The question asked by the Chair of the Assembly, was whether Article XIII, Clause 2 of the Charter applies to Constitutional Laws, such as the Elections Act.

Article XIII, Clause 2 states the following:

"2. Any amendment that directly affects the game-side community or its home governance, as determined by the Chair of the Assembly, must also be debated and voted upon by the game-side community. Additionally, the Local Council may originate amendments to its constitutional structure, which must be debated and voted upon in the Assembly."

In perusing the Elections Act, it is clear at several points that on-site (NationStates.net) involvement or action is mandated within the document - these actions could be active (such as Article 5, Clause 2a which states how campaigns should be publicised for nations in The South Pacific regarding the Local Council Elections) or passive (such as Article 5, Clause 2 which states the medium for the Local Council voting), but on-site behaviour is mandated by this document. Article 3 also contains similar provisions in regards to the election of the Delegate.

If the law in question that concerns the Chair involves or amends, game-side provisions that would involve resident nations of The South Pacific then it is the discretion of the Chair of the Assembly, as stated in Article XIII, Clause 2 of the Charter of the Coalition of The South Pacific, on whether they believe engaging the resident nations is necessary.

I do not personally see how I can clarify this clause further for the Chair, as it is already very clear in the right of the Chair to act with their own discretion in this area.

In conclusion, it is a decision for the Chair of the Assembly to determine whether the game-side community is consulted and that ability is made clear in the Charter (specifically in the Article referred to in the submitted question). It is my view that only the Chair can decide whether that specific clause will apply to amendments of the Election Act under the current wording of Article XIII, Clause 2.

-JR