Northern Regional Committee

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

(Just popping in for the vote - I'm still on my LOA until tomorrow)

Question 1: What form should the North's legislature take:
[1] 5 seats; elected at-large
[3] 5 seats; 2 at-large and 3 regional
[2] 5 seats; 3 at-large and 2 regional
[4] 5 seats; mixed-member system with 3 First Past the Post and 2 proportional
[5] 7 seats; 4 at-large and 3 regional

Question 2: Should the North's legislature be indexed to activity:
[X] Yes
[  ] No

[Former Lincoln Assemblyman & Lt. Gov. RGN]

Question 1: What form should the North's legislature take:
[4] 5 seats; elected at-large
[1] 5 seats; 2 at-large and 3 regional
[2] 5 seats; 3 at-large and 2 regional
[5] 5 seats; mixed-member system with 3 First Past the Post and 2 proportional
[3] 7 seats; 4 at-large and 3 regional

Question 2: Should the North's legislature be indexed to activity:
[X] Yes
[ ] No

[cinyc]

5 seats; elected at large wins after second preferences are counted, 4-3.
Indexing seats to activity wins 4-2-1.

We will move on to the next order of business.  Are there any other fundamental questions of the form of government to be resolved (perhaps on whether to have/the role of the Lt. Governor)?  If not, we now allow someone to propose a draft constitution and will take principle votes on from there.

[Bleach Blonde Bad Built Butch Bodies for Biden]

I would like to use the opportunity to again advise the Committee and reiterate my opposition to the establishment of the Lieutenant Governor's office.

When the former Northeast Region had an Lt.G, that position was abolished because few people wanted the job and because the Lt.G had little duties besides casting tie-breaking votes.  It was almost constantly vacant and seldom needed.  As an alternative, I propose that the succession line begin with the Speaker (who should hold Wiki updating responsibilities) followed by Assembly members by seniority.  In addition, I advise a principle vote on bills only passing the Assembly if they attain a majority (3) of the entire Assembly, with abstentions and non-votes carrying the same weight as nay votes.

[cinyc]

I would like to use the opportunity to again advise the Committee and reiterate my opposition to the establishment of the Lieutenant Governor's office.

When the former Northeast Region had an Lt.G, that position was abolished because few people wanted the job and because the Lt.G had little duties besides casting tie-breaking votes.  It was almost constantly vacant and seldom needed.  As an alternative, I propose that the succession line begin with the Speaker (who should hold Wiki updating responsibilities) followed by Assembly members by seniority.  In addition, I advise a principle vote on bills only passing the Assembly if they attain a majority (3) of the entire Assembly, with abstentions and non-votes carrying the same weight as nay votes.

The Northeast ultimately made the Lt. Governor a member of the Assembly nominated by the governor.  So while we didn't have a separate Lt. Governor, we still had a Lt. Governor.  Whether we should continue that tradition or just make the speaker the next in succession and Acting Governor in case of a Leave of Absence is debatable.  One problem with making Speaker Acting Governor is that then he or she couldn't run the Assembly while acting as governor, potentially bringing debate to a halt.

[SUSAN CRUSHBONE]

i'll start writing up a draft tomorrow if nobody has any concerns, then.

[Bleach Blonde Bad Built Butch Bodies for Biden]

I would like to use the opportunity to again advise the Committee and reiterate my opposition to the establishment of the Lieutenant Governor's office.

When the former Northeast Region had an Lt.G, that position was abolished because few people wanted the job and because the Lt.G had little duties besides casting tie-breaking votes.  It was almost constantly vacant and seldom needed.  As an alternative, I propose that the succession line begin with the Speaker (who should hold Wiki updating responsibilities) followed by Assembly members by seniority.  In addition, I advise a principle vote on bills only passing the Assembly if they attain a majority (3) of the entire Assembly, with abstentions and non-votes carrying the same weight as nay votes.

The Northeast ultimately made the Lt. Governor a member of the Assembly nominated by the governor.  So while we didn't have a separate Lt. Governor, we still had a Lt. Governor.  Whether we should continue that tradition or just make the speaker the next in succession and Acting Governor in case of a Leave of Absence is debatable.  One problem with making Speaker Acting Governor is that then he or she couldn't run the Assembly while acting as governor, potentially bringing debate to a halt.

I would still prefer that we just not have an Lt.G and let the Assembly elect a new Speaker, but I guess the alternative is fine, too.  Just as long as we don't have the Governor running with a pre-selected Lt.G or have them run on a separate ballot line.

I would appreciate a second for a vote on these ideas if a member finds it appropriate.

[SUSAN CRUSHBONE]

I would like to use the opportunity to again advise the Committee and reiterate my opposition to the establishment of the Lieutenant Governor's office.

When the former Northeast Region had an Lt.G, that position was abolished because few people wanted the job and because the Lt.G had little duties besides casting tie-breaking votes.  It was almost constantly vacant and seldom needed.  As an alternative, I propose that the succession line begin with the Speaker (who should hold Wiki updating responsibilities) followed by Assembly members by seniority.  In addition, I advise a principle vote on bills only passing the Assembly if they attain a majority (3) of the entire Assembly, with abstentions and non-votes carrying the same weight as nay votes.

The Northeast ultimately made the Lt. Governor a member of the Assembly nominated by the governor.  So while we didn't have a separate Lt. Governor, we still had a Lt. Governor.  Whether we should continue that tradition or just make the speaker the next in succession and Acting Governor in case of a Leave of Absence is debatable.  One problem with making Speaker Acting Governor is that then he or she couldn't run the Assembly while acting as governor, potentially bringing debate to a halt.

I would still prefer that we just not have an Lt.G and let the Assembly elect a new Speaker, but I guess the alternative is fine, too.  Just as long as we don't have the Governor running with a pre-selected Lt.G or have them run on a separate ballot line.

I would appreciate a second for a vote on these ideas if a member finds it appropriate.

or have the most senior representative be interim speaker. there's a lot of options.

[Bleach Blonde Bad Built Butch Bodies for Biden]

I would like to use the opportunity to again advise the Committee and reiterate my opposition to the establishment of the Lieutenant Governor's office.

When the former Northeast Region had an Lt.G, that position was abolished because few people wanted the job and because the Lt.G had little duties besides casting tie-breaking votes.  It was almost constantly vacant and seldom needed.  As an alternative, I propose that the succession line begin with the Speaker (who should hold Wiki updating responsibilities) followed by Assembly members by seniority.  In addition, I advise a principle vote on bills only passing the Assembly if they attain a majority (3) of the entire Assembly, with abstentions and non-votes carrying the same weight as nay votes.

The Northeast ultimately made the Lt. Governor a member of the Assembly nominated by the governor.  So while we didn't have a separate Lt. Governor, we still had a Lt. Governor.  Whether we should continue that tradition or just make the speaker the next in succession and Acting Governor in case of a Leave of Absence is debatable.  One problem with making Speaker Acting Governor is that then he or she couldn't run the Assembly while acting as governor, potentially bringing debate to a halt.

I would still prefer that we just not have an Lt.G and let the Assembly elect a new Speaker, but I guess the alternative is fine, too.  Just as long as we don't have the Governor running with a pre-selected Lt.G or have them run on a separate ballot line.

I would appreciate a second for a vote on these ideas if a member finds it appropriate.

or have the most senior representative be interim speaker. there's a lot of options.

Is that a second?

[SUSAN CRUSHBONE]

I would like to use the opportunity to again advise the Committee and reiterate my opposition to the establishment of the Lieutenant Governor's office.

When the former Northeast Region had an Lt.G, that position was abolished because few people wanted the job and because the Lt.G had little duties besides casting tie-breaking votes.  It was almost constantly vacant and seldom needed.  As an alternative, I propose that the succession line begin with the Speaker (who should hold Wiki updating responsibilities) followed by Assembly members by seniority.  In addition, I advise a principle vote on bills only passing the Assembly if they attain a majority (3) of the entire Assembly, with abstentions and non-votes carrying the same weight as nay votes.

The Northeast ultimately made the Lt. Governor a member of the Assembly nominated by the governor.  So while we didn't have a separate Lt. Governor, we still had a Lt. Governor.  Whether we should continue that tradition or just make the speaker the next in succession and Acting Governor in case of a Leave of Absence is debatable.  One problem with making Speaker Acting Governor is that then he or she couldn't run the Assembly while acting as governor, potentially bringing debate to a halt.

I would still prefer that we just not have an Lt.G and let the Assembly elect a new Speaker, but I guess the alternative is fine, too.  Just as long as we don't have the Governor running with a pre-selected Lt.G or have them run on a separate ballot line.

I would appreciate a second for a vote on these ideas if a member finds it appropriate.

or have the most senior representative be interim speaker. there's a lot of options.

Is that a second?

sure. i, as well, am against having a separate lieutenant governor position (i've tried to abolish it before, in fact ).

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

I'm back now. Thanks to cinyc for keeping things moving in my absence.

I will introduce the first draft of the Regional Constitution momentarily.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

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[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

[DRAFT]     Okay, that's my initial draft of the Northern Constitution. This would establish a government modeled after that of the old Northeast; certain parts are lifted from the Mideast Constitution, while others (i.e. Article IV) are original to this document. Please read through the entire draft carefully; we can then move to amend it as needed.

[cinyc]

It looks pretty good.  On first look, I have a few concerns.

1) As stated before, I'd prefer we elect regional officers at the same time as the federal elections.  I don't like off-month elections, which depress turnout and lead to the elections officer having to run incessant elections.  From experience, running elections every week isn't easy.

2) Constitutionally, I think we need to specify that the Lt. Governor temporarily gives up his role in the Assembly while acting as governor.  This could happen as a result of a Governor's temporary leave of absence.  Acting as Governor and Assemblyman simultaneously might violate the federal ban of dual office holding.

3) The first conceptual vote we probably should have is whether to have a Lt. Governor at all.  I think the position is a necessary one, but evergreen and others disagree.  I move that the first conceptual vote we have is on this issue.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Very well. We will now proceed with a principle vote on the question of the Lt. Governorship. Please vote AYE, NAY, or Abstain. Voting will last 24 hours or until all delegates have voted.

Proposal: The North will have a Lt. Governor, who will be the Region's chief election administrator and assume the Governorship in the event of a vacancy. The Lt. Governor will be appointed from among the membership of the Assembly by the Governor.

[   ] AYE
[   ] NAY
[   ] Abstain

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

AYE!

[cinyc]

Aye

[SUSAN CRUSHBONE]

nay

[Former Lincoln Assemblyman & Lt. Gov. RGN]

Aye

[Kingpoleon]

Aye

[Blair]

aye

[/]

Nay

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

By a vote of five Ayes and two Nays, the motion has PASSED.

[Kingpoleon]

I'd like to let the Lieutenant Governor run the Assembly if the Speaker takes over twelve hours.

[cinyc]

I'd like to let the Lieutenant Governor run the Assembly if the Speaker takes over twelve hours.

Over twelve hours of what?  The Speaker shouldn't be micromanaged, especially if he or she is only gone for half a day.

In any event, isn't that something for the new SOAP, not the constitution?