Confederacy of Imperial States

The Confederacy of Imperial States or CIS was formed in January of 2008 by a merger of the Confederacy of Independent States and the Imperial Military Union.

CIS Charter
Preamble

This document shall serve as the highest law of the Confederacy of Imperial States, henceforth, CIS. Contained within this document are the provisions neccessary to maintain the CIS as a strong, stable alliance, provided the will of the Confederacy matches those aspirations. The laws contained within this charter shall be regarded as superior to any legislation passed; as such, no legislation may be passed that would contradict anything stated by this charter.

Article I: Membership
Any member of the CIS shall be protected by the alliance; this protection shall be defined by the War Council under the Rules of Engagement. Each member shall have access to the Confederate Bank in times of need, and each member shall be presented with opportunities to advance through the ranks of the alliance. The entire membership of the CIS shall comprise the General Council. Furthermore, the applicant must have signed the Confederate Pledge;
 * Membership of the CIS shall be granted to any nation, provided that the following conditions are met:
 * Membership of any other alliance is not present;
 * The nation is not involved in any offensive wars with an alliance of over five nations;
 * The nation is not involved in any defensive wars with an alliance of over five nations;
 * The nation is not a declared enemy of any alliance of over five nations;
 * The nation is not known to be in violation of any game rules at the time of application;
 * The nation's alliance afilliation has been set to 'Confederacy of Imperial States'.

I, [ruler] of [nation], hereby pledge to uphold the charter of the Confederacy of Imperial States; furthermore I pledge to follow the will of the Confederacy, and to do my utmost to ensure the alliances continued survival and growth.

Article II: Government Positions
The government of the CIS shall be known as the Master Council, which shall be fully elected by popular vote; each member of the CIS shall be granted a vote in each election.

The Master Council shall consist of the following nine positions:


 * The Supreme Council, which shall be charged with the overseeing and ultimate control of the alliance. The Supreme Council shall be ultimately responsible for the foreign policy of the CIS. The Supreme Council shall consist of three Supreme Councillors. Each Supreme Councillor shall serve a term of three months, with staggered elections; one Councillor shall be elected at the start of each month.


 * The War Council, which shall be entrusted with the running of the Confederate Military; as such their responsibilities will include, but are not limited to, the writing and updating of the Rules of Engagement, the designing and maintaining of the alliances military system, and the selection of junior officers. The War Council shall consist of three War Councillors, who shall serve a term of one and a half months, and shall be elected on either the first or the fifteenth day of each appropriate month. The War Council shall be elected as a group, rather than in seperate elections; as such, all candidates shall be voted upon in the same ballot, and the three candidates who recieve the most votes shall become the War Council. Voters shall have the option to vote for a maximum of three candidates.


 * The Ombudsman, who is responsible for investigating allegations of illegal activities in coordination with this charter or any documentation passed by the Confederacy of Imperial States. The Ombudsman will decide whether or not a passed bill is in violation of the CIS Charter after a member proposes allegations of illegality of a bill. The Ombudsman does not operate under any authoritative body within the CIS, although impeachment votes against him may occur. The Ombudsman is also responsible for declaring amendments, polls, elections and the like closed, and responsible for the oversight of the necessary announcements resulting of this. The Ombudsman will act as the General Council's voice to the government. The Ombudsman will serve a term of two months, and shall be elected on the first day of every even month.


 * The Minister of Internal Affairs, who is responsible for recruitment, internal investigations and internal development. The Minister of Internal Affairs will be responsible for the administration of the forums (specifically the masking of accepted members as well as creation of requested embassies). Due to the sensitive nature of this duty, any delegation of these duties to another CIS member must be approved by the Supreme Council. The Minister of Internal Affairs is also responsible for selecting The Dean, who in turn is responsible for the growth of knowledge within the alliance. The Minister of Internal Affairs shall serve a term of one and a half months, and shall be elected on either the first or the fifteenth day of each appropriate month.


 * The Confederate Banker, who is responsible for administrating all aid programs, including but not limited to war aid, introductory aid, grants and loans. The Confederate Banker is expected to work closely with the Minister of Internal Affairs. The Confederate Banker shall serve a term of one and a half months, and shall be elected on either the first or the fifteenth day of each appropriate month.

Article III: Elections
Elections shall be carried out to elect members of the Master Council, as defined by Article II. An election shall begin on the date previously defined by Article II, and shall last 48 hours. Every member of the CIS shall be granted a vote in any election, and shall have the right to a secret ballot. The inquiring by any Master Councillor as to how a member voted in any election shall be grounds for an immediate vote of impeachment against that Councillor. No member shall be forced to vote, nor face any consequences for not voting.

Article IV: Legislation
Bills, or treaties, may be proposed by any member of the CIS, however all bills must be sponsored by a member of the Master Council.

Once a bill or treaty is sponsored (or originally proposed by a governmental member), voting will occur within the government chambers. A majority vote within 48 hours will ensure passage of the bill, treaty or amendment. The general membership may bring forth opinions, endorsements or concerns, however will not receive a vote on the matter.

The Supreme Council, by unanimous voice reserves full veto rights over any piece of legislation.

All votes within the Master Council must be done through “yay” or “nay” posts, no anonymous polls are acceptable. When the result of the vote is announced to the General Council, each Master Councillors vote should also be announced.

Declarations of Interalliance war must start in the Supreme Council and will require a 2/3 vote in favor. The War Council, if by unanimous vote, may veto a Declaration of Interalliance War. If the CIS is obliged by treaty to enter a war, the terms of the treaty shall be honoured.

Article V: Impeachment of a Government Official
An impeachment vote shall be open to the General Council, and shall require a majority of 75% +1 in order to pass.

A member of the Master Council shall be subject to an impeachment vote if any of the following circumstances arises; In the case that a Supreme Councillor has come under question, that Supreme Councillor's vote in the decision to call an impeachment vote shall be forfeited to the Ombudsman.
 * The Supreme Council unanimously decides to call an impeachment vote;
 * If the right to a secret ballot is challenged (as outlined in Article III);
 * If the Master Councillor in question has been found by the War Council to have broken the Rules of Engagement.

Article VI: Discharge from the CIS
The Minister of Internal Affairs & the Ombudsman, in concurrence, may discharge a nation from the CIS as a necessary punishment for illegal activities. This discharge may be appealed. In the case of appeal, the Supreme Council shall make the final decision.

In the absence of either the Minister of Internal Affairs or the Ombudsman, or both, the Supreme Council may elect to discharge a member.

Article VII: Resignation of a Government Official
Any government official who resigns from the Confederacy of Imperial States will be replaced by the Supreme Council at the earliest possible opportunity. The replacement will carry out the original term of the position.

Article VIII: Charter Amendments
Amendments to this charter shall follow the process outlined below:


 * Step One: Any member of the alliance may propose an amendment. If this proposal recieves ten or more agreements within 24 hours, it shall be reviewed by the Master Council.


 * Step Two: The Master Council shall create a draft charter that includes the amendment. This draft will be reviewed by the Ombudsman to ensure that includes the amendment in its entirety, and that no other changes are present.


 * Step Three: The amendment shall be subject to a vote by the Supreme Council and the Ombudsman. If a majority is reached, a vote will then be held amongst the General Council.


 * Step Four: The amendment shall be voted upon by the General Council for a period of 48 hours. A majority of 75% +1 is required for the amendment to become law. If this is achieved, the text of the charter shall be edited.

Current Government
 Master Council 
 * Supreme Council
 * Teh Chad (April 1st - July 1st)
 * Quicksurfer (February 1st - May 1st)
 * Sharduke (March 1st - June 1st)
 * War Council
 * PowerstrokeSS (March 1st - April 15th)
 * Kanu Tanu (March 1st - April 15th)
 * Neverbeen (March 1st - April 15th)
 * Ombudsman
 * mum2005 (April 1st - June 1st)
 * Head of the Confederate Bank
 * Alpha Psi (March 1st - April 15th)
 * Minister of Internal Affairs
 * Goalintos (March 1st - April 15th)

 Other Positions 
 * Protector's of the Confederacy
 * Jert14
 * George the Wild
 * Lord Thor
 * Bert101
 * Minister of Secks
 * Spakistan
 * Press Secretary
 * Stewart_usf
 * The Dean
 * mum2005

Current Treaties
A list of the treaties that have been signed by the CIS.