Southern Legislation Introduction Thread - 2018

[Wisconsin+17]

Free Speech Protection:

WHEREAS: The protection of speech is fundamental for the operation of a free nation.

WHEREAS: Campus speech codes have had an increasingly chilling effect on public discourse

WHEREAS: Speech that is considered offensive to some is the only speech worth protecting.

WHEREAS: Substantial government overreach has inflicted penalties for unpopular speech

BE IT RESOLVED THAT:

1. All public campus speech codes regulating the location of speech and it's content are abolished.

2. Campuses will be free to all peaceful forms of public expression, regardless of content.

3. Students and organizations who have been denied permits to speak will be refunded their deposits and the campuses responsible will be fined 10k. These fines will be payable to a charity of the afflicted party's choice.

4. Teachers who have lost tenure or have been fired for their public speech at a public institution will have the choice of being re-hired with lost pay, benefits and interest dating from the time of their firing or are free to take a lump sum payment for twice the remaining value of their pension.

5. Teachers and Students will not be charged for 'misgendering' fellow students. All fines inflicted shall be reimbursed for twice their original value including interest from the date that the fine was levied.

[Wisconsin+17]

Straw Lives Matter!

WHEREAS: Most 'single use bags' have many uses beyond their original use AND

WHEREAS: Most of the plastic garbage in the world is not sourced to Atlasia AND

WHEREAS: Bag fines are contrary to the Texas Constitution AND

WHEREAS: Bag fines amount to a tax on the poor for buying food from grocery stores. AND

WHEREAS: Paper straws are terrible things.

BE IT RESOLVED THAT:

1. All restaurants and grocery stores are permitted to sell and provide plastic straws to their customers.

2. All municipal and state laws regulating the sale of plastic straws are abolished.

3. All municipal and state laws regulating the sale and purchase of plastic bags are abolished.

4. All grocery stores are banned from charging fees for plastic and paper bags.

[Wisconsin+17]

Timber tax reduction

WHEREAS: Timber taxes have a large effect on timber harvesters AND

WHEREAS: The American lumber industry has higher costs than foreign competitors AND

WHEREAS: The timber industry is the source for a large amount of jobs throughout the South.

BE IT RESOLVED THAT:

The timber tax may not exceed 200/acre throughout the south. Local jurisdictions may choose lower taxation levels where appropriate.

[Wisconsin+17]

Oil and Gas Exploration Tax Reduction:

WHEREAS: Oil and Gas is one of the larger Southern industries AND

WHEREAS: Many other jurisdictions are reducing costs and taxation AND

WHEREAS: Severance taxation is a significant cost driver for the industry.

BE IT RESOLVED THAT the severance tax rates be capped at 5 percent throughout the South.

[Mr. Reactionary]

Straw Lives Matter!

WHEREAS: Most 'single use bags' have many uses beyond their original use AND

WHEREAS: Most of the plastic garbage in the world is not sourced to Atlasia AND

WHEREAS: Bag fines are contrary to the Texas Constitution AND

WHEREAS: Bag fines amount to a tax on the poor for buying food from grocery stores. AND

WHEREAS: Paper straws are terrible things.

BE IT RESOLVED THAT:

1. All restaurants and grocery stores are permitted to sell and provide plastic straws to their customers.

2. All municipal and state laws regulating the sale of plastic straws are abolished.

3. All municipal and state laws regulating the sale and purchase of plastic bags are abolished.

4. All grocery stores are banned from charging fees for plastic and paper bags.

Beautiful. I was gonna propose a bill like this called the SLURP Act: Straws Let Us Refresh Pleasingly Act

[Senator-elect Spark]

Inmate Resources Act

Section 1 - Definitions and goals

A. The title of this legislation shall be the "Inmate Resources Act".
i. The purpose of this legislation is to address overcrowding in jails and correctional institutions
ii. This act will provide transitional services including mental health, substances abuse treatments, counseling, health care, employment, and housing supports
iii. Goal of this act is to reduce recidivism within our criminal justice system

Section 2 - Circumstances and penalties

A. An inmate may be released from jail if he or she is found guilty and convicted of a non-violent offense on their person such as a small amount marijuana possession of <30 grams
i. This act does not extend to transportation such as vehicles including automobiles
ii. If a person if found to have possessed marijuana, he or she will serve a sentence of community service for up to 6 months instead of being incarcerated
iii. Federal law still applies due to superseding over this legislation

[Senator-elect Spark]

Restructured Sentencing for Sex Offenders Act

Section 1

A. The title of this act is "Restructed Sentencing for Sex Offenders Act"
i. This act shall relate to criminal procedure only

B. When sentencing a person convicted of a criminal offense for which there is a minimum sentence of imprisonment, the court may depart from the applicable sentence if the court finds substantial and compelling reasons on the record, after giving due regard to the nature of the crime, history, and character of the defendant presented in court
i. If a person is convicted of a criminal offense such as rape, unlawful contact, or indecent assault relating to minors, the minimum sentence is still applicable and may be maximized

C. The court shall have the discretion to depart from the applicable mandatory minimum sentence of imprisonment and may have the option to impose maximum sentences on convictions for criminal offenses under the following circumstances:
1. The offense for which the defendant was convicted involved the corruption of minors, indecent assault relating to minors, or rape
2. The offense for which the defendant was convicted involved the use of a firearm

[Wisconsin+17]

Southern Heritage Act

Being that we are the South AND

Being that the South has a long and proud history AND

Being that it is only through preserving history that we can come to understand it and avoid the mistakes of the past.

Article I: Be it resolved that by the Chamber of Delegates that will fly the Stars and Bars to honor our Southern Heritage on Confederate Memorial Day. Confederate and Union cemeteries and monuments will be protected by law from desecration, defilement and vandalism. Southern citizens shall be permitted to fly the Stars and Bars anywhere they wish on private property. Any regulations on it's distribution shall be rescinded, anyone may buy or sell a Confederate flag.

Article II: Civil War Memorial Day
     Section I: May 9th shall be "Civil War Memorial Day" throughout the South.

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

https://uselectionatlas.org/AFEWIKI/index.php/Standing_Rules_of_the_Southern_Chamber_of_Delegates
The page is done, I think?

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

Am I moving too slowly? Are we, as a body, reasonably active?
Want to hear from y'all.

[CatoMinor]

I would like to propose a fairly large change to the rules. For the purpose of tidying things up.

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*drops a stack of cash on the floor that may or may not be interpreted as a bribe to make this a priority on the waitlist.

[CatoMinor]

This is to be added to the end of Section 1 of the standing rules:

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[thumb21]

Am I moving too slowly? Are we, as a body, reasonably active?
Want to hear from y'all.

Activity has improved a lot since the last Chamber and you are doing a good job, although I would suggest speeding up a little.

[tmthforu94]

Am I moving too slowly? Are we, as a body, reasonably active?
Want to hear from y'all.

Activity has improved a lot since the last Chamber and you are doing a good job, although I would suggest speeding up a little.

Agreed, we should have the maximum amount of legislation on the floor. If people aren’t bringing up concerns on bills, send it to a vote. Worst case scenario is that someone still has something to discuss and we can pause the vote. Right now there is only 1 bill on the floor that I see.

[tmthforu94]

I ask the Speaker to move this to the front of the queue and introduce immediately:

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[tmthforu94]

Pursuant to recommendations by the Southern Constitutional Taskforce:

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[tmthforu94]

This is necessary to fix crucial errors made by the legislature when passing the last budget, which was poorly written by former Governor Fairboi. The Transportation budget, for example, was cut by $20 billion by Fairboi. This was a 40% cut that would have led to mass layoffs that need to be restored right away. Because of the urgency, I am requesting the Speaker to use the Governor's slot to begin discussion immediately.

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[Wisconsin+17]

We have no constitutional mandate to overturn a budget that was successfully passed in June. While I appreciate the spirit of this bill and the content in wishing to fix things that need to be fixed, we need to wait and do this in March, at the proper time.

Also, this oversteps the constitutional authority of the governor to attempt to overturn a budget passed by the Chamber. The governor has wide latitude but for obvious reasons, should not have control over supply.

I request that TM submit this as a budgetary proposal so that the Chamber has a model to work off when we do construct our budget in March, saving us all quite a bit of time. The budget is a good one, but unfortunately not something we can act on in this capacity at this time.

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

Question: is there anyone does not wish that they be PMed when final votes occur, or does not see that as necessary?

[tmthforu94]

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[GM Team Member and Senator WB]

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not the facial hair!

[tmthforu94]

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not the facial hair!

I will consider withdrawing this if the Chamber adheres to my "Demands" (CC: BK):

1. All southern submarines must be fitted for screen doors
2. Asparagus must be suppliable at all city and county courthouses to all persons whose age is a prime number
3. Abolish the color silver.
3. 32 letters in the alphabet, a committee shall present the Chamber with recommendations for the new 6 letters (I will lead committee)
4. Establish flan as the regional dessert.

[Mr. Reactionary]

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We repealed this in the End of Session Omnibus criminal law reform act

[tmthforu94]

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We repealed this in the End of Session Omnibus criminal law reform act

Thanks, I'll update on Wiki!

[Mr. Reactionary]

If it helps the euthanasia ban was overturned by another law with euthanasia in its name, the collaborative regional symbols act was repealed by more obsolete crimes deletion act, and the leinad appreciation act was amended by the civil rights leaders commemorative coin act.