Legislation Introduction Thread

[Napoleon]

The New Atlasian Healthcare Act
Co-sponsored with Senator MOPolitico

Section 1- Eligibility and Benefits

    (a.) All individuals residing in Atlasia are eligible to be covered under the Atlasian National Health Care Program offering them a high quality standard of care.
    (b.) The health care benefits under this Act cover all medically necessary services, including at least the following:

            Primary care and prevention.
            Inpatient care.
            Outpatient care.
            Emergency care.
            Prescription drugs.
            Durable medical equipment.
            Long-term care.
            Palliative care.
            Mental health services.
            The full scope of dental services (other than cosmetic dentistry).
            Substance abuse treatment services.
            Chiropractic services.
            Basic vision care and vision correction (other than laser vision correction for cosmetic purposes).
            Hearing services, including coverage of hearing aids.
            Podiatric care.

    (c.) Such benefits are available through any licensed health care clinician anywhere in Atlasia that is legally qualified to provide the benefits.
    (d.) No deductibles, co-payments, coinsurance, or other cost-sharing shall be imposed with respect to covered benefits, but additional insurance from private sources is not forbidden.
    (e.) All private and public hospitals and doctors are required to be participating providers, and are not permitted to deny care on the basis of one's enrollment in the Atlasian National Health Care Program.
    (f.) All health insurance companies, public or private, shall be required to join the health insurance Exchange to be legally licensed to provide services. No company in the Exchange may deny coverage on the basis of previous health condition. The Exchange shall be governed by the Health Directorate, who shall be responsible for determining proper levels of reimbursement, management, administration and other related health industry needs.
(g.) Prescription drug companies shall not be allowed to advertise their products outside of certified medical journals.

Section 2- Finances

    (a.) The Atlasian Government, through the Atlasian National Health Care Program's regional offices, shall be financially obligated to cover: all costs from services and benefits provided to the enrolled by the participating providers for individuals below 250% the poverty level; 50% of the costs from services and benefits provided to the enrolled by the participating providers for individuals between 250% the poverty level and $250,000; and 10% of the costs from services and benefits provided to the enrolled by the participating providers for individuals above $250,000.
    (b.) Licensed health care clinicians who accept any payment from the Atlasian National Health Care Program may not bill any patient for any covered service.
    (c.) Funding for this proposal shall be drawn from the following sources:

            Cost reductions in other federal health programs, including Medicare and Medicaid, as a result of administrative and cost savings and shifts in funding priorities
            Taxes levied on health insurance benefits as follows: 0.5% for incomes below 250% the poverty level; 2% for incomes between 250% the poverty level and $250,000; 3.5% for incomes between $250,001 and $1,000,000; and 5.5% for incomes above $1,000,000.

Section 3- Administration

    (a.) This Act shall be administered by the Health Directorate, made up by a Chairman and the Executives of the regional CHP boards.
    (b.) Medicare and Medicaid shall be phased out, with all necessary personnel and services being transferred to the Atlasian National Health Care Program upon its establishment.

Section 4- Regional Administration

    (a.) The provision of healthcare and the administration of budgets and services shall be the responsibility of independent Community Health Partnerships (CHPs) congruent to the existing Regions These shall be established as public sector corporations. Each CHP shall be headed by a board consisting of one Executive and further non-executive members.
    (b.) CHP members shall be selected by the Health Directorate and shall be a non-partisan gathering of experts in the medical, pharmaceutical, and health insurance and administration industries.
    (c.) All boards shall be required to have an audit committee consisting only of non-executive members on which the chair may not sit. This committee shall be entrusted with the supervision of financial audit and of systems of corporate governance within the CHP.
    (d.) CHP's shall have responsibility for delivering primary and community services and commission them from other providers, and are involved in commissioning secondary care. Each CHP shall have their own budget and set their own priorities and shall directly provide a range of community health services including but not exclusive to;

            The provision of funding for general practitioners and medical prescriptions.
            The commission of hospital and mental health services from the private sector.

    (e.) All members, directors and associated bodies shall be accountable to the Health Directorate as outlined in Section 3 of this Act.

[Napoleon]

Is there any law regarding Super PACs?

I'm not aware that Atlasia has Super PACs.  More over, what is the point of campaign finance laws when political campaigns do not actually collect money in any form?

We have 2, I believe: Freedom PAC (run currently by Jerseyrules, supporting 20RP12) and Atlasia Renaissance Super!!! PAC (run currently by Napoleon, supporting "a progressive reformist message").

But they don't actually DO anything.

Fits the game perfectly. Also, the PPT would probably appreciate not cluttering this thread anymore. This belongs in the Senate Protest and Analysis Thread, I believe.

[Napoleon]

The Swearing In Made Easy Act

1.  The "Swearing in of New Officeholders" thread shall be stickied on the Atlas Fantasy Government Board

PMing Gustaf might be just as effective, though.

PMing Gustaf or Nym is the only thing that would be effective haha. Voting Aye on this wouldn't stick the thread.

[Napoleon]

LGB Dignity Act

All self described "reparative" therapy, psychological therapy, self help and "ex gay" institutions, associations, and ministries with the intent to subdue, erase, reform, negatively influence or attempt to change an individual's sexual orientation function without any scientific basis in fact and have the potential to cause severe psychological or physical harm and are hereby outlawed.

Executive slot please.

[Napoleon]

Vote Sanctity Act (forum affairs slot)

In all federal elections, editing votes shall be prohibited. Any post containing a vote that has been edited shall void that vote.

[Napoleon]

Voter's Bill of Rights (forum affairs slot)

Every registered voter in the Republic of Atlasia shall have the right to:

1. Inspect a sample ballot prior to the beginning of an election

2. Receive instructions on how and where to cast a valid ballot

3. Vote free from coercion or intimidation by election officials or any other person

4. Request an absentee ballot should the voter be unavailable at the scheduled time of the election

5. Vote without interference on the basis of candidate preference

The Attorney General shall have the power to refer violations of voter rights to the Supreme Court for review on a case by case basis.

[Napoleon]

Right to Recreate Act (general)

1. It shall be illegal to terminate employment on the basis of one's use of legal substances outside of the workplace. Employers found to be in violation of this act shall be levied a fine no less than $50,000 and no greater than $100,000.

2. This act shall not be interpreted as to prohibit employers from terminating employment for the use of substances prohibited in the workplace or for being under the influence of substances prohibited in the workplace.

3. Employers shall have the right to seek exemption from this act if the employer can provide the Department of Internal Affairs with reasonable justification as to why their employees would be unable to fulfill their employment requirements by using legal substances outside of the workplace.

[Napoleon]

Napoleon Tax Cut Bill (General)

9.5K-35K     10%                     
35K-80K      20%                       
80K-170K    25%                     
170K-368K  33%                     
368K-1M     40%                       
1M+    50%                           

[Napoleon]

Living Wage Act (general)

1) The federal minimum wage for those ages 18 and over shall be raised to $11.50 on July 1st, 2013 and to $12.50 on January 1st, 2014.
2) After the second raise, inflation-adjusted increases shall continue to occur as mandated in the Reasonable Minimum Wage Act.

Cosponsor: Snowstalker

[Napoleon]

Empowering Regions in Federal Elections Amendment (General, Constitutional amendment)

1. A region's governing body shall have the authority to determine procedure for administration of voting and certification of election results for their own Class A Senate elections in the months of February, June, and October. A region's governing body shall also have the authority to administer voting and certification of election results for Presidential elections consistent with federal election law in the months of February, June, and October.
 
2. A region's governing body may determine the means of election to Class A Senate election. Elections must be democratic.

3. To ensure a fair process of election, any alternative system of voting chosen by the region's governing body for Class A Senate elections must be conducted in public, on-site, and may not disqualify any candidate meeting the qualifications set in the Constitution.

4. If a region fails to open a polling thread for their Senator and President by the time polls must open, a Federal Officer of the Executive Branch shall open the vote on behalf of the region. Regions may defer the authority to administer the election to the Secretary of Federal Elections at any time.

[Napoleon]

Stimulating Efficient Automotive Sales Act

Section 1: Rebates

1. An optional rebate of $4500-$5000 shall be given to consumers who purchase a compact automobile (car) with a rating of at least 37 miles to the gallon or more.

2. An optional rebate of $3500-$4000 shall be given to consumers who purchase a Sport Utility Vehicle or truck with a rating of at least 30 miles to the gallon or more.

3. The total amount of the rebate shall be determined by the amount of gas mileage to the gallon.

4. A total of $8 billion shall be appropriated to this program.

5. This program shall come to an end eight months after being signed into law, or the depletion of the funds appropriated, whichever first occurs.

Section 2: Eligibility

1. To qualify for the rebate outlined in Section 1, Clause 1, the consumer must have a car that is a model manufactured at least ten years ago, and has been estimated by the EPA to travel 17 miles to the gallon.

2. To qualify for the rebate outlined in Section 1, Clause 2, the consumer must have a Sport Utility Vehicle or truck that is a model manufactured at least ten years ago, and has been estimated by the EPA to travel 14 miles to the gallon.

[Napoleon]

The Let's Really Make Things Interesting Amendment
Cosponsored by Senator Franzl

Article 1 is amended as follows:

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Article IV is amended as follows:

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Article V is amended as follows:

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[Napoleon]

The On Second Thought, We Do Have Expectations Amendment

Any federal official who does not post on the Atlas Fantasy Government board for seven consecutive days (168 hours) without posting a leave of absence shall forfeit his or her office.

Cosponsor: Senator Nix

[Napoleon]

Attorney General Reform Act

1.The Attorney General shall be permitted to publish stories relating to crime at the regional and federal level, and related statistics.

2.The Attorney General shall be required to maintain an official thread of updates, either separate from or as a part of his/her official government office thread.

3.The Attorney General shall be permitted to, with the assistance of the Game Moderator, prosecute crimes of various nature before the Supreme Court.

[Napoleon]

Resolution to Protect Wildlife

Findings: that wildlife and ecosystems around the world are threatened by the destruction of habit and the reduction of species population; that governments around the world are not doing everything possible to put a stop to these threats; that Atlasia is uniquely positioned to help foster an international solution

Be it resolved that the 54th Senate petitions the Administration and Secretary of State to pursue international agreements that will significantly reduce poaching, whaling, overfishing and habitat destruction and give international authorities the power to enforce these agreements.

[Napoleon]

Same Day Registration Amendment

Article V, Section2 Clause 3 is amended to read:

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[Napoleon]

Holidays Act

The Monday following the Super Bowl and days with regularly scheduled federal elections shall be federal holidays with employees given the day off.

[Napoleon]

Mt. Atlasmore Act

A national park shall be created near Keystone, Vitality, Most Serene Republic of the Midwest.

$10 million is appropriated to finance the construction of a stone carving featuring the faces of four great Atlasian Presidents: Keystone Phil, Former Moderate, Bgwah, and Lief.

[Napoleon]

Promotion of the Regional Government Board Resolution

Recognizing the increased prominence that Regional Governments have taken in the last few years of the game, and the now ubiquitous nature of regional legislatures, the federal government of Atlasia laments their symbolic status as "less than" the Senate's importance by virtue of being a childboard.

Because of this, the Senate requests the promotion of the "Regional Governments" board to front-page status, equal in prominence to the "Atlas Fantasy Government" and "Atlas Fantasy Elections" boards.

[Napoleon]

Re-Consolidated Criminal Justice Act

Introduction
Whereas the current CCJA is an old and tacked-together mess, and it is in desperate need of reconsolidating as the name "Consolidated Criminal Justice Act" is a horrible misnomer, the Senate establishes the following:

Section 1: Cleaning Up Statute.

The following laws are hereby repealed and removed from the Statute page:

• F.L. 15-1: Consolidated Criminal Justice Act
• F.L. 20-3: Perjury Act
• F.L. 25-5: Supreme Court Bar Act
• F.L. 27-1: Amendment to the Consolidated Criminal Justice Act
• F.L. 32-17: Second Amendment to the Consolidated Criminal Justice Act
• F.L. 34-4: Consistency in Punishment Act
• F.L. 36-10: Third Amendment to the Consolidated Criminal Justice Act
• F.L. 37-1: Wiki Authority Act
• F.L. 43-3: Fourth Amendment to the Consolidated Criminal Justice Act
• F.L. 44-10: Fifth Amendment to the Consolidated Criminal Justice Act

Section 2: Crimes against Atlasia

The following shall be crimes against Atlasia:

1. The impersonation, or attempted impersonation, of another Atlas Forum member on the Atlas Forum.

2. The "hacking" or taking over control of another Atlas Forum members personal account without their permission.

3. Voter fraud, defined as the creation of identities other than ones primary identity in Atlasia and subsequently entering this identity into the tally of registered.
3a. If a citizen no longer has access to their previous forum account and wishes to register and/or vote with a new forum account in Atlasia, then they shall be allowed to do so legally only if they make it clear in the registration thread who they are and which forum account they previously registered under so that the SoFA may appropriately update the registration without having any duplicate accounts on the voter roll.
3b. This shall exclude those who have had their previous account banned from the Atlas Forum.

4. The performance of the duties of a cabinet official or deputy cabinet official without proper promotion or appointment.

5. Knowingly violating and/or disregarding Senate-imposed Atlasia Wiki guidelines and standards.

6. The deletion of a ballot during a period between vote was closed and elected officeholders sworn-in or soliciting to delete a ballot during the same period

7. Intimidation of a voter into voting or not voting a certain way, or into invalidating one's vote, through credible threats to disclose personal information; or contacting voters with disinformation about the election process in order to prevent casting of a valid ballot.

8. Posting pictures, other media, or links to the same of a pornographic nature on the boards provided for the purposes of Atlas Fantasy Elections.

9. Maliciously editing the AtlasWiki to remove legitimate content or create off-topic pages.

10. Posting threads on the boards provided for the purposes of Atlas Fantasy Elections of a sexual nature that contribute nothing to political or philosophical discussion.

11. Perjury, hereby defined as "any person who takes an oath before a competent tribunal or officer that he will testify, declare, depose, or certify truly, or that any written testimony, declaration, deposition, or certificate by him subscribed, is true, willfully and contrary to such oath states or subscribes any material matter which he does not believe to be true."

Section 3: Punishment of Crimes against Atlasia

Sentencing of the crime shall be by the presiding Justice; He may use any combination of the following as punishment, depending upon the severity of the offense:

1. For offences described in Clauses 1 through 7 of Section 2:
1a. Up to a one year ban from voting in any regional or federal Atlasian elections.
1b. Up to two years ban from holding any office under the Republic of Atlasia, at any level of government.

2. For offences described in Clauses 8 through 10 of Section 2:
2a. Up to a two month ban from voting in any regional or federal Atlasian elections.

3. For the offence of perjury:
3a: Up to 4 months revocation of registration within Atlasia.
3b. Up to 8 months ban from holding any office under the Republic of Atlasia at any level of government.

[Napoleon]

[quote]Section 4: Acts of Treason

The following acts are hereby declared Acts of Treason:

1. Rebellion, defined as the use of military forces to overthrow the Federal or any Regional government of Atlasia.

2. Aiding of a rebellion, defined as the fully knowing and intentional direction of funds, military aid, or strategic advice to a person or group seeking to engage in rebellion.

3. Terrorism, defined as the unlawful or threatened use of force or violence by a person or an organized group against people or property with the intention of intimidating civilians and/or the federal and/or regional governments of Atlasia.

4. Destruction of a Voting Booth, defined as deleting the thread in which a voting booth, or absentee voting booth, for an active election is contained.

5. Secession, defined as a territory or group of people declaring or threatening independence from the Atlasia.

6. Refutation of federal supremacy in law, defined as making any post or taking any actions denying the supremacy of, or serving in a regional government which denies that it is subject to, federal law in any or all regions of Atlasia, after having taken the oath of office and serving as a legal officeholder.

Section 5: Punishment of Acts of Treason

Sentencing of Acts of Treason shall be by the presiding Justice; He may use any combination of the following as punishment, depending upon the severity of the offense:
1. Up to a lifetime ban from voting in any Atlasian elections.
2. Up to a lifetime ban from holding any office under the Republic of Atlasia.

Section 6: Trial Rules

Trial of all these crimes and Acts of Treason shall be done in full compliance with the provisions of Article III, Section 2 of the Second Constitution.

Section 7: Admissibility of Evidence

The presiding Justice may admit the following as evidence of the crime at his own discretion:
1. The actual statements made on the Atlas Forum itself
2. Screenshots of the statements made.
3. A quotation of the statement in a post by another Atlas Forum user.
4. The testimony of forum users who viewed the statement itself.
5. An admission by the accused in a thread on the Atlas Forum, or in a place viewed or heard by multiple persons, with recordings or testimony attributing to the same.
6. Evidence obtained through investigation of the IP address from which the offence was perpetrated.
7. Evidence given to the Court by the Forum Moderators or the Forum Owner, Dave Leip obtained in their capacity in that position.

Section 8: Rights of the Defendant at Trial

1. Defendants in criminal trials shall not be denied access to legal counsel from an active Atlasian citizen. A defendant shall have the right to waive his right to legal counsel.

2. If a defendant requests that a Federal Court appoint counsel for him, then the Court shall appoint a member of the Supreme Court Bar to represent the defendant.

3. A Supreme Court Bar member shall be able to refuse to represent a defendant on grounds of conflict of interest, however, final determination of conflict of interest shall be made by the Supreme Court.

4. Any member of the Supreme Court Bar who refuses to represent a state criminal defendant without proper excuse shall be expelled from the Supreme Court Bar.

5. The Supreme Court may make regulations pertaining to the appointment of counsel in a trial, including systems for rotation between different counsel.

6. No person shall be a member of the Supreme Court Bar without being a registered Atlasian citizen who has had at least one vote counted in the past two regular scheduled elections. If a person was not a registered voter at the time of the last scheduled election, then he shall be able to hold a provisional membership of the Bar until the next scheduled election at the discretion of the Supreme Court.

7. The Attorney General may nominate persons he deems fit for membership of the Supreme Court Bar to the Supreme Court. Individual citizens may nominate themselves for membership of the Supreme Court Bar, but shall require the sponsorship of an existing member of the Bar.

Section 9: Right to Appeal

In addition to any Rights of Appeal the Supreme Court may find under the Constitution, the defendant retains the following statutory rights of appeal against their conviction:

1. Procedural Appeals:

i. Should the defendant wish to appeal his conviction on grounds of errors of procedure during the trial, he may do so to the full Supreme Court provided the appeal is filed within one month of conclusion of the trial.
ii. If the Supreme Court does find errors of procedure in the trial, vacation of the conviction shall not be automatic, but at the discretion of the Supreme Court.

2. Substantive Appeals:

i. Should new evidence come to light, the defendant may appeal his conviction to the Supreme Court on the grounds that the evidence no longer supports his conviction or severity of his sentence.
ii. In reviewing the appeal, the Supreme Court may refer the question of guilt to a new jury in a new trial (without vacating the original conviction).
iii. The Supreme Court may also reduce the sentence if it determines that the severity of the offence is reduced in light of the new evidence.

Section 10: Retention of a Supreme Court Bar

1. There shall be a Supreme Court Bar.

2. Admittance to the Supreme Court Bar shall be at the discretion of the Supreme Court.

3. The Supreme Court may make regulations pertaining to the Supreme Court Bar, including regulations regarding activity (posting frequency), expulsion and admittance.

4. The Supreme Court may delegate administrative duties to the Attorney General as it sees fit.

[Napoleon]

The It's Not Up To You Act

1. FL 52-2 Late Term Abortion Restriction Act is hereby repealed.

2. FL 18-1 Reproductive Rights Act is hereby repealed.

3. Funding for Safe-Sex Education and Contraceptive Services

a. $30,000,000 shall be appropriated to each region each year for the purpose of expanding safe-sex education programs and access to contraceptive services.
b. Programs shall also include information regarding adoption.
c. The Department of Internal Affairs shall be charged with designing a criteria of what constitutes a qualifying sex education program in each region.
d. The Department of Internal Affairs will be in charge of distributing all the said monies to each region.
e. Any region that fails to construct or maintain a qualifying program or expansion of services, will have their money withheld until the standards are met.

4. $60 million per year shall be appropriated for the purpose of caring for viable children born during a failed abortion procedure.

[Napoleon]

Represntative Democracy Amendment

The Seventh Amendment is repealed. The Eighteenth Amendment is repealed.

[Napoleon]

I will sponsor this amendment in Matt's stead, just to get it out of the queue. I won't be an enthusiastic sponsor though, sorry. I was planning to vote it down.

Its only in the queue because you sponsored it. Thanks.

[Napoleon]

Yankee messaged me and told me to sponsor it so we could get rid of it. I'm just going by what he told me.

Maybe he could come explain why...