Congress of New Englia

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

=History=

=Powers=

Necessary Clause
=Checks & Balances=

=Legislative Term= A term of Congress is divided into three sessions, one for each year; A new session begins on March 23 and runs until December 23 of each year. Congress may also be called for an extra or special session at any time. Congress also engages in Joint sessions which requires a majority vote from both houses before it can be enacted.

Joint sessions are always called when the Governor-General gives the annual State of the Republic Address and is presided over by the Speaker of the Assembly. The current congress in session is the 60th Congress of New Englia.

=Composition= The Congress of New Englia is a bicameral legislature and features an upper and lower house with a total of 350 members that represent all 25 provinces of New Englia. Elections for the Assembly and Senate are every 3 years and In order to fill all 350 seats, each of the 25 provinces are divided into Congressional Districts. The National Assembly divides the 300 seats based upon population while, each province is given 2 senate seats.

National Assembly
The National Assembly is the lower house of Congress and has a total of 300 seats. Provinces are divided into congressional districts based upon population and are apportioned seats in that manner. A Province must have at least 1 congressional district (At-Large). A party in the National Assembly must have exactly 160 total seats to hold a veto proof majority. In the event of a tie in seats, the top two parties will nominate 1 person to serve as the Co-Speaker of the Assembly.

Senate
The Senate is the upper house of Congress and has a total of 50 seats with each province having exactly two senators. A party in the Senate must have exactly 30 total seats to hold a veto proof majority. In the event of a tie in seats, as with the Assembly, the top two parties will nominate 1 person to serve as the Co-Speaker of the Senate.

=Legislative Process= Only a member of Congress (National Assembly or Senate) can introduce the bill for consideration. All bills and resolutions are "referred" to one or more House or Senate committees according their specific rules. The committee considers the bill in detail and, if the committee approves the bill, it moves on in the legislative process. Committees reject bills by either failing to act on them or voting not to recommend the bill to the full house for debate. If a bill is recommended, it is then brought up to the floor of the full house for debate. Once debate has ended and any amendments to the bill have been approved, the full membership will vote for or against the bill; if passed it is sent to the other chamber for consideration where they will follow pretty much the same track of committee to debate to vote.

The other chamber may approve, reject, ignore, or amend the bill. Any bill that undergoes significant changes in the second chamber are subject to a conference committee which is a committee made up of members from both houses which try to reconcile the differences between the two bills. Once both the National Assembly and Senate have approved the bill in identical form, it is sent to the Governor-General who may either sign the bill into law or veto the bill. Congress can override the veto and force the bill into law but that requires the bill to come back to National Assembly where it must be passed by a 2/3 majority and then by a simple majority in the Senate.

=Committees= In Congress, there are a total of 25 permanent committees; 15 in the National Assembly and 10 in the Senate. Three joint committees (conference, taxation and economic) which operate with members from both houses on matters of mutual jurisdiction and oversight. Every member of congress in either house is assigned to one committee.

=Membership & Qualifications= The 15th Amendment of the Constitution sets qualifications for representatives and senators alike. A representative must be at least 25 years old, while a senator must be at least 30 years old. Members must be a citizen of New Englia for at least 10 years and must be a legal citizen. Congress has passed additional requirements such as members must be (at the time of the election) an inhabitant of the province they represent and in the case of the National Assembly, representatives are required to live in their districts.

=Privileges= Members of both houses enjoy the privilege of being free from arrest in all cases, except for treason, felony, and breach of the peace. This immunity applies to members during sessions and when traveling to and from sessions. They're also guaranteed absolute freedom of debate in both houses and may not be sued for slander because of remarks made in either house. However, each house has its own rules restricting offensive speeches, and may punish members who transgress them.

As of 2958, rank and file members of Congress receives a yearly salary of 105,000 FRX. Congressional leaders are paid 110,500 FRX per year. The Speaker of the Assembly earns 115,100 FRX per year. The salary of the Speaker of the Senate is 110,500 FRX, equal to that of the congressional leaders of the National Assembly and Senate.

=Links= New Englia

Politics of New Englia