Vetoed Ethical Standards Act

[Centerpartiet]

A
BILL
TO

SET STANDARDS FOR THE MEMBERS OF CONGRESS

The people of DemocracyCraft, through their elected representatives in the Congress and the force of law ordained to that Congress by the people through the constitution, do hereby enact the following provisions into law:

1 - Short Title and Enactment
(1) This Act may be cited as the “Ethical Standards Act”.
(2) This Act shall be enacted immediately upon its signage.
(3) The Act has been co-sponsored by: Representatives: A__C, Psypio, SlimeGlitch,
(4) The Act has been co-authored by: Representative ManagerHell, Senator LilNickiVert, Senator black_ven0m and Representative ComradeLuigi

2 - Reasons
(1) It is of the utmost importance to have a congressional individual be active within the Redmont community. Consistent activity will ensure congressional individuals are understanding the present-day needs of their constituents first hand and the knowledge they acquired will be reflected in their work.


3 - Terms
The following standards will be set for representatives of congress;

§1.) Representatives should be active members of the community.
1.) “Active member of the community” through this document shall refer to an individual who consistently interacts with and understands the current climate of both the in-game and Discord aspects of the server.
a.) While being an active member of the community it is, through this document, implied that Representatives should also make a concerted effort to be active in their role as a Representative.
b.) In the instance that a Representative must take a leave of absence they should make a concerted effort to declare such prior.
i.) If possible, it is preferred that a Representative provide an estimated
date of return to their position.


§2.) Representatives should make a concerted effort to debate proposed bills prior to the votation period such that amendments may be made.
1.) Too often bills get completely rejected due to miscommunications in the way something is written. If debate is held and viewpoints clarified, amendments may be made which improve upon or clarify the wording of said bill, causing a net increase in bill passage within the House of Representatives.


§3.) Representatives should make a concerted effort to: (i) be a positive member of the community; and (ii) through (i) not engage in toxic conversation or activities on the server.
1.) Representatives should, by extension of (i) make a concerted effort to refrain from excessive criminal activity–if any at all.
2.) Representatives should avoid the usage of excessive profanity or insults (except towards Canadians).
3.) Representatives should behave at all times in a manner that shall reflect creditably on the House of Representatives.

§4.) Representatives should uphold the active playtime of 12 hours for every calendar month for the rest of their term.

 

[Westray]

Veto

This bill is hereby vetoed.

While I agree with the nature of the bill, there are a few key issues with it in its current form.

"2.) Representatives should avoid the usage of excessive profanity or insults (except towards Canadians)."

This clause, while clearly a joke, could be used to indiscriminately enable a loophole for Representatives to insult players in the community of Canadian descent and to avoid liability.

Redmont is a nation that consists of a wide range of nationalities, and Canadians deserve equal, if not better, treatment under the law.

Aside from that, the bill is not formatted in accordance with the Legislative Standards Act, leading to some confusion. Noting:

- The bill seems to outline a new act, however has colour coded itself in green when it is not an amendment to existing law.
- Sections, subsections, and sub-subsections are not used properly which creates inconsistency with the regular Bill and Resolution Formats.

I also checked in with the Speaker of the House, who informed me in regards to the same concerns of formatting.

Due to the problematic nature of loopholes and the inconsistent formatting, I cannot sign this bill in good conscience. However, I would advise the respective Representative to make a concerted effort to propose a bill with proper formatting and equal protection.