the following functions:

  1. To interpret, reconcile, and void laws and regulations upon the determination that they conflict with a higher law.
  2. To review and overturn decisions by government institutions upon the determination that they conflict with higher laws and regulations.
  3. To conduct criminal proceedings and render sentencing for the commission of crimes.

(2) The Court may issue further regulations to conduct its proceedings.

(3) The Court consists of judges appointed by the Prime Minister with the approval of the Assembly.

7. Regional Security

(1) The Security Council conducts oversight over regional security, establishes and enforces an appropriate cap on endorsements, and establishes a line of succession to the delegacy.

(2) The Council may declare a state of emergency in the event of a coup d’état or invasion and during that time it may take all measures necessary to defeat the coup d’état or invasion, other than impeding the business of the Assembly.

(3) The Council consists of members appointed by the Council itself with the approval of the Assembly, and the Council may by simple majority suspend any of its own from the exercise of their functions upon the conclusion that they constitute a threat to regional security.

8. Accountability

(1) Officials elected by the people or appointed with the approval of the Assembly must be voters who have never participated to any degree in a coup d’état or invasion against the Coalition. Officials in breach of this section automatically lose their office.

(2) Officials may be recalled by the Assembly on grounds of dereliction of duty, abuse of power, or violations of the law, but the effect of recall extends only to removal from office.

(3) Officials hold their office until the expiration of their term or dismissal, if applicable, or otherwise until recall, resignation, or loss of qualifications.

9. Administration

(1) Administrators are responsible for the technical maintenance of all regional offsite venues and the moderation of all regional onsite and offsite venues.

(2) Administrators have autonomy to perform their duties, issue administration and moderation rules, and manage the composition of their own membership and their support staff, but new administrators must obtain the approval of the Assembly.

(3) Changes to administration and moderation rules, and appointments of administrators and moderators, must be publicly announced and made available for comments for a period of seven days before they may take effect.


Voting Act VOTING ACT An act to regulate the registration of voters and the conduction of elections.

1. General Provisions

(1) This law considers the following terms:

  1. Voter - a member who passes a security check and who continues to meet all relevant qualifications.
  2. Instant-Runoff Vote - a system where votes are cast by ranking some or all candidates in descending order of preference, and ties are resolved by considering lower orders of preference or, when those are exhausted, by the flip of a coin.
  3. Regional Poll - a vote conducted using the regional poll functionality, limited to Native World Assembly Residents, without detriment the casting of private ballots, where ties are resolved by the flip of a coin.

2. Voter Registration

(1) Members of the South Pacific who wish to exercise their right to vote or run for office must pass a security check where they show that they:

  1. Have a World Assembly Nation in the South Pacific or in use for other purposes under the direction of the Security Council or the Prime Minister.
  2. Join in good faith and with no ill intent toward the Coalition, provided that repeated removals due to inactivity may be held as evidence of bad faith.
  3. Have never participated in a coup d’état or invasion against the Coalition, successful or otherwise.

(2) Voters retain their status until resignation or removal by the appropriate authority, the latter upon the determination that the voter:

  1. Failed to cast a vote in the most recent election, provided that such review must take place no later than seven days after the end of said election and for that purpose the official who administered the election must provide a list of voters who cast votes.
  2. No longer meets the qualifications prescribed in Article 2, Section 1, provided that no unlawful expulsion from the region may be used to support a conclusion of failure to meet the qualifications.
  3. Has been declared a persona non grata pursuant to Article 4, Section 1 of the Regional Security Act.

3. Authority

(1) The Security Council appoints no more than four voters with the approval of the Assembly to conduct security checks, monitor the qualifications of voters, and remove voters pursuant to Article 2, Section 2, but the Council retains final authority on all decisions pertaining to the admission and removal of voters.

(2) The Council appoints a voter to administer elections, oversee the casting and tallying of votes, and resolve any disputes that may arise, and their decisions are final unless otherwise appealed to the High Court, but such voter may not be a candidate in the election that they administer.

(3) Officials appointed by the Security Council pursuant to this law hold their office until dismissal by the Security Council or otherwise pursuant to Article 9 of the Charter.

4. Elections Procedures

(1) Elections consist of a period of four days reserved for declarations of candidacy and one or more periods, each of three days, reserved for voting.

(2) Voting is conducted under instant-runoff vote, unless otherwise prescribed by law, and voters must have the option to cast public or private ballots, provided that private ballots must be kept for archival and their contents cannot be disclosed in such a manner that the voter who cast them can be identified.

(3) Voters may only vote and run for office in elections that started after they became voters. Voters who run for Delegate must additionally have a number of endorsements no less than 80% of the general endorsement cap, rounded to the nearest integer, by the start of the first round of voting.

(4) Elections for the Delegate begin on the first of every February and August and consist of two rounds of voting where the two candidates, or more in the event of a tie, who obtain the highest number of properly distributed preferences in the first round advance to a second round held via regional poll where the winner is the candidate who obtains a simple majority of the vote.

(5) Elections for the Prime Minister begin on the first of every February, May, August, and November and consist of a single round of voting where the winner is the candidate who obtains a simple majority of properly distributed preferences.

(6) Vacancies of the Delegate are filled with an election held no later than seven days after the vacancy occurs, but where less than half the term remains no election is held and the lawful successor under the line of succession serves the remainder of the term.

(7) Vacancies of the Prime Minister are filled with an election held no later than seven days after the vacancy occurs, but where less than half the term remains the election held replaces the next regular election.


Defence Act DEFENCE ACT An act to regulate the registration of voters and the conduction of elections.

1. General Provisions

(1) This law considers the following terms:

  1. Minister - the minister appointed by the Prime Minister to oversee the portfolio related to defence and military policy.
  2. Offensive Operation - any operation whose effect, intended or not, is the attack, destruction, vandalisation, subjugation, or colonisation of a region.
  3. Hostile Act - any action that has a clear detrimental effect over the Coalition or its interests, or rhetoric that can be reasonably read as inciting the commission of hostile acts.

2. Regional Military

(1) The Prime Minister is the commander-in-chief of the Special Forces of the South Pacific and exercises civilian command and control over it.

(2) The Prime Minister is responsible for the proper recruitment, training, maintenance, and overall functioning of the Special Forces in accordance with its scope of mission and regional interests, and may issue regulations and orders to ensure the conduction of those functions.

(3) The Minister, if appointed, may act in the name of the Prime Minister for all purposes of this law, but the Prime Minister retains final authority on all decisions.

(4) Members of the Special Forces may not refuse the lawful orders issued by the Prime Minister, the Minister, or any superior officers, under penalties prescribed by law or regulation.

3. Scope of Mission

(1) The Special Forces protect the Coalition and its allies, as directed by civilian and military leadership.

(2) The Special Forces conduct their operations consistent with the objectives of protecting innocent regions from attack, and promoting legitimate, native, democratic institutions abroad.

(3) The Special Forces may not engage in offensive operations, except in cases where the Prime Minister directs such actions towards:

  1. Regions that espouse hateful ideologies.
  2. Regions against which the Coalition is in a state of war as declared by the Assembly.
  3. Regions that have committed hostile acts.

Regional Security Act REGIONAL SECURITY ACT An act to provide for the security of democratic governance in the region.

1. General Provisions

(1) This law considers the following terms:

  1. Hostile Act - any action that has a clear detrimental effect over the Coalition or its interests, or significant steps taken towards committing hostile acts, or rhetoric that can be reasonably read as inciting the commission of hostile acts.

2. Role of the Security Council

(1) The Security Council guarantees the security of the region in coordination with all other institutions of government as may be appropriate.

(2) The Council must establish, appoint, and regulate the operations of a body of trusted nations allowed access to a higher endorsement cap, and may appoint further officials to perform those functions that may be necessary to guarantee the security of the region.

(3) Officials appointed by the Security Council pursuant to this law must pass a security check no less stringent than that used for voter registrations, and hold their office until dismissal by the Security Council or otherwise pursuant to Article 9 of the Charter.

3. States of Emergency

(1) The Security Council may declare a state of emergency when a majority of its members consider that the Coalition is subject to a coup d’état or invasion.

(2) The Council may take all measures necessary to defeat the coup d’état or invasion, except any of the following:

  1. Suspend the rights and freedoms afforded to members of the South Pacific under Article 3 of the Charter, beyond what may be necessary to restore the legitimate government and maintain public order.
  2. Impede the convening and business of the Assembly, or the implementation of laws and measures lawfully passed by the Assembly.
  3. Usurp the functions of the Assembly as it relates to the passage and amendment of laws, and the functions of the High Court as it relates to the interpretation of laws and the conviction and sentencing of individuals for the commission of crimes.
  4. Revoke the registration of voters or legislators with the intent of artificially creating favourable majorities.

(3) The Council may end a state of emergency when a majority of its members consider that the Coalition is no longer subject to a coup d’état or invasion.

(4) The Assembly may end a state of emergency subject to the same standards that apply for the passage of amendments to the Charter.

(5) Measures taken during a state of emergency expire no later than seven days after its end unless they are ratified by the appropriate government institution within that time.

4. Personae non Gratae

(1) The Prime Minister or the Security Council may declare persona non grata any individual or organisation whom they consider to have committed hostile acts.

(2) The Prime Minister or the Security Council may revoke a declaration of persona non grata to any individual or organisation who, having once committed hostile acts, no longer constitutes a threat to the Coalition or its interests.

(3) Individuals who are declared persona non grata or who are members of an organisation declared persona non grata may be barred from having any presence in some or all venues under the jurisdiction of the Coalition, except those used to engage with the Administrators or the High Court.

(4) Declarations of persona non grata must be made in public and explain the causes that justify it, but the legitimate exercise of rights under the Charter may not be used as sole or conclusive evidence to justify any such declaration.

(5) Declarations of persona non grata may be appealed to the High Court only on grounds of failure to follow proper procedure or there being no rational basis for the declaration.


Gameside Powers Act GAMESIDE POWERS ACT An act to regulate the use of regional officer authorities.

1. General Provisions

(1) This law considers the following terms:

  1. Minister - any of the ministers appointed by the Prime Minister to oversee a portfolio.
  2. Election Commissioner - a voter appointed by the Security Council to administer elections pursuant to the Voting Act.
  3. Moderator - an official appointed by Administrators to enforce moderation rules pursuant to the Charter.
  4. Low Influence - an influence score in the South Pacific no higher than the maximum attainable score for a nation with no endorsements.

2. Regional Officers

(1) The Delegate holds all authorities available to them due to the nature of game mechanics.

(2) The Delegate assigns to all other officials regional officer positions with a combination of authorities as prescribed below:

  1. 1 position to the Prime Minister with all authorities other than border control.
  2. 3 or less positions to Ministers with any combination of authorities other than border control as directed by the Prime Minister.
  3. 1 position to the Election Commissioner with communications and polls authorities when needed to administer an election.
  4. 3 or less positions to Moderators with border control, appearance, and communications authorities.
  5. 3 or more positions to the Security Council with border control, appearance, and communications authorities.

(3) The Security Council may authorise and revoke the assignment of border control authority to other individuals.

(4) Officials may be dismissed as regional officer, notwithstanding Article 2, Section 2, for misusing their assigned authorities or otherwise engaging in behaviour unbecoming of their office by order of the Delegate or the institution or official who appointed them.

3. Appearance and Communications Authorities

(1) Officials may use appearance and communications authorities only in ways that are respectful, honest, restrained to a reasonable frequency of notifications, and neutral regarding political ideology or debate.

(2) Officials may not use appearance and communications authorities to engage in any of the following:

  1. Mislead the public.
  2. Criticise members of the South Pacific.
  3. Criticise the Coalition.
  4. Threaten the security of the Coalition or its allies.
  5. Influence an election, vote, or government proceeding for their benefit or that of others.

(3) The World Factbook Entry must always visibly contain a link to the regional forum and server, a link with information about the endorsement cap, and a request to endorse the Delegate.

(4) The Delegate may enact further guidelines, restrictions, and approval workflows to regulate the adequate use of appearance and communications authorities.

4. Border Control Authority

(1) Officials may only use border control authority when permitted by law or when needed to prevent an imminent coup d’état or invasion in the minutes leading up to a game update.

(2) Any use of border control authority must be immediately notified to the Security Council.

(3) The Security Council may order the ejection or ban of any nation that:

  1. Contributes to an imminent threat of deposing the Delegate, wherein the nation may be expelled for as long as may be necessary to become a low influence nation.
  2. Defiantly violates the endorsement cap, wherein the nation may be expelled for up to 24 hours.
  3. Is controlled by an individual whose other nations are already subject to an ejection or ban order, wherein the nation may be subject to the same order.

(4) Moderators may order and enforce the ejection or ban of any nation as fair and proportional penalty for violating moderation rules.

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Assembly Act ASSEMBLY ACT An act to regulate the composition and procedures of the Assembly.

1. General Provisions

(1) This law considers the following terms:

  1. Dean of the Assembly - the longest continuously serving legislator who is also eligible and willing to perform the functions assigned to them by this law.
  2. Approval Vote - a system where legislators may list all the candidates whom they approve in no particular order of preference, or alternatively cast a vote in abstention, and the winner is the candidate who receives the highest number of approvals.
  3. Minister - the minister appointed by the Prime Minister to oversee the portfolio related to foreign policy.

2. Legislator Registration

(1) Voters who wish to join the Assembly must petition the Chair for admission where they show that they are a registered voter and have no bad faith or ill intent toward the Assembly, provided that repeated removals due to inactivity may be held as evidence of bad faith.

(2) Legislators retain their status until resignation or removal by the Chair, the latter upon the determination that the legislator:

  1. Failed to cast a vote in at least half the votes that were held in the preceding session, or who did not vote at all if less than three votes were held in the preceding session.
  2. Breached decorum or through their behaviour impeded the orderly conduction of legislative proceedings.
  3. Has been removed from the rolls of voters pursuant to Article 2, Section 2 of the Voting Act.

(3) Voters may not appeal to the High Court a declined petition, but they may apply again if their circumstances have changed. Legislators may appeal to the High Court a removal on the grounds that proper procedure was not followed or that there was no rational basis for the removal.

3. The Chair of the Assembly

(1) The Chair is elected by the Assembly and holds their office until the election of a successor, loss of legislator status, or otherwise pursuant to Article 9 of the Charter.

(2) Elections for the Chair begin on the first of every February and August, or no later than seven days after a vacancy, and consist of a period of three days reserved for declarations of candidacy and a period of three days reserved for voting conducted under approval vote. In the event of a vacancy where less than one month remains in the term, the election held replaces the next regular election.

(3) The Dean of the Assembly opens the vote for the election of the Chair, listing all legislators who declared their candidacy within the allotted time, and proclaims the result of the vote, but the function of the Dean is ceremonial in nature and any matters of judgement must be referred to the consideration of the Assembly.

(4) The Chair is responsible for all matters related to the administration of the Assembly, including but not limited to the following:

  1. Process legislator registrations and remove legislators who resign or no longer meet the requisite qualifications.
  2. Maintain decorum and civility among legislators and sanction those who breach decorum.
  3. Conduct votes, certify their results, and record their legislative history.
  4. Maintain the archive of laws.
  5. Correct errors in orthography, grammar, and lack of uniform formatting without changing the meaning or intent of laws, and providing three days notice of any such corrections.

(5) The Chair may appoint officials to act in their name for all purposes of this law, but the Chair retains final authority on all decisions.

(6) The Chair may establish committees for express purposes, composed of no less than two legislators, and such committees should periodically report their work to the Assembly.

(7) In the event that the Chair and their appointed officials are unable or unwilling to perform their duties related to the administration of votes, the Dean of the Assembly or any willing legislator may perform those duties.

5. Legislative Procedure

(1) Legislators meet in two ceremonial sessions during the regular term of a Chair, each lasting three months, and at the start of each session the Chair addresses the Assembly on matters of institutional importance.

(2) Legislators may submit proposals to:

  1. Amend the Charter.
  2. Create, amend, or repeal laws or resolutions.
  3. Recall officials.
  4. Adopt any other measure related to matters of regional interest.

(2) The Prime Minister or the Minister have the sole right to submit proposals to adopt, amend, or repeal treaties and declarations of war with foreign regions and organisations.

(3) Proposals must, before they are brought to a vote, be debated for no less than three days, provided that the Chair may waive this requirement in cases urgency is required, and receive a motion and a second from separate legislators.

(4) Proposals that address the same matter, as determined by the Chair, that have both received a motion and a second, should be brought to a vote at the same time and the one with a higher percentage of affirmative votes, which also meets the threshold for passage, will be enacted.

(5) Proposals brought to a vote remain so for three days and are open only to legislators, subject to the provisions of Article 3, Section 2 of the Charter.


Judicial Act JUDICIAL ACT An act to regulate the composition and procedures of the High Court.

1. General Provisions

(1) This law considers the following terms:

  1. Legal Question - a question on the meaning of a law or the applicability of a law to a concrete or hypothetical situation, or the conformity of a decision by a government official with regional law.
  2. Criminal Complaint - a request that a member of the South Pacific be indicted of committing one or several of the crimes codified in the Criminal Code.

2. Judicial Appointments and Conduct

(1) The High Court consists of no less than three Associate Justices appointed by the Prime Minister in consultation with the Court and with the approval of the Assembly, who hold their office pursuant to Article 9 of the Charter.

(2) Justices must take an oath of confidentiality and impartiality upon their confirmation by the Assembly and before they may assume their office.

(3) Justices must conform in all matters to the following standards of conduct:

  1. Rule upon what is written in law and what can be reasonably interpreted from the surrounding context without being influenced by prejudice, personal bias, undue influence, corruption, or other matters unbecoming of a judge.
  2. Consider the impact of rulings so that, when possible, no individual is empowered to exploit said rulings and no ruling is unreasonably absurd to the expense of more logical or less disruptive outcomes.
  3. Refrain from opinion within rulings on the wisdom or desirability of political matters or making comments that could be reasonably read to constitute an intrusion of the Court on political affairs.
  4. Maintain cordial relations with their fellow Justices and with the broader regional community.
  5. Be reasonably inquisitorial and exercise professional scepticism.

3. The Chief Justice

(1) The Chief Justice is elected by the Court from among their own and holds their office at the pleasure of the Court or otherwise pursuant to Article 9 of the Charter.

(2) The Chief Justice is responsible for all matters related to the administration of the Court, including but not limited to the following:

  1. Process case submissions and lead the discussion on their admissibility.
  2. Maintain decorum in civility in all venues where the Court conducts its business.
  3. Maintain the archive of cases.
  4. Manage the rotation of case assignments to Justices.
  5. Order the recusal of Justices where their impartiality might be impacted.
  6. Represent the institutional interests of the Court.

(3) The Chief Justice holds seniority over their fellow Justices but may not exercise any authority beyond that which is granted by this law without the consent of the majority of the Court.

(4) In the event that the Chief Justice is unable or unwilling to perform their duties, the next available Associate Justice in descending order of confirmation may perform those duties.

4. Judicial Procedure

(1) The Court may consider legal questions and criminal complaints submitted by any member of the South Pacific, provided that such cases refer to a matter of law rather than a matter of political determination, and that they are not frivolous in nature.

(2) The Chief Justice assigns a Justice to preside over a case that has been admitted, and they will thereafter be responsible for all matters related to the management of the case including, but not limited to the following:

  1. Request information that they deem relevant to the case, provided that upon the concurrence of a second Justice such requests may be issued under penalty of contempt.
  2. Consider all the information that is available or that has been obtained over the course of the case and that may be relevant to it.
  3. Issue, with the concurrence of a second Justice, a decision, verdict, or sentence that adequately answers the question that was made to the Court.

(3) The Presiding Justice may issue, with the concurrence of a second Justice, an injunction to compel an individual or institution to do or refrain from doing something, when necessary for the orderly progression of a case or the maintenance of public order. An injunction may not involve any of the following:

  1. Have a duration longer than four weeks, unless extended subject to the same limitation.
  2. Unreasonably restrict the right guaranteed to members under Article 3 of the Charter or deprive individuals from the right to judicial recourse.
  3. Order an act that is not reversible.

(4) The Presiding Justice must promptly notify a party against whom a criminal complaint has been admitted and afford them no less than seven days to present a reasonable defence, but failure to provide a defence within the allotted time may not be used as grounds for appeal.

(5) The Presiding Justice issues a verdict of guilty only upon finding it substantially more likely than not that the indicted party committed the relevant crime, and thereafter issue a sentence proportional to the crime and the circumstances under which it was committed, if no appeal is pending, but interested parties must be given a reasonable time to communicate any mitigating or aggravating factors that may be relevant to the determination of the sentence.

(6) Members of the South Pacific may appeal decisions on legal questions and sentences wherein they are the convicted party, only on grounds of failure to follow proper procedure, contradictions of law, judicial misconduct, or the emergence of relevant new information, provided that the Presiding Justice may not participate in any such appeal.


Criminal Code CRIMINAL CODE An act to define the acts that constitute crimes within the Coalition and determine the adequate penalties for their commission.

1. Crimes

(1) The following constitute crimes when committed by a member of the South Pacific in any venue within or without the jurisdiction of the Coalition, when committed to its detriment or that of fellow members of the South Pacific:

  1. Treason - plotting against the Coalition, aiding any foreign region or organisation against which a state of war exists, or any individual or entity that has been declared persona non grata.
  2. Threatening Regional Security - attempting through plotting, actions or rhetoric to lower the endorsement count of the Delegate without the consent of the Security Council, or repeatedly and defiantly breaking the endorsement cap after receiving official warnings.
  3. Espionage - attempting to unlawfully obtain, or unlawfully distributing, information in violation of the Accountability Act.
  4. Organised Crime - committing a crime in association with others, or being involved in a group or association whose purpose, whether sole or incidental, is the commission of a crime.
  5. Voting Fraud - recruiting knowing or unknowing voters or legislators with the goal of manipulating the outcome of a vote for corrupt purposes, or participating in a group or association with the goal, whether sole or incidental, or manipulating the outcome of a vote with corrupt purposes.
  6. Corruption - misusing public office for private or personal advantage, or prompting public officials to misuse their office in return for providing undue support or for not revealing compromising, injurious, or defamatory information.
  7. Contempt of Government - obstructing the work of the Assembly or the High Court by preventing the orderly conduction of their proceedings, defying their lawful orders, submitting vexatious proposals or cases despite being warned, or otherwise preventing either institution from properly discharging their functions.
  8. Defamation - distributing false or grossly misleading information about an individual to one or several recipients, for the purpose of damaging the standing of that individual, with reckless disregard for its factual accuracy.

2. Sentences

(1) The sentence for treason is an immediate and permanent ban from all venues under the jurisdiction of the Coalition, except as necessary to engage with the High Court.

(2) The sentence for all other crimes is determined by the High Court, provided that the sentence must be proportional to the crime and consider any aggravating or mitigating circumstances that may be relevant.


Sunshine Act SUNSHINE ACT An act to provide for transparency and accountability in government.

1. General Provisions

(1) This law considers the following terms:

  1. Substantive Content - content created by a government institution or official that leads to a decision or substantive action or inaction by that institution or official beyond that has an effect beyond their inner working areas.
  2. Controlling Authority - the only official or institution who may authorise the disclosure of substantive content.

2. Controlling Authority

(1) The controlling authorities of substantive content originating in their corresponding institutions are as follows:

  1. The Chair of the Assembly.
  2. The High Court.
  3. The Security Council.
  4. The Prime Minister, for all substantive content that does not correspond to any of the above.

3. Disclosure of Substantive Content

(1) Substantive content must be generated on the offsite forum or, when it originates elsewhere, the controlling authority must ensure that it is quoted verbatim or reasonably summarised on the offsite forum.

(2) The controlling authority must take reasonable steps to ensure that only appropriate individuals, per their own estimation, have access to substantive content.

(3) The controlling authority must release for public archival substantive content no later than six months after its last active date, provided that deliberately keeping substantive content active to delay its release date may be contempt of government.

(4) The controlling authority may redact information or, only when strictly necessary, withhold its release, under the following circumstances:

  1. It refers to an ongoing matter or its disclosure may otherwise impact the discussion of an ongoing matter.
  2. Its disclosure may threaten the security of the Coalition or its allies.
  3. It contains diplomatic communications with foreign regions and organisations.
  4. It contains personally identifiable information.

(5) The controlling authority, when redacting information for public archival, must keep in its original location a copy of the unredacted substantive content.

(6) The provisions of this law notwithstanding, substantive content must be disclosed to the High Court if ordered pursuant to Article 4, Section 2A of the Judicial Act, but said substantive content may not be disclosed thereafter to third parties.

4

I still take objection with this particular section as mandating a minimum number of justices might result in someone unqualified being nominated and approved.

5

That’s the minimum practical number of members, since we need two for a case and one for any possible appeals.

6

It is also the current practice for the Court to vet any applicants for their qualifications. I don’t think anyone on the current Court would allow an unqualified individual onto the Court.

In the unlikely event that the PM overrode the Court’s concerns about competency, I am confident that the members of the Court would voice their concerns during the confirmation process.

7

Just a thought I had, who is in charge of changing the RMB rules when(and if) the LC is abolished?
The administrative team, or another body?

8

See below:

9

Ah, thank you.

10

I read through it, here are my comments:

The Delegate shouldn’t be involved in this! Imagine Hileville or Milograd being able to select their Security Council, using some rhetorical flourish to get their buddies in before their auto-coup. That’s a game-over, and kinda ironic given how often the KWB mentions coups. To be honest, I wouldn’t even want the Delegate to be on the Security Council (if a SecC member were to be elected Delegate, they’d be suspented from SecC for that duration).

This is numbered wrong, but more importantly, I think there’s a deeper point here I’m missing. Recall means disqualification? For all offices, or only that one? Compulsory or optional? Either I’m being an idiot (which is certainly possible) or this needs to be reworded because as it stands, I’m thoroughly confused.

This is already (kinda) in the Charter so somewhat redundant.

may revoke?

This is probably going to be an uphill battle but I’m very opposed to this as a blanket measure, for the same reasons I was opposed to doing so many full proscriptions under extant law. My thoughts on this can be found here.

If this were optional, I’d be fine with it.

…may not involve…

I appreciate that sentencing can’t be given immediately with the verdict.

What about Whistleblowers?

… must ensure that…

Now, having read through all of it: I think this is mostly very reasonable and inoffensive. It’s not perfect, but it does a lot of things right. I like Charter 1.2. I don’t like calling it the Security Council like the on-site SC. I like the definitions in the acts. I don’t like referring to other parts of law by number, but that’s a minor gripe that can be overlooked; the formatting is good. The Voter idea is interesting, not 100% sold on it yet but I like the principal idea.

I can see myself voting for it, if the whole Delegate appointing the SecC stuff is fixed (that is an instantly disqualifying criteria for any Charter, imho). Addressing a few of the other things would be nice, too, but those aren’t instant DQs for me.

11

I happen to agree, and I have adjusted the draft accordingly.

That is…different from how things have been done in the past. I think it’s an interesting idea and perhaps that’s something we could discuss?

This was meant to say that recalls could not extend beyond removal and disqualification, but in all honesty I didn’t give it much thought in terms of how that would happen in a real scenario. Is this something that would be reasonable to include, or would we prefer to keep recalls focused only on removal from office?

I think the mention in the Charter is only regarding elected or appointed officials, whereas the part you quoted refers to voters? Please correct me if I’m wrong.

Fixed.

What if it was adjusted to this?

Individuals who are declared persona non grata or who are members of an organisation declared persona non grata are barred from are may be barred from having a presence in any venue some or all venues under the jurisdiction of the Coalition, except as necessary for venues used to engage with the High Court or with Administrators.

Fixed.

This has been so rare, and the prospect of it being used in the future so unlikely, that I just didn’t bother to include it, particularly since I was looking to shorten and focus the Criminal Code on issues more likely to present themselves in the future (as much as that could be said, given that we don’t do trials often). I’m happy to have a discussion about this if you think one is worth having.

Fixed.

I’m open to suggestions. I’m not married to the name.

I…partly agree. I think it could be a hassle to keep up to date with future amendments, I’m just not sure what better way there would be to reference provisions in other laws or within the law.

Do you have any concerns or issues in particular about this?

12

Having finally read through all the proposed laws… I must say I really like them and find them sensible. The Dean of the Assembly made me smile a bit.

I also like that, aside from the Charter, these laws are a bit thicker. The intent is achieved that the Charter is barebones, and the laws flesh out much more detail as needed.

I hope to make a more in-depth read and mark-up later in the week, but overall, I am satisfied with these proposed laws.

13

The Dean of the Assembly is a nice idea. I believe that Kringle would in fact be the first Dean, after all, they are the longest continuously serving legislator.

15

Would he be? Interesting! I know there are still a couple of people that have continuously maintained legislator status since we introduced it, and were continuing citizens before that under the transition resolution of 2016.

That’s gonna be some digging!

16

I hope to offer more substantive comments once my real-life schedule clears out a bit, but some initial thoughts…

Perhaps this could be extended to include changes to the administration and moderation teams as well? An approval vote by the Assembly for administrators is probably sufficient, but administration and moderation doesn’t end at the Assembly and it seems reasonable to hold our administration and moderation team to the same standard as the rules they enforce.

Is there a particular reason for this? I’m curious as to whether past inactivity is an indicator of ill intent or if it’s just meant to discourage inactivity.

Meh… it seems the current vote suggests a general sentiment otherwise, but it’s been clear for a while now that you don’t share that sentiment :stuck_out_tongue:

I’m not necessarily opposed, but I am curious: is there a particular benefit you see in this system, or a drawback you see in our current system, to create the position of a Dean of the Assembly?

17

The original creation of this was at my behest, as a way of adding a little bit of ceremony into our political system. There’s not that much more to its creation.

18

I don’t mean to sound critical, I’m just confused — but why does having a Dean hold Chair elections make the process more ceremonial than another method of holding the election, like having an Election Commissioner?

19

If someone repeatedly joins, does not participate, loses their status, and joins again, then I think registration officials should have the option to determine whether this person has a genuine desire to participate. This does not mean that someone who lost their status multiple times would be permanently disqualified, there is even a provision in that same law that says members can reapply if their circumstances have changed. What the provision you quoted says is simply that registration officials would have the option to consider whether an application from someone who repeatedly applies but never does anything is actually being submitted in good faith.

I see the Chair as being an official elected by and for the Assembly to preside over its proceedings, so I think that process should be managed entirely by that institution and presided by an elder figure. I also do not see the Dean of the Assembly as being an office insofar as it has no responsibilities beyond managing a vote in the Assembly Voting Floor and proclaiming the result.

20

It’s how the UK House of Commons elects their Speaker. The Father of the House, the longest continuously serving MP, presides over the election since non-MPs are not permitted to speak inside the chamber.

21

My interpretation of that provision was a bit broader — “repeated removals due to inactivity” doesn’t just apply to people who repeatedly join without participating, but also applies to anybody who participates earnestly, if intermittently, but ends up occasionally missing an election. Frankly, I may want to refrain from voting myself if I simply don’t wish to support any of the candidates — unless I just missed the provisions about having RON as a candidate, which is also very possible. (Oh, and if that is indeed absent, I’d be interested in hearing your reasoning behind that.)

More broadly, I would assume there are many metrics by which registration officials can judge whether an applicant is applying in good faith, and I’m not sure why this one in particular should be codified into law. I do agree with you that repeated inactivity can be a sign that an applicant is not applying in good faith, and I don’t mind giving our registration officials the option to consider that — but I’m not sure why that option wouldn’t exist without this provision.

I do worry that codifying it specifically into law could increase the pressure to vote for the sake of keeping one’s status, and not out of a genuine desire to participate in our democratic processes. Even if it’s bending the truth, the potential threat of being labeled a bad-faith applicant (with technically no expiration date) could encourage unengaged voters to participate simply to keep their status lest they find themselves barred from participation if they ever become more interested in the future. I think there’s a risk there of voters simply voting for the leading candidate, or for whoever they see others voting for, or for whoever reaches out to them first.

I’d personally consider becoming the Chair in some cases of vacancy to be a responsibility that should have some form of accountability, but if your intention is that the Assembly would have recall power once the Dean becomes the Chair, I’d be amenable to that.