Public Consultation and Legislation Submissions

[Dr. MB]

AN ACT
to protect our unborn and newly born

Section 1 (Title)
i. The title of this Act shall be the "Keeping Atlasian Newborns Yearning and Enthusiastic Act."

Section 2
a. Every woman who has a child in the Republic of Atlasia shall receive a sum no less than and not exceeding $50,000, cash, once the baby is born.
b. Should she provide evidence that she was considering an abortion, but did not go through with it, she shall receive a sum no less than and not exceeding $1,000,000, cash.

[Dr. MB]

Introducing a constitutional amendment:

Making Things Run A Lot Faster Amendment

Article III of the Constitution of Atlasia is amended to read as follows:

Section 1 (The Legislature)
1. All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in the Congress of the Republic of Atlasia, which shall consist of a Senate and a House of Representatives. which shall consist of nine at-large Representatives and six Representatives elected to represent the regions, each with an equal vote in a unicameral chamber. Congress may also be known as the House of Representatives.
2. The Vice President shall be the President of the Congress, but shall have no vote, in the House of Representatives, nor in the Senate save when they be equally divided. save when Congress be equally divided.
3. The Congress shall elect its leader and other officers, and shall have sole authority to determine its own methods of proceedings.
4. No person shall serve in Congress who has not attained 100 or more posts, nor whose account is fewer than 720 hours old, nor who is not a citizen of the Republic of Atlasia.
5. All mentions of the "Senate" or "House of Representatives" in existing law shall be replaced by the broad term "Congress".

Section 2 (Regional Representatives)
1. The Senate of the Republic of Atlasia shall consist of two SenatorsThere shall be two Representatives from each Region, elected for a term of four months in the manner prescribed by the legislature thereof.
2. No person shall be a Senator Regional Representative who has not attained 200100 or more posts, nor whose account is fewer than 1440720 hours old, nor who is not a citizen of the Region they are chosen to represent.
The Senate shall elect its leader and other officers, and shall have sole authority to determine its own methods of proceedings.
3. Upon the seating of the first Congress following passage of this Amendment, the Senators Regional Representatives shall be divided into two classes of equal size, such that each class shall consist of one Senator Representative from each of the Regions. Members of the first class shall be elected in the months of February, June, and October; members of the second class shall be elected in the months of April, August, and December.
4. Vacancies in the Senate the position of Regional Representative shall be filled according to the laws of the affected Region; but in the absence of such a law, by the executive power thereof, who shall have the authority to appoint a replacement to serve the remainder of the existing term provided less than 60 days are left in the remainder of the existing term; shall the vacancy occur more than 60 days prior to culmination of the term, a special election shall be held using normal procedures for Regional Representative election at a time set by the executive power of the affected Region, but no more than fourteen days following the vacancy.

==Section 3 (The House of Representatives)==
1. The House of Representatives shall consist Congress shall also consist of nine members chosen at-large by the eligible voters of the Republic according to a method of proportional representation prescribed by the Federal Legislature. These Representatives shall serve a term of two months, and shall be elected in the months of February, April, June, August, October, and December.
2. All elections for the House of at-large Representatives shall be by single transferable vote, unless otherwise specified by law.
No person shall be a Representative who has not attained 100 or more posts, nor whose account is fewer than 720 hours old, nor who is not a citizen of the Republic of Atlasia.
The House of Representatives shall elect its Speaker and other officers, and shall have sole authority to determine its own methods of proceedings.
3. Vacancies in the House of at-large Representatives shall be filled by the executive of the affected Party; but should a vacancy occur as the result of the death, expulsion, or resignation of a Representative not being a member of a major Party, then a special election shall be held to choose a replacement to serve the remainder of the existing term.

Section 4 (Rules of Order)
1. Each HousesCongress may adopt rules concerning the discipline and expulsion of its members; but no Senator or Representative shall be expelled but with the concurrence of 2/3 of the members of the affected House.Congress.
2. Each HouseCongress shall be the judge of its own elections and of the qualifications of its members.
#Any Senator or member of the House of Representatives member of Congress who does not post on the Atlas Fantasy Government Board for a period of at least 504168 consecutive hours without posting a Leave of Absence during the period they are absent on the Atlas Fantasy Government Board shall forfeit their office.

Section 5 (Legislation)
1. Legislation may originate in either house, and both houses shall reserve the right to propose and concur with amendments; but all bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives.
2. Whenever either house shall vote to pass a bill, order, or resolution that shall have originated in the other, having previously made amendment to the same, the President of the Congress shall immediately call the amended bill to a vote in the house in which it originated. If the original house should then vote to pass the amended bill, it shall proceed to the President; otherwise, the President of the Congress shall instruct the other house either to pass the bill as it stood prior to its amendment by that house, or else reject it entirely.
3. Every bill, order, or resolution which shall have passed the Senate and the House of Representatives shall, before it becomes law, be submitted to the judgment of the President. If they approve of it they should sign it; but if they disapproves they should return the bill to the house in which it originated with their objections. If, after considering the objections of the President, both houses should by a 2/3 vote agree to pass the same bill, it shall become law regardless of the President's objections.If any bill, order, or resolution shall not be returned by the President within ten days after it has been presented to him, the bill shall become law.
1. Every bill, order, or resolution which shall have passed Congress shall, before it becomes law, be submitted to the judgment of the President. If they approve of it they should sign it; but if they disapprove they should veto and return the bill to Congress with their objections. If, after considering the objections of the President, Congress should by a 2/3 vote agree to pass the same bill, it shall become law regardless of the President's objections. If any bill, order, or resolution shall not be returned by the President within ten days after it has been presented to them, the bill shall become law.

Section 6 (Powers)
1. The Congress shall have the power, except where limited elsewhere by this Constitution, to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts, and excises, and to distribute the revenue thus collected;
2. to regulate foreign trade and inter-regional commerce;
3. to establish uniform laws of immigration and naturalization;
4. to regulate the value and coinage of the national currency;
5. to establish a uniform system of weights and measures;
6. to establish post offices and post roads;
7. to define and punish crimes committed on the high seas;
8. to declare war, issue letters of marque and reprisal, and make laws governing the capture of land and water;
9. to raise, support, and regulate the national armed forces;
10. to admit new states and territories to the Union;
11. to make laws governing borrowing, lending, and the selling of stocks and bonds;
12. to confirm or reject nominations for the Supreme Court and the officers of executive departments;
13. to establish a central national bank;
14. to make laws necessary for the enforcement of the Constitution and federal law;
15. to regulate voter registration and federal elections;
16. to impeach the President, Vice President, Justices and Associate Justices of the Supreme Court, and other officers of this government for high crimes and gross negligence; (Amended July 2017)
17. to establish, consolidate, alter, or terminate independent agencies led by non-playable officials, leaving it to the discretion of the President to control department structure and the existence of any playable principle officers, if any at all, which the President may appoint to roles in the agency, with the advice and consent of the Senate;
18. to make uniform rules for bankruptcies;
19. to temporarily grant inventors, authors, and artists exclusive patents or copyrights for their creations; and
20. to constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court of Atlasia;
21. and, to regulate independent expenditures for political communication.

Section 7 (Impeachment)
i. Whenever a majority of the members of Congress should resolve to indict an officer of this Republic for high crimes or gross negligence under the Constitution and laws thereof, there shall be immediately convened a Trial of Impeachment before the whole body of Congress.

ii. In all Trials of Impeachment, the Chief Justice shall preside, save when he himself is the officer to be tried, in which event the presiding officer of the SenateCongress shall assume such post.

iii. When voting to convict or acquit the indicted officer, the vote of each Senator shall be counted thrice, and the vote of each Representative counted twice, such that the vote of every Representative shall be equal to two thirds the vote of every Senator. A sum of twenty-four votes, so counted, shall be sufficient to convict the indicted officer. Representative shall be counted once.

iv. In all cases, the penalty for conviction shall be removal from office and disqualification from any office under the Republic of Atlasia for a period not exceeding two years.

==Section 8 (Restrictions)==
1. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, except when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it.
2. No Bill of Attainder or ex post facto law shall be passed.
3. No tax or duty shall be laid on articles exported from any Region.
4. No money shall be drawn from the Treasury but in accordance with the apportionments made by law.
5. No title of nobility shall be granted by the Republic of Atlasia, and accordingly no person holding office under this Constitution shall accept any title, rank, or office from any foreign state except in accordance with federal law.

Section 9 (War Authorization)
6. War shall be declared by Congress via a Declaration of War in case of armed conflict against a sovereign nation recognized by the Republic of Atlasia, or via an Authorization of Force in the case of sustained armed conflict against terrorist or rebel groups.
7. Congress shall be able to amend a Declaration of War or Authorization of Force and it shall have the right to set time limits which Congress may choose to extend via a later Resolution.
8. After the expiration of a Declaration of War or Authorization of Force, the Armed Forces will have a limit of 90 days to cease operations and/or withdraw from the territory delimitated by Congress. However, the President may submit an alternative schedule for withdrawal with due evidence and justification, schedule which Congress may veto with a 2/3 vote.

Article IV, sections 2  and 3 of the Constitution of Atlasia are amended to read as follows:

Section 2 (Powers)
The President shall have the power, except where limited elsewhere by this Constitution, to grant reprieves and pardons for crimes committed under the laws of the Republic of Atlasia, but Congress may rescind such pardons by a 2/3 vote of the Senate and the House of Representatives Congress;
1. to introduce legislation into the queue of the Congress;
2. to appoint, with the advice and consent of the SenateCongress, the Justices of the Supreme Court;
to establish such executive departments as may be necessary for the execution of the laws, and to appoint their principal officers with the advice and consent of the SenateCongress;
3. to veto acts of Congressional legislation, and to exercise a line-item veto over the budget;
4. to appoint, with the advice and consent of the SenateCongress, the vice president in the event of a vacancy in that office;
5. to serve as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Atlasia. and
6. to make treaties with the advice and consent of the Senate.
7. to authorize limited combat operations without Congressional approval for a limit of 90 days, with the required support and signature of at least two principal officers of the executive departments, and only in the case of emergencies previously determined by Congress via appropriate legislation.
8. to issue executive orders in accordance with established law.

Section 3 (The Vice Presidency)
1. Whenever the office of President shall fall vacant, by reason of the death, impeachment, or resignation of the occupant, the Vice President shall become President.
2. Whenever the President shall submit their written declaration to the presiding officer of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of RepresentativesCongress that they are unable to discharge the powers and duties of their office, and until they shall submit a declaration to the contrary, such powers and duties will be discharged by the Vice President as Acting President.
3. Whenever the Vice President and a majority of the principal officers of the executive departments shall submit their written declaration to the presiding officer of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of RepresentativesCongress that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of their office, such powers and duties will be discharged by the Vice President as Acting President until such time as the President should submit their declaration to the contrary.

Article V, section 1 of the Constitution of Atlasia is amended to read as follows:

1. The judicial power of the Republic of Atlasia shall be vested in the Supreme Court, the membership of which shall consist of two Justices and three Associate Justices chosen in the following manner:
2. The Justices of the Supreme Court shall be nominated by the President of the Republic of Atlasia and confirmed by a majority vote of the Senate Congress.
The chief executive officer of each of the several Regions shall nominate from among their constituents a candidate for Associate Justice. Upon the assent of a majority of the legislative power thereof, the nomination shall proceed to the President: if they approve of the nomination they should grant their Assent and the nominee shall assume the office of Associate Justice; but if they disapprove they should veto it and the nomination will be annulled. If then two thirds of the Senate Congress should vote to override the President's veto, the nominee shall take office regardless of the opinion of the President.
3. The Justices and Associate Justices thus chosen shall hold their offices for life in good behavior.
4. The President shall designate a Chief Justice from among the appointed Justices, who shall continue in that capacity until such time as they shall resign the designation, or else cease to be a member of the Supreme Court.

Amendment Explanation

Bicameralism has slowed down Atlasia for too long. This amendment merges the House of Representatives and Senate into one 15-member chamber, and sorts out details in the Constitution to bring them together.

[Dr. MB]

EMMETT TILL-VICKI WEAVER ANTI-LYNCHING LAW

1. The crime of lynching shall constitute a violation of the constitutional and civil rights of Atlasians and shall be classified as a felony punishable as a premeditated murder is punished under federal law in all States and external territories of Atlasia.

2. A person has committed the crime of lynching when he knowingly, as part of a mob commits an act of violence upon the body of a person, which shall result in the death of such person. For purposes of this definition, a mob shall be any collection of people, assembled for the purpose and with the intention of committing an assault, a battery, a kidnapping, or a murder upon any person or an act of violence, without authority of law or in direct violation of the law.

3. This act shall take effect thirty (30) days from the date of passage.

Introducing to the civilian slot!

[Dr. MB]

AN ACT
To take the burden off drivers.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Republic of Atlasia in Congress assembled,

Section I. Title

i. This bill may be known as the No Taxing Drivers Act.

Section II. Definitions
i. "Vehicle mile tax" shall be defined as any tax or fee which charges motorists based on the amount of miles they have traveled.

Section III. Substance
i. No vehicle mile tax may be implemented at the federal level in Atlasia.
ii. No driver in Atlasia may be required to install a GPS or location tracker on their vehicle.