Having been Chair of the Citizens' Assembly for two terms (twice the people sitting on you, for those keeping score at home), you could say I have decent experience running the Citizens' Assembly. As the current election for Chair is winding down and we prepare ourselves for the third Chair in just over a month, I thought now would be a good time to examine the law behind the body. Not to be confused with the body behind the law, which is usually naked in the shower. My apologies to Speaker Malashaan, though in fairness, you really shouldn't be cleansing yourself on the Senate floor.
First, let's define what the Citizens' Assembly is. According to the Citizens' Assembly Act (2012), it is "a sub-legislative body with such powers as delegated to it by the Senate in this and other Acts." Now, as descriptive as that is, that doesn't really tell us much about what the Assembly does. Thankfully, its powers are later clarified to be "Internal Governance" and "Sub-Legislation". Before we get into those, however, let's talk about the one who ultimately wields those powers, the Chair.
For all those people that love sucking up to those in power *shoots a glance at Sopo* listen up. Section (3) of the same Act, under the section aptly titled, "Leadership" explains who runs the Citizens' Assembly, and how they get the power:
Anyway, now that we've got our leader, and we know what powers they have, there is just one more thing to cover: the Deputies. Any Sheriff worth his salt in the Old West had a Deputy, in case he died in a shootout but still needed to rustle up some vagrants. The Citizens' Assembly is no different, really, so section (5) states:irate:
Now for the fun stuff: power! First, internal governance, given by section (7):
The last power of the Assembly is sub-legislation. And contrary to popular belief, this is not legislation that comes into class when regular legislation is at a meeting, only to be ignored and splattered with spitballs. No, sub-legislation, defined by section (9), is:
To conclude, I hope this article has enlightened you on the powers and purpose of the Citizens' Assembly as we move towards another term under a new Chair. I highly encourage all non-Senator citizens to join, and for all citizens (including Senators) to get involved. It's a great experience that gives you an "in", as it were, in the world of legislation in Europeia. There are also sections for World Assembly drafts, general education tools, and much more. As always, I encourage those interested in the subject to check out the subforum to learn more, and to also stop by the Law Index to sample all the fantastic legislation this region has to offer. Until next time, this is Calvin Coolidge, sitting on the Chair.
First, let's define what the Citizens' Assembly is. According to the Citizens' Assembly Act (2012), it is "a sub-legislative body with such powers as delegated to it by the Senate in this and other Acts." Now, as descriptive as that is, that doesn't really tell us much about what the Assembly does. Thankfully, its powers are later clarified to be "Internal Governance" and "Sub-Legislation". Before we get into those, however, let's talk about the one who ultimately wields those powers, the Chair.
For all those people that love sucking up to those in power *shoots a glance at Sopo* listen up. Section (3) of the same Act, under the section aptly titled, "Leadership" explains who runs the Citizens' Assembly, and how they get the power:
Seems reasonable enough. In the same way that the Senate Speaker is chosen from his ranks of fellow Senators, the Assembly Chair is, too. Although this act does not mention it explicitly, the Elections Ordinance (2014), an example of internal governance that we'll cover more in-depth later, states:
So, you do have to be a member of the Citizens' Assembly to be Chair, case closed. Sorry Senators and Diplomats. Maybe you can be Chair of Barbie's Enchanted Dream House, instead.
Anyway, now that we've got our leader, and we know what powers they have, there is just one more thing to cover: the Deputies. Any Sheriff worth his salt in the Old West had a Deputy, in case he died in a shootout but still needed to rustle up some vagrants. The Citizens' Assembly is no different, really, so section (5) states:
This way, when things get too rowdy in the OK Corral for just one cowpoke, his trusty sidekicks can mosey on over and hog-tie... people. Maybe I've stretched this Wild West thing too far. One last thing, though, before we move on. In case you're worried about the Deputies teaming up on the Chair and taking all the power for themselves, there is handy dandy section (6) which declares:
So, if these Deputies want to seize power, they're going to have to do it the old-fashioned way... mutiny.
irate: Now for the fun stuff: power! First, internal governance, given by section (7):
And defined by section (8):
This gives the Assembly the power to regulate its own matters. Or, in layman's terms: to check itself, so it doesn't wreck itself. Currently, this is done through four Ordinances: Procedures, Elections, Membership, and Grammatical, Formatting, and Spelling. Since these are all fairly self-explanatory, I won't go into too much detail, but feel free to check them out in the Citizens' Assembly Ordinance Index.
The last power of the Assembly is sub-legislation. And contrary to popular belief, this is not legislation that comes into class when regular legislation is at a meeting, only to be ignored and splattered with spitballs. No, sub-legislation, defined by section (9), is:
So, in essence, this gives the Citizens' Assembly the ability to present the Senate with a proposal it must acknowledge, if it passes. This way, the Assembly has a voice in regards to the region's legislation, but does not have the power to override the Senate. Thus, forever rendering the Assembly as the Senate's less popular, less powerful little brother. *trips the Assembly as it walks by* Nerd!
To conclude, I hope this article has enlightened you on the powers and purpose of the Citizens' Assembly as we move towards another term under a new Chair. I highly encourage all non-Senator citizens to join, and for all citizens (including Senators) to get involved. It's a great experience that gives you an "in", as it were, in the world of legislation in Europeia. There are also sections for World Assembly drafts, general education tools, and much more. As always, I encourage those interested in the subject to check out the subforum to learn more, and to also stop by the Law Index to sample all the fantastic legislation this region has to offer. Until next time, this is Calvin Coolidge, sitting on the Chair.