HR. 1091

The Means of Production Act

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Whereas, the state recognizes that the capitalist system is inherently exploitative and must be dismantled.
Whereas, the state recognizes that the means of production must be seized and distributed to the workers.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
Section 1. Definitions
A. Means of production shall be defined as any physical, non-human inputs used for the production of economic value excepting:

a. Personal homes
b. Personal property as determined by the Means of Production Administration
c. Corporations which make less than $1,000,000 in after-tax revenue
d. Assets owned by non-profit organizations exempt from federal taxes through section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
e. Assets owned by the federal government, foreign governments, Indian tribes, state governments, or local governments
f. Assets which are primarily used or owned by people or corporations in other states, territories, or areas under the jurisdiction of the federal government of the United States or areas under the jurisdiction of other countries outside of the United States
g. Educational institutions
h. Religious institutions or institutions with a religious intent

B. Employee shall be defined as any person who engages in labor for payment.
C. Profit shall be defined as leftover revenue after payment of all expenses and taxes.
Section 2. Means of Production Administration
A. There shall be created a Means of Production Administration.
B. The Means of Production Administration shall be governed by a five member board appointed by the President of the United States.
C. The Board of the Means of Production Administration, hereafter referred to as ‘Board’ shall elect its Chairman from the membership of the Board.
D. The Means of Production Administration shall conduct a yearly survey of all units of the means of production (hereafter referred to as ‘units’). This survey shall include:

a. the locations of each unit,
b. The approximate monetary value of each unit
c. The names of the owners and their share of ownership in each unit
d. the approximate amount of possible monetary value which could be generated from each unit
e. The number of people employed while using this unit
f. and any other information needed for an orderly nationalization of the means of production

E. This survey shall be completed within one year of the passage of this legislation and the results of the survey shall be presented to the President.
Section 3. Nationalization of the Means of Production
A. The Means of Production Administration is hereby ordered to bring under its control all units of the means of production every year.

a. The Means of Production Administration shall contact the owners of any unit at least two months prior to the planned date of nationalization of said unit.
b. The Means of Production Administration shall organize a Board of Appeals to hear any appeals to stop nationalization of a particular unit. The Board of Appeals shall be composed of five independent arbitrators who shall hear appeals and decide on the nationalization of each unit.

i. The employees in a workers’ council shall be the primary owners of their workers’ council, with any person previously owning a share of ownership in a unit which the workers’ council is composed as part of an Individual Retirement Arrangement (IRA), a Roth IRA, a 401(k) or 403(b), SIMPLE IRA, SEP, SARSEP, an Employee Stock Ownership Plan, or another retirement plan which requires a person to invest in shares in a corporation owning the number of shares previously owned.

ii. The United States shall be the primary owner of a state-owned corporation, with any person previously owning a share of ownership in a unit which the state-owned corporation is composed as part of an Individual Retirement Arrangement (IRA), a Roth IRA, a 401(k) or 403(b), SIMPLE IRA, SEP, SARSEP, an Employee Stock Ownership Plan, or another retirement plan which requires a person to invest in shares in a corporation owning the number of shares previously owned.

iii. The members of the Board of Appeals shall be appointed by the Board of the Means of Production Administration.

B. The Means of Production Administration shall organize units of the means of production within six months of their nationalization into either democratically controlled councils of workers or state-owned corporations.

a. No more than 33% of units shall be organized into state-owned corporations.
b. The Means of Production Administration is prohibited from merging units into existing workers’ councils without the consent of the workers’ council and the employees of the unit.

C. The Means of Production Administration shall hold public hearings prior to organizing units into state-owned corporations or democratically controlled councils.

a. These public hearings must be accessible so that concerned citizens may easily participate in them.
b. The times and dates of these hearings must be announced at least two months prior to the date of the hearing.

D. In the organization of units into state-owned corporations or democratically controlled councils, the Means of Production Administration shall minimize layoffs, changes in employment, and disruption to industry.
E. The Means of Production Administration shall determine the general structure of any state-owned corporations created from the merger of units, but all employees must be given the right to elect their managers and hold votes on any significant changes in wages, hours worked, closures, health and other benefits provided, layoffs of more than fifty employees, or hirings of more than thirty employees. Measures relating to any significant changes in wages, hours worked, closures, health and other benefits provided, layoffs of more than fifty employees, or hirings of more than thirty employees must be passed by a majority of voting employees.

a. Every employee shall have an equal vote in these elections.
b. Any employee who interferes with these elections or prevents another employee from voting shall be fined up to $1,000 per instance, fired, or imprisoned for up to sixty days.

F. The following industries shall be reorganized into state ownership.

a. Distribution of water
b. Distribution of home heating and energy
c. Hospitals

*Section 4. Workers’ Council Administration. *
A. There shall be created a Workers’ Council Administration within the Means of Production Administration.
B. The Administrator of the Workers’ Council Administration shall be elected by the members of all workers councils every second year, but the President shall appoint an interim to serve for six months after passage and when there are vacancies. There shall be an election two months prior to the end of the interim Administrator’s term to determine the first elected Administrator.

a. Each workers’ council shall be assigned one vote per employee employed by the council.
b. Workers’ councils shall decide democratically how to allocate their votes.

C. The Workers’ Council Administration shall be responsible for overseeing the operations of workers’ councils, transitioning workers’ councils into private ownership, administering elections, issuing licenses for the creation of new workers’ councils, and regulating workers’ councils.

a. The Workers’ Council Administration shall ensure that racial and ethnic minorities, the disabled, women, those of all gender identities and sexual orientations, and people of all social classes are adequately represented in the leadership of workers’ councils.

Section 5. Councils of workers: operations and governance.
A. Each workers’ council shall elect a leadership consisting of an elected assembly of at least five members. This assembly shall manage administrative concerns of the workers’ council. Assemblymembers shall vote on issues when in disagreement. A majority vote of all present and voting shall be the required threshold for the decision of votes.

a. Assemblymembers shall be elected to six-month terms and shall be limited to four terms. Every employee of the workers’ council shall have one vote and shall vote in elections for members of the assembly.

B. In cases where the Means of Production Administration determines that the leadership of a workers’ council is unable to suitably manage a workers’ council, the Workers’ Council Authority shall have the authority to appoint an emergency manager to lead a workers’ council.
C. Each week, every workers’ council shall hold a community meeting. This meeting shall be a time for all employees to meet, discuss problems or issues in their council, or engage in other community building activities. The assembly shall delegate decisions relating to changes in wages, hours worked, closures, health and other benefits provided, layoffs of more than fifty employees, or hirings of more than thirty employees to workers, who shall vote on these issues during this community meeting.
D. The workers’ council shall distribute shares of ownership in the workers’ council to employees of the workers’ council. Each employee shall receive one share per year worked in the council. Shares may not be sold, traded, given away, or transferred between employees.
E. Any shares earned shall be surrendered automatically after a shareholder’s death, resignation from the council, retirement from the council, or voluntary or involuntary dismissal from the council.
F. If the workers’ council makes a profit at the conclusion of the fiscal year, the assembly of each workers’ council shall use any unused profit funds to pay dividends. The amount in dividends each employee is entitled to shall be determined by dividing the total amount in dividends by the number of years the employee has worked in the workers’ council.
G. Workers’ councils shall be prohibited from entering private ownership.
H. All employees of workers’ councils shall be required to be members of a labor union.
Section 5. Payment of funds owed
A. Owners of nationalized property shall be compensated at the full value of their property, as determined by the survey mentioned in §2(d).
B. Workers’ councils shall be responsible for paying monthly payments over ten years to owners of nationalized property which their council is composed of.

a. Any council which is delinquent on these payments shall be bailed out by the Department of Treasury.

C. State owned corporations shall be responsible for paying monthly payments over seven years to owners of nationalized property which their council is composed of.
D. Any funds recovered by the owners of nationalized industry shall be taxed at the following special rates.

a. If owned by an individual or family:

Income level	Tax percentage
If their average yearly income over the past five years is below $70,000	0%
If their average yearly income over the past five years is between $70,001 and $225,000	35%
If their average yearly income over the past five years is between $225,001 and $600,000	75%
If their average yearly income over the past five years is between $600,001 and $1,000,000	86.5%
If their average yearly income over the past five years is greater than $1,000,001	98%

b. If owned by a corporation or other entity:

Income level	Tax percentage
If its average yearly revenue over the past five years is below $500,000	20%
If its average yearly revenue over the past five years is between $500,000 and $1,000,000	40%
If their average yearly revenue over the past five years is between $1,000,000 and $10,000,000	85%
If their average yearly revenue over the past five years is greater than $10,000,000	98%

E. Any funds collected from this tax shall be reinvested in workers’ councils or state-owned corporations in an amount which is directly proportional to the amount paid to the owners of nationalized property.
F. Any property not paid for after fifteen years shall be returned to its owner.
Section 6. Land.
A. Any land which cannot be distributed to a workers’ council or a state-owned corporation shall be used to construct buildings or infrastructure of civic importance or to construct housing which is affordable to all people making the minimum income rate or above.
B. The Federal Means of Production Administration shall conduct a survey of state and local governments which have units of unused or underutilized land to determine need.
C. The Federal Means of Production Administration may transfer ownership of this land to state and local governments. These governments must use these units of land to construct buildings or infrastructure of civic importance or to construct housing which is affordable to all people making the minimum income rate or above.
Section 7. Exit tax.
A. There shall be established a tax on the last year’s revenue of units which move outside of the United States of America.
B. This tax shall be set at 85% of the last year’s revenue.
Section 8. Excess profits tax.
A. There shall be established a tax on workers’ councils which make in excess of one billion dollars in profits.
B. This tax shall be set at 50%.
*Section 9. Solidarity tax on wealth. *
A. There shall be established a tax on individuals or families having assets valued in excess of $25,000,000.
B. This tax shall be set at 30% of the value of all assets in excess of $7,500,000.
Section 10. Ethics.
A. There shall be created an Ethics Council within the Means of Production Administration.
B. The Ethics Council shall consist of five independent arbitrators, nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate.
C. The members of the Ethics Council shall serve five year terms and may serve a maximum of two terms. Members shall serve until death, end of their term, term limit, or retirement.
D. The Ethics Council shall be responsible for overseeing the operations of the Means of Production Administration and making decisions regarding violations of ethics policies by employees of the Means of Production Administration.
E. The Ethics Council shall decide on cases regarding violations of ethics policies by employees of the Means of Production Administration through a vote of the members of the Ethics Council. A decision shall be considered binding if a majority of present and voting members of the Ethics Council vote in favor of a decision.
F. The quorum of the Ethics Council shall be three members present.
G. The Ethics Council shall have the authority to terminate the employment of employees of the Means of Production Administration, to issue monetary penalties to employees of the Means of Production Administration, or to suspend employees of the Means of Production Administration as the result of a decision made.
Section 11. Ensuring a Right to Food
A. The Department of Health and Human Services shall operate an Emergency Food Benefit Program which shall be capable of serving two million food insecure persons per month.
B. The Department of Health and Human Services shall distribute cash benefits to food insecure persons.
C. These cash benefits shall be in compliance with the guidelines and ratios calculated under the United States Department of Agriculture Moderate-Cost Food Plan, adjusted for family-size.
D. The appropriation for the Emergency Food Benefit Program shall be $6,000,000,000 per year.
Section 12. Enactment.
A. This legislation shall be enacted one hundred eighty days after passage.
Section 13. Severability
A. The provisions of this Act are severable.
Sponsored by PGF3 (D-US)

Drafting The Constitution

With the monarchial referendum and the Italian Republic declared, creating a constitution is in order. The elections have been completed and the votes have been cast. The Socialist Coalition lead by Palmiro Togliatti came on top by a wide margin, the DC party came 2nd still with a good portion of votes. They have been working together to create a democratic republic and have begun to draft a constitution. With Palmiro Togliatti's coalition being on top have been able to exert their will into the constitution, getting what they want above the other parties.

The Constitution of The Republic of Italy

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Part I Basic Principles

Article 1 [Form of State]
(1) Italy is a democratic Republic founded on labor.
(2) Sovereignty belongs to the people who exercise it in the manner and within the limits laid down by this Constitution.
Article 2 [Human Rights]
(1) The Republic recognizes and guarantees the inviolable rights of man, both as an individual and as a member of the social groups in which his personality finds expression, and it imposes the performance of unalterable political, economic, and social duties.
Article 3 [Freedom, Equality]
(1) All citizens are invested with equal social status and are equal before the law, without distinction as to sex, race, language, religion, political opinions, and personal or social conditions.
(2) It is the responsibility of the Republic to remove all economic and social obstacles which, by limiting the freedom and equality of citizens, prevent the full development of the individual and the participation of all workers in the political, economic, and social organization of the country.
Article 4 [Work]
(1) The Republic recognizes the right of all citizens to work and promotes such conditions as will make this right effective.
(2) Every citizen shall undertake, according to his possibilities and his own choice, an activity or a function contributing to the material and moral progress of society.
Article 5 [Local Autonomy]
(1) The Republic, which is one and indivisible, recognizes and promotes local autonomy; it applies the fullest measure of administrative decentralization in services dependent on the State and adjusts the principles and methods of its legislation to the requirements of autonomy and decentralization.
Article 6 [Minorities]
(1) The Republic safeguards linguistic minorities by means of special provisions.
Article 7 [State and Church]
(1) The State and the Catholic Church are, each within its own ambit, independent and sovereign.
(2) Their relations are regulated by the Lateran Pacts. Such amendments to these Pacts as are accepted by both parties do not require any procedure of Constitutional revision.
Article 8 [Religion]
(1) All religious denominations are equally free before the law.
(2) Religious denominations other than Catholic are entitled to organize themselves according to their own creed provided that they are not in conflict with Italian juridical organization.
(3) Their relations with the State are regulated by the law on the basis of agreements with their respective representatives.
Article 9 [Research and Culture]
(1) The Republic promotes the development of scholarship and scientific and technical research.
(2) It safeguards the natural beauties and the historical and artistic wealth of Italy.
Article 10 [International Law]
(1) Italy's legal system conforms with the generally recognized principles of international law.
(2) The legal status of foreigners is regulated by law in conformity with international rules and treaties.
(3) A foreigner to whom the practical exercise in his own country of democratic freedoms, guaranteed by the Italian Constitution, is precluded, is entitled to the right of asylum within the territory of the Republic, under conditions laid down by law.
(4) The extradition of a foreigner for political offenses is not admitted.
Article 11 [Condemnation of War]
(1) Italy condemns war as an instrument of aggression against the liberties of other peoples and as a means for settling international controversies; it agrees, on conditions of equality with other states, to such limitation of sovereignty as may be necessary for a system calculated to ensure peace and justice between Nations; it promotes and encourages international organizations having such ends in view.
Article 12 [Flag]
(1) The flag of the Republic is the Italian Tricolor: green, white, and red, in three vertical bands of equal dimensions.

Part II Rights and Duties of Private Citizens

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Title I Civil Relations

Article 13 [Personal Freedom]
(1) Personal liberty is inviolable.
(2) No form of personal detention, inspection, or search is permitted, nor other restrictions on personal liberty save by order of the judicial authority for which the motive must be stated, and then only in such cases and manner as the law provides.
(3) In exceptional cases of necessity and urgency, strictly defined by law, the police authorities may carry out provisional measures, which must be communicated within 48 hours to the judicial authorities and which, if the latter do not ratify them within the next 48 hours, are thereby revoked and declared null and void.
(4) All acts of physical and moral violence on persons subjected to limitations of freedom are punished.
(5) The law lays down the maximum period of preventive detention.
Article 14 [Home]
(1) Personal domicile is inviolable.
(2) Inspection, search, and distraint may not be carried out save in cases and in the manner laid down by law in conformity with guarantees prescribed for safeguarding personal freedom.
(3) Special laws regulate verifications and inspections for reasons of public health and safety, or for economic and fiscal purposes.
Article 15 [Correspondence]
(1) The liberty and secrecy of correspondence and of every form of communication are inviolable.
(2) Limitations upon them may only be enforced by decision, for which motives must be given, of the judicial authorities with the guarantees laid down by law.
Article 16 [Right to Move]
(1) Every citizen has the right to reside and travel freely in any part of the metropolitan territory, save for such limitations as the laws may prescribe in a general way for reasons of health or security. No restrictions may be prescribed for political reasons.
(2) Every citizen is free to leave the territory of the Republic and re-enter it, save for such obligations as are laid down by law.
Article 17 [Assembly]
(1) Citizens are entitled to hold meetings peaceably and unarmed.
(2) No previous notice is required for meetings in places to which the public has access.
(3) For meetings in public thoroughfares, previous notice must be communicated to the authorities, who may forbid them only for well-established reasons of security or public safety.
Article 18 [Association]
(1) Citizens are entitled to form associations without authorization for reasons not forbidden to individuals by criminal law.
(2) Secret associations and those which pursue political aims, even indirectly, by means of organizations of a military character, are forbidden.
Article 19 [Freedom of Religion]
(1) All are entitled to freely profess their religious convictions in any form, individually or in associations, to propagate them, and to celebrate them in public or in private, save in the case of rites contrary to morality.
Article 20 [Religious Institutions]
(1) The religious character and the religious or confessional aims of an association or institution shall not involve special legal limitations or special fiscal burdens for its constitution, legal status, or any of its activities.
Article 21 [Communication]
(1) All are entitled freely to express their thoughts by word of mouth, in writing, and by all other means of communication.
(2) The press may not be subjected to any authority or censorship.
(3) Distraint is allowed only by order of the judicial authorities, for which motives must be given, in the case of offenses definitely laid down by the press law, or in the case of violation of the provisions which the said law prescribes for identifying responsible parties.
(4) In such cases, under conditions of absolute urgency and when the immediate intervention of the judicial authorities is not possible, distraint may be applied to the periodical press by officers of the judicial police, who shall communicate the matter to the judicial authorities within 24 hours. If the said judicial authorities do not ratify the measure within the next 24 hours, the distraint is withdrawn and is null and void.
(5) The law may prescribe, by means of provisions of a general nature, that the financial sources of periodical publication be made known.
(6) Printed publications, performances, and all other manifestations contrary to morality are forbidden.
(7) The law lays down proper provisions for preventing and repressing all violations.
Article 22 [Citizenship, Name]
(1) No one may be deprived of his legal status, his citizenship, or his name for political reasons.
Article 23 [Forced Labor]
(1) No personal service or payment may be forced on anyone, save according to law.
Article 24 [Recourse to Courts]
(1) All are entitled to institute legal proceedings for the protection of their own rights and legitimate interests.
(2) Defense is an inalienable right at every stage of legal proceedings.
(3) The indigent is entitled, through special provisions, to proper means for action or defense at all levels of jurisdiction.
(4) The law lays down the conditions and methods for obtaining reparation for judicial errors.
Article 25 [Rule of Law]
(1) No one may avoid proceedings resulting from offenses against legislation in force.
(2) No one may be punished save on the basis of a law which has come into force before the offense has been committed.
(3) No one may be subjected to security measures save in such cases as are laid down by law.
Article 26 [Extradition]
(1) The extradition of a citizen is permitted only in cases expressly provided for in international conventions.
(2) Extradition shall never be permitted for political offenses.
Article 27 [Rights of the Accused]
(1) Criminal responsibility is personal.
(2) The person accused is not considered guilty until the final sentence has been passed upon him.
(3) Punishment must not consist of measures contrary to humane precepts and shall aim at reforming the person upon whom sentence is passed.
(4) The death penalty is not admitted save in cases specified by military laws in time of war.
Article 28 [Responsibility of Officials](1) Officials and employees of the State and of public bodies are directly responsible, according to the criminal, civil, and administrative laws, for acts committed in violation of rights. In such cases, civil responsibility extends to the State and to public bodies.

Title II Ethical and Social Relations

Article 29 [Marriage]
(1) The State recognizes the family as a natural association founded onmarriage.
(2) Marriage is based on the moral and legal equality of husband and wife, within the limits laid down by the laws for ensuring family unity.
Article 30 [Education]
(1) It is the duty and right of parents to support, instruct and educate their children, even those born out of wedlock.
(2) The law states the way in which these duties shall be fulfilled should the parents prove incapable.
(3) The law ensures full legal and social protection for children born out of wedlock consistent with the rights of the members of the legitimate family.
(4) The law lays down rules and limitations for ascertaining paternity.
Article 31 [Family]
(1) The Republic facilitates, by means of economic and other provisions, the formation of the family and the fulfillment of the tasks connected therewith, with particular consideration for large families.
(2) It safeguards maternity, infancy, and youth, promoting and encouraging institutions necessary for such purposes.
Article 32 [Health]
(1) The Republic provides health safeguards as a basic right of the individual and in the interests of the community, and grants medical assistance to the indigent free of charge.
(2) No one may be forced to undergo any particular medical treatment, save under the provisions of the law. In no case shall the law violate the limits imposed by the proper respect for the human person.
Article 33 [Teaching, Examination]
(1) The freedom of art and science and freedom of instruction in them is affirmed.
(2) The Republic lays down general rules for education and establishes public schools of all kinds and grades. Organizations and private citizens are entitled to found schools and educational institutions which do not involve charges on the State.
(3) The law, in laying down the rights and obligations of private schools that apply for official recognition, must ensure for them full liberty and for their pupils conditions equivalent to those of the public schools.
(4) State examinations are prescribed for admission to the various types and grades of schools, or on the conclusion of educational courses, and for securing diplomas and certificates entitling candidates to exercise a profession or trade.
(5) Institutions of higher learning, universities, and academies have the right to draft their own regulations within the limits laid down by State legislation.
Article 34 [Education]
(1) Education is available to everyone.
(2) Elementary education, imparted for at least eight years, is compulsory and free.
(3) Capable and deserving pupils, even if without financial resources, are entitled to attain the highest grades of learning.
(4) The Republic gives effect to this privilege by means of scholarships, of contributions to the families of the pupils, and other provisions, to be obtained by competitive examination.

Title III Economic Relations

Article 35 [Work]
(1) The Republic safeguards labor in all its forms and methods of execution.
(2) It provides for the professional or vocational training and advancement of workers.
(3) It promotes and encourages international agreements, and organizations calculated to confirm and regulate the rights of labor.
(4) It admits freedom to emigrate, save for such limitations as are prescribed by law in the general interests, and for the protection of Italian labor abroad.
Article 36 [Wages]
(1) An employed person is entitled to wages in proportion to the quantity and quality of his work, and in any case sufficient to provide him and his family with a free and dignified existence.
(2) The maximum number of hours of work per day is fixed by law.
(3) An employed person is entitled to a weekly day of rest and to annual holidays with pay; he cannot relinquish this right.
Article 37 [Equality in Work]
(1) Female labor enjoys equal rights and the same wages for the same work as male labor. Conditions of work must make it possible for them to fulfill their essential family duties and provide for the adequate protection of mothers and children.
(2) The law prescribes the minimum age for paid labor.
(3) The Republic prescribes special measures for safeguarding juvenile labor and guarantees equal pay for equal work.
Article 38 [Welfare]
(1) Every private citizen unable to work and unprovided with the resources necessary for existence is entitled to private and social assistance.
(2) Workers are entitled to adequate insurance for their requirements in case of accident, illness, disability, old age, and involuntary unemployment.
(3) The disabled and persons incapable of employment are entitled to education and vocational training.
(4) The responsibilities laid down in this Article are entrusted to organs and institutions provided or assisted by the State.
(5) The freedom of private assistance is affirmed.
Article 39 [Unions]
(1) Freedom in the organization of trade unions is affirmed.
(2) No compulsion may be imposed on trade unions except that of registering at local or central offices according to the provisions of the law.
(3) A condition of registration is that the statutes of the unions sanction an internal organization on a democratic basis.
(4) Registered trade unions have legal status. They may, being represented in proportion to the number of their registered members, negotiate collective labor agreements having compulsory value for all persons belonging to the categories to which the said agreements refer.
Article 40 [Strike]
(1) The right to strike is exercised within the sphere of the laws concerning the subject.
Article 41 [Business]
(1) Private economic enterprise is open to all.
(2) It cannot, however, be applied in such a manner as to be in conflict with social utility or when it is prejudicial to security, freedom, and human dignity.
(3) The law prescribes such planning and controls as may be advisable for directing and coordinating public and private economic activities towards social objectives.
Article 42 [Property]
(1) Ownership is public or private. Economic commodities belong to the State, to public bodies, or to private persons.
(2) Private ownership is recognized and guaranteed by laws which prescribe the manner in which it may be acquired and enjoyed and its limitations, with the object of ensuring its social function and of rendering it accessible to all.
(3) Private property, in such cases, as are prescribed by law and with provisions for compensation, may be expropriated in the general interest.
(4) The law lays down the rules and limitations of legitimate and testamentary inheritance and the rights of the State in relation to the same.
Article 43 [Expropriation]
(1) For purposes of general utility, the law may reserve in the first instance or transfer, by means of expropriation and payment of compensation, to the State, to public bodies, or to labor or consumer communities, certain undertakings or categories of undertakings operating essential public services, sources of power, or exercising monopolies and invested primarily with a character of general interest.
Article 44 [Land]
(1) With the object of securing a rational utilization of the soil and of establishing equitable and rational social relations, the law imposes obligations on, and limitations to, private landed ownership, fixes limits to its extent which vary in the different parts of the country and according to diverse agricultural areas, encourages and imposes land reclamation, the transformation of large estates, and the institution of productive units, and assists small and medium-sized holdings.
(2) The law prescribes measures in favor of mountainous areas.
Article 45 [Cooperation]
(1) The Republic recognizes the social function of cooperation on a basis of reciprocity and devoid of any private speculative aim. The law promotes and encourages such cooperation with suitable provisions and through proper controls ensures its character and objectives.
(2) The law guarantees and provides for the development of artisan trades.
Article 46 [Participation]
(1) With a view to the economic and social progress of labor and in conformity with the requirements of production, the Republic recognizes the rights of workers to participate in management in the manner and within the limits prescribed by law.
Article 47 [Savings, Credits]
(1) The Republic encourages and safeguards savings in all its aspects and supervises coordinates, and controls the issuing of credit.
(2) It encourages the investment of private savings in the purchase of homes or holdings directly farmed by the owners and direct or indirect investment in large productive enterprise.

Title IV Political Relations

Article 48 [Electoral Rights]
(1) All private citizens, male or female, who are of age, are entitled to vote.
(2) Votes are personal, equal, free, and secret. To vote is a civic duty.
(3) The right to vote may not be limited save on account civil incapacity or in consequence of an irrevocable penal sentence, or in cases of moral unworthiness established by law.
Article 49 [Political Parties]
(1) All citizens have the right to freely form political parties in order to contribute by democratic means to national policy.
Article 50 [Petitions]
(1)All citizens may submit petitions to Parliament demanding legislative measures or setting forth general needs.
Article 51 [Public Office]
(1) All citizens of either sex are eligible for public office and for elective positions on conditions of equality, according to the requisites established by law.
(2) The law may place Italians who do not belong to the Republic on a par with resident citizens in the matter of admission to public office and elective positions.
(3) Any person called upon to occupy an elective office has the right to claim the time necessary for the fulfillment of such duties without being deprived of his employment.
Article 52 [Military Service]
(1) The defense of the country is a moral duty of every citizen.
(2) Military service is compulsory, within the limits and in the manner laid down by law. The fulfillment of military duty shall not prejudice the employment of the person concerned, nor the exercise of his political rights.
(3) The organization of the Armed Forces is based on the democratic principles of the Republic.
Article 53 [Taxation]
(1) Everyone shall contribute to public expenditure in proportion to his resources.
(2) Fiscal levies shall be on a progressive scale.
Article 54 [Binding Constitution, Oaths]
(1) All citizens have the duty of fealty to the Republic and shall respect the Constitution and the laws.
(2) Citizens to whom public functions are entrusted shall execute them in a disciplined and honorable manner swearing an oath to fulfill such conditions in those cases prescribed by law.

Part III Organization of the Republic

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Title I Parliament

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Section I The Two Chambers

Article 55 [Parliament]
(1) Parliament consists of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate of the Republic.
(2) Parliament holds joint meetings of members of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate only in cases laid down by the Constitution.
Article 56 [Chamber of Deputies]
(1) The Chamber of Deputies is elected by universal and direct suffrage, and is composed of six hundred and thirty Members.
(2) All persons who have reached the age of twenty-five years on the day of the elections are eligible for membership.
(3) Division of seats among the constituencies is obtained by dividing the number of inhabitants registered at the last census by six hundred and thirty and distributing the said seats in proportion to the population of each constituency, on the basis of the quotients and the highest figures below these quotients.
Article 57 [Senate]
(1) The Senate of the Republic is elected on a regional basis.
(2) Senators number three hundred and fifteen. No region may have less than ten Senators but Molise is attributed two and Valle d'Aosta one. Division of seats among the Regions, on the basis of the terms set out above, is made according to the proportion of the population of the Regions at the last census, with quotients and the highest figures below these quotients.
Article 58 [Senate Elections]
(1) Senators are elected by direct universal suffrage by voters over twenty-five years of age.
(2) Voters over forty years of age are eligible for election to the Senate.
Article 59 [Senators for Life]
(1) Any person who has held office as President of the Republic is by right a Senator for Life, unless he refuses to accept the nomination.
(2) The President of the Republic may nominate, as Senators for Life, five citizens, who have brought honor to the Nation through their exceptional merits in social, scientific, artistic, and literary fields.
Article 60 [Term]
(1) The Chamber of Deputies and the Senate are elected for a period of five years.
(2) The term of each Chamber may not be extended save by law and only in the event of war.
Article 61 [Elections](1) Election of the new Chambers must take place within seventy days of the dissolution of the preceding Parliament. The first sitting must be held not later than twenty days after the elections.
(2) The powers of the preceding Chambers shall continue until the newly elected Parliament shall meet.
Article 62
(1) The Chambers shall meet on the first day of February and October which is not a holiday.
(2) Each Chamber may be convened in extraordinary session on the initiative of its Speaker or of the President of the Republic or of one-third of its members.
(3) When one Chamber is called upon to meet in extraordinary session, the other Chamber is also convened ipso jure.
Article 63 [Speaker]
(1) Each Chamber elects its Speaker and the members of the Speaker's Office from among its own members.
(2) The Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies and members of the Speaker's Office shall preside whenever Parliament meets in joint session.
Article 64 [Rules of Procedures, Quorum, Government, Participation]
(1) Each Chamber drafts its own Standing Orders by an absolute majority of its members.
(2) Sittings are open to the public; nevertheless, each of the two Chambers and Parliament in joint session may decide to assemble in private.
(3) The decisions of each Chamber and of Parliament are not valid unless the majority of the members are present, and unless they are voted for by a majority of the members present, save where the Constitution provides for a special majority.
(4) Members of the Government, even if they are not members of the Chambers, are entitled to attend meetings and are obliged to be present if called upon. They have a right to be heard whenever they request this right.
Article 65 [Incompatibility]
(1) The law determines cases of ineligibility or incompatibility with the position of Deputy or Senator.
(2) No person may be a member of both Chambers at the same time.
Article 66 [Scrutiny]
(1) Each Chamber decides as to the validity of the admission of its own members and as to cases subsequently arising concerning ineligibility and incompatibility.
Article 67 [Independence]
(1) Each Member of Parliament represents the Nation and carries out his duties without restraint of mandate.
Article 68 [Indemnity, Immunity]
(1) Members of Parliament may not be proceeded against for opinions expressed or votes given in the exercise of their duties.
(2) No member of Parliament may, without the authority of the Chamber to which he belongs, be subject to criminal proceedings, nor be arrested or otherwise deprived of his personal liberty, nor subjected to search warrants on his person or in his home unless he be caught in the act of committing an offense for which an order of arrest is compulsory.
(3) Similar authority is required to arrest or keep in a state of detention a member of Parliament in the execution of a sentence even if it be irrevocable.
Article 69 [Allowance](1) Members of Parliament receive an allowance as laid down by law.

Section II The Drafting of Laws

Article 70 [Legislative Power]
(1) Legislative duties are carried out jointly by the two Chambers.
Article 71 [Initiative]
(1) Legislative initiative pertains to the Government, to each member of the two Chambers, and to those organs and bodies on whom it is conferred by Constitutional law.
(2) The people exercise initiative in legislation through the proposal, supported by not less than 50,000 voters, of a Bill drafted in the form of articles.
Article 72 [Legislative Proceedings]
(1) Every Bill submitted to one of the Chambers is, according to the Standing Orders, examined by a Committee and then by the Chamber itself which approves it, article by article, and subsequently with a final vote. The Standing Orders provide an abbreviated procedure for Bills declared to be urgent.
(2) They also lay down in what cases and in what manner the examination and approval of Bills shall be submitted to committees, including Standing Committees so composed as to reflect the various proportions of the Parliamentary groups. Furthermore, in such cases, a Bill, until it is finally voted upon, is submitted to the Chamber, if the Government or one-tenth of the members of the Chamber or one-fifth of the Committee demand that it be debated and voted on by the Chamber itself or submitted to the latter for its final approval with a nominal vote. The Standing Ordens decide as to the way in which the work of the Committees shall be divulged.
(3) The normal procedure for the debating and voting of Bills by the Chamber is always applied in the case of Bills of a constitutional and electoral nature and for those delegating legislative power, for authority to ratify international treaties, and for voting on budgets and rectified budgets.
Article 73 [Promulgation]
(1) Laws are promulgated by the President of the Republic within a month of their having been voted.
(2) If the two Chambers, each with an absolute majority among its own members, declare a Bill to be urgent, it is promulgated within the time laid down in the Bill itself.
(3) Laws are published immediately after they have been promulgated and come into force on the fifteenth day after their publication unless the laws themselves provide otherwise.
Article 74 [Veto]
(1) The President of the Republic, before promulgating a law, may request further discussion by means of a message to both Chambers in which the reasons for such action are set forth.
(2) If the Chambers vote the Bill once more, the law must be promulgated.
Article 75 [Referendum]
(1) A popular Referendum is held to decide on the total or partial repeal of a law or of a measure having force of law if it is demanded by 500,000 voters or by five Regional Councils.
(2) Referenda are not allowed in the case of fiscal or budget laws, amnesties or pardons, or laws authorizing the ratification of international treaties.
(3) All citizens entitled to vote for the election of members of the Chamber of Deputies are entitled to take part in a Referendum.
(4) The proposal submitted to Referendum is approved if the majority of those eligible have participated in the voting and if it has received a majority of valid votes.
(5) The methods or carrying out a referendum are laid down by law.
Article 76 [Ordinances]
(1) The exercise of legislative functions may not be delegated by the Government save by the laying down of principles and criteria and only for a limited period of time and for definite objects.
Article 77 [Decrees, Provisional Measures]
(1) The Government may not unless properly delegated by the Chambers, issue decrees having the value of ordinary laws.
(2) When, in exceptional cases of necessity and urgency, the Government issues, on its own responsibility, provisional measures having the force of law, it shall on the same day submit them for conversion into law to the Chambers which, even if they have been dissolved, are expressly summoned for that purpose and shall meet within five days.
(3) Decrees lose effect as of the date of issue if they are not converted into law within sixty days of their publication. The Chambers may, however, approve laws to regulate legal questions arising out of decrees not yet converted into law.
Article 78 [State of War]
(1) The Chambers declare a state of war and confer the necessary powers on the Government.
Article 79 [Amnesty]
(1) The right of amnesty and indult are granted by the President of the Republic, on the basis of laws enacted by the Chambers delegating such power.
(2) Amnesty and indult are not applicable in the case of offenses committed subsequent to the proposal for delegating such authority.
Article 80 [Ratification of Treaties]
(1) The Chambers authorize, by law, ratification of international treaties of a political nature, or which provide for arbitration or judicial regulation, or imply modifications to the nation's territory or financial burdens, or to laws.
Article 81 [Budgets]
(1) The Chambers vote the budgets and the audited accounts submitted by the Government each year.
(2) The right to execute the provisional budget may not be granted save by law and for periods of not over four months.
(3) No new taxes or new expenditures can be established by the law approving the budget.
(4) In all other laws implying new or additional expenditure the means for covering it must be set forth.
Article 82 [Inquiries]
(1) Each Chamber may order inquiries into matters of public interest.
(2) To this end, it appoints a Committee of its own members so composed as to represent the proportions of the various political groups. The Committee of Enquiry carries out its investigations and examination with the same powers and the same limitations as the judicial authorities.

Title II The President of the Republic

Article 83 [Presidential Elections]
(1) The President of the Republic is elected by Parliament during a joint session of both Chambers.
(2) Three delegates from every Region, elected by the Regional Council in such a manner as to ensure the representation of minorities, take part in the election.
(3) The Valle d'Aosta is represented by only one delegate.
(4) Presidential elections take place by secret ballot with a majority of two-thirds of the Assembly. After the third ballot, an absolute majority is sufficient.
Article 84 [Eligibility, Incompatibility, Allowance]
(1) Any citizen of fifty years of age enjoying civil and political rights is eligible for election as President of the Republic.
(2) The office of President of the Republic is incompatible with any other office.
(3) The allowances and endowments of the President are established by law.
Article 85 [Term]
(1) The Presidential term shall be seven years.
(2) Thirty days before the term lapses the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies summons Parliament in joint session together with the Regional delegates to elect the new President of the Republic.
(3) If Parliament has been dissolved or is to be dissolved within three months, the election is held within fifteen days of the meeting of the new Chambers. In the interval, the powers of the existing President are prolonged.
Article 86 [Speaker of the Senate]
(1) Should the President prove to be unable to fulfill his duties, they shall be carried out by the Speaker of the Senate.
(2) In case of permanent incapacity or death or resignation of the President of the Republic, the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies provides for the election of a new President of the Republic within fifteen days, unless a longer period be foreseen because the Chambers are to be dissolved or because their term has less than three months to expire.
Article 87 [Head of State, Functions]
(1) The President of the Republic is the Head of the State and represents the unity of the Nation.
(2) He may send messages to Parliament.
(3) He provides for the election of a new Parliament and authorizes the date of its first meeting.
(4) He authorizes the submission to Parliament of Bills moved by the Government.
(5) He promulgates laws and issues decrees having the value of laws and regulations.
(6) He provides for a referendum in such cases as are laid down in the Constitution.
(7) He appoints, in the cases laid down by the law, the officials of the State.
(8) He accredits and receives diplomatic representatives and ratifies international treaties, provided they be authorized by Parliament whenever such authorization is necessary.
(9) He commands the Armed Forces, presides over the Supreme Defence Council as constituted by law, and declares a state of war when it has been decided by Parliament.
(10) He presides over the Superior Magistrate Council.
(11) He may grant pardons and commute court sentences.
(12) He confers the honors of the Republic.
Article 88 [Dissolution of Parliament]
(1) The President of the Republic may dissolve one or both Chambers after consultation with their Speakers.
(2) He may not exercise this right during the last six months of his term of office.
Article 89 [Countersignature]
(1) No act of the President is legal unless it is countersigned by the ministers who have submitted it and accept his responsibility.
(2) Measures having the value of law and such others as are laid down by law shall also be countersigned by the President of the Council of Ministers (Prime Minister).
Article 90 [Presidential Indemnity]
(1) The President of the Republic cannot be held responsible for acts carried out in the exercise of his duties, save in cases of high treason or breaches of the Constitution.
Article 91 [Oath of Loyalty]
(1) Before taking office, the President of the Republic shall swear an oath of loyalty to the Republic and to the Constitution before Parliament in joint session.

Title III The Government

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Section I The Council of Ministers

Article 92 [Executive Power]
(1) The Government of the Republic consists of the President of the Council and of the Ministers jointly constituting the Council of Ministers.
(2) The President of the Republic appoints the President of the Council and the Ministers who are proposed.
Article 93 [Oath]
(1) Before assuming office, the President of the Council and the Ministers shall be sworn in before the President of the Republic.
Article 94 [Governmental Elections]
(1) The Government must enjoy the confidence of the two Chambers.
(2) Each Chamber grants or refuses its confidence by a motion in which it gives its reasons and which is submitted to a nominal vote.
(3) Within ten days of its formation, the Government shall present its program to Parliament to obtain its vote of confidence.
(4) The contrary vote of one or of both Chambers on a Government proposal does not necessitate resignation.
(5) A vote of no confidence must be signed by at least one-tenth of the members of the Chamber and can only be debated three days after it has been submitted.
Article 95 [Functions]
(1) The President of the Council conducts and is responsible for, the general policy of the Government. He maintains unity in general political and administrative policy and promotes and coordinates the activities of the Ministers.
(2) Ministers are jointly responsible for the decisions of the Cabinet as a whole, and individually for those of their own particular departments.
(3) The law contemplates regulations concerning the Presidency of the Council of Ministers and establishes the number, responsibilities, and organization of the various Ministries.
Article 96 [Impeachment]
(1) The President of the Council and the Ministers may be impeached by Parliament in joint session for offenses committed in the exercise of their duties.

This text begun with the desire to create a non-Cyrodiilic analog to A Brief History of the Empire. I posted an earlier version of it around the time of ESO:Summerset, and decided over the weekend to polish it a bit and finally make it public.
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ALT103 - A SURVEY OF ALTMERI HISTORY
PROF. Magnus Son of Bordir
Morndas 14:00-17:30
Welcome to day one of this overview of Aldmeri history. In addition to the syllabus, which covers our weekly lessons and required readings, please hold on to this cheat-sheet, summarizing the 12 rulers of the Summerset Isles.
Altmeri monarchs, unlike their mainland counterparts, don't rule for life. The Altmer see monarchy as a job like any other, meant to serve the society as a whole. In fact, it is considered shameful to die in office, because one cannot have adequately prepared their successor. While all in the ruling class are related to each other (just like all smiths or all physickers), monarchy is seen as a responsibility to the Altmeri state and its peoples, not just a birthright.
Below is a family tree showing the relationships between Alinor’s rulers.
Figure 1 - a family tree of the monarchical caste
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Uranya ⸺ ME 550 - 1E 225
Uranya was the last historical Honored Ancestor, and the progenitor of the monarchical cast of the Altmer. Prior to her coronation as supreme ruler of the Summerset Isles (“... and all Territories Mundrial and Extramundrial, now and in perpetuity, until such a time that governorship shall be unnecessary”), Alinor and its colonies were ruled by councils of the oldest members of each noble cast. As arguments arose over the powers of states, and as colonies drifted away from the watchful eye of the motherland, Uranya rose to power through a combination of shrewd politics, smart marriages, and divine mandate.
Perhaps most notable of her many unions was her marriage to Haymon, the governor of the vast jungle of Valenwood. The coronation of their son, Eplear, marked the start of the 1st era and the establishment of the Camoran dynasty in Valenwood. Not long after, she relinquished what little power Summerset maintained over the Ayleid territories on the mainland. Instead, she focused on civic projects to unify the various Altmeri states and codify a new national identity.
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Laranrian ⸺ 1E 225 - 620
Where her mother’s reign was about the formalizing of ancient societal strata into governmental formality, the reign of Laranrian focused on dealing with forces exterior to the isles. The influx of Ayleid and Bosmeri refugees following first the Alessian Rebellion and then the rise of the Alessian Order led to the creation of new castes of “adopted citizens” not descended from the original Honored Ancestors. Most of the racial diversity in Alinor can be traced back to this period, as can the concept of Foreign- and Ousted-Quarters in many major cities. Many of the laws against miscegenation likewise date to this era, as does the bulk of the sumptuary legislation revived by the Thalmor at the start of their rise to power.
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Quaranil ⸺ 1E 620 - 650
Laranrian was succeeded by her half-brother, Quaranil, son of Uranya and Ceythelel, matriarch of the Line of Weavers. A contemporary historian described the king as akin to a carpet masterfully woven by his mother - beautiful to look upon, but even better to walk all over. The power that his father had consolidated during her seven centuries on the throne was challenged by Daedric schemes, civil unrest, Marukhathi machinations, and several attempted invasions by both the Maormer and the westerly Left Hand Elves. Quaranil’s brief reign came to an end in 1E 650, when the Sepiarchs deposed him and established a complex set of guidelines and rituals to determine who is and is not worthy to wear the Crystal Crown. Quaranil’s offspring were judged unworthy by these standards, and the crown passed instead to his niece.
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Etevinilir ⸺ 1E 650 - 1080
Though she is a popular queen among the Altmer of Alinor, few details are available to foreigners about the reign of Etevinilir. We know that she expelled or executed a great deal of the political and religious dissenters that had plagued the reign of her uncle, and, once her power was consolidated, withdrew Summerset from the world stage (just in time for the War of the First Council in the north and the cataclysm of Yokuda in the west). She is also credited with several religious revelations and major improvements to the magical defenses of the Isles.
When it came time for Etevinilir to retire from the throne, her son, Ceithir, was thought to be the natural successor. Born under a blessed timeline and raised from infancy to succeed his mother, Ceithir was, as far as anyone could tell, the perfect exemplar of a king in the making. Yet when he emerged from the Crystal Tower after nearly 10 years of study, he did so carrying a crown above the head of his cousin, Novenaril, rather than as a king in his own right.
The prince refused to say what had happened in the 3,555 days between matriculation and emergence. Records say that the ambition and yearning for progress that defined him in his younger years had fled, replaced instead with a melancholy and shortness. While Ceithir himself fully supported his cousin's ascent to the throne, many among the Altmer did not, and his being passed over created a deep (if often invisible) schism in Altmeri society that would continue well into the current era.
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Novenaril ⸺ 1E 1080 - ?
After the initial outrage had subsided, Novenaril proved himself to be a solid ruler. During his reign, Summerset faced frequent assaults from the Alessian Order both by sea and in the mythic landscape, which the young king countered with a more powerful navy and the formation of a dedicated military caste, which included the now-famous Sunbirds, bred to fight the War in Heaven.
The conclusion of Novenaril’s reign is unknown. As with the rest of Tamriel, the thousand years in the middle of the 1st era are difficult to map. We will cover a variety of sources in class, but of particular interest are the so-called King’s Stones, discovered near Arenthia in the late 3rd era. It is a stone path in the middle of the jungle, leading from nowhere to nowhere, inscribed on each brick with the names and deeds of rulers. While the first stretch is corroborated by history, its record soon devolves, citing kings with ten thousand year reigns and sovereigns who would not be born until many years after this road’s construction. Among its most outrageous claims is the defeat of “King Tuber Sepsis” by a polyamorous triad of Reman Karoodil, Ayrenn, and Morgiah.
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Cimeneth ⸺ ? - 2E 120
The historical record stabilizes in the reign of Cimeneth, who some claim was the son of Novenaril and Uranya and had ruled the Aether for a thousand years prior to his ascension to a mortal throne. We do know that his rule saw unprecedented cooperation between the monarchy and the orthodoxy of the Psijic Monks. In fact, Altmeri tradition claims that it is Cimeneth, not Sotha Sil, who brokered a pact with the Lords of Misrule. The latter years of his reign saw the Altmeri Empire extend westwards into the ruins of Yokuda, supposedly bringing back galleons worth of precious jewels, arcane artifacts, and profane metals.
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Hidellith ⸺ 2E 120 - 580
Hidellith succeed his father as he was trained to, and, for most of his life, continued to be very by-the-books ruler, following the advice of oracles and proclamations of the Praxis nearly to a fault. His extreme introspection and a tendency to think and plan rather than act cost Summerset several colonies and led to an isolation from his children that some historians claim would eventually lead to their deaths.
Like his mother and half-sister, Erisare, Hidellith seems to have suffered some sort of break in his latter years. Perhaps fueled by the disappearance of his favored daughter, or by the Planemeld that fractured space around this time, Hidelith grew increasingly isolationist, locking himself up for weeks and issuing cryptic proclamations. While he refused to abdicate, his son, Naemon, stepped in to rule in his father's stead. When Hidellith was discovered dead, Naemon was prepared to truly become king.
The return of his prodigal sister, Ayrenn, ruined that plan.
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Ayrenn ⸺ 2E 580 - 605
For most of the monarchs on this list, our problem is lack of information. For Ayrenn, it is the opposite. Between historical fiction and supposedly “just unearthed” “contemporary” reports, as well as serialized adventure stories, memoirs, essays, bawdy romance novels, etc. there is just too much out there on the supposed life of the Unforeseen Queen.
Here's what we know for sure: unlike most of her predecessors, who were content with their island colonies and the occasional cooperation with Valenwood, Ayrenn believed that it was her destiny to usher in a new Merethic Era and once again unite “all territories Mundrial and Extramundrial” under an Altmeri banner. She was the 5th direct descendant of Uranya, born on 5/5/555, a date which, even with advancements in obstetrics and fertility magicks, was considered divinely fated. Perhaps it was this birthday that allowed her to skirt tradition in her childhood, disappear, and then still ascend to the throne and open Summerset up to the politics of Tamriel upon her return many years later.
Ayrenn’s rule had the greatest effect outside of Summerset’s borders, where she renewed the ancient alliance with Valenwood and drew northern Elsweyr into a new Aldmeri Dominion. The governorship of the Isles themselves she largely delegated to family and trusted confidants, some of whom ended up not being very trustworthy after all. She welcomed trade and travelers to both Auridon and Summerset, leading to economic turbulence, local skirmishes, outbreaks of disease, and even invasions by Daedric forces. She also laid the groundwork for the network of spies which the Thalmor now call the Eyes of the People. Yet it was not all bad, as Summerset saw an unprecedented cultural and artistic revolution, and was able to adapt to the Tamriel that had grown up while they had closed off their borders.
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Alwinarwe ⸺ 2E 608 - 610
After her initial departure following her coronation in 2E 580, Ayrenn would never again return to Alinor. Historians describe her as an ambitious queen who hated ruling and staying in one place for long. After many tours around the Dominion and campaigns into Cyrodiil (and, some claim, into Oblivion itself) Ayrenn first lessened communication with and governance of the archipelago and then, in 2E 608, seemed to disappear entirely. While there were many rumored sightings of her, no official inquiry was able to return with the queen, and in the middle of that year governance passed provisionally to her cousin, Alwinarwe.
Known as the Proxy Queen, Alwinarwe was not judged suitable to rule Alinor in her own right. Her brief provisional reign saw insurrection from both radical traditionalist parties and foreign terrorist organizations (chiefly Bosmeri and Khajiiti separatists). By the time that the Councils and Sepiarchs had found a suitable leader, Alinor was barely holding on to the Aldmeri dominion, and had lost all its other territories abroad.
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Erisare ⸺ 2E 610 - 3E 60
The crown ultimately passed to Erisare, Ayrenn’s grandmother. Ayrenn’s eldest brother was both dead and a traitor, and her younger brother was deemed to be unworthy. Erisare, meanwhile, had both suitable breeding and several hundred years of experience in government, making her a perfect candidate to the throne.
After a rocky few years at home and abroad, she found her stride and set about returning Summerset to more stable footing. She formally renounced the failing alliance with Elsweyr and withdrew most forces from Valenwood, preferring to instead maintain a loose confederacy with the Camorans. A historical first was the establishment of a ceasefire with the Maormer, which enabled Summerset to finally recover from years of war and lead to aggressive economic growth. Erisare leaned heavily on the words and deeds of past monarchs to legitimise her rule, and her reign can best be summed up as a classical revival with revisionist themes.
In the latter years of the second era she claimed to have begun receiving visions of doom and ruin, which lead her to her isolating Summerset further and staging a coup in Valenwood to create a buffer state against the “insurgency of Man”. Her visions ultimately came true with the rise of Tiber Septim, who swept the continent and ultimately forced Erisare into surrendering Summerset. She survived sixty years after the conquest, with many unsuccessful revolutions staged in her name.
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Reman Karoodil ⸺ 3E 60 - 4E 10
The next king was born Rilis III, but was renamed Reman at the age of 12, when Tiber Septim took him as a hostage-ward following Summerset’s surrender. He was the youngest grandchild of Erisare, and the only one left alive after much of the royal family was executed or died in suicide missions against the Empire. He spent the next 60 years at the Imperial court, only returning to assume the throne of Summerset in 3E 58 when his grandmother was on her deathbed.
The Altmer initially despised him, believing him to be a puppet of the Septims, and calling him “Karoodil,” a vulgar corruption of the word Cyrodiil. Reman, meanwhile, played both sides, pretending to be a conciliator and reformer when it suited the Empire, while honoring traditions and helping to lift the Imperial yoke to please his subjects. In 132, he convinced Emperor Cephorus to withdraw the provisional governors from all major cities and, by 184, the Empire had no remaining garrisons within the province. His 420 marriage to Morgiah, the daughter of his childhood friend Barenziah, shocked the traditionalists, but most of the caste elders had grown to grudgingly accept the oddities of their king.
Summerset under Reman was a deeply divided society. Traditional Altmeri culture, suppressed or outright banned under the rule of Tiber Septim and his successors, sprung back as soon as Reman let it, often with a fervor unmatched in prior milenia. Some touchstones were invented wholesale based on an idealized view of what it meant to be a “true Altmer.” At the same time, younger generations, which had grown up with the Imperial rule, embraced mainland culture and rebelled (sometimes with violence) against the mores of their parents. Reman himself embodied these contradictions, and his many essays on post-colonialism and identity make him as popular an author as he was a ruler.
While Reman overcame culture, politics, and even wars, he was ultimately undone by chance and ancient grudges. The Oblivion Crisis destroyed the Crystal Tower and wiped out the Sepiarchs, leaving Summerset in a particularly fragile state. Strikes and attempts at revolution eventually resulted in a successful coup by a group of elders now known as the Thalmor.
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Nelacar ⸺ 4E 10 - Present
In addition to their well-publicised ideas on theological and biological purity, the core tenant of the Thalmor is their belief that Ceithir, rather than Novenaril, was the proper successor to the Crystal Throne. After first exiling and then assassinating Reman and his family, the Thalmor enthroned Nelacar, Ceithir’s direct descendants. Though he rules to this day, he is only a figurehead for the will of the Thalmor.
The word “Thalmor” simply means a council of equally ranked individuals. The term has previously applied (somewhat sardonically) to the joint Altmer-Bosmer governing body of 2nd Dominion Valenwood, as well as to the military leaders of the 1st and, before that, to the quorum of families that governed the Aldmeri prior to the enthronement of Uranaya. The present Thalmor is composed of appointed members of each craft- and noble-caste in Alinor.

TL:DR, I a closeted non-believing member taught about natural law and attempted to use subtle satire to enlighten the congregation.
Sorry this is so long. Since General Conference is coming up I thought I would offer my own talk which was given some time ago. I vowed to myself that it will be the last I ever give. They asked me to give this talk because I had gotten into a little bit of trouble in EQ by questioning teachings of prophets, specifically Ezra Benson. It does seem to be an awkward talk. I would prefer to just speak my mind honestly, but since any fall-out would negatively affect my relationship with my wife I resorted to satire. I know that the bishopric assigned me this talk as a way to put me in line for comments I had made. The day I was assigned the EQP talked all nice to me and he never talks to me. Anyway, the talk clocked in at about 21 minutes. My wife had me remove the quote from Packer about LGBT being a threat to the church, thus proving John Larsen right that words of profits can't stand for more than 25 years or whatever. I wasn't too sad about removing it because I suspect that there is at least one or two LGBT members in the congregation. No one from the bishopric thanked me afterwards. I did get several positive comments from members, most were from people who likely did not get the gist of what I was actually saying. One guy congratulated me and said it was very good. I suspect he is likely NOM.
Sustaining Church Leaders
Good morning brothers and sisters. I’m grateful to have the opportunity to be able to speak today. I’ve been assigned the topic “Sustaining church leaders.” I will attempt to cover what that means to sustain both prophets and to a lesser extent local leaders. First I would like to compare and contrast so that our beliefs can come into greater focus. There are two manners in the world today in which people believe that divine laws reach mankind. In other faith traditions there is a strong belief in what is called Natural Law.
“Natural law proponents consistently make four claims in regard to natural law: 1) there are unchanging principles of law that exist in “nature” (are part of the natural realm) that define for man what is right, just, and good, and which ought to govern his actions; 2) these principles of law are accessible to all men and are discovered by the right use of reason; 3) these principles of law apply to all men at all times and in all circumstances; 4) man-made laws (e.g., those promulgated by the state) are just and authoritative only insofar as they are derivable from the principles of law in nature.
The natural law theory is based on the belief that certain principles of law are inherent in the very nature of things and that men can discern these by means of reason. There is a natural moral order in the universe; a metaphysical realm reached through reason, not the senses. Hence, natural law standards are beyond empirical proof:
Unprovable though these principles are, however, they can be known by man because they are self-evident. They are, so to speak, laws that nature has inscribed upon the heart of man. . . . “We hold these truths to be self-evident,” said the authors of the American Declaration of Independence; the advocates of the natural-law theory take this to be the status of all the fundamental principles of right and justice.
Self-evident truth propositions must serve as their own evidence — if they are true they must be self-evident because no evidence can be gathered from the senses or experience to establish them. Hence, natural law is not perceived through sensory experience, but is intuitively grasped as being true and right by the mind and conscience.
Since natural law is part of the nature of things the knowledge of it is accessible to all men through reason apart from any supernatural revelation. God may be the source of natural law, but he has inscribed his moral law in nature and in man (who is a part of nature); hence, there is no need for any further revelation outside of nature itself for the knowledge of the moral law. The natural law theory holds to the sufficiency of nature and man’s intellect (reason) to establish a “just” ethical system for man and society.”
To us as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints it should be self-evident that we do not believe in Natural Law. Our beliefs do not conform to manmade beliefs. It should be obvious that we do not believe that we have been endowed by our Heavenly Father with divine reason, however popular that notion was to the early Christian fathers. For we read in Mosiah 3:19 “For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever.” There is nothing innate about human nature that allows us to discover eternal truths by ourselves.
This brings me to where we as members learn eternal truths. We cannot rely on worldly reason, that should be apparent enough. God forever has established the correct way when he said “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.” This is the order that we must follow to learn divine truths. It would be nonsense to rely on our own reason. We should never attempt to rely on the arm of flesh. We should be trusting and supportive of our church leaders. President Gordon B. Hinckley said the following “I give you my testimony that the happiness of the Latter-day Saints, the peace of the Latter-day Saints, the progress of the Latter-day Saints, the prosperity of the Latter-day Saints, and the eternal salvation and exaltation of this people lie in walking in obedience to the counsels of the priesthood of God.” On LDS.org it says the following about sustaining our leaders: “Raising our hands to sustain someone is not like voting that person into office. The person has already been called by the Lord to serve in that calling by one who has the priesthood authority to extend such a calling. Our sustaining is a vote of confidence in the person, because we recognize that he or she has been called of God through priesthood leaders we sustain.”
Consequently, since our leaders have been chosen by God, we should never criticize them. No less than N. Eldon Tanner in General Conference stated that “When the Prophet speaks the debate is over,” further echoing the sage advice which was given to home teachers that “When our leaders speak, the thinking has been done. When they propose a plan- it is God's Plan. When they point the way, there is no other which is safe. When they give directions, it should mark the end of controversy, God works in no other way. To think otherwise, without immediate repentance, may cost one his faith, may destroy his testimony, and leave him a stranger to the kingdom of God."
Brigham Young stated “The Lord Almighty leads this Church, and he will never suffer you to be led astray if you are found doing your duty. You may go home and sleep as sweetly as a babe in its mother's arms, as to any danger of your leaders leading you astray, for if they should try to do so the Lord would quickly sweep them from the earth.” We should never believe that we know more than the leaders and attempt to steady the ark as it were. Bruce R. McConkie stated that “No true Latter-day Saint will ever take a stand that is in opposition to what the Lord has revealed to those who direct the affairs of his earthly kingdom. No Latter-day Saint who is true and faithful in all things will ever pursue a course, or espouse a cause, or publish an article or book that weakens or destroys faith.”
There may also be the tendency for those that use their own human reasoning to apply that to the world’s problems and try to project their own definitions of what is just onto the church. Elder Boyd K. Packer said in conference in 1993 “There are three areas where members of the Church, influenced by social and political unrest, are being caught up and led away. I chose these three because they have made major invasions into the membership of the Church. In each, the temptation is for us to turn about and face the wrong way, and it is hard to resist, for doing it seems reasonable and right.
“The dangers I speak of come from the gay-lesbian movement, the feminist movement (both of which are relatively new), and the ever-present challenge from the so-called scholars or intellectuals. Our local leaders must deal with all three of them with ever increasingly frequency. In each case, the members who are hurting have the conviction that the Church somehow is doing something wrong to members or that the Church is not doing enough for them.” In 1992 Packer stated “Follow your leaders who have been duly ordained and have been publicly sustained, and you will not be led astray.”
Also putting us in danger of losing the safety that the prophet’s counsel gives us is when we attempt to interpret historical events without seeing God’s hand at work. Elder Packer said “There is no such thing as an accurate, objective history of the Church without consideration of the spiritual powers that attend this work... There is a temptation... to want to tell everything, whether it is worthy or faith-promoting or not. Some things that are true are not very useful... In an effort to be objective, impartial, and scholarly, a writer or a teacher may unwittingly be giving equal time to the adversary... In the Church we are not neutral. We are one-sided. There is a war going on, and we are engaged in it... The fact that something is already in print or available from another source is no excuse for using potentially damaging materials in writing, speaking, or teaching: ‘Do not spread disease germs!'” Elder Dallin H. Oaks reiterated the same divine truth when he stated that “Some things that are true are not edifying or appropriate to communicate. Readers of history and biography should ponder that moral reality as part of their effort to understand the significance of what they read.” We should be grateful that these prophets and seers have warned us of the peril of studying true things that are designed to harm our testimonies.
With regard to our leaders we should keep in mind what the divine law of common consent means. There is a story told by President Henry B. Eyring which illustrates the real meaning very well. He starts out by telling about a young man that wanted an interview when Eyring was a young bishop. As they met this is what occurred in President Eyring’s words “He began his prayer with a testimony that he knew the bishop was called of God. He asked God to tell me what he should do in a matter of great spiritual consequence. The young man told God he was sure the bishop already knew his needs and would be given the counsel he needed to hear.
"That young man, one year in the Church, taught by example what God can do with a leader as he is sustained by the faith and prayers of those he is called to lead. That young man demonstrated for me the power of the law of common consent in the Church (see D&C 26:2). Even though the Lord calls His servants by revelation, they can function only after being sustained by those they are called to serve.” Living the law of common consent does not consist in raising our hands as if voting for our leaders; it consists in being humble and recognizing that the leaders have been called by God and being submissive to accept whatever counsel is given as the Lord’s counsel.
We would all do well to remember the counsel that the Prophet Joseph Smith gave to the Saints as found in Church History Volume 5: " That which is wrong under one circumstance, may be, and often is, right under another."
"God said, "Thou shalt not kill;" at another time He said "Thou shalt utterly destroy." This is the principle on which the government of heaven is conducted—by revelation adapted to the circumstances in which the children of the kingdom are placed. Whatever God requires is right, no matter what it is, although we may not see the reason thereof till long after the events transpire. If we seek first the kingdom of God, all good things will be added. So with Solomon: first he asked wisdom, and God gave it him, and with it every desire of his heart, even things which might be considered abominable to all who understand the order of heaven only in part, but which in reality were right because God gave and sanctioned by special revelation." I believe that this divine counsel puts into perspective how we should never give in to trust our own reason or the world’s. Their understanding of morality is so flawed. We need to follow the prophets who receive revelation for the church.
Let me share a story that is more personal to me to help illustrate these principles. In late 1856 the 4th and 5th handcart companies to cross the plains were late getting a start at Iowa City, Iowa. Heading out so late and even though they headed out as fast as they could they did not reach Great Salt Lake City before the weather turned bad. The Martin and Willie handcart companies did encounter tragedy, with at least 213 deaths between the two companies. Travelling with the Martin handcart company was my Great, Great, Great, Great grandmother Ann Aldred Williamson, from Lancashire, England, along with her six children, Ellen, Elizabeth, Mary, William, John, and Betsy. Her husband was already living in Southern Utah for a few years while the rest of the family saved enough money. While making the trek the family had to tie a bell around 3 year old Betsy so they would know if she had wandered away.
Now many people, not acquainted with the divine designs of the Lord, often treat the whole ordeal as something avoidable. If the Martin and Willie companies had simply waited until the next year and gotten an early start then they could have avoided so many deaths. Such reasoning entirely misses the mark. The Saints in these two companies were warned. Travelling with the Saints was the recently returned missionary Levi Savage who knew the country well which the immigrants would be traversing. Savage said the following about a meeting the Saints had before leaving Florence, Nebraska “Today we commenced preparing for our journey and ascertaining who wishes to go on this fall and who wishes to remain here. Many are going to stop. Others are faltering and I myself am not in favor of, but much opposed to, taking women and children through when they are destitute of clothing, when we all know that we are bound to be caught in the snow and severe cold weather long before we reach the valley. When asked by President Willie to share his thoughts with the company on leaving so late in the year Savage (again in his own words from his personal journal) said on August 13th: Brother Willey exhorted the Saints to go forward regardless of suffering even to death. After he had spoken, he gave me the opportunity of speaking. I said to him that if I spoke I must speak my mind, let it cut where it would. He said certainly to do so. I then related to the Saints the hardships that we should have to endure. I said that we were liable to have to wade in snow up to our knees and shovel at night, lay ourselves in a thin blanket and lie on the frozen ground without a bed. I said that it was not like having a wagon that we could go into and wrap ourselves in as much as we like and lay down. “No,” said I, “we are without wagons, destitute of clothing and could not carry it if we had it. We must go as we are. The handcart system I do not condemn. I think t preferable to unbroken oxen and experienced teamsters. The lateness of the season was my only objection to leaving this point for the mountains at this time. I spoke warmly upon the subject, but spoke truth, and the people, judging from appearance and expressions, felt the force of it. (However, the most of them determined to go forward, if the authorities say so.) Elder Willey then spoke again in reply to what I had said, evidently dissatisfied. He said that the God that he served was a God that was able to save to the utermost. He said that was the God that he served, and he wanted no Job’s comforters with him. I then said that what I had said was the truth, and if Elder Willey did not want me to act in the place where I am, he is at full liberty to place another man in my stead. I would not think hard of him for it, But, I did not care what he said about Job’s comforters, I had spoken nothing but the truth and he knew it. Elder Atwood then spoke mildly and to the purpose. He said that he had been listening to what had been said. He exhorted the Saints to pray to God and get a revelation and know for themselves whether they should go or stay, for it was their privilege to know for themselves.”
Was Levi Savage justified in making his remarks that he did not agree that making the journey was the right thing to do so late in the season? Detractors of the church imply that other factors were at play which made the Saints decide to go ahead with the journey even when the proper use of reason would indicate that it was not a wise idea. Savage, whether improperly or not, intimates that the members would go along with whatever their leadership said not matter what, when he said “However, the most of them determined to go forward, if the authorities say so.”
The answer to this question rests upon the principles that we have discussed today. As the handcart companies pushed forward into Nebraska, Apostle Franklin D. Richards who was in charge of handcart migration, passed the companies in his wagon on his way to Salt Lake. He did make a stop to visit with the immigrants and to assure them that they would be resupplied at Ft. Laramie Wyoming. He also was impressed to give a talk to the Saints where he, together with Capt. Willie gave Levi Savage a severe reprimand for his language that he had used at Florence in which he warned the Saints of the trouble which lie ahead. Perhaps Savage did not know what these men knew. Brigham Young had blessed the handcart plan as a way to bring members to Utah in a faster and cheaper fashion. Although many members wanted to stay in New York City, or wherever and save money to buy a team of oxen and a wagon to make the journey, Young and Apostle Franklin D. Richards wanted the immigrants to all make it to Utah that year. Savage was not understanding that it was not his place to persuade the Saints to not make the journey since the plan was Brigham Young’s and was therefore the will of the Lord. Savage further didn’t understand that the people believed in the Law of Common Consent and to comply with what they needed to do to follow the law they had to live by faith and they knew that whatever their leaders asked was God’s will since the leaders were called by God. Furthermore, the Saints had prayed about the issue and felt that they should follow their leaders.
Savage had not learned that he should not follow his own reason. He should have faithfully sustained his leaders, following the law of common consent. For those that follow the erroneous Natural Law, it may be okay to believe that it is a natural right, even righteous, to seek to preserve our own lives at all costs (except by injuring others). They would see in the natural order of things that it is good for mankind to seek his survival. When one has an eternal view of things, the perspective changes and so do one’s goals. Brigham Young offered a prescient statement concerning the handcart treks and what was really at stake. He said “To have to walk a thousand miles?—Those who get into the Celestial kingdom will count this a very light task in the end, and if they have to walk thousands of miles they will feel themselves happy for the privilege, that they may know how to enjoy celestial glory.” We can then gather that the death of the body is the least of our worries. What we must worry about is weather we are doing God’s will by following his divinely mandated leaders. We would do well to leave our thinking at home and practice the law of common consent and be faithful and know that whatever our leaders ask of us is God’s will. Lastly I would just like to quickly repeat the 14 fundamentals of following the prophet:

1. The prophet is the only man who speaks for the Lord in everything.
   
2. The living prophet is more vital to us than the Standard Works.
   
3. The living prophet is more important to us than a dead prophet.
   
4. The prophet will never lead the Church astray.
   
5. The prophet is not required to have any particular earthly training or diplomas to speak on any subject or act on any matter at any time.
   
6. The prophet does not have to say “Thus saith the Lord” to give us scripture.
   
7. The prophet tells us what we need to know, not always what we want to know.
   
8. The Prophet is not limited by men’s reasoning.
   
9. The prophet can receive revelation on any matter—temporal or spiritual.
   
10. The prophet may well advise on civic matters.
    
11. The two groups who have the greatest difficulty in following the prophet are the proud who are learned and the proud who are rich.
    
12. The prophet will not necessarily be popular with the world or the worldly.
    
13. The prophet and his counselors make up the First Presidency—The highest quorum in the Church.
    
14. The prophet and the presidency—the living prophet and the First Presidency—follow them and be blessed—reject them and suffer.
    

I leave you these things, bearing my testimony that I believe in Jesus Christ and God our Eternal Father and everything that they have given to mankind in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

The state recognizes that the capitalist system is inherently exploitative and must be dismantled.
The state recognizes that the means of production must be seized and distributed to the workers.
The People of the State of Dixie, represented in Assembly, do enact as follows,
Section 1. Definitions
Means of production shall be defined as any physical, non-human inputs used for the production of economic value excepting:
Personal homes
Personal property as determined by the Means of Production Administration
Corporations or other private enterprises which earn less than $3,000,000 in after-tax revenue
Assets owned by non-profit organizations exempt from federal taxes through section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
Assets owned by the federal government, foreign governments, Indian tribes the government of the Southern State, or local governments
Assets which are primarily used or owned by people or corporations in other states, territories, or areas under the jurisdiction of the federal government of the United States or areas under the jurisdiction of other countries outside of the United States
Educational institutions
Religious institutions or institutions with a religious intent
Employee shall be defined as any person who engages in labor for payment.
Profit shall be defined as leftover revenue after payment of all expenses and taxes.
Workers’ councils shall be considered corporations for the purpose of Southern State Code.
Section 2. Means of Production Administration
There shall be created a Means of Production Administration.
The Means of Production Administration shall be governed by a fifteen member board appointed by the Governor of the Southern State.
The Board of the Means of Production Administration, hereafter referred to as ‘Board’ shall elect its Chairman from the membership of the Board.
The Means of Production Administration shall conduct a yearly survey of all units of the means of production (hereafter referred to as ‘units’). This survey shall include: the locations of each unit,
The approximate monetary value of each unit
The names of the owners and their share of ownership in each unit the approximate amount of possible monetary value which could be generated from each unit
The number of people employed while using this unit
And any other information needed for an orderly nationalization of the means of production
This survey shall be completed within one year of the passage of this legislation and the results of the survey shall be presented to the Governor.
The owners of all private property brought under state control shall be compensated for the value of their property with revenue from the state General Fund.
Section 3. Socialization of the Means of Production
A tax shall be levied yearly on the value of units of means of production which are not owned by a workers’ council or by a state-owned corporation.
The rate of this tax shall be 99%.
There shall be a one-year ‘grace period’ in which the tax shall not be levied; during this time the owners of units of means of production can transition these units to ownership by a workers’ council without being taxed.
Workers’ councils must consist of the same units of the means of production as the entities which preceded them.
The employees in a workers’ council shall be the primary owners of their workers’ council, with any person previously owning a share of ownership in a unit which the workers’ council is composed as part of an
Individual Retirement Arrangement (IRA), a Roth IRA, a 401(k) or 403(b), SIMPLE IRA, SEP, SARSEP, an Employee Stock Ownership Plan, or another retirement plan which requires a person to invest in shares in a corporation owning the value of shares previously owned.
In a workers’ council, all employees must be given the right to elect their managers and hold votes on any significant changes in wages, hours worked, closures, health and other benefits provided, layoffs of more than twenty-five employees, or hirings of more than thirty employees. Measures relating to any significant changes in wages, hours worked, closures, health and other benefits provided, layoffs of more than twenty-five employees must be passed by a majority of voting employees.
Every employee shall have an equal vote in these elections.
Any employee who interferes with these elections or prevents another employee from voting shall be fined up to $1,000 per instance or imprisoned for up to sixty days.
Section 4. Workers’ Council Administration.
There shall be created a Workers’ Council Administration within the Means of Production Administration.
The Administrator of the Workers’ Council Administration shall be elected by the members of all workers councils every second year, but the Governor shall appoint an interim to serve until January 1, 2019 and when there are vacancies. There shall be an election between December 1, 2018 and January 1, 2019 to determine the Administrator.
Each workers’ council shall be assigned one vote per employee employed by the council.
Workers’ councils shall decide democratically how to allocate their votes.
The Workers’ Council Administration shall be responsible for overseeing the operations of workers’ councils, transitioning privately owned firms into workers’ councils, administering elections, issuing licenses for the creation of new workers’ councils, and regulating workers’ councils.
The Workers’ Council Administration shall ensure that racial and ethnic minorities, the disabled, women, those of all gender identities and sexual orientations, and people of all social classes are adequately represented in the leadership of workers’ councils.
Section 5. Councils of workers: operations and governance.
Each workers’ council shall elect a leadership consisting of an elected assembly of at least five members or one-half of the employees of the council, whichever is smaller. This assembly shall manage administrative concerns of the workers’ council. Assemblymembers shall vote on issues when in disagreement. A majority vote of all present and voting shall be the required threshold for the decision of votes.
Assemblymembers shall be elected to six-month terms and shall be limited to four terms. Every employee of the workers’ council shall have one vote and shall vote in elections for members of the assembly.
In cases where the Means of Production Administration determines that the leadership of a workers’ council is unable to suitably manage a workers’ council, the Workers’ Council Authority shall have the authority to appoint an emergency manager to lead a workers’ council.
Each week, every workers’ council shall hold a community meeting. This meeting shall be a time for all employees to meet, discuss problems or issues in their council, or engage in other community building activities. The assembly shall delegate decisions relating to changes in wages, hours worked, closures, health and other benefits provided, layoffs of more than twenty-five employees, who shall vote on these issues during this community meeting.
The workers’ council shall distribute shares of ownership in the workers’ council to only employees of the workers’ council. Each employee shall receive shares in the council. Workers shall decide by a recorded majority vote of all employees the distribution of shares, but no employee may own more than twenty-five times the shares or value of shares of any other employee. Shares may not be sold, traded, given away, or transferred between employees.
Any shares earned shall be surrendered automatically after a shareholder’s death, resignation from the council, retirement from the council, or voluntary or involuntary dismissal from the council.
Employees of each workers’ council shall determine by majority vote how unused profits are distributed to shareholders of the council, provided that no shareholder receives more than twenty-five times the dividend size of any other shareholder.
Workers’ councils shall be prohibited from entering private ownership.
All employees of workers’ councils shall be required to be members of a labor union.
Section 6. Land.
Any land which cannot be distributed to a workers’ council or a state-owned corporation shall be nationalized and used to construct buildings or infrastructure of civic importance or to construct housing which is affordable to all people making the minimum income rate or above.
The Southern State shall conduct a survey of local governments which have units of unused or underutilized to determine need.
The Southern State may transfer ownership of this land to local governments. These local governments must use these units of land to construct buildings or infrastructure of civic importance or to construct housing which is affordable to all people making the minimum income rate or above.
The Southern State shall compensate the owners of all property which is brought under state control.
Section 7. Capital flight.
Any entity which seeks to transport assets out of the taxable and legal jurisdiction of the Southern State shall be required to notify the Southern State government at a minimum of six months prior to the planned transportation.
Any assets transported shall be subject to nationalization at the jurisdiction of the Southern State Means of Production Administration.
Section 8. Excess profits tax.
There shall be established a tax on workers’ councils which make in excess of five hundred million dollars in profits.
This tax shall be set at 15% of profits in excess of $500,000,000.
Section 9. Solidarity tax on wealth.
There shall be established a one-time tax on individuals or families having assets valued in excess of $25,000,000.
This tax shall be set at 30% of the value of all assets in excess of $25,000,000.
Section 10. Ethics.
There shall be created an Ethics Council within the Means of Production Administration.
The Ethics Council shall consist of five independent arbitrators, nominated by the Governor and confirmed by the Legislature.
The members of the Ethics Council shall serve five year terms and may serve a maximum of two terms. Members shall serve until death, end of their term, term limit, or retirement.
The Ethics Council shall be responsible for overseeing the operations of the Means of Production Administration and making decisions regarding violations of ethics policies by employees of the Means of Production Administration.
The Ethics Council shall decide on cases regarding violations of ethics policies by employees of the Means of Production Administration through a vote of the members of the Ethics Council. A decision shall be considered binding if a majority of present and voting members of the Ethics Council vote in favor of a decision.
The quorum of the Ethics Council shall be three members present.
The Ethics Council shall have the authority to terminate the employment of employees of the Means of Production Administration, to issue monetary penalties to employees of the Means of Production Administration, or to suspend employees of the Means of Production Administration as the result of a decision made.
Section 11. Compliance with the Right to Sustenance Amendment.
The State shall operate an Emergency Food Benefit Program which shall be capable of serving two million food insecure persons per month.
The State shall distribute cash benefits to food insecure persons.
These cash benefits shall be in compliance with the United States Department of Agriculture Moderate-Cost Food Plan, adjusted for family-size.
The appropriation for the Emergency Food Benefit Program shall be $6,000,000,000 per year.
Section 12. Free Community Bank of the Southern State
To ensure the smooth transitioning of the financial system to a socialist economy, the Free Community Bank of the Southern State, hereby referred to as the Bank, is established.
The Bank shall be governed by a five member board of directors appointed by the Governor of the Southern State for a term of two years.
The Bank will operate digitally on the Internet, out of every Department of Motor Vehicles location throughout the Southern State, as well as in other specialized locations to be determined by its board of directors at a later time.
The Bank shall have the ability to take deposits, make loans, as well as other investments into socially owned entities. The specific nature of the financial tools the Bank utilizes will be worked out by the board of directors and the Treasurer of the Southern State no later than one month after the passage of this bill.
The Bank’s stated goal shall be to help finance socially owned entities and create new and innovative financial tools for the express purpose of creating the conditions for the flourishing of socially owned entities.
The Bank shall be granted $1,000,000,000 in start-up capital as a loan, repayable to the General Fund of the Southern State within five years of the passage of this Act.
Section 13. Enactment.
This legislation shall be enacted ninety days after passage.
Section 14. Severability
The provisions of this Act are severable.
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Written by Toasty_Man115 (S) and realnyebevan (S). Sponsored by the honorable senators jacksazzy and sparkleisafunnyword (co-sponsor).

August 9, 2016
Nancy E. Glowa, City Solicitor City of Cambridge Massachusetts
OML 2016-102
Re: Open Meeting Law Complaint
Dear Attorney Glowa:
          This office received a Complaint dated June 15, alleging that the Cambridge Broadband Task Force (the "CBTF") https://www.cambridgema.gov/CityManagebroadbandtaskforce violated the Open Meeting Law, G.L. c. 30A, ss 18-25.¹ https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleIII/Chapter30A
¹ Unless otherwise indicated, all dates in this letter refer to the year 2016
The Complaint was originally filed with the CBTF on May 24, and the CBTF responded by letter dated June 10.
The Complaint alleges that the CBTF violated the Open Meeting Law by failing to create or provide Minutes of its Open Meetings.
          Following our review, we find that the CBTF is a Public Body subject to the Open Meeting Law, and that it violated the Law by failing to create or provide Meeting Minutes.
In reaching this Determination, we reviewed the original Complaint, the CBTF's Response, and the Request for Further Review filed with our Office.
In addition, we reviewed copies of the Minutes from the Cambridge City Council's Meetings held on January 27, 2014 and March 24, 2014.
We also reviewed a letter from the City Solicitor dated July 15, 2016^2
2 For the sake of clarity, we refer to you in the third person.
FACTS
          We find the facts as follows.
On March 24, 2014, the Cambridge City Council held a meeting where it Ordered the City Manager "to appoint a Task Force composed of Experts, Residents, the Cambridge Housing Authority, and Representatives from the local universities" to develop "a Municipal Broadband Proposal for Cambridge."
Moreover, the City Council Ordered the City Manager "to confer with the Task Force to hire necessary consultants" to aid in "feasibility research" as part of the Municipal Broadband Proposal.
On October 23, 2014, the City Manager created the CBTF and appointed fourteen individuals from the education, technology, civic, and business communities to examine and evaluate various aspects of broadband service and access in the City.
          The CBTF serves as an Advisory Body to the City Manager.
It has no quorum requirements for its Meetings and it has never taken formal Votes.
No CBTF Member acts as a Chair.
Instead, an employee from the City Manager's Office Opens and Conducts the Meetings.
The CBTF is responsible for collecting information and data on the City's broadband service and providing a Final Report to the City Manager, but it has no authority to make official decisions for the City or to make recommendations to the City Council.
The City Manager will present any Information or Recommendations regarding the final Municipal Broadband Proposal to the City Council at his discretion, but does so upon the advice and input of the CBTF and hired consultants.
DISCUSSION
          The Open Meeting Law requires Public Bodies to "create and maintain accurate Minutes of all Meetings." G.L. c. 30A, s 22(a).
A "Public Body" is defined in relevant part as any "multiple-member-board, commission, committee or subcommittee... however created, elected, appointed or otherwise constituted, established to serve a public purpose." Id, at s 18.
To determine whether a multi-member entity is a Public Body subject to the Open Meeting Law, there are three factors we consider which apply to all public bodies;

1. The entity must be "within" government and not excluded from the definition of "Public Body";
   
2. The entity must be a "Body" empowered to act collectively; and
   
3. The entity must serve a "public purpose".
   

See OML 2012-20; OML 2011-42; OML 2010-1.^3
3 Open Meeting Law Determinations may be found at the Attorney General's website http://mass.gov/ago/openmeeting
          Here, the CBTF is within government because it was created by the City Manager at the Direction of the City Council.
It also serves a public purpose: gathering and analyzing information on the City's broadband service.
With respect to the final prong, the CBTF contends that it is not a Body empowered to act collectively, and thus is not a Public Body subject to the Open Meeting Law.
We disagree.
The CBTF shares similarities with some informal focus groups that we have previously held are not Public Bodies, such as a lack of a Quorum Requirement, a lack of formal Votes, and the absence of formal Recommendations to a Public Body.
See OML 2013-56; OML 2012-20.
But unlike these informal focus groups, the CBTF is structured for collective action.
Specifically, the CBTF is tasked with compiling and analyzing information and then working collaboratively to provide a final written Report on the City's broadband service.
In the past, we have held that similar conduct constituted collective action by a Public Body.
See OML 2015-46.
While the CBTF does not take Votes and Reports only to the City Manager, rather than to the City Council, the CBTF provides Information and Policy Recommendations on a matter within the City Council's jurisdiction.
The CBTF satisfies all three factors for being a Public Body, and thus we find that the CBTF is subject to the Open Meeting Law.
Therefore, because the CBTF is Public Body subject to the Open Meeting Law, we find that it violated the Law by failing to create or provide Meeting Minutes.
          The CBTF also contends that it is not a Public Body because it is a Body appointed by the City Manager "solely for the purpose of advising" him.
We note the existence of a judicially-recognized Exception to the Definition of "Public Body" under the Open Meeting Law.
The Supreme Judicial Court held in Connelly v. School Committee of Hanover, 409 Mass. 232, 235 (1991), that where an individual Public Official creates a Committee to advise that person on a decision that the Official has the sole authority to make, that Committee is not subject to the Open Meeting Law.
Had the City Manager created the CBTF of his own volition, then the Body would likely have fit within the Connelly Exception because it would have been created by an individual Public Official to advise him in a decision that he retained the sole authority to make---that is, creating a final Municipal Broadband Proposal to present to the City Council.
See OML 2015-93; OML 2014-56.
The distinction here, however, is that the City Manager did not create the CBTF of his own volition, but was rather Ordered by the City Council to create the Body for a specific purpose.
Therefore, because a Public Body Ordered the creation of the CBTF, rather than an individual Public Official, the CBTF does not fall within the Connelly Exception.
          We take this opportunity to remind the CBTF of its obligations under the Open Meeting Law going forward.
Notice of every Meeting must be posted "at least 48 hours prior to such Meeting, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays" and every Notice shall include "the date, time and place of such Meeting and a Listing of Topics that the Chair reasonably anticipates will be discussed at the Meeting."
G.L. c. 30A, s 20(b).
A Public Body is also required to "create and maintain Minutes of all Meetings, including Executive Sessions, setting forth the Date, Time and Place, the Members present or absent, a Summary of the discussions on each subject, a list of Documents and other Exhibits used at the Meeting, the decisions made and actions taken at each Meeting, including the Record of all Votes."
G.L. c. 30A, s 22(a).
Finally, all Members of a Public Body must review the Attorney General's Open Meeting Law Guide and Certify in writing that hey have reviewed the Guide.^4
4 The Attorney General's Open Meeting Law Guide can be found here http://mass.gov/ago/docs/government/oml/oml-guide.pdf
CONCLUSION
          For the reasons stated above, we find that the CBTF is a Public Body subject to the Open Meeting Law, and thus violated the Law by failing to comply with its Requirements. We Order immediate and future Compliance with the Law's Requirements, and we Caution that similar future violations could be considered Evidence of intent to violate the Law.
Further, we Order the CBTF to create Minutes for all previous Meetings to the best of its ability, through whatever means are available, including the memories and individual notations of the attendees.
Compliance with this Order should occur within sixty (60) days of the CBTF's receipt of this letter.
          We now consider the Complaint addressed by this Determination to be Resolved.
This Determination does not address any other Complaints that may be pending with our Office or the CBTF.
Please feel free to contact the Division if you have any questions. Sincerely, Kevin W. Manganaro, Assistant Attorney General Division of Open Government
          This Determination was issued pursuant to G.L., c. 30A, s 23(c).
A Public Body or any Member of a Body aggrieved by a Final Order of the Attorney General may obtain Judicial Review through an action filed in Superior Court pursuant to G.L., c. 30A, s 23(d).
The Complaint must be filed in Superior Court within twenty-one days of receipt of a Final Order.
Maura Healey, Attorney General http://mass.gov/ago
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Office of the Attorney General
One Ashburton Place
Boston Massachusetts 02108
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Director of Division of Open Government http://www.mass.gov/ago/government-resources/open-meeting-law/
Office of the Attorney General
One Ashburton Place
Boston, Massachusetts 02108

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     June 10, 2016
     Re: Open Meeting Law Complaint dated May 24, 2016 [940 CMR 29.05(5) http://www.mass.gov/ago/government-resources/open-meeting-law/940-cmr-2900.html#Complaint ]

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     The Complaint alleges that the City of Cambridge's Broadband Task Force ("BTF") is subject to the Open Meeting Law and that it does not create and/or does not make available Minutes of Public Meetings.
The City denies that the [City of Cambridge] Broadband Task Force is a Public Body within the meaning of the Open Meeting Law, and therefore denies the applicability of the Open Meeting Law under the circumstances of this case.

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FACTS
     On October 22, 2014, the City Manager of the City of Cambridge appointed fourteen individuals to the BTF [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force] to examine broadband service in the City, to evaluate the City's fiber infrastructure, to examine options to increase broadband competition, to examine expanded access to broadband services, to reduce pricing, and improve speed, reliability and customer service for both residents and businesses in the City.^{[footnote]1
[footnote]1} This was based upon a City Council vote that the City Manager confer with residents and experts with regard to broadband service in the City.
The BTF [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force] consists of City residents, and members of the City's education, technology, civic and business communities.

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[page] 2
     The BTF [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force] has no quorum requirement at any of its Meetings.
There have been no formal votes taken by the BTF [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force]; decisions are arrived at by consensus.
There is no BTF [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force] Member who acts as the BTF's [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force's] Chairperson, but rather a City Employee from the City Manager's Office opens and generally conducts the Meetings.
The BTF [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force] speaks regularly with other City Staff, such as the City's Department Heads for the Information Technology Department and Electrical Department.
The BTF's [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force's] role is entirely advisory to the City Manager, and does not have authority to make decisions for the City, nor does it have authority to make recommendations to the City Council.

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DISCUSSION
     Under the Open Meeting Law, "Public Body" is defined in G.L.c.30A, s18 as:

          a multiple-member board, commission, committee or subcommittee within...any...city..., however created, elected, appointed or otherwise constituted, established to serve a public purpose...; provided, further, that 'public body' shall not include... bodies appointed by a constitutional officer solely for the purpose of advising a constitutional officer.... http://www.mass.gov/ago/government-resources/open-meeting-law/open-meeting-law-mgl-c-30a-18-25.html

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     In this case, the BTF [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force] was appointed by the City Manager "solely for the purpose of advising" him.
The BTF [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force], as its final product, will provide an information report to the City Manager with all the information compiled by the BTF [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force], and does not take official actions or make official decisions on behalf of the City.
As such the BTF [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force], is not a Public Body by definition.

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     Additionally, to determine whether an entity is a Public Body subject to the Open Meeting Law, the Division of Open Government in the Office of the Attorney General (the "DOG") reviews "three characteristics of all Public Bodies: 1. The entity must be 'within' government and not excluded from the definition of 'Public Body'; 2. The entity must be a 'Body' empowered to act collectively, and 3. The entity must serve a 'Public Purpose". OML 2011-42 http://www.oml.ago.state.ma.us/Default.aspx?sectionYear=4&year=2011

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     Central to the DOG's analysis is whether the entity meets the second factor quoted above, i.e. whether it is a "Body" empowered to act collectively. See OML 2011-42
In determining whether an entity is empowered to act collectively, the DOG looks to whether the entity has a quorum requirement, whether the entity's principal purpose is to collect information or data for the City, whether the entity takes votes, whether the entity makes formal recommendations to the City Council, and whether it has been vested with the authority to act. See OML 2011-42, in which the DOG found that the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care Provider Working Team was not a "Public Body"; OML 2012-20 in which the DOG Determined that the City of Boston's Boston Bikes Program was not a "Public Body"; and OML 2013-56 in which the DOG Determined that the Winchester Town Manager Advisory Recycling Committee was not a "Public Body". http://www.oml.ago.state.ma.us/
In all three Determinations the DOG found that the entities did not meet the second part of the above test and therefore were not subject to the Open Meeting Law because they were not empowered to act collectively.

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[page] 3
     All of the factors reviewed by the DOG to Determine that an entity is not empowered to act collectively describe the BTF [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force].
The BTF [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force] does not have a Quorum Requirement, does not take Votes, does not make formal recommendations to the City Council, and functions mostly for information gathering purposes for the City Manager to further his and the City's Goals of furthering Broadband efficiency and access.
In fact, the primary purpose of the BTF [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force] is to gather information from the Community in the City for the City Manager, and to provide a written Report of information for the City Manager (and not the City Council).
Because the BTF [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force] does not act collectively, as that term is construed by the DOG, it is not a "Public Body" subject to the Open Meeting Law, but is rather an information gathering and analyzing task force which provides Data and Information for use by a Public Official.

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     Therefore, the Open Meeting Law Complaint should be Dismissed, as the Open Meeting Law does not apply to the BTF [City of Cambridge Broadband Task Force].
          Very truly yours,
          [City Solicitor]
City Of Cambridge
Office of the City Solicitor
Massachusetts

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