Bills

43RZ22 – The Justice Castiglha Removal Act

WHEREAS we have three inactive Justices on the bench of the Uppermost Cort and this has caused the Justice system to grind slower than the RUMP's turtle,

WHEREAS we would like three active Justices, and a concomitant speed more akin to the cheetah of the distant veldt,

THEREFORE be it enacted that Justice Quedeir Castiglha is hereby removed from office, as per the Organic Law, Article XVI, Section 1.

FURTHERMORE, Baron Castiglha is understood to be a Justice Emeritus in good standing, as per 43RZ15. The Ziu thanks Baron Castiglha for his service, brings to mind his notable actions in the early days of the liberated Kingdom and notes regret that this action needs to be taken.

Noi urent q'estadra sa:
Éovart Grischun (MC-CSPP)
Owen Edwards (MC-CSPP)
Munditenens Tresplet (MC-RUMP)

El Regeu en volt, again with regrets.

— John R

43RZ24 – The Our Pets are Talossan Too! Act

WHEREAS many Talossans own pets and many of us love animals more than we do some humans, and

WHEREAS that might be a bit troubling from a philosophical point of view, but, it is what it is, and

WHEREAS I have a dog (rescued), named Lucy (Lutzía), and she has some congenital problems with her legs and paws and despite this she shows an extreme level of endurance and agility and defies the odds and astounds me everyday, not only with that, but with her incredible mind and personality too; and also her caring side, which exhibited a few weeks ago when she used her nose to lift the cat up onto the window ledge after said cat made a total mess of a jump and was left dangling, and this, to me, is a Talossan dog, and

WHEREAS I have a cat who is absent minded and clumsy and extremely chatty to the point of annoyance and she is fussy with her food and only drinks from the bath taps, and this, to me, is a Talossan cat, and

WHEREAS Senator Mick Preston currently owns two Rescue dogs. One is a Whippet - hence his "Fantasy" team name, the "Fighting Whippets", and the other is a Shelter-rescue dog - and both are strong in morals, strong in ideal, and strong in forgiving. Both animals, to S:r Preston at least, are Talossan, and

WHEREAS The King also has a dog which is the coolest Royal dog ever and it whoops a Corgi's ass, paws down, and is the Official dog of the Kingdom and is, without doubt, a Talossan dog, and

WHEREAS Flip Molinar has two dogs and one cat who provide him with extreme comfort and security much like Talossa herself, which, in turn, provides to each of her citizens the safety and comfort of a loving and caring society, and

WHEREAS Dien Tresplet, according to him, has one of the coolest pets throughout Talossa, Walter the Cat (Viult dal cäts), and along with S:reu Molinar also feels extreme comfort and security (from mice anyway) resulting from ownership, and

WHEREAS Ián Anglatzarâ is not sure if his Kittens are Talossan, but they are out of their minds and tearing down his house anyway, and

WHEREAS Davíu Lundescu's dog started making noise right after my dog started making noise, and

WHEREAS this list could probably go on and on but I find it sufficient enough to say that most of us have animals and the personality of these animals both supplement and compliment the character of the owner and vice versa and if the owner is Talossan then it is fair to say the animal is too, and

WHEREAS Baron Hooligan has pointed out that animals that have a predilection for beer are also Talossan, so

THEREFORE be it resolved by the Ziu that animals and pets belonging to owners of Talossan citizenship shall be considered to be Talossan-in-nature.

ADDITIONALLY any animal that shows an appreciation for beer or Talossan cuisine shall also be considered to be Talossan-in-nature.

FURTHERMORE Talossan citizens are encouraged to know the Talossan name of their furry, feathered, scaled or otherwise critters.

Noi urent q'estadra sa:

Éovart Grischun, MC - CSPP
Flip Molinar, MC - CSPP
Dien Tresplet, MC – RUMP


El Regeu en volt.

— John R

43RZ25 – The Take Me to the River Omnibus Act

WHEREAS the so-called "reunision" of the Talossan people is to be accomplished soon, thanks to the successful completion of the discussions that determined the particular details of this great event, and

WHEREAS one of these details is the creation of a new province, La Provinçù Liveradâ da Fiôvâ, territory for which has already been graciously conceded by acts of the Maritiimi-Maxhestic Corporative Chamber and the Maricopa Cabana, and

WHEREAS the existence of this new province requires acknowledgement and accommodation in certain portions of Organic and Statutory law, and

WHEREAS since I guess that pretty much sets the stage for what this bill is all about, rather than just go on and on with more WHEREAS's, I'll go ahead and get on with it, so now

THEREFORE be it acknowledged by the Ziu of the Kingdom of Talossa that:
Section 1. Should the province of Fiova be created during the session of any Cosa, the holder of the Senate seat to which that province is entitled shall be named by the Executive Officer of the province. Regardless, the holder of the seat shall be decided at the General Election first occurring following reunision, according to the provisions of Section 3 of this act.
FURTHERMORE, be it recommended by the Ziu of the Kingdom of Talossa that the amendment to Organic Law specified below be ratified by referendum to effect the following change:
Section 2. That Section 3 of Article IV be amended to read: Each time the Cosa shall be dissolved, there shall be an election for one-third of the total Senate seats (rounded to the nearest whole number). The exact fixed order of rotation of provinces for elections shall be set by law and shall require two-thirds vote in the Cosa with approval by the King and the Senäts to be modified.
ADDITIONALLY, be it enacted by the Ziu of the Kingdom of Talossa that upon the ratification of the amendment to Organic Law proposed by Section 2 of this Act and the establishment of the Talossan province of Fiova, the following shall come immediately into force:
Section 3. In accordance with Article IV, Section 3, the fixed order for the election of Senators to the Senate shall be described as follows:
• Upon the dissolution of a Cosa, election to three Senate seats shall be held, in addition to those by-elections necessary to elect Senators to unfilled terms being held on an interim basis by an appointed Senator.
• The initial three such seats shall include the seat for Fiova and the two Senate seats which were originally scheduled for election.
• Thereafter, Senatorial seats shall be elected at each Cosa according to the following rotation: Vuode, Atatürk, Cézembre, Florencia, Maricopa, Maritiimi-Maxhestic, and Benito, with Fiova inserted into this list immediately before the first of the two Senate seats also being elected concurrently with the first election to the Senate seat for Fiova.
[As a practical concern, assuming this omnibus comes into force for elections to the 44th Cosa, the following will be the fixed rotation cycle.]

ELECTED WITH THE... SENATORS FOR...
44th Cosa Fiova, Maritiimi-Maxhestic, Benito
45th Cosa Vuode, Ataturk, Cézembre
46th Cosa Florencia, Maricopa, Fiova
47th Cosa Maritiimi-Maxhestic, Benito, Vuode
48th Cosa Ataturk, Cézembre, Florencia
49th Cosa Maricopa, Fiova, Maritiimi-Maxhestic
50th Cosa Benito, Vuode, Ataturk
51th Cosa Cézembre, Florencia, Maricopa
Section 4. Talossan statutory law 34RZ9, concerning catchment areas of the provinces of the Kingdom of Talossa, is amended by:
a) The removal of the words "Portugal," and "Brazil and" from section 9.

b) The removal of the words "Montana," "North Dakota, South Dakota," and "Kansas and Nebraska" from section 10.

c) The removal of the words "Arkansas," "Louisiana," "Missouri," "and Vietnam, plus all island nations of the Pacific and Indian Oceans not listed elsewhere, including New Zealand, Papua New Guinea", and "and Australia" from section 11.

d) The removal of the words "Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Slovenia, Croatia, Kosovo, Albania, Czech Republic, Slovakia" from section 12.

e) The addition of a new section, numbered "Section 13" and causing the renumbering of the current section 13 to become 14, reading:
13. FIOVA PROVINCE. Talossan citizens living in the following areas shall be assigned to Fiova Province: The U.S. states of Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Kansas, Nebraska, Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri, the nations of Australia, New Zealand, Portugal, Brazil, Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Slovenia, Croatia, Kosovo, Albania, Czech Republic, Slovakia, and all nations of Asia or the Pacific and Indian Oceans not included elsewhere.
f) The addition of the province of Fiova, immediately prior to "Atatürk", in the list appearing in the newly renumbered section 14b.
Noi urent q'estadra sa,

Baron Hooligan (MC, RUMP)
Litz Cjantscheir (MC, RUMP)
Sir Mick Preston (Senator, Maritiimi-Maxhestic)
Dien Tresplet (MC, RUMP)
Istefan Perþonest (MC, CSPP)
Glüc da Dhi (Senator, Cézembre)
Viteu Marcianüs (Senator, Vuode [a.k.a. Vito])
Flip Molinar (MC, CSPP)
Eðo Grischun (MC, CSPP)
Alexandreu Bisquinc (MC, MRPT)
Eoin D. Ursüm (MC, CRO)

El Regeu en volt!

— John R

43RZ26 – The Umpteen-and-One is Too Many Act

WHEREAS earlier in this Cosa, the passage of 43RZ10 empowered the Seneschal to petition the Crown for immediate grants of citizenship into any specific province, as exceptions to the normal immigration process, and

WHEREAS the reason this legislation was passed was to accommodate the special needs of Reunision, and

WHEREAS those special needs are happily no longer extant, and

WHEREAS this Ziu sees no reason why the power to exempt persons from the normal immigration process should be extended, and

WHEREAS His Majesty's Government — having vowed only to employ this legislatively-granted power for the purposes of Reunision, and now having done so — also concurs that the exceptional power should not remain in law, now

THEREFORE the Ziu of the Kingdom of Talossa hereby repeals 43RZ10, restoring 35RZ22, The Umpteenth Immigration Reform Act, to its earlier form, by the removal of Section 10.

Uréu q'estadra sa,
Ma Baron Tepistà (MC, RUMP), Distain, representing His Majesty's Government


El Regeu en volt.

— John R

43RZ27 – The Proud Mary Act

WHEREAS the Organic Law of the Kingdom of Talossa specifies that should ten or more citizens indicate an intention to together form a new province, become citizens thereof, and provide Organic government for the same, the Ziu may make such provisions as to effect the creation and establishment of such a province upon equal footing with all other provinces, and

WHEREAS, with the grand completion of the process of Reunision, there is every indication that at least ten Erteiers do, in fact, intend to become citizens of a province to be known as La Provinçù Liverada da Fiova, and

WHEREAS the Maritiimi-Maxhestic Provincial Assembly and the Maricopa Cabana have both enacted legislation which cedes specific territory, currently administered by those provinces, to the control of a newly-created province of Fiova, once established, and

WHEREAS there are still a few things to be done to reach the point where it is established, but this rubber-stamp from the Ziu is necessary and can be written now, to take effect as soon as possible, now

THEREFORE, effective immediately upon the fulfillment of the Organic requirements necessary for creation of the new Province of Fiova, specifically
(1) that ten or more recipients of grants of citizenship given by the favour and pleasure of His Majesty the King in answer to either of the two petitions made to the Crown by the Seneschal of the Kingdom of Talossa — one such petition having been made on 12 March 2012 to accommodate one citizen, and the other having been made on 20 April 2012 to accommodate fourteen citizens — do indicate their intention to become citizens of the province of Fiova,
(2) that a Constitution for the said province, satisfying the Crown as to its compliance with Organic Law, has been promulgated by the Crown or its duly appointed representative, and
(3) that a provincial Government has been elected according to the provisions of the said Constitution,
the Ziu of the Kingdom of Talossa recognises La Provinçù Liverada da Fiova as being fully established and completely chartered, entitled to hold seats in the Talossan Senate no greater or fewer in number than those entitled to any and all other provinces.

MOREOVER, upon said establishment, the Ziu most humbly petitions the Crown to at once instruct His Majesty's Chancery to accordingly modify the provincial assignments of the said citizens described above who had declared their intention to become citizens of the Province of Fiova.

ADDITIONALLY, immediately upon fulfilment of the said conditions, the Ziu does further assign the canton of Paliaçelia (Buffonia, US Census Tract 144) and a canton comprised of Port Maxhestic west of North Lincoln Memorial Drive (the portions of US Census Tract 1874 within Talossan territory) to the Free Province of Fiova, in accordance with the cessions of territory by the Provinces of Maritiimi-Maxhestic and Maricopa.

FURTHERMORE, immediately upon the enactment of the other clauses of this act, the Ziu does reassign the canton of Vilatx Freiric (Frédéricville, US Census Tract 143) from the Province of Maricopa to the Province of Maritiimi-Maxhestic, in accordance with the authorisation by the former and the desires of the latter.

FINALLY, the Ziu of the Kingdom of Talossa does hereby instruct the Big Wheel to keep on turnin', and Proud Mary to keep on burnin'. Reserving to itself the power to enact and provide for the application of legal penalties for any refusal to heed these mandates, the Ziu strongly admonishes the said Wheel and the said Mary that these edicts must needs-be not fail to be followed, for it is now the case that we're rollin', rollin', rollin' on the river.

Noi urent q'estadra sa:

Ma Baron Tepistà (MC, RUMP), Distain, representing His Majesty's Government
Istefan Perþonest (MC, CSPP)
Sir Mick Preston, UrN (Senator, Maritiimi-Maxhestic)
Sir Iustì Canun, UrGP (Senator, Maricopa)
Viteu Marcianüs (Senator, Vuode)
Dien Tresplet (MC, RUMP)


El Regeu en volt!

— John R

43RZ28 – The Bernard P. Fife Act

WHEREAS the office of Clerk of Courts was established in 42RZ4 and

WHEREAS the office is necessary to channel cases through judicial channels and

WHEREAS what is not addressed in that act is what happens in the event of an excusable absence which prevents the Clerk from assigning a case within the 72 hour window so

THEREFORE, in the event the clerk fails to assign a case within the 72 hour window and such tardiness is result of one or more of the following conditions:

1.) Active Military Service (In the Armed Forces of Talossa or an Allied Nation)

2.) Birth or Death of an immediate family member

3.) Marriage or Divorce

4.) Any circumstance which is beyond the power or control of the Clerk and which would hinder a reasonable person from executing these duties

the Clerk's absence shall be deemed excused and no further penalty should be pursued.

In the event the clerk anticipates a length absence, even for an excused purpose, s/he should consider resignation to ensure the people are adequately served.

FURTHERMORE, the Clerk may deputize Court Officers to assist in the execution of these duties. Such deputization shall be made publicly by the Clerk and may be for a temporary or indefinite term, which the Clerk shall stipulate in the public notice of deputization.

1. The Deputized Officer shall have authority to assign judicial cases immediately after the initial 72 hours have passed from the initial filing if the Clerk fails to make the assignment during that time period.

2. The Deputized Officer shall follow the procedures set forth in the Clerk of Courts Act with regards to the assignment of cases and shall do so impartially without regard for political, personal or financial consideration.

3. The Officer shall serve at the pleasure of the King and may be removed by the King at any time. However, the principal supervision of the Officer shall fall to the Clerk of Courts, who shall retain the right to dismiss the Officer as well.

4. Due to the nature of these duties, no deputy shall be appointed who is seated on the bench of the Uppermost Cort or any inferior cort. Nor shall any appointee hold the portfolio of Attorney General or Minister of Justice.

5. The Deputy shall be permitted to make the initial judicial assignment (that is, the assignment within the initial 72 hour window) in situations where the Clerk is party to a filed case or where another conflict of interest would prevent the Clerk from serving on a particular case filing.


Uréu q'estadra sa:

T.M. Asmourescu, Minister of Justice


El Regeu en volt.

— John R

43RZ29 – An Act to Repeal 24RZ27 and to Amend 39RZ23

WHEREAS 24RZ27 "The Prisoners of War Act" states in part "THEREFORE Talossa accedes to the Geneva Convention on the Treatment of Prisoners of War." ;

WHEREAS 39RZ23 states in part "be it resolved by the Ziu of the Kingdom of Talossa that the nation shall:

1. Officially adhere to the Geneva Conventions.

2. Specifically conventions I, II, III, and IV, as well as all subsequently issued additional protocols." ;

WHEREAS both of the aforementioned Acts of the Ziu seek to achieve the same aim noting that 39RZ23 is more specific in this aim;

WHEREAS there is ambiguity in section 2 of 39RZ23;

WHEREAS it makes no sense to have redundancies or ambiguities in statutory law;

THEREFORE 24RZ27 is hereby repealed and;

FURTHERMORE Section 2 of 39RZ23 is amended by inserting after the word 'protocols' "as of January 1, 2012 "

Noi urent q'estadra sa:

Flip Molinar (MC, CSPP)
Istefan Perþonest (MC, CSPP)


El Regeu en volt.

— John R

43RZ31 – Appointments to the Magistracy

WHEREAS the bench of the Magistracy is kind of a lonely place these days and

WHEREAS the Kingdom yearns for qualified minds to decide matters of law and

WHEREAS now that we have more people, we can spread around some of the responsibility so

THEREFORE, we hereby nominate and approve the following appointments to the Magistracy:

Owen Edwards - Former Chief Magistrate and sponsor of the Creation of the Magistracy Act. We hold the utmost faith in S:reu Edwards as a statesman and jurist and re-appoint him to the position of Magistrate.

Martì Prevuost - S:reu Prevuost, a former Member of the Cosa, has been an active participant in judicial affairs, presenting a friend of the court brief in defence of the Government in a matter before the Magistracy. Though lacking in a formal legal education, we maintain the utmost confidence in S:reu Prevuost's analytical approach to the law and his ability to render fair and just decisions on legal matters.

Uréu q'estadra sa: T.M. Asmourescu (Minister of Justice)


El Regeu en volt, and congratulates S:reux Edwards and Prevuost. And, come to think of it, Admiral Asmourescu.

— John R

43RZ32 – The Too Many Inactive Cooks Amendment
WHEREAS one inactive Justice renders the entire Cort pu Inalt inactive, and this seems like a negative thing, and

WHEREAS if Gloria Estefan knew about this she'd be angry,

THEREFORE be it resolved by the Ziu of the Kingdom of Talossa that the following resolution be presented for ratification by the people:

RESOLVED, that Article XVI of the Organic Law of the Kingdom of Talossa be amended by alteration of Section, so that it will read:

Section 8. No court shall issue any authoritative decision without the fullest opportunity for all members assigned to a case to consider the case in question. However, a single Justice of the Uppermost Cort may hear a case on his own if this is acceptable to the other two members of the Cort. He shall be appointed to do so by unanimous vote of the entire three-person Cort. If, after every reasonable attempt is made to contact a member of the Cort, and three weeks (21 days) has passed since initial contact without any response, their silence shall be read as consent that an individual Justice may hear the case in question on his own. The duly nominated (either by active agreement or silence) Justice shall render a decision on the case as if he were a majority of the whole Cort. His decision becomes that of the Cort itself and may not be appealed.

Noi urent q'estadra sa:

Owen Edwards (MC-CSPP)
Ma la Mha, Baron Tépista (MC-RUMP)

43RZ33 – The Three-Strike Amendment
WHEREAS the current wording of Article XVIII Section 10 of the Organic Law defines "intentional deliberate voluntary" non-voting in three consecutive elections to the Cosa to be tantamount to a citizen's renouncing his citizenship, but doesn't require any actual proof or evidence beyond his simply not voting — which non-voting could be due to inadvertence, ignorance, or even a distate for political participation, none of which conditions is or should be considered synonymous with no longer desiring to be a citizen, and

WHEREAS the exception granted in the Article for persons who don't want to vote "for reasons of conscience" isn't broad enough, since someone may not want to vote simply out of lack of interest in the election, or fatigue with politics in general, or any number of other reasons, and

WHEREAS the King's power of clemency is defined as being applicable only in cases in which "it is clear that the non-vote was unintentional or there were mitigating or extenuating circumstances such as accidents or technical mistakes", which again is too limiting, and doesn't allow — as it should — for cases in which the non-voter's intention was somewhat less than clear, or when it was clear that he intended not to vote but not for any reason that should get his name removed from the citizenship rolls, and

WHEREAS we ought to err on the side of NOT erasing someone's name from the rolls, and

WHEREAS that would be best accomplished by allowing the Secretary of State and the King a bit more leeway in applying the "three-strikes" principle,

THEREFORE the Ziu approves the following amendment to the Organic Law, and transmits it to the people for ratification.

Article XVIII Section 10 of the Organic Law is amended to read, in whole:
If any citizen should fail to vote in an election for the Cosa, he shall be deemed to have incurred a "strike", unless the Secretary of State believes that the failure to vote may have been unintentional, or the King believes that the citizen's record and the circumstances of his failure to vote warrant an exception being made, in either of which cases no strike shall be incurred. If any citizen incurs strikes in three consecutive elections, he shall be deemed to have renounced his citizenship.

Noi urent q'estadra sa: John Regeu da Talossa

43RZ34 – The Duel-Preventing Grammar Amendment
WHEREAS the established precedent is that Members of the Cosa cannot split their votes, and

WHEREAS the section of the Organic Law relevant to this retains its original grammar, having been amended once already,

THEREFORE be it resolved that the first sentence of Section 4 of Article VIII is amended to read as follows:
Each person holding one or more seats is a representative known as a "Member of the Cosa" (MC).

Uréu q'estadra sa:
S:reu Iustì Canun, SRT (MA)
Owen Edwards (CSPP)
S:reu Mick Preston, SRT (MM)
Dien Trespelt, MC (RUMP)
Istefan Perþonest, MC (CSPP)

43RZ36 – The Senate Election Details Amendment
WHEREAS Article V, section 4 of the OrgLaw is utterly unnecessary, quite vague, and rather confusing, and

WHEREAS Article IV, section 5 is a bit wordy and "huh?"-inducing as well, and

WHEREAS someone might very well want to vote for the Cosa, but not vote for a Senate candidate, and

WHEREAS under our customary intrepretation of Article IV, section 5, it is impossible for a voter to vote for the Cosa but not vote for Senate, because leaving a blank in the "Senate" part of his ballot will be interpreted as a vote for the candidate endorsed by the party he chose for the Cosa,

THEREFORE the Ziu hereby approves this amendment to the Organic Law, and transmits it to the nation for ratification:

1. Article V, section 4
Senators shall as far as is practicable be citizens of the Province in which they were chosen. Qualified citizen[s] from other provinces may receive votes in an election only if no votes have been received on the sixteenth day of the election period.
is deleted.

2. Article IV, section 5
Political parties may "endorse" individual candidates for the Senate, one candidate per party per province. In the event that a voter does not specify an individual candidate for Senate on his ballot, his vote for a political party shall apply to the candidate endorsed by that party. A voter may always vote for a different Senate candidate than the one endorsed by the party of his choice, by indicating said candidate on the ballot.
is amended to read
A political partiy may endorse a candidate for any vacant Senate seat. In the event that a voter specifies that party as his choice for that Senate seat, his vote shall be counted for the candidate so endorsed.

Noi urent q'estadra sa,

John Regeu