The Voting Booth for the January Northeast Propositions will be open from now, until the Booth is closed at 7.00PM EST on Monday, January 21, 2008. Under no curcumstances are you allowed to change your ballot after 20 minutes. If you do otherwise your vote will not count.
Consumer Menu Information ActWhereas, The Northeast Region finds increasing levels of diabetes and obesity to be a health crisis;
Whereas, The Northeast Region finds that educating its residents about their food choices is a key part of stemming the tide; and
Whereas, The Northeast Region finds that large chain restaurants, like those who make food available for sale in supermarkets, have a responsibility to make key nutrition information about the products they sell available to consumers; therefore:
Be it resolved by the Northeast General Assembly:
SECTION 1. The Northeast shall require any restaurant with more than three locations operating inside the region to post accurate nutrition information directly on their menus and menu boards. This nutrition information shall include total calories, total grams of fat, total grams of carbohydrate, and total grams of saturated fat of the total portion being sold.
SECTION 2. The Northeast shall require the nutrition information specified in Section 1 to have a font size of at least 75% the size of that used to display the price of the menu item.
SECTION 3. The Northeast shall assess fines of the greater of $1,000 per day or $200 per operating restaurant location per day for restaurants that fail or refuse to comply with the provisions of this act.
SECTION
84.
Effective Date. The Consumer Menu Information Act shall go into effect January 1, 2009.
On modification: Correcting the section misnumbering as a "friendly" amendment.Sponsored by Senator Mr. Moderate of Massachussets
Northeast Region Indoor Smoking BanWhereas, The Northeast Region finds cigarette smoke to be a health hazard and general nuisance to nonsmokers; and
Whereas, The Northeast Region finds that areas of public accomodation should be as safe as possible; therefore:
Be it resolved by the Northeast General Assembly:
SECTION 1. The Northeast shall ban the smoking of cigarettes, cigars, clove cigarettes, and marijuana in any and all public places.
SECTION 2. The Northeast shall further ban the smoking of cigarettes, cigars, clove cigarettes, and marijuana within 15 feet of all such places defined in Section 1.
SECTION 3. The Northeast shall further ban the smoking of cigarettes, cigars, and clove cigarettes in motor vehicles where a child under the age of 18 is present.
SECTION 4. Sections 1, 2, and 3 of this act shall not be interpreted to legalize the smoking of any other substance or chemical.
SECTION 5.
Exceptions. The Northeast shall allow the operation of "Cigar Bars" or "Smoking Clubs," wherein the main purpose of the establishment is to sell and enjoy tobacco and/or marijuana. To qualify as a "Cigar Bar" or "Smoking Club," the establishment must derive a minimum of 50% of its gross revenue from the sale of cigarettes or cigars and disallow admittance to minors.
SECTION 6. The Northeast shall enforce the provisions of this act with a fine to the individual smoker of $100 for the first offense, and a fine of $250 for each subsequent violation of the terms of this act.
SECTION 7. An establishment found to be willfully disregarding the provisions of this act in allowing and encouraging smoking in areas defined in Sections 1 and 2 shall also be subject to fines of $250 per smoking offense.
SECTION 8.
Effective Date. The Northeast Region Indoor Smoking Ban shall go into effect April 1, 2008
Sponsored by Senator Mr. Moderate of Massachussets
Northeast Region Greyfield Redevelopment ActWhereas, The Northeast Region finds that greyfields and abandoned structures to be a net liability to a community, contributing little or nothing to an existing property tax base and depressing the value of neighboring properties, therefore:
Be it resolved by the Northeast General Assembly:
SECTION 1.
Definition. Greyfield land is defined as economically obsolescent, outdated, failing, moribund and/or underutilized real estate assets or land.
SECTION 2. The Northeast Regional government shall be empowered to classify existing properties as "abandoned," "unoccupied," or "greyfields." Municipalities shall also have this power, and have the right to challenge any classification as such handed down from the Northeast Regional government.
SECTION 3. A property classified as a greyfield, or a property which has been unoccupied or abandoned for a period of time greater than 12 months shall qualify for a redevelopment tax credit.
SECTION 4. All monies spent on redeveloping a qualifying property as defined in Section 3 shall be immediately and totally deductable from that year's municipal property taxes.
SECTION 5. Properties which have been unoccupied or abandoned for a period of time greater than 24 months shall further qualify for an extended property tax credit as follows: If the deduction for that year's property taxes exceeds the amount of that year's property taxes, the balance may be carried over into the second year, and, if necessary, the third year. Any unapplied deduction will expire following the third year, and the property shall then be subject to the standard property tax rate for that municipality.
SECTION 6.
Effective Date. The Northeast Region Greyfield Redevelopment Act shall go into effect immediately upon passage.
Sponsored by Senator Mr. Moderate
Raw Produce Origins Bill1. “Retail food store” is defined as a location where food is sold for consumption off the premises.
2. Any retail food store that sells or offers for sale raw produce shall identify the state of origin of the produce, or the country if the produce is procured outside Atlasia. This shall be provided to consumers in a clear and conspicuous manner and shall be displayed on or near the produce item.
3. If the produce is already individually labeled as to its origin, the retail food store shall not be required to provide any additional information in order to comply.
4. A proprietor of a retail food store which violates the provisions of this section shall be subject to a penalty of not less than $50 or more than $100 for the first offense, and not less than $250 or more than $500 for the second or any subsequent offense.
5. This bill shall go into effect 90 days following passage.
Sponsored by Senator Verily of New Hampshire
Cellular Telephone Safety Bill1. The operator of a motor vehicle shall not use any cellular telephone, including hands-free devices, for any purpose whatsoever, except to place an emergency 911 call, while the vehicle is in motion on any public road.
2. The penalty for violation of this legislation shall be as follows:
a. $25.00 for a first violation;
b. $50.00 for a second violation;
c. $100.00 for any subsequent violations.
3. This legislation shall come into effect 90 days after passage.
Sponsored by Senator Verily of New HampshireTHE VOTING BOOTH IS NOW OPEN
