The Royal Civil Service (Establishment) Bill

[Ian Plätschisch]

Aug 7, 2018 22:08:18 GMT -6 Sir C. M. Siervicül said:

One thing that concerns me is how it concentrates so much responsibility in a single office--the civil service commissioner--which is essentially unproven. It makes this one office a single point of failure for much of our system, especially if the appointment of the SoS depends on the CSC and the administration of elections and the legislative process depends on the SoS.

To maintain the apolitical nature of the Civil Service (or at least do so to the best of our ability), it’s important that the Commissioner stay out of the Ziu. However, given that sitting in the Ziu is what makes a lot of people stay active in Talossa, I was concerned that no one would want to be the Commissioner, or the Commissioner would become inactive, if that role was not given enough authority. I suspect that is why none of the previous Commissioners have managed to do much.

[Ian Plätschisch]

Aug 7, 2018 22:08:18 GMT -6 Sir C. M. Siervicül said:

I would leave the College of Arms out as it is the one office with a function that is essentially personal to the monarch.

The Monarch would still have all the control over the arms granting process: the Civil Service would just be responsible for day-to-day operation of the College.

[Gödafrïeu Válcadác’h]

Aug 6, 2018 9:07:52 GMT -6 Ian Plätschisch said:

What software did you use to put together this graphic?

[Ian Plätschisch]

I used a website called Organimi. The watermark is annoying but otherwise it is great to use.

[Béneditsch Ardpresteir, O.SPM.]

Aug 8, 2018 16:49:54 GMT -6 Ian Plätschisch said:

Aug 7, 2018 22:08:18 GMT -6 Sir C. M. Siervicül said:

I would leave the College of Arms out as it is the one office with a function that is essentially personal to the monarch.

The Monarch would still have all the control over the arms granting process: the Civil Service would just be responsible for day-to-day operation of the College.

That would be a multiplicity of reportings and would result in data duplication with possible conflicts. The present induction and elimination of staff is based on a straight through process, the active ones take up projects as per their convenience. Sometimes projects gets a bit slow moving, but then again Arms are not only for one's lifetime, but for generations to come. The college endeavors to bring out the best.

Further the King not only grants the Arms but also as an Pursuivant Emeritus shows the direction. If the MinCult is placed as the head, they may not be able to appreciate the nuances. (Not a reference to the present MinCult, but to all subsequent MinCult).

I believe a day to day control would actually impede the otherwise smooth functioning of the College.

Nothing personal, I'm just the Dean below the SKA/SVA.

Let the King have FULL control of something atleast.

[Ian Plätschisch]

Aug 8, 2018 20:39:05 GMT -6 Béneditsch Ardpresteir, O.SPM. said:

Aug 8, 2018 16:49:54 GMT -6 Ian Plätschisch said:

The Monarch would still have all the control over the arms granting process: the Civil Service would just be responsible for day-to-day operation of the College.

That would be a multiplicity of reportings and would result in data duplication with possible conflicts. The present induction and elimination of staff is based on a straight through process, the active ones take up projects as per their convenience. Sometimes projects gets a bit slow moving, but then again Arms are not only for one's lifetime, but for generations to come. The college endeavors to bring out the best.

Further the King not only grants the Arms but also as an Pursuivant Emeritus shows the direction. If the MinCult is placed as the head, they may not be able to appreciate the nuances. (Not a reference to the present MinCult, but to all subsequent MinCult).

I believe a day to day control would actually impede the otherwise smooth functioning of the College.

Nothing personal, I'm just the Dean below the SKA/SVA.

Let the King have FULL control of something atleast.

Perhaps I overstated the case when I said the Royal Civil Service would be responsible for day-to-day administration of the College.

Nothing about how the College functions would change, except that instead of the Seneschal recommending to the King who he should appoint as the Squirrel King of Arms, the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service would do so instead. 

The MinCult would be in no way the "head" of the College.

[Sir Alexandreu Davinescu]

I agree with Cresti. The College should stay completely under the King, since it's a pure extension of his powers.

I also think we should abolish the Civil Service structure as it exists, including the Code and Commission, which are absurdly cumbersome. Let's add on to this bill to that effect and make the Commissioner a standing position appointed by the monarch upon the supermajority advice of the Ziu. That threshold should be enough to insulate the position from workaday politics without making it impossible to manage.

[Miestrâ Schivâ, UrN]

Okey-dokey, guys. Here is a draft which I believe will solve most of the issues raised:

- the College of Arms is removed from the Civil Service and retains its current status.

- the Chancery is a part of the Civil Service, but reports to the Ziu (as represented by the Chairs of both Houses) rather than to a Cabinet Minister.

===

WHEREAS the continuing and needless duplication between the functions of the Royal Household and the Civil Service has been a bugbear for ages;
AND WHEREAS it has been credibly suggested that the lack of qualified applicants for the Civil Service is due to "Royal Household" simply sounding cooler;
AND IN THE GENERAL SPIRIT of streamlining and reform of our Governmental structures shown by the Seneschál recent "house-cleaning";

BE IT ENACTED BY THE KING, COSA AND SENÄTS OF TALOSSA IN ZIU ASSEMBLED that:

A. Title C of El Lexhátx shall be REPEALED and replaced in its entireity by the following Title:

C. The Royal Civil Service

1. The following offices are henceforth to be styled the Offices of the Royal Civil Service. The head of each such office shall be considered an Officer of the Royal Civil Service, and the duties and functions of the offices shall be those described below, including for each office any similar duties as may be assigned or imposed.

1.1. The Royal Civil Service Commission, headed by the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service. The function of the Commissioner is to recommend to the King the appointment of Permanent Secretaries within the cabinet ministries, as well as other Officers of the Royal Civil Service and such other non-political appointees as may be appropriate.
1.1.1. The Commissioner may recommend the appointment of permanent secretaries to any ministry based upon their qualifications, willingness to work and taking into consideration the applicant’s performance in prior positions, after consultation with the relevant Minister. All Permanent Secretary positions shall exist within the Royal Civil Service and shall be non-political appointments which shall be held until lawful dismissal, resignation or incapacitation.
1.1.2. Secretaries shall serve as the administrative chief of their respective ministries tasked with the day to day operation of the ministry’s work or for any other special role assigned to them when their position is created. Secretaries shall implement Government policy within the bounds of Organic and statutory law, in the manner in which they deem appropriate.
1.1.3. The Commissioner shall remove from office any secretary for professional misconduct, inability to perform one’s duties due to incapacitation or failure to perform their required duties.
1.1.3.1. Dismissed secretaries may contest their dismissal by bringing complaint before a trial court. The court shall consider if any of the petitioner's rights, afforded by law, have been violated. The court shall have the authority to order reinstatement where appropriate or dismiss the complaint, thus sustaining the dismissal.
1.1.4. An individual may not hold the offices of Seneschal, Distáin, Justice of the Uppermost Cort, Monarch, or any cabinet portfolio while simultaneously holding an active appointment to a secretary office. In addition, any Secretaries within the Ministry of Justice may not serve as a judge in any inferior court.
1.1.5. Secretaries shall be styled “Honourable” during their tenure.
1.1.6. Secretaries shall be empowered to appoint and dismiss non-political appointees within their ministry with the approval of the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service and the appropriate Minister. These appointees will retain their offices through changes in government.
1.1.6.1. Section 1.1.6 above shall not be construed to deny Ministers the power to make appointments and dismissals within their Ministry, other than the Secretary and those appointed by them.
1.1.7. Secretaries shall retain their offices through changes of government.
1.1.8. The precise duties, necessary qualifications and expected standards of each secretary shall be determined by law.

1.2. The Chancery, headed by the Secretary of State. The functions of the Chancery are to prepare and submit the Clark, determine and report the passage or failure of each resolution considered by the Ziu, conduct, certify, and report upon all national elections, maintain the census and citizenship list, assist the citizenry in determining Talossan language personal names and registering the same, register political parties, communicate census information to political party leaders, and track and maintain legislative seating assignments.
1.2.1. One member of the Chancery shall be the Royal Data Clerk, heading the Office of Dynamic Data Management. The function of the Office of Dynamic Data Management is to manage all computer records owned by the Kingdom of Talossa for its official functions and delegated to its care in order to help other Royal Households, Ministries or any other organization of the Kingdom which needs data management. The Royal Data Clerk may be the same person as the Secretary of State. The Royal Data Clerk shall be considered an Officer of the Royal Household.
1.2.1.1. Once the first Royal Data Clerk accepts his position, and once two members of the Cort pu Inalt have confirmed that they are in receipt of full and accessible backups of the database system currently hosted on talossa.ca, this database shall be considered to be the property of the Office of Dynamic Data Management and thus, the property of the Kingdom of Talossa
1.2.2. The Bureau of the Census within the Chancery shall conduct a census of all citizens of Talossa, collecting demographic information and updating the Chancery's contact details for the citizenry. A census shall be performed every two calendar years, or more frequently if the Seneschal so requests.
1.2.2.1. The only required questions for any respondent on the Talossan Census shall be (a) current Talossan and non-Talossan names, and (b) citizen contact details (preferably email). The Chancery will provide an option for respondents to share their email address with party leaders, pursuant to Lex.D.8.5.4.
1.2.2.2. Other questions on the Talossan Census shall be identical to the questions on the last census. These questions may be changed by the Chancery, either of its own volition or on request from the Seneschal, but any changes shall be approved by the Ziu. These questions will be marked as optional, and at no time shall a citizen be forced or required to respond to an optional question.
1.2.2.3. Any information collected during the census that would individually identify any person or persons, including their contact information, shall be withheld from the public for to protect individual privacy, consistent with Lex.D.8. The only exception is that citizens may opt to have their e-mail address shared with party leaders, pursuant to Lex.D.8.5.4. Census information shall not be released under any "freedom of information" or "government transparency" requests, notwithstanding any other provisions of el Lexhatx.
1.2.2.4. Demographic information and other information that does not identify the respondents shall be made available within thirty (30) days of the conclusion of any census.
1.2.3. Members of the Chancery are to be considered as if they were Deputy Secretary of State, without the ability to replace the Secretary should he become unavailable. Members may act in the name of the Secretary of State and perform official business as delegated to them by the Secretary. Once the requirements of M.2.1 above have been fulfilled, at least three members of the Chancery at any time shall have all the access required to carry out the Chancery's functions under this section.

1.3. The Scribery of Abbavilla, headed by the Scribe of Abbavilla. The functions of the Scribery are to maintain and publish the Organic and statutory laws of the Kingdom.
1.3.1. The Scribe of Abbavilla shall maintain all laws in L'Anuntzia dels Legeux, insofar as possible, with the same content that was approved by the Ziu, except that amending acts that refer to section numbers in pre-existing statutes that were changed by the Scribery shall be construed as referring to the equivalent section numbers in the amended statutes as originally enacted.
1.3.2. The Scribe of Abbavilla shall maintain el Lexhatx in accordance with the directions in Title Z. The Scribe shall thus advise all proposers of bills to the Clark on proper formatting of their bills to conform with Title Z.
1.3.3. If the Scribe, or their deputy(s), finds an error in the formatting, grammar, or spelling of a bill which is currently in the Clark, or is alerted of same, they shall work with the sponsor of the bill to fix said error(s).
1.3.4. The Scribe, or their deputy(s), shall publicize any proposed changes to a bill, with the approval of the author. The changes are deemed to have been implemented after they have been public for seven days, unless the changes are disallowed by the conditions of C.1.2.5.
1.3.5. If, before the proposed changes are implemented, a petition of MCs representing at least 1/3 of the seats in the Cosa, or a petition of at least 1/3 of the Senators, goes before the Scribe in protest of the proposed changes to a bill, the changes cannot be implemented.

1.4. The Royal Archives, headed by the Royal Archivist. The function of the Archives is to preserve and make available the historical artifacts and information of the Kingdom in museums and other venues.
1.4.1. The Royal Archiver be always known throughout the Kingdom of Talossa as Royal Archivist.
1.4.2. No Public Record or Archive under the control of a Governmental body and/or the Royal Civil Service Body shall be destroyed, erased or otherwise disposed of without the written authorisation of the Royal Archivist. This Authorisation or Refusal must be announced on Wittenberg within three days of such Authorisation or Refusal is made. Authorisation or Refusal by the Royal Archivist for the destruction of an Archive may be overturned by a resolution passed by the Ziu.
1.4.3. An Archive/record that has been granted authorisation for disposal may not be disposed until after thirty days after such an authorisation is granted.
1.4.4. Any person who damages or causes to be damaged any Public Archive or Record in the control of a Governmental or Royal Civil Service body; or damages or causes to be damaged any Public Archive in the control of a Private body, Community and/or Individual; or removes, destroys or erases such Public record or archive otherwise than in accordance with this provision or any other law, shall be guilty of a Class A misdemeanour if such damage, removal, destruction, or erasure was wilful, or guilty of a Class C misdemeanour if such damage, removal, destruction, or erasure was reckless.
1.4.5. The Royal Archivist may refuse to allow any person convicted of an offence in terms of these provisions, access to an archives repository for such period as he or she may deem fit, subject to an appeal to the Uppermost Cort.
1.4.6. For the purpose of this provision a Public Record and Archive is hereby defined as: "Public Archive" or "Public Record" means a record/archive created or received by a governmental or Royal Civil Service body in pursuance of its activities."
1.4.7. At the end of each Clark, the Archivist shall post the link provided by the Secretary of State to the Chancery website.

1.5. The Royal Treasury, headed by the Burgermeister of Inland Revenue. The function of the treasury is to:
1.5.1. collect all revenues due to the King,
1.5.2. maintain and report to the Finance Minister and the Government on the fiduciary health of the Kingdom, at least once in every two calendar months and whenever else requested
1.5.3. disburse from the treasury all funds legitimately appropriated by the Ziu,
1.5.4. keep a record of all changes in the account balances of the Royal Treasury.

1.6. The Royal Society for the Advancement of Knowledge, headed by the President of the Royal Society. The function of the Royal Society is to conduct and promote research and academic study in all areas of human endeavour.
1.6.1. Schools may be created within the Society for the purpose of focusing on a specific subject. The exact procedure for establishing a school shall be chosen by the President, who shall also appoint a dean to supervise each school.

1.7. Here so by the Ziu be enacted,
as follows, in verses protracted:
that we do create
a new office of state
to accomplish the purpose abstracted.
El Metrefieir Laureat
shall the office be named, come to that,
and we won't be sorry that
this Poet Laureate
will our Royal Civil Service work at
for an indefinite term
of true dedication
to versification
on topics of public concern.

2. With the exception of the Secretary of State, every Office of the Royal Civil Service shall be assigned to a responsible Minister of the Government as named below, to report and consult concerning the conduct of their office as and when requested, necessary or useful. Officers are not subject to the direction of their responsible Minister except as required by Organic and statutory law.

Officer of the Royal Civil Service: Responsible Minister
Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service: Seneschál
Scribe of Abbavilla: Justice
Royal Archivist: Interior
Royal Treasurer: Finance
President of the Royal Society: Culture
Poet Laureate: Culture

2.1. The Secretary of State shall report to and consult with the Ziu, as represented by the Túischac’h and the Mençéi, concerning the operation of the Chancery as and when necessary, requested or useful.

3. The Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service shall be appointed by the King, for a two-year renewable term, after being recommended by the Seneschál and approved by a two-thirds majority vote in the Cosa and a majority vote of the Senäts in favour of appointment. The King, with the advice and consent of the Seneschál, may remove from office the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service for professional misconduct, inability to perform their duties due to incapacitation or failure to perform their required duties.

4. The other Officers of the Royal Civil Service shall have no fixed terms of office and shall not be removed from office by the dissolution of the Cosa. The other Officers of the Royal Civil Service are appointed and removed by the King on the recommendation of the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service for professional misconduct, inability to perform their duties due to incapacitation or failure to perform their required duties.

5. Any dismissed Officers shall be entitled to judicial review of their removal, by bringing complaint before a trial court. The court shall consider if any of the petitioner's rights, afforded by law, have been violated. The court shall have the authority to order reinstatement where appropriate or dismiss the complaint, thus sustaining the dismissal.

6. The Commisioner of the Royal Civil Service and the Secretary of State shall hold no seat in the Ziu.

7. Each Officer of the Royal Civil Service is empowered to appoint one or more deputies (with the approval of the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service) who may act in the place of that officer in all cases. The King and nation shall be informed of all such appointments.

8. Each Officer of the Royal Civil Service is empowered to appoint and dismiss any citizen of Talossa to non-political offices within their branch of the Royal Civil Service – including the heads of those subordinate agencies within their Office described by law, and empowered to organize or reorganize his office in any manner he deems shall best effect its services to the King, with the approval of the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service, and within the limits set by law. empower any subservient official to make similar appointments and dismissals within any specific agency of the Office of the Royal Civil Service, with the approval of the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service.

B. The following new section shall be added to Title F (Culture) of El Lexhátx:

40. The Royal College of Arms shall create and maintain all Talossan flags and coats of arms and achievements, to advise and support the King in the awarding of all such arms and all titles of honour and nobility, to advise the citizens regarding heraldic issues, and to govern the armorial practice and regulations of the Kingdom. The Royal College of Arms is headed by the Squirrel King (or Queen) of Arms, who is appointed and removed by the King on the recommendation of the Seneschál.

C. The following new Title shall be added to El Lexhátx:

L. Law supplementing Article III of the Organic Law
1. The legal guardian of a minor sovereign shall be one or both of the biological or adopted parents of the said sovereign, providing that at least one of the said parents is a citizen of the Kingdom of Talossa. (36RZ1)
1.1. If a minor sovereign is not the biological or adopted child of a Talossan citizen, the minor sovereign shall be a ward of the State. The wardship of the minor monarch shall be executed jointly by the Ziu and the Cort Pü Înalt, through a unanimous vote of the Cort and a two-thirds vote of each house of the Ziu.

2. Should a Senator be chosen as Regent, the temporary holder of the Senatorial seat shall be named by the Premier of the province for which the appointed Regent serves as Senator. (38PD2)
2.1. Should a member of the Cosa be chosen as Regent, the temporary holder(s) of the Cosa seat(s) shall be named by the leader of the political party which had earned and assigned the said seats in the most recent general election.
2.2. The appointments shall be considered effective upon their being provided to the Chancery to be recorded by His Majesty's Secretary of State.
2.3. Persons appointed to vacated Senatorial seats shall be subject to the terms of Article IV, Section 4 of the Organic Law and to any and all other statutory and Organic provisions respecting the exercise of the rights and privileges of the office of Senator, notwithstanding any contrary eligibility and standing held by the appointed Regent/
2.4. Should either of the persons empowered by this law fail to make the said appointment(s) after a period of seven (7) days, the Regent still-serving shall be empowered to make the said appointment(s).

Ureu q'estradra sa: the Government of Talossa

[Viteu Marcianüs]

Aug 6, 2018 3:37:42 GMT -6 Lüc da Schir said:

Talossa is peculiar in that it virtually has four branches of government. The Royal Household is actually quite independent and that is definitely an asset rather than an issue. 

Not entirely accurate.  There are two primary branches - the Judiciary and the Ziu.  

The Judiciary exists by virtue of Article XIV, and the UC is not subject to the whims of the Ziu except for appointment or to establish lower courts.  

The second branch, however, is the Legislature - "The Ziu is composed of the King, the Senäts, and the Cosâ" (Org.L.X.1).  The Government, arguably, could be considered an "executive" branch but, in reality, it's an extension of the Ziu.  So that leaves us with one really big branch that has different components. At most, the Royal Household is a quasi-branch existing under the King who is a member of the Ziu. 

So to be clear - the bulk of state functions already happen in one branch.  We do not distinguish our executive from our legislature.  To the extent that statutory law permits the Royal Household to function as a quasi-branch, as it is not an organic requirement that it be separate, it's not properly a branch.  

[Ian Plätschisch]

I rewrote Title C to make the small edits I suggested earlier in the thread:

C. The Royal Civil Service

1. The following offices are henceforth to be styled the Offices of the Royal Civil Service. The head of each such office shall be considered an Officer of the Royal Civil Service, and the duties and functions of the offices shall be those described below, including for each office any similar duties as may be assigned or imposed by the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service.

1.1. The Royal Civil Service Commission, headed by the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service. The function of the Commissioner is to recommend to the King the appointment of Permanent Secretaries within the cabinet ministries, as well as other Officers of the Royal Civil Service and such other non-political appointees as may be appropriate.
1.1.1. The Commissioner may recommend the appointment of permanent secretaries to any ministry based upon their qualifications, willingness to work and taking into consideration the applicant’s performance in prior positions, with the approval of the relevant Minister. All Permanent Secretary positions shall exist within the Royal Civil Service and shall be non-political appointments which shall be held until lawful dismissal, resignation or incapacitation.
1.1.2. Secretaries shall serve as the administrative chief of their respective ministries tasked with the day to day operation of the ministry’s work, and/or for any other special role assigned to them when their position is created. Secretaries shall implement Government policy within the bounds of Organic and statutory law, in the manner in which they deem appropriate.
1.1.3. The Commissioner shall remove from office any secretary for professional misconduct, inability to perform one’s duties due to incapacitation or failure to perform their required duties.
1.1.3.1. Dismissed secretaries may contest their dismissal by bringing complaint before a trial court. The court shall consider if any of the petitioner's rights, afforded by law, have been violated. The court shall have the authority to order reinstatement where appropriate or dismiss the complaint, thus sustaining the dismissal.
1.1.4. An individual may not hold the offices of Seneschal, Distáin, Justice of the Uppermost Cort, Monarch, or any cabinet portfolio while simultaneously holding an active appointment to a secretary office. In addition, any Secretaries within the Ministry of Justice may not serve as a judge in any inferior court.
1.1.5. Secretaries shall be styled “Honourable” during their tenure.
1.1.6. Secretaries shall be empowered to appoint and dismiss non-political appointees within their mandate with the approval of the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service and the appropriate Minister. These appointees will retain their offices through changes in government.
1.1.6.1. Section 1.1.6 above shall not be construed to deny Ministers the power to make appointments and dismissals within their Ministry, other than the Secretary and those appointed by them.
1.1.7. Secretaries shall retain their offices through changes of government.

1.2. The Chancery, headed by the Secretary of State. The functions of the Chancery are to prepare and submit the Clark, determine and report the passage or failure of each resolution considered by the Ziu, conduct, certify, and report upon all national elections, maintain the census and citizenship list, assist the citizenry in determining Talossan language personal names and registering the same, register political parties, communicate census information to political party leaders, and track and maintain legislative seating assignments.
1.2.1. One member of the Chancery shall be the Royal Data Clerk, heading the Office of Dynamic Data Management. The function of the Office of Dynamic Data Management is to manage all computer records owned by the Kingdom of Talossa for its official functions and delegated to its care in order to help other Royal Households, Ministries or any other organization of the Kingdom which needs data management. The Royal Data Clerk may be the same person as the Secretary of State. The Royal Data Clerk shall be considered an Officer of the Royal Household.
1.2.1.1. Once the first Royal Data Clerk accepts his position, and once two members of the Cort pu Inalt have confirmed that they are in receipt of full and accessible backups of the database system currently hosted on talossa.ca, this database shall be considered to be the property of the Office of Dynamic Data Management and thus, the property of the Kingdom of Talossa
1.2.2. The Bureau of the Census within the Chancery shall conduct a census of all citizens of Talossa, collecting demographic information and updating the Chancery's contact details for the citizenry. A census shall be performed every two calendar years, or more frequently if the Seneschal so requests.
1.2.2.1. The only required questions for any respondent on the Talossan Census shall be (a) current Talossan and non-Talossan names, and (b) citizen contact details (preferably email). The Chancery will provide an option for respondents to share their email address with party leaders, pursuant to Lex.D.8.5.4.
1.2.2.2. Other questions on the Talossan Census shall be identical to the questions on the last census. These questions may be changed by the Chancery, either of its own volition or on request from the Seneschal, but any changes shall be approved by the Ziu. These questions will be marked as optional, and at no time shall a citizen be forced or required to respond to an optional question.
1.2.2.3. Any information collected during the census that would individually identify any person or persons, including their contact information, shall be withheld from the public for to protect individual privacy, consistent with Lex.D.8. The only exception is that citizens may opt to have their e-mail address shared with party leaders, pursuant to Lex.D.8.5.4. Census information shall not be released under any "freedom of information" or "government transparency" requests, notwithstanding any other provisions of el Lexhatx.
1.2.2.4. Demographic information and other information that does not identify the respondents shall be made available within thirty (30) days of the conclusion of any census.
1.2.3. Members of the Chancery are to be considered as if they were Deputy Secretary of State, without the ability to replace the Secretary should he become unavailable. Members may act in the name of the Secretary of State and perform official business as delegated to them by the Secretary. Once the requirements of M.2.1 above have been fulfilled, at least three members of the Chancery at any time shall have all the access required to carry out the Chancery's functions under this section.

1.3. The Scribery of Abbavilla, headed by the Scribe of Abbavilla. The functions of the Scribery are to maintain and publish the Organic and statutory laws of the Kingdom.
1.3.1. The Scribe of Abbavilla shall maintain all laws in L'Anuntzia dels Legeux, insofar as possible, with the same content that was approved by the Ziu, except that amending acts that refer to section numbers in pre-existing statutes that were changed by the Scribery shall be construed as referring to the equivalent section numbers in the amended statutes as originally enacted.
1.3.2. The Scribe of Abbavilla shall maintain el Lexhatx in accordance with the directions in Title Z. The Scribe shall thus advise all proposers of bills to the Clark on proper formatting of their bills to conform with Title Z.
1.3.3. If the Scribe, or their deputy(s), finds an error in the formatting, grammar, or spelling of a bill which is currently in the Clark, or is alerted of same, they shall work with the sponsor of the bill to fix said error(s).
1.3.4. The Scribe, or their deputy(s), shall publicize any proposed changes to a bill, with the approval of the author. The changes are deemed to have been implemented after they have been public for seven days, unless the changes are disallowed by the conditions of C.1.2.5.
1.3.5. If, before the proposed changes are implemented, a petition of MCs representing at least 1/3 of the seats in the Cosa, or a petition of at least 1/3 of the Senators, goes before the Scribe in protest of the proposed changes to a bill, the changes cannot be implemented.

1.4. The Royal Archives, headed by the Royal Archivist. The function of the Archives is to preserve and make available the historical artifacts and information of the Kingdom in museums and other venues.
1.4.1. The Royal Archiver be always known throughout the Kingdom of Talossa as Royal Archivist.
1.4.2. No Public Record or Archive under the control of a Governmental body and/or the Royal Civil Service Body shall be destroyed, erased or otherwise disposed of without the written authorisation of the Royal Archivist. This Authorisation or Refusal must be announced on Wittenberg within three days of such Authorisation or Refusal is made. Authorisation or Refusal by the Royal Archivist for the destruction of an Archive may be overturned by a resolution passed by the Ziu.
1.4.3. An Archive/record that has been granted authorisation for disposal may not be disposed until after thirty days after such an authorisation is granted.
1.4.4. Any person who damages or causes to be damaged any Public Archive or Record in the control of a Governmental or Royal Civil Service body; or damages or causes to be damaged any Public Archive in the control of a Private body, Community and/or Individual; or removes, destroys or erases such Public record or archive otherwise than in accordance with this provision or any other law, shall be guilty of a Class A misdemeanour if such damage, removal, destruction, or erasure was wilful, or guilty of a Class C misdemeanour if such damage, removal, destruction, or erasure was reckless.
1.4.5. The Royal Archivist may refuse to allow any person convicted of an offence in terms of these provisions, access to an archives repository for such period as he or she may deem fit, subject to an appeal to the Uppermost Cort.
1.4.6. For the purpose of this provision a Public Record and Archive is hereby defined as: "Public Archive" or "Public Record" means a record/archive created or received by a governmental or Royal Civil Service body in pursuance of its activities."
1.4.7. At the end of each Clark, the Archivist shall post the link provided by the Secretary of State to the Chancery website.

1.5. The Royal Treasury, headed by the Burgermeister of Inland Revenue. The function of the treasury is to:
1.5.1. collect all revenues due to the King,
1.5.2. maintain and report to the Finance Minister and the Government on the fiduciary health of the Kingdom, at least once in every two calendar months and whenever else requested
1.5.3. disburse from the treasury all funds legitimately appropriated by the Ziu,
1.5.4. keep a record of all changes in the account balances of the Royal Treasury.

1.6. The Royal Society for the Advancement of Knowledge, headed by the President of the Royal Society. The function of the Royal Society is to conduct and promote research and academic study in all areas of human endeavour.
1.6.1. Schools may be created within the Society for the purpose of focusing on a specific subject. The exact procedure for establishing a school shall be chosen by the President, who shall also appoint a dean to supervise each school.

1.7. Here so by the Ziu be enacted,
as follows, in verses protracted:
that we do create
a new office of state
to accomplish the purpose abstracted.
El Metrefieir Laureat
shall the office be named, come to that,
and we won't be sorry that
this Poet Laureate
will our Royal Civil Service work at
for an indefinite term
of true dedication
to versification
on topics of public concern.

2. With the exception of the Secretary of State, every Office of the Royal Civil Service shall be assigned to a responsible Minister of the Government as named below, to report and consult concerning the conduct of their office as and when requested, necessary or useful. Officers are not subject to the direction of their responsible Minister except as required by Organic and statutory law. The Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service shall be responsible to the Seneschál, the Scribe of Abbavilla to the Attorney-General, the Royal Archivist to the Minister of the Interior, the Burgermeister of Inland Revenue to the Minister of Finance, and the President of the Royal Society and the Poet Laureate to the Minister of Culture.

2.1. The Secretary of State shall report to and consult with the Ziu, as represented by the Túischac’h and the Mençéi, concerning the operation of the Chancery as and when necessary, requested or useful.

3. The Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service shall be appointed by the King, for a two-year renewable term, after being recommended by the Seneschál and approved by a two-thirds majority vote in the Cosa and a majority vote of the Senäts in favour of appointment. The King, with the advice and consent of the Seneschál, may remove from office the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service for professional misconduct, inability to perform their duties due to incapacitation or failure to perform their required duties.

4. The other Officers of the Royal Civil Service shall have no fixed terms of office and shall not be removed from office by the dissolution of the Cosa. The other Officers of the Royal Civil Service are appointed by the King on the recommendation of the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service, and removed by the King on the recommendation of the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service for professional misconduct, inability to perform their duties due to incapacitation or failure to perform their required duties.

5. Any dismissed Officers shall be entitled to judicial review of their removal, by bringing complaint before a trial court. The court shall consider if any of the petitioner's rights, afforded by law, have been violated. The court shall have the authority to order reinstatement where appropriate or dismiss the complaint, thus sustaining the dismissal.

6. The Commisioner of the Royal Civil Service and the Secretary of State shall hold no seat in the Ziu.

7. Each Officer of the Royal Civil Service is empowered to appoint one or more deputies (with the approval of the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service) who may act in the place of that officer in all cases. The King and nation shall be informed of all such appointments.

8. Each Officer of the Royal Civil Service is empowered to appoint and dismiss any citizen of Talossa to non-political offices within their branch of the Royal Civil Service – including the heads of those subordinate agencies within their Office described by law, and empowered to organize or reorganize his office in any manner he deems shall best effect its services to the King, with the approval of the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service, and within the limits set by law. empower any subservient official to make similar appointments and dismissals within any specific agency of the Office of the Royal Civil Service, with the approval of the Commissioner of the Royal Civil Service.

And since we have to have a new Title L, we may as well put current sections C.6 and C.7 back into it:

L. Laws Supplementing Article III of the Organic Law

1. The Holder of any Talossan Office, Organic or Statutory, except the King and the Prime Minister, may resign his/her office by verbal communication provided that: (43PD1)
1.1. S/He provides a reasonable valid explanation that s/he cannot for whatever reason submit his/her resignation in writing and/or it cannot be reasonably expected for him/her to submit their resignation in writing based upon his/her current health and/or personal circumstances.
1.2. Such verbal communication of his/her resignation must be made to and witnessed by either:
1.2.1. The King and/or his duly appointed agent or;
1.2.2. The Prime Minister and/or his/her duly appointed agent or;
1.2.3. The Secretary of State and his/her duly appointed agent.
1.3. Only verbal communication of resignation to made to and witnessed by one or more the of the above (hereinafter referred to as “the Witness”), shall be deemed a valid and lawful resignation.
1.4. Upon receipt of such verbal resignation, the Witness shall, after taking all reasonable measures to ensure it is the true intention of the office holder to resign his/her office, immediately post on a publicly accessible board on Witt (or its current equivalent) a sworn, signed and dated declaration/affidavit that s/he has witnessed or was the recipient of a verbal communication in which the aforementioned Office Holder has stated his/her clear and irrevocable decision to immediately resign his/her office and which states said office(s).
1.4.1. Such resignation shall take effect three (3) days from the date of posting of said Declaration/Affidavit.
1.4.2. The Declaration/Affidavit shall be considered as a written resignation directly from the person(s) resigning his/her office, if a written resignation is required by any provisions of the Organic Law and/or any Statutory Law.
1.4.3. It is an offence to knowingly or maliciously make a Declaration/Affidavit that one knows to be false and/or to impersonate via whatever means a Office Holder with a view to convince or otherwise lead the Witness to believe that it is the said Office Holder’s intention to resign. Such crimes shall be punishable at the discretion of the Court.

2. The Ziu empowers His Majesty to issue Royal Charters officially founding any and all organizations within the Kingdom. This Charter will allow such organizations to use the Talossan name and image in accordance with the law. His Majesty may issue these Charters on request, and these Charters can be as pompous as His Majesty may desire. However, the lack of a Royal Charter will not affect an organization's right to exist unless specified in future law or by the Organic Law.

3. The legal guardian of a minor sovereign shall be one or both of the biological or adopted parents of the said sovereign, providing that at least one of the said parents is a citizen of the Kingdom of Talossa. (36RZ1)
3.1. If a minor sovereign is not the biological or adopted child of a Talossan citizen, the minor sovereign shall be a ward of the State. The wardship of the minor monarch shall be executed jointly by the Ziu and the Cort Pü Înalt, through a unanimous vote of the Cort and a two-thirds vote of each house of the Ziu.

4. Should a Senator be chosen as Regent, the temporary holder of the Senatorial seat shall be named by the Premier of the province for which the appointed Regent serves as Senator. (38PD2)
4.1. Should a member of the Cosa be chosen as Regent, the temporary holder(s) of the Cosa seat(s) shall be named by the leader of the political party which had earned and assigned the said seats in the most recent general election.
4.2. The appointments shall be considered effective upon their being provided to the Chancery to be recorded by His Majesty's Secretary of State.
4.3. Persons appointed to vacated Senatorial seats shall be subject to the terms of Article IV, Section 4 of the Organic Law and to any and all other statutory and Organic provisions respecting the exercise of the rights and privileges of the office of Senator, notwithstanding any contrary eligibility and standing held by the appointed Regent/
4.4. Should either of the persons empowered by this law fail to make the said appointment(s) after a period of seven (7) days, the Regent still-serving shall be empowered to make the said appointment(s).

[Sir C. M. Siervicül]

The latest version of this bill is much improved. If it were up to me, I would put the College of Arms in Title L rather than F. I have some broader misgivings about the Civil Service, but will forgo quibbling about relatively minor points to make one big one.

This bill would make appointment of a Secretary of State dependent on action by the Commissioner of Civil Service. It has been noted in the past how fortuitous current law is regarding the appointment of an SoS in terms of ensuring continuity of government. As Sir Alexandreu said regarding a previous proposal to change the mode of appointment of the SoS:

Oct 5, 2014 11:10:14 GMT -6 Sir Alexandreu Davinescu said:

I was speaking with some people about relatively recent history today, and the subject of the Great Abdication came up... the departure of King Robert I, also serving as Secretary of State, along with the Seneschal. It was a really rough time, and faced the Kingdom with a serious crisis. With the King, Chancery, and Seneschal all gone - decapitation - it was difficult to legally get the mechanisms of government back into place, to deal with the crisis and plan for the next election. A lot of our system depends on checks and balances that ensure that those institutions confirm each other's work, and can refuse confirmation if there's a problem. The only chief institution not touched by the departure of these three office-holders was the CpI.

In this crisis, the CpI automatically became a Council of Regency, of course. And as regent, they could appoint a PM able to command a majority of the Cosa. And the appointed PM could appoint a Secretary of State to conduct legitimate elections, and continue the unbroken line of legal legitimacy through the Organic Law from its inception to today. It was an amazing example of the resiliency of our Organic Law - it was able to withstand the departure of so much centralized power thanks to safeguards placed in the system.

So now I am rethinking this bill. I'm not spitting fire over it, but I think that we've already seen how the current system saved our bacon once. In the absence of a compelling reason otherwise, I'm hard-pressed to think why we would alter a mechanism that preserved the country. I understand the ideological basis for it, but in practical terms, I don't want to shoot out our own tires.

The CSC requires supermajority approval of the Cosa to appoint, making it particularly vulnerable to extended vacancy. Suppose the SoS should go AWOL while the CSC position is also vacant and the Cosa is out of session or deadlocked. That would mean no more Clarks and no more elections, because it would be impossible to appoint a new SoS. Talossa would cease to exist as a functioning state. For this reason, I think you should at least consider having a failsafe provision allowing for the appointment of an acting SoS or something like that if there is no CSC or the CSC fails to act.

[Miestrâ Schivâ, UrN]

Here is a small but elegant "failsafe" provision: amend 1.2.3 to read

1.2.3. Members of the Chancery are to be considered as if they were Deputy Secretary of State, including the ability to replace the Secretary should he become unavailable.

So everyone working in the Chancery would be able to take over in case of an emergency. To make things triple-secure, I could restore the Scribery and the Archives to being part of the Chancery, which would also put them in the "line of succession"?

Other points:
- I don't see why a system which requires there being a CSC is less stable than one requiring there to be a Seneschál.
- My real preference to include more redundancy in the system would be to make a reform which would bring Talossan practice in line with most other countries, although contrary to our traditions - hand over Ziu votes/the Clark to the Túischac'h and Mençéi and/or their civil service staff, leaving the SoS with only elections and citizenship records.

[Ian Plätschisch]

This highly unlikely scenario could easily be remedied via a Prime Dictate. We could implement the suggested change but I don’t think we need to.

[Sir C. M. Siervicül]

Aug 29, 2018 2:31:57 GMT -6 Miestrâ Schivâ, UrN said:

I could restore the Scribery and the Archives to being part of the Chancery, which would also put them in the "line of succession"?

I like this idea, but I think Ian is right about a PD too, so I suppose there's no urgent need for a further solution at this point.

Aug 29, 2018 2:31:57 GMT -6 Miestrâ Schivâ, UrN said:

- I don't see why a system which requires there being a CSC is less stable than one requiring there to be a Seneschál.

Well, appointing a Seneschal doesn't require a formal vote of the Cosa (which may not even be constituted), much less a supermajority vote.

[Sir C. M. Siervicül]

Aug 29, 2018 10:52:21 GMT -6 Ian Plätschisch said:

This highly unlikely scenario could easily be remedied via a Prime Dictate. We could implement the suggested change but I don’t think we need to.

Very good point. I expect there would be a convention that the Seneschal would only circumvent regular appointment processes via PD in extraordinary and urgent circumstances, such as we saw in 2004.