Amended by the Structural Amendments to the Underhusen Procedural RulesSummary: This amendment made a number of changes to the procedural rules to make it easier to understand, close loopholes, and provide more detail on some procedures.
Time in Effect: May 2nd, 2015 to August 20th, 2015 (passage of the Procedural Rules Amendment X)
Legislative Votes: UnderhusenAmendment TextSpoiler
1. This Section shall modify Section 2 of the Underhusen Procedural Rules, which currently reads:
"2. Any Underhusen representative may introduce legislation into the Underhusen."
Section 2 of the Underhusen Procedural Rules shall be amended to read:
"Any Skrifa may introduce proposals to the Underhusen at any time after the selection of the Speaker.
(a) At the beginning of the term, the Speaker shall designate one Skrifa other than him/herself or the Speaker pro tempore as Secretary of the Underhusen, who shall have the responsibility to post newly introduced proposals to the Citizens' Platform and to notify Citizens of new proposals through various means of communication."
2. This Section shall modify Section 3 of the Underhusen Procedural Rules, which currently reads:
"3. Any legislative or non-legislative proposal introduced into the Underhusen will automatically be open for debate for 2 days. At the conclusion of this time period, a representative may either motion to Extend Debate, motion to table, or motion to vote. The motions must be seconded before being passed
(a) In matters of urgency, this two day period may be waived if the Speaker of the Assembly makes a motion to expedite and the motion is seconded by a Underhusen Representative.
(b) A motion to Extend Debate may include a time period shorter or longer than 48 hours, but is not shorter than 4 hours and is not longer than 1 weeks, should no time period be given or should the time period be shorter or longer than what is allowed, the extension shall be 48 hours."
Section 3 of the Underhusen Procedural Rules shall be amended to read:
"Any proposal introduced into the Underhusen must be considered by the Underhusen for a minimum of two days before a motion to vote or table can be made. If no motion has been made or seconded after five days, Skrifa must enter a motion to vote, table, or extend discussion."
Section 3(a) shall be ameded to read:
(a) Any Skrifa other than the Speaker may motion to expedite at any time after a proposal has been introduced. If the motion receives a second, the bill will proceed to a vote no later than 24 hours after the second.
Section 3(c) shall be amended to read:
(c) If a motion to table a proposal passes, the proposal will be tabled. Should a Skrifa wish to revive debate or bring the proposal to a vote, they must motion to revive discussion or motion to vote. If either motion passes, the Underhusen shall follow normal procedure for discussion or voting.
Section 3(d) shall be added to the Underhusen Procedural Rules, and it shall read:
"For a motion to table to pass, a majority of Skrifa must support the motion. After a motion to table receives a second, the Speaker will ask the Skrifa to announce in favor or not in favor. The Speaker shall not vote on a motion to table except in the event of a tie."
3. This Section shall modify Section 4 of the Underhusen Procedural Rules, which currently reads:
"4. Any Underhusen representative may motion to vote on any legislative or non-legislative proposal.
(a) A proposal shall proceed to a vote no more than five days after a motion to vote is seconded by another representative.
(b) The Speaker of the Assembly may not motion to vote or second a motion to vote."
Section 4 of the Underhusen Procedural Rules shall be amended to read:
"Any Skrifa other than the Speaker may motion to vote on any proposal once the two-day debate period has expired. The Speaker shall open the vote no later than five days after the motion to vote has passed.
(a) The Speaker shall notify the Citizens of Wintreath whenever a proposal comes to a vote."
Section 4(a) and section 4(b) shall be rendered null and void.
4. This Section shall modify Section 6 of the Underhusen Procedural Rules, which currently reads:
"6. Underhusen representatives may cast one of the following votes on proposals before the Underhusen:
(a) Aye, indicating that the representative is voting in favor of the proposal;
(b) Nay, indicating that the representative is voting against the proposal;
(c) Abstain, indicating that the representative is voting neither in favor of or against the proposal but wishes his or her vote to be recorded."
Section 6(d) shall be added to the Underhusen Procedural Rules, and it shall read:
"(d) "Abstain" votes shall not be considered when determining whether a bill has passed, tied, or failed. Only "Aye" and "Nay" votes shall be considered."
5. This Section shall modify Section 9 of the Underhusen Procedural Rules, which currently reads:
"9. The Speaker of the Assembly shall have the power to set an agenda for the Underhusen at the beginning of his or her term and to revise this agenda throughout the term."
Section 9 of the Underhusen Procedural Rules shall be rendered null and void.
6.This Section shall modify Section 10 of the Underhusen Procedural Rules, which currently reads:
"10. The Speaker of the Assembly shall have the power to bring matters before the Underhusen to a vote within the parameters established by Section 4(a) of this Act."
Section 10 of the Underhusen Procedural Rules shall be amended to read:
"The Speaker of the Assembly shall have the power to bring matters before the Underhusen to a vote within the parameters established by Section 4 of this Act."
7. This Section shall modify Section 11 of the Underhusen Procedural Rules, which currently reads:
"11. The Speaker of the Assembly shall have the power to close votes and declare the official outcome of votes on matters before the Underhusen within the parameters established by Section 5 of this Act.
(a) The Speaker of the Assembly shall have the power to leave voting open for votes to the record after official voting has closed."
Section 11 of the Underhusen Procedural Rules shall be amended to read:
"The Speaker will close votes after seven days of voting, or if enough votes have been cast to decide the outcome of the proposal.
(a) In order for a proposal to pass (excluding amendments to the Fundamental Laws), the number of "Aye" votes cast during the voting period must exceed the number of "Nay" votes.
(b) After closing a vote, the Speaker shall decide the outcome of the vote according to the above criteria and notify the Citizens of Wintreath with the result.
(c) The Speaker may close a vote, but leave the record open to allow other Skrifa to record their votes. Votes cast after the vote has been closed will not affect the result of the vote."
8. This Section shall modify Section 13 of the Underhusen Procedural Rules, which currently reads:
"13. The Speaker of the Assembly shall have the power to determine procedure related to any matter that is not covered by this Act at his or her discretion."
Section 13 of the Underhusen Procedural Rules shall be rendered null and void.
9. This Section shall modify Section 14 of the Underhusen Procedural Rules, which currently reads:
"14. The Speaker of the Assembly shall have the power to appoint a Speaker pro tempore from among the representatives of the Underhusen who shall, during a temporary absence of the Speaker of the Assembly, preside over the Underhusen.
(a) The Speaker pro tempore, whenever he or she is presiding over the Underhusen, shall be subject to all constitutional and statutory constraints placed upon the Speaker of the Assembly.
(b) Any Underhusen representative may make a motion to empower the Speaker pro tempore in the event that the Speaker of the Assembly is absent without notice for longer than five days. Such a motion shall be brought to a vote by the Speaker pro tempore immediately upon being seconded by another representative.
(c) The Speaker pro tempore shall cease to preside over the Underhusen upon the return of the Speaker of the Assembly.
(d) In the absence of both the Speaker of the Assembly and the Speaker Pro Tempore, the Underhusen may decide on a temporary Speaker pro tempore from its number by process of a majority vote.
(e) The Speaker must select a Speaker Pro Tempore within one week of being elected. Should the Speaker fail to select a Speaker Pro Tempore then the Speaker Pro Tempore is the candidate that got the second most amount of votes, in the election of the Speaker; should there have been an election with more than one candidate then, in the event of a tie for second place, the Speaker must choose one of the candidates. If the speaker fails to do so the monarch is to choose a Speaker Pro Tempore out of the tied candidates. Furthermore should there have been no other candidates in the election of the speaker, then one will be chosen at random from the members of the Underhusen, excluding the Speaker."
Section 14(a) of the Underhusen Procedural Rules shall read:
"The Speaker pro tempore, whenever he or she is presiding over the Underhusen, shall assume all of the responsibilities of the Speaker as listed in relevant law, and shall be subject to the same constitutional and statutory restraints placed upon the Speaker."
Amendment EffectSpoiler
Title
1. This Act shall be cited as the Procedural Rules of the Underhusen Act.
Underhusen Procedure
2. Any Underhusen representative Skrifa may introduce legislation into the Underhusen at any time after the selection of the Speaker.
(a) At the beginning of the term, the Speaker shall designate one Skrifa other than him/herself or the Speaker pro tempore as Secretary of the Underhusen, who shall have the responsibility to post newly introduced proposals to the Citizens' Platform and to notify Citizens of new proposals through various means of communication.
3. Any legislative or non-legislative proposal proposal introduced into the Underhusen will automatically be open for debate for 2 days. At the conclusion of this time period, a representative may either motion to Extend Debate, motion to table, or motion to vote. Either motion must be seconded before being passed. must be considered by the Underhusen for a minimum of two days before a motion to vote or table can be made. If no motion has been made or seconded after five days, Skrifa must enter a motion to vote, table, or extend discussion.
(a) In matters of urgency, this two day period may be waived if the Speaker of the Assembly makes a motion to expedite and the motion is seconded by a Underhusen representative.
(a) Any Skrifa other than the Speaker may motion to expedite at any time after a proposal has been introduced. If the motion receives a second, the bill will proceed to a vote no later than 24 hours after the second.
(b) A motion to Extend Debate may include a time period shorter or longer than 48 hours, but is not shorter than 4 hours and is not longer than 1 weeks, should no time period be given or should the time period be shorter or longer than what is allowed, the extension shall be 48 hours.
(c) If a motion to table a proposal passes, the proposal will be tabled. Should a Skrifa wish to revive debate or bring the proposal to a vote, they must motion to revive discussion or motion to vote. If either motion passes, the Underhusen shall follow normal procedure for discussion or voting.
(d) For a motion to table to pass, a majority of Skrifa must support the motion. After a motion to table receives a second, the Speaker will ask the Skrifa to announce in favor or not in favor. The Speaker shall not vote on a motion to table except in the event of a tie.
4. Any Underhusen representative Skrifa other than the Speaker may motion to vote on any legislative or non-legislative proposal once the two-day debate period has expired. The Speaker shall open the vote no later than five days after the motion to vote has passed.
(a) The Speaker shall notify the Citizens of Wintreath whenever a proposal comes to a vote.
(a) A proposal shall proceed to a vote no more than five days after a motion to vote is seconded by another representative.
(b) The Speaker of the Assembly may not motion to vote or second a motion to vote.
5. Once brought to a vote, a proposal shall remain at vote for seven days or until the requisite number of Underhusen representatives have voted in favor of or against the proposal.
6. Underhusen representatives may cast one of the following votes on proposals before the Underhusen:
(a) Aye, indicating that the representative is voting in favor of the proposal;
(b) Nay, indicating that the representative is voting against the proposal;
(c) Abstain, indicating that the representative is voting neither in favor of or against the proposal but wishes his or her vote to be recorded.
(d)"Abstain" votes shall not be considered when determining whether a bill has passed, tied, or failed. Only "Aye" and "Nay" votes shall be considered.
7. In accordance with Section 9 of the Fundamental Laws, the Underhusen may override a veto by the Overhusen.
(a) In order to override the veto, the bill must be reintroduced to the floor in accordance with Section 3.
(b) If the bill recieves a two-thirds supermajority vote, the Overhusen veto shall be overruled, and the bill passed as law.
The Speaker of the Assembly
8. At the Conclusion of each election, the Monarch shall immediately open poll within the halls of the Underhusen, where prospective candidates will have 48 hours to stand as a candidate for Speaker of the Underhusen. Following the 48 hour period, all Skrifa may have one vote for Speaker of the Underhusen. The poll will remain open for 48 hours or until all elected Skrifa have voted and no tie for doing so has occurred. The Speaker shall be chosen by popularity vote.
(a) The time period may be shortened by the descretion of the Monarch if there is a tie vote for the Underhusen or the time that the Skrifa have office is shortened for any reason other than a Recall.
8.2 In the event of a tie upon the conclusion of voting, a run-off election shall be held in the immediate 24 hours that follows.
(8.2 a) The candidates who are tied with the most votes will take part in the run off.
(b) Should there only be one candidate running that one candidate is to be speaker at the end of the nomination period. There shall be no voting period in this instance.
9. The Speaker of the Assembly shall have the power to set an agenda for the Underhusen at the beginning of his or her term and to revise this agenda throughout the term.
10 9. The Speaker of the Assembly shall have the power to bring matters before the Underhusen to a vote within the parameters established by Section 4(a) of this Act.
11. The Speaker of the Assembly shall have the power to close votes and declare the official outcome of votes on matters before the Underhusen within the parameters established by Section 5 of this Act.
(a) The Speaker of the Assembly shall have the power to leave voting open for votes to the record after official voting has closed.
10. The Speaker will close votes after seven days of voting, or if enough votes have been cast to decide the outcome of the proposal.
(a) In order for a proposal to pass (excluding amendments to the Fundamental Laws), the number of "Aye" votes cast during the voting period must exceed the number of "Nay" votes.
(b) After closing a vote, the Speaker shall decide the outcome of the vote according to the above criteria and notify the Citizens of Wintreath with the result.
(c) The Speaker may close a vote, but leave the record open to allow other Skrifa to record their votes. Votes cast after the vote has been closed will not affect the result of the vote.
12 11. The Speaker of the Assembly shall have the power to invite any citizen to speak before the Underhusen for any duration that he or she deems necessary during the term.
(a) All members of the Royal Family shall have a standing invitation to speak before the Underhusen.
13. The Speaker of the Assembly shall have the power to determine procedure related to any matter that is not covered by this Act at his or her discretion.
14 12. The Speaker of the Assembly shall have the power to appoint a Speaker pro tempore from among the representatives of the Underhusen who shall, during a temporary absence of the Speaker of the Assembly, preside over the Underhusen.
(a) The Speaker pro tempore, whenever he or she is presiding over the Underhusen, shall assume all of the responsibilities of the Speaker as listed in relevant law, and shall be subject to all constitutional and statutory constraints restraints placed upon the Speaker of the Assembly.
(b) Any Underhusen representative may make a motion to empower the Speaker pro tempore in the event that the Speaker of the Assembly is absent without notice for longer than five days. Such a motion shall be brought to a vote by the Speaker pro tempore immediately upon being seconded by another representative.
(c) The Speaker pro tempore shall cease to preside over the Underhusen upon the return of the Speaker of the Assembly.
(d) In the absence of both the Speaker of the Assembly and the Speaker Pro Tempore, the Underhusen may decide on a temporary Speaker pro tempore from its number by process of a majority vote.
(e) The Speaker must select a Speaker Pro Tempore within one week of being elected. Should the Speaker fail to select a Speaker Pro Tempore then the Speaker Pro Tempore is the candidate that got the second most amount of votes, in the election of the Speaker; should there have been an election with more than one candidate then, in the event of a tie for second place, the Speaker must choose one of the candidates. If the speaker fails to do so the monarch is to choose a Speaker Pro Tempore out of the tied candidates. Furthermore should there have been no other candidates in the election of the speaker, then one will be chosen at random from the members of the Underhusen, excluding the Speaker.
15 13. The Speaker of the Underhusen, or Speaker Pro Tempore if he/she is in use, shall maintain a link to all amendments to these Procedural Rules of the Underhusen.
16 14. The Speaker of the Underhusen, or Speaker Pro Tempore if he/she is in use, shall keep an easily accessible archive of all former and current votes in a way that he/she chooses that all citizens shall have access to.