Ammerville Charter

//Preamble//: We the people of Ammerville, in order to foster and protect the prosperity, liberty, peace of this City-State and its Citizens, do ordain and establish this Charter.\\\\**Article I. The Legislative Branch.**\\\\**Section 1. The Legislature.**\\\\All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in the Council.\\\\**Section 2. The Council.**\\\\The Council shall be composed of Members chosen every year by the People. The number of Councilmembers shall not exceed five, and each Constituency shall have at least one Member.\\\\Constituencies:

• //Lords and Ladies//
• //Merchants//
• //Citizens//
• //Mages//
• //Any of the above//

\\No Person shall be a Councilmember who shall not have attained to the age of eighteen years and have not maintained a permanent residence in the City-State.\\\\When vacancies happen in the Council, the Council shall have the authority to commence an election to fill such vacancies.\\\\The Council shall have the sole power of Impeachment and the right to try all Impeachments. No person shall be Impeached without a unanimous vote of the Council. Judgment in cases of Impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from office.\\\\**Section 3. Elections, Meetings.**\\\\Elections for Councilmembers shall occur annually. Election times, candidates, and protocol will be first posted on the public board and then mailed out by the Council in a timely fashion to Citizens registered via Census as well as any Citizen who writes to express interest. Nominations shall be sent to each of the current standing Councilmembers and the City Clerk. During the voting period, which shall be limited to one week, Citizens must send their votes to the City Clerk and the Councilmembers, who will tally them.\\\\The Council shall assemble at least once in every year for a formal meeting, and such meeting shall be announced on the public board a week in advance and open to the public. Councilmembers have the authority to call additional formal meetings, whose time and place shall also be forwarded to the rest of the Council a week in advance. Finally, Councilmembers have authority to call emergency meetings when necessary. At all times, three 'aye' votes are necessary to pass a resolution or law, and the Council must be unanimous in Impeachments.\\\\**Section 4. Membership, Rules, Journals.**\\\\A majority (three) shall constitute a quorum required to do business, although during emergencies a smaller number may convene.\\\\The Council may determine the rules of its proceedings, punish its Members for disorderly behavior, and, with unanimous vote (except for the Member under scrutiny), expel a Member.\\\\The Council may keep a Journal of its proceedings, excepting such parts as may in their judgment require secrecy; and the Yeas and Nays of the Members of the Council on any question shall accordingly be entered on the Journal.\\\\**Section 5. Compensation**.\\\\The Councilmembers shall receive a compensation for their services, to be ascertained by law, and paid out of the Treasury of the City-State.\\\\No Councilmember shall, during the Time for which he was elected, be appointed to any other office under the authority of the Ammerville government; and no Councilmember shall hold any other government office during her continuance on the Council.\\\\**Section 6. Legislative Process, Baron Veto.**\\\\Every resolution which shall have passed the Council by a majority vote shall become a law and be presented to the Baron; if he wishes to veto a resolution, he shall return it within two weeks.\\\\A resolution that has been vetoed by the Baron can be repassed by unanimous vote.\\\\**Section 7. Powers of the Council**.\\\\The Council has the power to lay and collect taxes, to pay debts, borrow on credit for, and provide for the common defense and welfare of the City-State.\\\\The Council has the power to enact resolutions regulating commerce; naturalization; mail; felonies and offenses against the City-State and its Citizens; to hire, arm, and support an independent militia (Degns); to raise, arm, and support a police force (Guard); and to make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers.\\\\**Section 8. Special Provisions for Times of War**\\\\During a time of war as designated by either a majority vote of the Council or the Baron's decree, both the Caption of the Guard and the Eorl sit on the Council.\\\\**Article II. The Executive Branch**\\\\**Section 1. The Baron.**\\\\The executive power shall be vested in a Baron. He shall hold his office indefinitely, and his successor will be at his choosing.\\\\The Baron shall, at stated times, receive for his services compensation.\\\\**Section 2. State of the City**\\\\He shall from time to time give to the Council information of the state of the City, and recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient; he may, on extraordinary occasions, convene the Council.\\\\**Article III. The Judicial Branch**\\\\**Section 1. The Magistrates**\\\\The judicial power shall be vested in one three-judge panel of Magistrates. If the City-State is unable to assemble a three-judge panel, only one Magistrate shall rule in the intervening period.\\\\The Magistrates shall, at stated times, receive for their services compensation.\\\\**Section 2. Trials**\\\\The trial of all crimes, civil disputes, and challenges to legislative enactments will be done before the Magistrates. Parties may bring a suit before the Magistrates by notifying the city clerk, the Magistrates, and the other parties to the dispute. Evidence and legal arguments from all sides shall be submitted in a single document (brief) or may on exceptional occasions be heard on oral argument.\\\\Two-thirds majority of the Magistrates shall constitute the majority opinion, and that opinion shall become binding precedent for the City-State.\\\\**Section 3. Code of Judicial Conduct**\\\\At no time shall a Magistrate meet ex parte with one of the parties to a dispute.\\\\Magistrates with personal conflicts shall recuse themselves from disputes.\\\\The Magistrates may determine the rules of their proceedings, punish its Members for disorderly behavior, and, with unanimous vote (except for the Member under scrutiny), expel a Member.\\\\**Section 4. Warrants for the Degns and the Guard**\\\\Upon a showing of probable cause, a single Magistrate has the authority to grant or renew a warrant for a limited time.\\\\**Article IV. Amendments**\\\\suggestions?

Last modified on May 2, 2016, 22:11:36