Northeast Assembly Proposed Leigslation Thread

[cinyc]

Economic Recovery Tax Act of 2009
Three sections shall be added to the Northeast Tax Code as follows:

1.  Investment Tax Credit
(a) All individual and corporate taxpayers shall be entitled to a tax credit equal to the full amount of any capital expenditure made during the 2009 tax year that would otherwise have been required to be depreciated over time under the Northeast Tax Code.
(b) This tax credit shall be subject to recapture if a taxpayer sells or otherwise disposes of the capital asset subject to this credit before the end of the period during which such capital asset would have been required to be depreciated under the Northeast Tax Code but for the provisions of Section 1(a).
(c) The Northeast Tax Commissioner shall have the power to issue regulations preventing the abuse of Section 1(a).

2. Making Work Pay Tax Credit
(a) All individual taxpayers shall be entitled to a $1,000 tax credit against earned income in the 2009 tax year.
(b) The availability of this credit shall not be subject to any income limitations otherwise provided in the Northeast Tax Code.
(c) This credit shall not be refundable.

3. Taxation of Unemployment Benefits
The first $25,000 of unemployment benefits received during each of the 2009 and 2010 tax years shall not be subject to tax under the Northeast Tax Code.

Effective Date
This Act shall be effective for income received during the 2009 and, where specified, 2010 tax years, regardless of whether earned before the date hereof.

[cinyc]

FYI - The Lt. Governor hasn't opened this thread for legislation in the next Assembly yet.  Doing so would seem kind of pointless until someone rules on whether we will have 6 or 8 elected members.

Northeast Assembly Members should consider sponsoring proposed Constitutional Amendments before ordinary legislation first so that they get on the agenda sooner rather than later.

[cinyc]

Economic Recovery Tax Act of 2009
Three sections shall be added to the Northeast Tax Code as follows:

1. Investment Tax Credit
(a) All individual and corporate taxpayers shall be entitled to a tax credit equal to the full amount of any capital expenditure made during the 2009 tax year that would otherwise have been required to be depreciated over time under the Northeast Tax Code.
(b) This tax credit shall be subject to recapture if a taxpayer sells or otherwise disposes of the capital asset subject to this credit before the end of the period during which such capital asset would have been required to be depreciated under the Northeast Tax Code but for the provisions of Section 1(a).
(c) The Northeast Tax Commissioner shall have the power to issue regulations preventing the abuse of Section 1(a).

2. Making Work Pay Tax Credit
(a) All individual taxpayers shall be entitled to a $400 tax credit against earned income in the 2009 tax year.
(b) The availability of this credit shall not be subject to any income limitations otherwise provided in the Northeast Tax Code.
(c) This credit shall not be refundable.

3. Taxation of Unemployment Benefits
The first $25,000 of unemployment benefits received during each of the 2009 and 2010 tax years shall not be subject to tax under the Northeast Tax Code.

Effective Date
This Act shall be effective for income received during the 2009 and, where specified, 2010 tax years, regardless of whether earned before the date hereof.

[cinyc]

Veto Override Amendment

Whereas the New Constitution of the Northeast does not contain procedural language regarding the override of a Governor's veto, therefore be it resolved that the New Constitution of the Northeast be amended.


Article IV, Section xi is hereby amended as follows:

xi) The Governor has veto power over any piece of legislation that the Northeast Assembly shall successfully vote in favour of. The Governor may not have the power to only veto parts as opposed to the whole of any legislation. If the General Assembly of the Northeast Region is to have another successful vote on any piece of legislation previously vetoed, than the Governor must not veto it. The Governor is required to sign all pieces of legislation he supports into law after it passes a successful vote in the Legislative Assembly, and must veto legislation which he does not support, within one week of its passing. Once he or she has signed the legislation, it immediately becomes law unless otherwise stated in the legislation itself. If the Governor does not sign the successful legislation after one week, than it becomes law immediately.

Article V is hereby amended by insertion as new Section xv:

xv) The Assembly shall have the power to override the Governor's veto.  If the Assembly passes legislation previously vetoed by the Governor by a two-thirds majority vote, it becomes law without the Governor's signature.

[cinyc]

Amending Procedure Amendment

1. Article VII of the New Northeast Constitution is hereby repealed. Its content shall be replaced by the following:
2. i) Amendments to this constitution shall be proposed by the Legislative Assembly of the Northeast Region.  A proposed Amendment shall be forwarded to be voted upon by the citizens of the Northeast upon:

a) A successful vote of two-thirds of voting members Legislative Assembly of the Northeast Region;

b) A successful vote of majority of all members of the Legislative Assembly; and

c) Approval of the Governor in the form of his consent.

ii) The Chief Judicial Officer shall open the polling booth for all proposed Amendments approved by the Governor before 12:00:00am EST of the second Friday of a month at 12:00:00am EST on the third Friday of the same month.  The Chief Judicial Officer shall open the polling booth for all proposed Amendments approved by the Governor after 12:00:00am EST of the second Friday of a month at 12:00:00am EST on the third Friday of the following month.  The Chief Judicial Officer shall close the polling booth at 11:59:59pm EST on the following Sunday.  If the date for opening the polling booth coincides with another Northeast election, the Chief Judicial Officer shall include the vote on any proposed Amendments in the polling booth for that election.

iii) Any Amendment proposed by the Legislative Assembly of the Northeast Region shall only become effective upon:

a) A successful vote of two-thirds of those citizens of the Northeast Region who vote for or against the proposed Amendment; and

b) A successful vote of majority of all citizens of the Northeast Region who are eligible to vote in such election.

[cinyc]

No - that's already been passed.  I believe that the New Northeast Minimum Wage Act is next - regardless of whether we're skipping over Hamilton's bills while he's on mod review - since it's his next bill and the next bill proposed by another representative (Antonio V).

[cinyc]

Northeast Natural Gas Leasing Act
1) The Northeast shall publish an Invitation For Bid (IFB) on leaseholds to drill for natural gas on all Northeast public lands other than public parks, historical sites, highway rights-of-way or any portion of public lands within 660 feet of any inhabited dwelling, school or place of worship. 
2) Bidding Requirements
a) The IFB shall specify the size and location of parcels subject to bidding.
b) The initial term of any leases shall be five years.  The lessor shall have an option to extend the lease for two additional 5-year terms if a well on the parcel produces a commercially marketable quantity of natural gas at any time during the previous 5-year period.
c) The minimum fixed lease bid shall be $2,500 per acre per year.
d) The minimum royalty bid shall be 15% of the market value of the natural gas produced on the leased parcel. 
e) The market value of gas at the mouth of the well is determined by ascertaining the producer's actual marketing costs and subtracting those costs from the producer's gross cash receipts from the sale of the gas. Marketing costs are the costs incurred by the producer to get the gas from the mouth of the well to the market, including:
(i)  costs for compressing the gas sold, (ii)  costs for dehydrating the gas sold, (iii)  costs for sweetening the gas sold, and (iv)  costs for delivering the gas to the purchaser. Marketing costs do not include (i) costs incurred in producing the gas, (ii)  costs incurred in normal lease separation of the oil or condensate, or (iii) insurance premiums on the marketing facility.
3) Environmental Requirements
a) All successful bidders shall be required to secure a $50,000 lease bond for each lease and $100,000 plugging bond for each well drilled.  The Northeast shall be entitled to the proceeds from such bond to remediate any environmental damage caused by drilling or the cost of properly plugging the well.
b) Any successful bidder who drills for natural gas shall provide the Northeast with evidence that it has a Drilling-Well Control Insurance Policy of at least $25,000,000.   The Northeast shall be entitled to the proceeds from such policy to remediate any environmental damage caused by drilling not properly repaired by that bidder.
c) No successful bidder may drill more than one well per square mile on any parcel.
d) All successful bidders shall drill in an environmentally friendly manner without disrupting the water quality of the area drilled, pursuant to regulations promulgated by the Northeast Department of Conservation.  In particular, all wastewater shall be properly treated by the driller in accordance with such regulations and shall not otherwise be disposed of in any lake, stream, river or watershed area.
e) All successful bidders are strictly liable for any environmental damage caused by drilling and drilling-related activity, and shall remediate all environmental damage caused by such activity as soon as possible, and no later than 2 years of the end of the lease term.
f) All successful bidders must submit the location of any proposed drill site, access road, facility or pipeline to the Northeast Department of Conservation.  The Northeast Department of Conservation may require that a successful bidder move any proposed site, road, facility or pipeline to mitigate any potential adverse environmental effects.
4) Use of Proceeds from Leases.  The government of the Northeast region may not borrow, pledge or transfer any proceeds from leases made under this Act except as follows:
a) 5% shall be transferred to the Northeast Department of Conservation to offset the cost of monitoring compliance with this Act and all other related environmental regulation and legislation.
b) 10% shall be transferred to the Northeast Department of Conservation to purchase additional public lands.
c) 35% shall be transferred to the Northeast Rainy Day Fund.  The Northeast Comptroller shall conservatively invest the corpus of the Northeast Rainy Day Fund and shall not transfer any portion of the Northeast Rainy Day Fund to any person or government fund, entity or agency unless the Northeast budget is in deficit and the Northeast unemployment rate is greater than 10% or the Northeast GDP has fallen by an annualized rate of more than 1% in two of the last four quarters.
d) 50% shall be transferred to the Northeast Permanent Dividend Fund.  The Northeast Comptroller shall conservatively invest the corpus of the Northeast Permanent Dividend Fund.  If the corpus of the Northeast Permanent Dividend Fund exceeds $7,000,000,000, every citizen who has been a permanent resident of the Northeast for at least 183 days in the prior year shall be entitled to a dividend from such fund.  Eligible residents shall file a dividend request on January 1 of each year, along with any information required by the Comptroller to establish such residency.  The gross amount of the dividend to be paid to all eligible residents shall be equal to (i) 30% of the gain in the Northeast Permanent Dividend Fund over the past two years or (ii) if there has been no such gain, the lesser of (1) 0.5% of the amount of the Fund that is over $7,000,000,000, adjusted for inflation after 2015, or (2) the maximum payment over the past 5 years.   The Comptroller shall mail or electronically transfer every eligible resident an equal share of the dividend on May 1.

[cinyc]

Lt. Governor Vacancy Amendment

1. Article IV, Section viii of the New Northeast Constitutionshall be amended and replaced by the following:

If the office of Governor is to become vacant at some point while he or she is in office, than the Lieutenant Governor is to be immediately sworn in as Governor of the Northeast Region.  If the office of Lieutenant Governor is to become vacant at some point while he or she is in office , than the Governor may appoint a new one after the recommendation of the Legislative Assembly of the Northeast Region at any time more than two weeks before the next scheduled gubernatorial election, an election shall be held to replace the fill the vacancy.  The Chief Judicial Officer of the Northeast Region will open the booth for such election on the second Friday after such vacancy occurs at 12:00:00am Eastern Standard Time, and will close said both on the following Sunday at 11:59:59pm Eastern Standard Time. Every citizen will be given the opportunity to vote during this time.  Candidates for Lieutenant Governor will be given until the second Wednesday after such vacancy occurs  to announce his or her candidacy.

2. Article IV, Section xiii of the New Northeast Constitution shall be amended and replaced by the following:

The Lieutenant Governor of the Northeast Region shall be charged with the responsibilities of the Legislative Assembly of the region. He or she shall ensure that the Legislative Assembly has the ability to propose legislation that they are able to be debated on, and voted on during appropriate periods. In the temporary absence of the Lieutenant Governor, than the Governor the Speaker of the Northeast Assembly may take up these responsibilities.

3. Article IV, Section xiv of the New Northeast Constitution shall be amended as follows:

In the temporary absence of the Governor, then the Lieutenant Governor may be allowed to temporarily conduct the duties of the Governor. The Speaker of the Northeast Assembly shall never be allowed to temporarily conduct the duties of the Governor if acting in the temporary absence of the Lieutenant Governor pursuant to Article IV, Section xiii) of this Constitution.

[cinyc]

Lt. Governor Vacancy Amendment

1. Article IV, Section viii of the New Northeast Constitution shall be amended and replaced by the following:

If the office of Governor is to become vacant at some point while he or she is in office, then the Lieutenant Governor is to be immediately sworn in as Governor of the Northeast Region.  If the office of Lieutenant Governor is to become vacant at some point while he or she is in office , than the Governor may appoint a new one after the recommendation of the Legislative Assembly of the Northeast Region at any time more than two weeks before the next scheduled gubernatorial election, an election shall be held to replace the fill the vacancy.  The Chief Judicial Officer of the Northeast Region will open the booth for such election on the second Friday after such vacancy occurs at 12:00:00am Eastern Standard Time, and will close said both on the following Sunday at 11:59:59pm Eastern Standard Time. Every citizen will be given the opportunity to vote during this time.  Candidates for Lieutenant Governor will be given until the second Wednesday after such vacancy occurs  to announce his or her candidacy.

2. Article IV, Section xiii of the New Northeast Constitution shall be amended and replaced by the following:

The Lieutenant Governor of the Northeast Region shall be charged with the responsibilities of the Legislative Assembly of the region. He or she shall ensure that the Legislative Assembly has the ability to propose legislation that they are able to be debated on, and voted on during appropriate periods. In the temporary absence of the Lieutenant Governor, than the Governor the Speaker of the Northeast Assembly may take up these responsibilities.

3. Article IV, Section xiv of the New Northeast Constitution shall be deleted and replaced as follows:

xiv)(a) The Governor may publicly declare his absence, thereby allowing the Lieutenant Governor to temporarily conduct the duties of the office, under the title of Acting Governor of Northeast.

b) If the Governor does not perform his or her official duties for a period longer then 7 days,  the Lieutenant Governor shall automatically temporarily conduct the duties of the Governor's office.  Official duties include signing or vetoing bills after being publicly notified of their passage in the Northeast Assembly. 

c) If Governor is inactive on the Atlas Forum for 21 days, the Lieutenant Governor shall automatically temporary conduct the duties of the Governor's office.

d) The Governor shall resume the powers and duties of the office by publicly declaring he is present and able to resume the powers and duties of his office.

e) The Speaker of the Northeast Assembly shall never be allowed to temporarily conduct the duties of the Governor if acting in the temporary absence of the Lieutenant Governor pursuant to Article IV, Section xiii) of this Constitution.

[cinyc]

Third Draft (new language from the first draft in red)

Standing Order on Assembly Procedure

1. Proposed Legislation Thread
(a) The Lt. Governor shall open a new Northeast Assembly proposed legislation thread at the start of each Northeast Assembly term.
(b) Representatives, the Governor and any concerned Northeast citizen shall post the full text of any proposed legislation in a response to the Northeast Assembly proposed legislation thread for the current term.  Each response shall contain only one piece of proposed legislation. 
(c) Nothing shall be posted to the Northeast Assembly proposed legislation thread except proposed legislation or a Northeast citizen's signature for proposed citizen legislation.

Pursuant to powers granted to me in the SOAP, I introduce this Resolution:

Resolution Congratulating the Southeast on establishing a Regional Assembly 
1. The Northeast hereby congratulates the Southeast on establishing the first elected Assembly in the region's history.
2. The Northeast also wishes the Assembly well in its mission of expanding representative government.

This needs to be co-sponsored by another Northeast citizen before it is immediately put on the agenda, if I recall the SOAP rules correctly.

[cinyc]

Third Draft (new language from the first draft in red)

Standing Order on Assembly Procedure

1. Proposed Legislation Thread
(a) The Lt. Governor shall open a new Northeast Assembly proposed legislation thread at the start of each Northeast Assembly term.
(b) Representatives, the Governor and any concerned Northeast citizen shall post the full text of any proposed legislation in a response to the Northeast Assembly proposed legislation thread for the current term.  Each response shall contain only one piece of proposed legislation. 
(c) Nothing shall be posted to the Northeast Assembly proposed legislation thread except proposed legislation or a Northeast citizen's signature for proposed citizen legislation.

Pursuant to powers granted to me in the SOAP, I introduce this Resolution:

Resolution Congratulating the Southeast on establishing a Regional Assembly 
1. The Northeast hereby congratulates the Southeast on establishing the first elected Assembly in the region's history.
2. The Northeast also wishes the Assembly well in its mission of expanding representative government.

This needs to be co-sponsored by another Northeast citizen before it is immediately put on the agenda, if I recall the SOAP rules correctly.

That's fine by me.

Actually, I thought that's what the rule was - but the SOAP doesn't say that.  It should be next on the agenda after the current bill.

[cinyc]

True.  Barnes' bill needs a signature from another Northeast citizen under the Constitution.  If Barnes gets another signature, it will be moved to the head of the queue.

We're also not supposed to post anything but proposed bills on this thread, so this will be my last post about the matter.   

[cinyc]

Under the Northeast SOAP, nothing but proposed legislation is to placed in this thread.  Please stop posting anything else here.  Doing so makes the job of the Lt. Governor and Assembly Speaker more difficult in remembering the order of proposed legislation.

[cinyc]

Northeast Free Highway Access Act of 2009 Implementation Bill

Pursuant to the Northeast Free Highway Access Act of 2009, the Northeast Assembly hereby adopts the final recommendation of the Free Highway Access Commission to phase out all highway tolls and replace lost revenue with an increase in the Northeast gasoline tax by 14.6 cents per gallon, phased in over five years as follows:

FY2010: 2.6 cents
FY2011: 5.6 cents
FY2012: 8.6 cents
FY2013: 11.6 cents
FY2014: 14.6 cents

[cinyc]

The gentlemen will suspend!  Nothing is to be placed in this thread except proposed legislation.  Please put your commentary on proposed bills elsewhere.  And they are just that - PROPOSED bills, that may or may not pass the Assembly.