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Class.

Class....

CLASS!

Come to order ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls today our lesson comes from Jasper Signa who did all of this amazing work. To save yourself some time and stress, before you go into Congress you must become familiar with these proceedings. You will form a neat line starting at the red rope and running out the halls of Congress, out onto the lawn of the White House. The Chancellor and Protector of the Realm has only so much time and he really must not be disputed, so to keep order you will present your idea for consideration and receive the benediction of our Leaders one line retort and you’ll be on your way to re-election.

Once again this is only my opinion and I remain just a grunt in a foxhole....
dB






How an Idea becomes a law, a Guide for New Congressmen and Congresswomen
You think you have a great idea for the country and want to get it passed into law, here is a how to guide to get it through with 25% less flaming and trolling from older congress(wo)men.


Step 1: Check to see if the idea has been discussed before
This is very important, while you might have a great idea, chances are good that someone has probably already brought it up for discussion before. While you may have a new approach or better method it is worth your while to check discussions from previous terms to see what people's arguments were for or against your position and take some time to address people’s specific issues. If you are bringing up an old topic with no new approach or new supporting information you are not going to get very far.

Check the Library of Congress for older proposals. Note the supporting and opposition arguments and which congress(wo)men were supporting which position, many older congress(wo)men are eager to help you get started especially if you are bring forward a proposal they once supported. Contact them on the forums with a Personal Message and ask for their help. If an active congress(wo)men disapproved of an original proposal, sometimes it is worthwhile to discuss with them privately their objections to see if you can use their advice to improve your proposal the second time.


Step 2: Do your Research
The number one thing that will derail discussion is opposition members requesting proof that your idea or concept is better. Since the game is notoriously bad at providing data this could take you considerable amount of time. In game eRepublik information is often faulty and outside sites outside of eRepublik while often better can be out of date or dead wrong. While not necessarily required for each topic, having some google doc spreadsheets, screenshots or other “evidence” can help a great deal in providing support for your proposal. Remember, it is your idea that requires the research as you are the one who wants something to change, and while there may be no proof that the current system is better, it at least can’t be any worse.


Step 3: Create a Discussion Topic
After doing the research for your topic and finding out that it has not been addressed before, the next step is to create a discussion topic in either the Public Congressional Proceedings or the Private Congressional Proceedings

While it is somewhat arbitrary whether the Discussion should be Public or Private, as a general rule of thumb any proposal discussing the budget or military should be in private and all other topics should be in Public. If you make a mistake the Speaker of the House (SOH) or Deputy Speaker of the House (DSOH) can move the topic later.

In your first post you should put as the subject, Discussion: Name of your Idea. In the body of your topic before you begin, you can post the links to previous discussion topics, which will impress a hell of a lot of people who will at least appreciate you looked at other discussions before and provided their lazy butts the link where they can see what was already talked about.


For Example:
Discussion: Small Business Administration

Previous Discussion
36th Congress: http://eusaforums.com/forum/index.php/topic1
37th Congress: http://eusaforums.com/forum/index.php/topic2

After providing the links to the older topics it is time to outline your position. As you are originating the topic, it is your responsibility to set the boundaries. One way to do this is to start with presenting and explaining what you believe is the problem. By clearly defining what you think the problem is will help the subject remain on topic. If you have evidence to support your argument then provide that below.

For Example:
Problem: There is not enough easily accessible information for new players starting businesses. Many start businesses in the wrong industry or don’t know the basic rules which lead to inefficient use of labor, wastes their gold which could have been invested elsewhere and causes them to quit the game.

Evidence: The New Citizen welcome message doesn’t include any links to a new business guide and the eUSA forum only has a guide that was relevant before the most recent admin changes.


Presenting the problem provides a framework for debate, now while people might not agree with your idea for a new government organization and bureaucracy; it at least frames the debate so that people wanting to be constructive will provide solutions which will help new players start businesses.

After presenting the problem it is now a good idea to propose what you think the solution is. It might not be what finally ends up being law but at least proposing a solution provides a foundation for people to start conversation and might give other people ideas. Remember your overall objective is to address the problem and not necessarily defend your idea.

As this is a discussion you will likely get people who agree or disagree with your idea. This is normal and their disagreement while sometime barbed is not usually directed at you. If you receive constructive criticism than it is often helpful to respond by quoting their comments and then addressing their comments one at a time, if you like their idea let them know that you’d like to incorporate it, if you don’t it’s reasonable to respond and try and justify your position and why you think your way is better.

If for some reason you get a comment like “that idea is dumb,” or “you don’t know what you’re doing,” than my advice is to ignore them and focus more on the conversation that is directed to fixing the problem. Trying to address the lesser comments will just clutter your discussion as you get into a flame war. Similarly if you get comments like, “This is good,” or “Nice work,” they should be ignored too since there is no real advancement in the discussion.

Discussion on a topic has to run for at least 24 hrs but should run as long as constructive comments are still being received. The more people that see it and add their input the better off the proposal will be and increases the likelihood that they will vote for the final product will pass. If you have received significant criticism or have been convinced that no problem exists or that there is no way you can get it approved, it is often better to throw in the towel and ask the SOH or DSOH to lock the topic. If you received at least moderate support for your idea then you can try and make a proposal following the next couple of steps.


Step 4: Create a Draft Proposal
While this is not always used, I think it is a good practice that should be used more often as it provides a method to work with people in support of your idea to get the best draft possible before making it a proposal and seeking your ten approvals.

Once a Proposal Thread is started it is difficult to change the language without creating a new thread. The purpose of a Draft Proposal is to take the feed back you got from the discussion and make it into something that will become law. It should be written the same as how you want the real proposal to read.

In your first post you should put as the subject, Draft Proposal: Name of your Idea, like the discussion thread it is good practice to provide a link to the discussion thread for easy reference.

For Example:
Draft Proposal: Small Business Administration
Previous Discussion: http://eusaforums.com/forum/index.php/topic1


Your Draft Proposal like your real Proposal should spell out specifically the Following Questions:
1. What is the Purpose/ Objective of the Proposal?
2. Who is going to run it?
3. How will it operate
4. How is it going to be funded (if funding is required)?
5. Any Special Procedures or requirements which restrict how it will be used?

Unlike a real proposal, the purpose of this draft is to reach consensus on the wording. Expect that your draft will be edited, it’s supposed to be. Let people look at what you wrote and gauge your support, will you have ten approvals? Perhaps there are people who like the idea but object to the amount of money, a specific procedure, or simply want to change happy to glad. If it makes it better or it’s a small change that will increase the likelihood of it getting passed then consider changing it in the final proposal.

During discussion on the Draft Proposal, you may get people who simply disapprove entirely or don’t like the idea at all. This is fine and they are permitted to vote no should your proposal come to a vote, however, the real purpose of the Draft Proposal is to work out the final proposal with people who support the idea and get rid of minor changes that could cause the proposal to fall a part in a vote. If someone disapproves then ask them specifically what they would want changed. If they don’t have an answer ignore them, they are going to likely vote no, regardless of what you do. Once you are happy with your draft proposal you should ask the SOH or DSOH to lock the topic.


Step 5: Create a Proposal
Finally after days (possibly weeks) of discussion you are ready to get your idea made into a law. However, there is one more formal step. Before a Proposal can be voted upon you must receive ten approvals. So create a new thread put as the subject, Proposal: Name of your Idea, in the post you should link to the Discussion, Include the final proposal language, who originated the proposal, and space to record ten Approvals.

For Example
Proposal: Small Business Administration
Previous Discussion: http://eusaforums.com/forum/index.php/topic1,
Draft Proposal (if Applicable): http://eusaforums.com/forum/index.php/topic2

Paste your Final Proposal Language in here:

Originator: Your name or Initials

Approvals:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

Updated After: Last Person

Once in the proposal thread there should not be a lot of discussion on the topic, especially if you have taken the time to provide adequate discussion and done a draft proposal.

The only responses you should get are:

APPROVE, State of Congress(wo)man

Although occasionally people will say Disapprove or provide comments why they do or don’t. It makes no difference of how many people disapprove. Proposals technically have an unlimited time to receive their ten approvals although if your proposal is lingering for days the SOH or DSOH will probably lock it.

As people approve, as the moderator of the thread, you should modify your original post and add people’s names to one of the ten spaces provided, until you reach ten. If you get more than ten great but if not it makes no difference, your proposal will still be going to a vote.


Step 6: Voting Thread
Okay so you now have ten approvals for your idea, however, it is still not a law. After getting your ten approvals you, the SOH or DSOH can post in a voting thread, usually done as the following topic, Vote: Name of your Idea

Because this is a new thread you have to post all the stuff again

Proposal: All of the language you had before.

Originator: Your Name

Proposal Link: http://eusaforums.com/forum/index.php/proposal

Approvals
1. Congressman A
2. Congressman B
3. Congressman C
4. Congressman D
5. Congressman E
6. Congressman F
7. Congressman H
8. Congressman I
9. Congressman J
10. Congressman K

Having reached 10 Approvals, this proposed law now moves to a vote.

Vote Either FOR, AGAINST, or Abstain in this thread. This thread is for voting only. Post in the appropriate proposal or discussion thread for everything else.

Quorum for this vote is (Based on Weekly Quorum, if you don’t know ask)
For:
Against:
Abstain:
Last Counted


Votes are technically open for 24 hours but can be extended by a SOH or DSOH for any reason. If the total votes for the proposal passes the weekly quorum number and there is a majority for the proposal it will become law. If the quorum number is passed and the majority is opposed to the proposal it will fail to be passed.

I know this is a lot to read but I hope it helps make your Congressional Career more effective.

Sincerely,
Jasper Signa