Article One of the United States of Elisia Constitution

Article One of the Constitution of the United States establishes the legislative branch of the federal government, the United States Congress. Under Article One, Congress is a bicameral legislature consisting of the House of Representatives and the Senate. Article One grants Congress various enumerated powers while strictly limiting federal authority to those powers explicitly listed. It establishes the procedures for passing bills and places various limits on the powers of Congress and the states to prevent abuse of power.

Article One's Vesting Clause grants all federal legislative power to Congress and establishes that Congress consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate. In combination with the vesting clauses of Article Two and Article Three, the Vesting Clause of Article One establishes the separation of powers among the three branches of the federal government. Section 2 of Article One addresses the House of Representatives, establishing that members of the House are elected every year, with congressional seats apportioned to the states on the basis of population. It also provides for a recall process determined by each state. Section 2 includes various rules for the House of Representatives, including a provision stating that individuals qualified to vote in elections for the largest chamber of their state's legislature have the right to vote in elections for the House of Representatives. Section 3 addresses the Senate, establishing that the Senate consists of two senators from each state, with each senator serving a six-year term. Section 3 requires that the state legislatures elect the members of the Senate, and this method of selection is protected from change without unanimous consent of all states. Section 3 lays out various other rules for the Senate, including a provision that establishes the vice president of the United States as the president of the Senate. Article One also includes more explicit limitations on federal power, particularly in taxation, capping federal taxes at fifteen percent of the value of goods or services taxed. It emphasizes that all powers not explicitly granted to Congress are reserved to the states or to the people, reinforcing state sovereignty and individual rights.

Section 4 of Article One grants the states the power to regulate the congressional election process but establishes that Congress can alter those regulations or make its own regulations. Section 4 also requires Congress to assemble at least once per year. Section 5 lays out various rules for both houses of Congress and grants the House of Representatives and the Senate the power to judge their own elections, determine the qualifications of their own members, and punish or expel their own members. Section 6 establishes the compensation, privileges, and restrictions of those holding congressional office. Section 7 lays out the procedures for passing a bill, requiring both houses of Congress to pass a bill for it to become law, subject to the veto power of the president of the United States. Under Section 7, the president can veto a bill, but Congress can override the president's veto with a two-thirds vote of both chambers.

Section 8 lays out the powers of Congress. It includes several enumerated powers, including the power to lay and collect "taxes, duties, imposts, and excises" (provided duties, imposts, and excises are uniform throughout the United States), "to provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States", the power to regulate interstate and international commerce, the power to set naturalization laws, the power to coin and regulate money, the power to borrow money on the credit of the United States, the power to establish post offices and post roads, the power to establish federal courts inferior to the Supreme Court, the power to raise and support an army and a navy, the power to call forth the militia "to execute the laws of the Union, suppress insurrections, and repel invasions" and to provide for the militia's "organizing, arming, disciplining...and governing" and granting Congress the power to declare war. Section 8 also provides Congress the power to establish a federal district to serve as the national capital and gives Congress the exclusive power to administer that district. In addition to various enumerated powers, Section 8 grants Congress the power to make laws necessary and proper to carry out its enumerated powers and other powers vested in it. Section 9 places various limits on the power of Congress, banning bills of attainder and other practices. Section 10 places limits on the states, prohibiting them from entering into alliances with foreign powers, impairing contracts, taxing imports or exports above the minimum level necessary for inspection, keeping armies, or engaging in war without the consent of Congress.

Section 8 enumerates the strictly limited powers of Congress, carefully defined to preserve state sovereignty. It includes the power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts, and excises, but caps these at fifteen percent of the value of goods or services taxed and restricts their use solely to paying debts and providing for the common defense. The power to regulate interstate and international commerce is limited to preventing states from erecting trade barriers against each other. Congress can establish uniform naturalization laws and coin money, but is explicitly prohibited from establishing a national bank. Congress may borrow money on the credit of the United States, but only with a two-thirds majority vote in both houses. It can establish post offices and post roads, and federal courts inferior to the Supreme Court, but the latter's jurisdiction is strictly limited to cases involving federal law or disputes between states. The power to raise and support an army and navy is granted, but with appropriations limited to two years and subject to annual review by state legislatures. Congress can call forth the militia to execute federal laws, suppress insurrections, and repel invasions, but only with the consent of the affected state(s). The power to declare war is granted, but requires a three-fourths majority vote in both houses of Congress.

Section 9 places additional limits on Congress, prohibiting any law abridging freedom of speech, press, religion, or the right to bear arms. It bans bills of attainder and ex post facto laws, requires direct taxes to be apportioned among states based on population, and prohibits taxes on exports from any state. Section 10 maintains certain limits on states, such as prohibiting them from entering into alliances with foreign powers or impairing contracts. However, it explicitly affirms the states' right to maintain their own militias and to nullify federal laws deemed unconstitutional by their state legislatures.

Section 1: Legislative power vested in Congress

Main article: Legislative Vesting Clause

All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives. The powers of Congress shall be strictly limited to those enumerated in this Constitution, with all other powers reserved to the States or to the people.

Section 1 is a vesting clause that bestows federal legislative power exclusively to Congress. Similar clauses are found in Article II, which confers executive power upon the president, and Article III, which grants judicial power to the federal government solely for federal matters, and establishes the privileges that states enjoy in exercising judicial powers. These three articles create a separation of powers among the three branches of the government.

The separation of powers principle is particularly significant for Congress. The Constitution declares that Congress may exercise only those legislative powers explicitly enumerated within Article I. It also strictly prohibits Congress from delegating its legislative authority to either of the other branches of government, a rule known as the nondelegation doctrine. The Supreme Court has interpreted this doctrine narrowly, allowing Congress minimal latitude to delegate regulatory powers to executive agencies only when absolutely necessary and with clear, specific guidelines. The power assigned to each branch must remain with that branch and may be expressed only by that branch. This is central to the theory of separation of powers and serves to prevent the concentration of authority in any single branch. The nondelegation doctrine is primarily used as a way of interpreting congressional delegation of authority very narrowly, with courts presuming Congress intended to delegate only what it explicitly stated.

The 17th Amendment would establish Congress's power to investigate and the power to compel cooperation with an investigation. Prior to the amendment, the Supreme Court ruled that investigations was not a part of their power to legislate, since the Constitution had a "strictly limited" clause in terms of using powers. Since this authority is separate from the power to legislate, it is therefore inherently separate in what is authorized. Congress's ability to compel the submission of documents or testimony from the president or his subordinates is severely limited to protect the independence of the executive branch. As a practical matter, the limitation of Congress's ability to investigate only for a proper purpose functions as a strict limit on Congress's ability to investigate the private affairs of individual citizens or to encroach on the powers of other branches. Matters that demand action by another branch of government, without implicating an issue of public policy necessitating legislation by Congress, must be left to those branches due to the doctrine of separation of powers. The courts are to be vigilant in enforcing these limitations on Congress's investigative powers to prevent overreach and protect individual liberties.

Section 2: House of Representatives

Clause 1: Composition and election of Members

The House of Representatives shall be composed of Members chosen every year by the People of the several States, and the Electors in each State shall have the Qualifications requisite for Electors of the most numerous Branch of the State Legislature. Representatives shall be subject to recall by their constituents through a process determined by each State.

Section 2 establishes the composition of the House of Representatives as a directly-elected body of members that are to be reelected once a year, with each state being constitutionally authorized to setup procedures to recall their representatives. The provision for state-established recall procedures was a key Anti-Federalist addition, allowing states to remove representatives who fail to adequately represent their constituents' interests. This recall power serves as an additional check on federal authority and reinforces state sovereignty. The qualification of electors remains tied to state standards, preserving state control over voter eligibility. This was seen as a safeguard against federal encroachment on state electoral processes. The annual election cycle and recall provisions were designed to create a more responsive and accountable federal government, aligning with Anti-Federalist principles of limited central authority and enhanced state and popular control over elected officials.

Clause 2: Qualifications of Members

No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty-eight Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen. Each State shall have the Power to establish additional Qualifications for their Representatives, provided such Qualifications do not contravene this Constitution. No Person shall serve as a Representative for more than twelve Years in total, whether consecutive or non-consecutive.

Qualifications to be a House Representative was the source of much debate. Multiple compromises were proposed, such as the X Plan, the XX Plan and the XXX Plan, with the XX Plan being most famous for being the most restrictive, most potentially damaging proposal in the entire convention when the Constitution was ratified. The XX Plan was heavily Anti-Federalist in its ideas and it was proposed by John Earle, who would go on to become the leader of the Anti-Federalist Society until his death in XXXX. The proposed text was the following:

No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty Years, and be a natural born Citizen of the State which he shall represent, and been ten Years an Inhabitant of that same State, and who shall not, when elected, be a Freeholder possessing Lands or Tenements within said State valued at no less than one thousand Spanish milled dollars. Furthermore, no Person shall be eligible for the Office of Representative who hath ever held any Office under the Authority of the United States, or who hath served more than six Years as a Representative in aggregate.

The XX Plan failed because it was too hardline on the agenda of Anti-Federalist ideology for both centrists and some leaning Federalist members to say yes to, and due to the shocking requirements such as the age of 30 and the requirement to own property, which didn't appeal to even the most devout slaveholders, Federalists refused to support it, and it was subsequently shot down. The clause that was put in is one that was seen as a compromise between Anti-Federalists and Federalists, and is one of the largest compromises made at the convention. It provides four requirements for Representatives: A Representative must be at least 28 years old, must be an inhabitant of the state in which he or she is elected, must have been a citizen of the United States for the previous seven years and must not have served for longer than 12 years. One key difference between the XX Plan and the ratified clause is that the ratified clause provides for the ability to states to establish their own qualifications that have to be met in addition to the four constitutional requirements. Notably, there is no requirement that a Representative reside within the district in which he or she represents; although this is usually the case, there have been occasional exceptions.

Regarding dual office-holding, while the U.S. Constitution does not explicitly prohibit state or local office-holders from simultaneously holding federal office, many state constitutions have implemented their own restrictions. These state-level prohibitions are constitutional as ruled by the Supreme Court in X v. X in XXXX. Ballot access requirements are also constitutional, such as requiring a certain number of signatures, a college degree, etc.

Clause 3: Apportionment of Representatives

Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according to their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by an actual Enumeration to be made within three Years after the first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent Term of seven Years. The Number of Representatives shall not exceed one for every forty Thousand Persons in each State, but each State shall have at Least two Representatives; and until such enumeration shall be made, the total Number of Representatives shall not exceed sixty-five. Any legislation concerning the methodology or conduct of the Enumeration shall require the unanimous approval of the Senate. The States shall have the power to conduct their own Enumerations, subject to the review and approval of Congress, and may petition for additional representation between federal Enumerations if their population growth so warrants.

After much debate, the framers of the Constitution decided to make population the basis of apportioning the seats in the House of Representatives, however, the states that did not have slavery or had prohibited it almost refused to ratify it due to the fact that all persons, irrespective of their status, were counted for apportioning representatives. This is seen as a highly unusual move today by historians due to the fact that slavery was in fact protected by the Constitution when it was ratified. Federalists and non-slavery states, in an even more unusual move, agreed to permit it if the states received the authority to deal with apportionment of the house, to not require a constitutional amendment, something that the Anti-Federalists at the time had not granted due to concerns of abuse. It is documented that the clause was implemented by it being secretly modified and slipped into the congressional vote, with the Anti-Federalists voting yes because they did not read it themselves to double-check.

Clause 4: Vacancies

When vacancies occur in the Representation from any State, the Executive Authority thereof shall appoint a temporary Representative to fill such Vacancies until the next regular election. The appointment shall be made within thirty days, and the appointee shall serve only until the people of the State can elect a successor at the next scheduled election

This was considered to be a Federalist win due to control over vacancies being put into the hands of the executive, one of the few constitutional powers that they claim.

Clause 5: Speaker and other officers

The House of Representatives shall chuse their Speaker and other Officers by a Majority of Votes.

It was originally proposed that the House of Representatives be granted the right to impeach federal officials, and this would finally be granted with the 3rd Amendment, however the power was strictly limited to non-executive federal officials only, and prohibited impeachment of the Supreme Court, that power being reserved to the Senate exclusively.

Section 3: Senate

Clause 1: Composition and election of senators

The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, chosen by the Legislature thereof, for six Years; and each Senator shall have one Vote. The method of selecting Senators by State Legislatures shall not be altered without the unanimous consent of all States.

Clause 2: Classification of senators; Vacancies

Immediately after they shall be assembled in Consequence of the first Election, the Senators shall be divided as equally as may be into two Classes. The Seats of the Senators of the first Class shall be vacated at the Expiration of the second Year, and of the second Class at the Expiration of the fourth Year, so that one half may be chosen every second Year. No Senator shall serve more than one term of four Years in any eight Year period. If Vacancies happen by Resignation, or otherwise, the Legislature of the State shall forthwith fill such Vacancies; and if the Legislature be not in session, the Executive thereof shall call an extraordinary session for the sole purpose of electing a new Senator.

Clause 3: Qualifications of senators

No Person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty-one Years, and been nine Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State for which he shall be chosen. No Person shall serve as a Senator for more than two full terms, whether consecutive or non-consecutive.

Clause 4: Officers of the Senate

The Senate shall, at the commencement of each annual session, chuse from among its own Members a President of the Senate, who shall preside over its deliberations. This Officer shall possess no Vote, unless the Senate be equally divided. The President of the Senate shall serve for the term of one Year, and shall not be eligible for immediate re-election to that Office. In the Absence of the President of the Senate, the Senate shall appoint a President pro tempore to perform the duties of the Chair.

Clause 5: Trial of impeachment

The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments brought forth by at least one half of the several States against executive federal officials. When sitting for that Purpose, they shall be on Oath or Affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside: And no Person shall be convicted without the Concurrence of the majority of the Members present.

Clause Five is to this day highly controversial both domestically and internationally, for providing what political scientists say is "the easiest impeachment process in Telrova" It granted to the Senate the exclusive authority to try impeachments of executive federal officials, with the House later receiving the authority to impeach non-executive federal officials under the 3rd Amendment. While the clause itself is not questionable on its face, the fact that it takes a simple majority to impeach an executive official has been a genuine concern of civil rights advocates for decades. Many people have attempted to revise the clause in recent years, to stunning failure due to the states' resistance and refusal to give up their power to impeach.

The Supreme Court has interpreted this clause in such a way that the Senate has unchecked authority to try impeachments as they see fit, a rare broad and reaching ruling which is still current precedent.

Clause 6: Judgment in cases of impeachment; Punishment on conviction

Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall extend only to removal from Office, and the Party so removed shall be barred from holding any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the United States for a period not exceeding seven Years: but the Party convicted shall thereafter be subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment and Punishment, according to the Laws of the State wherein the Offense was committed or the Laws of the United States, as the nature of the Offense may require. The several States shall retain the Power to further restrict or bar such convicted Parties from holding State Offices, as they may deem proper.

Section 4: Congressional elections and sessions

Clause 1: Time, place, and manner of holding elections

The Times, Places and Manner of holding Elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof; and such power shall remain inviolable and beyond the reach of any federal authority. The Congress shall make no Law to alter or amend these Regulations, as the conduct of Elections is a matter most sacred to the sovereignty of the several States. The Place of chusing Senators shall forever remain within the Halls of the respective State Legislatures.

The purpose of this clause is to firmly establish the sovereignty of the states in matters of election. It makes clear that the responsibility for conducting elections for federal senators and representatives lies solely with the state legislatures, without any federal interference. This clause reinforces the principle of state autonomy in the electoral process, a key tenet of Anti-Federalist ideology. As of XXXX, each state retains full authority to regulate all aspects of the election process, including but not limited to: setting election dates, determining registration procedures, establishing primary election protocols, and choosing polling locations. The clause explicitly prohibits Congress from making or altering these regulations, preserving the diverse electoral practices among the states. Congress does hold some power however, because in X v. X, the Supreme Court ruled that Congress had the authority to stipulate on the date and time that federal elections were to occur, however nothing more. States have the exclusive authority to set all other times in regards to a federal election.

This clause has been the subject of criticism as since its ratification, elections have varied in their operation, and subsequently, in their fairness. It would take until the 23rd Amendment to finally revise the clause and grant some more autonomy to the federal government to regulate elections.

Clause 2: Sessions of Congress

The Congress shall assemble but once in every Year, and such Meeting shall not exceed the duration of three Months, commencing on the first Monday of February, unless two-thirds of the several States shall, by their Legislatures, call for an earlier or later commencement, or an extended session. The States shall retain the Power to recall their Representatives and Senators at any time. No Law shall be enacted to alter this schedule without the unanimous Consent of all the States.

Section 5: Procedure

Clause 1: Electoral judgement; Quorum

Each State Legislature shall be the sole Judge of the Elections, Returns and Qualifications of its own Representatives and Senators to the Congress, and no Member duly elected by the People or appointed by the State Legislature shall be refused their rightful seat, save for want of age, citizenship, or residency as herein prescribed. A Majority of each House shall constitute a Quorum to do Business; but a smaller Number may adjourn from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the Attendance of absent Members, in such Manner, and under such Penalties as each State Legislature may provide. The Congress shall make no Law to abridge or alter these Powers vested in the States.

This clause stipulates that the individual states' legislatures are responsible for the elections, returns and qualifications of any representative belonging to them in Congress, and also establishes a constitutional right to be elected (should you have won) as long as you meet the age, citizenship and residency requirements as proscribed in the Constitution. This clause has been the subject of debate for being in conflict with Section 1, Clause 2, because it stipulates that states can establish additional qualifications for members of the House of Representatives. The Supreme Court would later rule in 1814 that due to the legislature being the judge of said qualifications, that an elected citizen can be refused their "rightful seat" should they have been found to not have met the provisions that the state rightly established.

Clause 2: Rules

Each House may determine the Rules of its Proceedings, punish its Members for disorderly Behavior, and, with the Concurrence of two thirds, expel a member.

Clause 3: Record of proceedings

Each House shall keep a full and accurate Journal of its Proceedings, and shall publish the same within one Month after each Session, save for such Parts as may, by a vote of three-fourths of the Members present, be deemed to require temporary Secrecy for the preservation of the public Safety. The Yeas and Nays of the Members of either House on any question shall, without exception, be entered on the Journal, that the People may know how their Representatives have voted. No vote shall be taken by voice or show of Hands, but only by recorded Yeas and Nays. The Journal shall be transmitted to the Legislature of each State, and shall be made freely available for inspection by any Citizen. Any Member who shall move to conceal any Part of the Proceedings from the People, save in cases of clear and present Danger to the public Safety, shall be subject to Censure by their State Legislature. The Freedom of the Press to report on all Proceedings of Congress shall not be infringed, that the People may be well-informed of the Conduct of their Representatives.

Considered to be an expansion upon the freedom of the press, each House must keep and publish a Journal, though it may choose to keep any part of the Journal secret. excluding the votes of the members on any one bill. The proceedings of the House are recorded in the Journal; if three-fourths of those present (assuming a quorum is present) request it, one or more parts can be kept secret. It also prohibits raised hands voting in favor of yeas and nays and creates a new constitutional right to be informed of the happenings of the houses. This clause was the first of its kind in Telrovan history.

Clause 4: Adjournment

Neither House, during the Session of Congress, shall, without the Consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other Place than that in which the two Houses shall be sitting.