New Alexandrian Federalism
Federalism in the Federation of Nouvelle Alexandrie is the constitutional division of power between the federal government and local governments (regions, states, and special cities). The federal government, the regions, the states, the special cities, and municipalities have different tasks and partially competing regions of responsibilities ruled by a complex system of checks and balances.
The Proclamation of Punta Santiago serves as the founding document of the Federation and as its Constitution. It is in this document that a relationship of parity between the two levels of government, the federal and the local, is established.
As time has passed, the Federal Constituent Assembly and the early governments of the Federation have taken a philosophy of devolution or the transfer of certain powers from the federal government to the regions, typically involving the federal government providing block grants to the regions or the states directly to achieve a Social Goal. The federal government then monitors outcomes but provides broad discretion to the regions and states for how the programs are implemented.
In the model of shared sovereignty, New Alexandrians are citizens both of the Federation and of the Region in which they reside. Regional citizenship and residency are flexible, and no government approval is required to move between regions or states, except for persons restricted by certain types of court orders (such as paroled convicts and children of divorced spouses who are sharing custody). Regional governments are allocated power by the people (of each respective Region) through their individual constitutions or constituent charters. All are grounded in basic democratic principles, and each provides for a government, consisting of three branches, each with separate and independent powers: executive, legislative, and judicial. States are divided into states, which may be assigned some local governmental authority but are not sovereign. The structure of a state varies widely by Region and Regions also can create other local governments or special districts.
Constitutions and powers
Regions are declared to be sovereign to the extent that their sovereignty is not limited by or contravenes the Proclamation of Punta Santiago and New Alexandrian law.
Areas of power specifically reserved to the federal government are the defense, foreign affairs, armed forces, currency, the postal service, telecommunications, immigration, granting asylum, regulating interregional commerce, establishing national standards such as (but not limited to) weights and measures, and customs duties. Regions have exclusive jurisdiction on the police (excluding federal police or law enforcement), most of education, the press, freedom of assembly, public housing, corrections and media affairs, among others. The areas of shared responsibility for the regions and the federal government are in areas of broad social concern such as (but not limited to) higher education, regional economic development, and agricultural reform. A region, unlike states and special cities, has a special power granted by the Proclamation of Punta Santiago - the right to generally make all necessary laws for the welfare of its people. As a result, while the governments of the various regions share many similar features, they often vary greatly with regard to form and substance. No two regional governments are identical. The Regions retain all powers and competencies not delegated to the federal government by the Proclamation of Punta Santiago or law: most significantly they are responsible for healthcare, welfare, law enforcement, public education, and retain the power of taxation. Each Region defines its official language(s).
Each region has its own constitution, legislature, executive, police, and courts. Most of the Regions' legislatures are unicameral parliaments, their size varying between 48 to 343 seats. A few legislatures also involve or did involve general popular assemblies known as Citizen's Assemblies and/or Youth Assemblies; the use of this form of legislature is limited to Valencia and Santander only at the moment. The Regional Executives are vested on a Viceroy official, usually an elected Governor, and a head of government figure, usually a First Minister or Prime Minister who is often the leader of the largest party of the regional legislature.
The regional constitutions determine the internal organization of the Regions, which are states and special cities, including the degree of autonomy accorded to them. The Region of Alduria maintains a special autonomous state status within their Region for the Ladino and Baatharzi peoples. The powers and responsibilities of states varies from region to region, but it almost always includes powers to levy taxes, pass state ordinances, and maintain their own police, fire, and civil defense forces. States are usually formed in a Region through processes outlined by regional constitutions and law.
Each State has a Constituent Charter, which acts as a sort of constitution for the State. The state executives are usually vested in a State Consul or President, popularly elected by the people that live in the state. States have popularly elected unicameral legislatures often called State Councils.
Nouvelle Alexandrie has only a handful of federal public holidays. It is common for public holidays to otherwise vary from region to region, and even state to state.
Special cities have equal status to states inside of a region and are created by federal legislation, with the consent of the people in the jurisdiction in question via public referendum. In Special Cities, the Mayor is often the highest-ranking official in charge. The Mayor is directly elected by the people registered in the city for a duration of five years.
For regions or states that are also cities, such as the Federal Capital District, the regional, state, and city governments are all unified into one central regional-level government. Metropolitan functions such as water supply and public transport are often integrated into Special Cities.
Even in cases where regions or states have exclusive jurisdiction, they sometimes choose to work with each other and come to a basic agreement with the other states or with other regions, which is then passed by the federal legislature and enshrined as federal law. This is done in order to avoid legal patchworks. Some examples of this are the Nouradin River Compact and the Parap Metro Transport Charter.
