5.2. Legislative Apparatus
Ideas
- The national legislative system will typically consist of two chambers.
- The role of the second chamber can be adapted to the political structure of the country (centralized, federal, etc.).
- The legislative apparatus pursues the following objectives: representation of citizens and preparation of votes.
- It can proceed with the direct voting of legislative proposals, systematically allowing for citizen recourse.
- Representatives of both chambers are randomly selected from among volunteer candidates.
The Representative Council
This is the main chamber of Software Democracy. As such, it must represent the diversity of its constituents in the most fair way possible.
Designation of members
Members of the representative council are drawn by lot from among volunteer candidates, if necessary according to a distribution key defined in the Constitution. One can indeed choose to let the simple random draw take place, or set up an arbitrary weighting to avoid excessive chance effects (such as over-representing or under-representing a region or age group). This weighting, which may be useful in some specific cases, must be used with caution as it will statistically penalize certain candidates.
To ensure a good level of competence, a first experience in a municipal or regional representative council and a positive evaluation from the corresponding Citizen Oversight Commission are required to submit a dossier at the national level. National experience is required to apply at the international level.
Members are mandated for a duration of 4 years, with a renewal of 25% of the council every year. This rotation of members is essential to streamline the functioning of the Representative Council. It allows for regular welcoming of new members, limits the risk of lasting opposition, and the formation of entrenched clans in political debate.
Role
The Representative Council organizes and supervises the smooth running of Software Democracy. It prepares votes by calling on dedicated commissions and ensuring that they have all the necessary resources for their action.
It collects proposals for laws and amendments to the Constitution resulting from popular initiatives and debates them in assembly. It can vote on them directly within the framework of a parliamentary legislative procedure or trigger the citizen legislative procedure.
To protect citizen sovereignty, direct voting on legislative proposals in assembly requires a majority of 60% of voters. In addition, it is subject to a probationary period of three months during which recourse can be triggered by 1% of citizens (or any other threshold set in the Constitution).
The adoption process is then suspended and a public vote is triggered.
The Representative Council takes note of public debates, current affairs, and exchanges with other institutions to integrate their proposals. It can propose Laws or amendments to the Constitution. The latter are systematically subject to a vote.
In collaboration with the Council of Elders, it appoints the ministers. The recourse procedure is the same as for the adoption of a Law.
Like all institutions of Software Democracy, the Representative Council is at the service of the State and must report on its activities. It therefore produces a quarterly report of the work carried out, ongoing, and planned projects.
Representation
The Representative Council designates a representative and a substitute by drawing lots from among the volunteers. These representatives are the privileged spokespersons of the Representative Council. They are renewed each year.
The Council of Elders
The second chamber is a particularly versatile institution in the legislative apparatus of Software Democracy. Firstly, it provides a long-term perspective to debates, and the Council of Elders can also be integrated into voting processes and organized to better represent the regional dimension of a federated country.
Appointment of members
The Council of Elders is composed of members drawn by lot from a list of candidates who have either held at least three terms in various State functions, including at least one in the national representative council. A bonus is given to candidates who have completed a term at the international level. It is therefore a chamber made up of experienced members who bring their seniority to parliamentary debates.
In states with strong regions or at the international level, the Council of Elders can be explicitly representative of regions or states. For example, a representative can be drawn by lot per region or department.
The Council of Elders has a smaller number of members than the Representative Council. Its members are appointed for a term of 4 years, with a renewal of 25% every year.
Role
The Council of Elders guarantees respect for the spirit of software democracy and sets the activities of the Representative Council in the long term. Its members can write an opinion on the various proposals for laws or amendments to the Constitution.
When the Constitution provides that the Council of Elders participates in voting, this can be done by simply adding the voices of its members to those of the Representative Council. When the Council of Elders represents regions, its vote may be independent; the proposal must then be approved by both Councils to be adopted.
The Council of Elders can thus become a very powerful institution; however, it does not have the initiative for proposals of laws and obviously cannot contradict the citizen vote. Let's not forget that the direct vote of laws by the Councils is used to streamline the functioning of the Software Democracy on a daily basis, but the citizens always have the last word!
Although it cannot propose new laws, the Council of Elders is responsible for cleaning up the legislative apparatus: it reviews existing laws and proposes the repeal of obsolete or unnecessary laws, with the objective of repealing one law for each new law voted. The repeal of a law then follows the same legislative process as the vote for a new text.
Members of the Council of Elders bring their experience of political life to newly appointed members of the Representative Council in the form of support during the first year of their term.
Finally, in cooperation with the Representative Council, the Council of Elders appoints ministers.
Representation
The Council of Elders designates a representative and a substitute by drawing lots among volunteers, who will represent it publicly. These representatives are renewed each year.
Conclusion
The general spirit of the legislative apparatus is therefore to have a first chamber that is younger and more dynamic, taking the initiative for proposals of laws and representing the population on one hand; and a versatile, more experienced chamber that contributes to decisions and ensures regular maintenance of the law on the other hand.
This bicameral organization is obviously not new, but it should not be forgotten that these two chambers work exclusively on behalf of the citizens, who are always the ultimate decision-makers.