LEX VEDIA DE RATIONE COMITIORVM PLEBIS TRIBVTORVM

(Enacted by dictatorial edictum 7/30/99 with the force and authority of law.)

In accordance with paragraph III.C. of the Constitution of Nova Roma, the Lex Vedia de Ratione Comitiorum Plebis Tributorum is hereby enacted to set forth the rules and procedures for debate and the taking of votes within the comitia plebis tributa.

I. A tribune of the plebs may call the comitia plebis tributa to vote on a law, hear a legal case, or elect magistrates as described in paragraph III.C. of the Constitution of Nova Roma. The following procedure shall be used:

A. The presiding magistrate (defined as the tribune of the plebs who called the comitia plebis tributa to a vote) shall, in a public forum (such as the official email list, the official web site, or other venues which shall be provided for the purpose) convene the comitia and publish one or more of the following, along with the deadline by which voting must be completed:

1. In the case of a law, the content of the rogationes (proposals to be voted upon). While each proposal must deal with only a single topic, multiple proposals may be considered and voted on by the comitia at the same time.

2. In the case of a magisterial election, the names of the candidates and the offices for which they stand.

3. In the case of a legal case, the charges, names of the litigants, and consequences facing the defendant.

B. The people shall thenceforth engage in contio (discussion) of the various proposals, candidates, or merits of the case. This contio (period of discussion) shall last at least long enough for two nundinia (market days) to have passed during the interval. Within the first twenty-four hours after the convening of the comitia, the right of intercessio or obnuntiatio may be exercised by those Constitutionally empowered to do so.

C. Voting on the proposal shall begin the day following the publication of the proposal. The diribitores and custodes (election officials) shall tally the vote and present the result to the presiding magistrate. Voting shall be done by tribes; a plurality of the members of each tribe shall determine the vote of the tribe as a whole. A plurality of the tribes shall then decide the issue. The presiding magistrate shall then publish the result of the vote in at least the same forum as the original vote was called.

II. Leges saturae, which are laws which deal with more than one topic, may not be enacted by the comitia plebis tributa. Laws dealing with different aspects of the same topic shall not fall into this category.

[In accordance with the Lex Equitia de Vigintisexviris and praetorian edictum, the term rogator in this law {albeit superseded} and elsewhere has been replaced with those of diribitores and custodes. These are election officials; the rogatores now deal with the registration of new citizens and other duties in the censorial office. The censores, however, do not deal with tallying votes, so the phrase "with the assistance of the censors" has been removed. In the second line of I. B. above, "trinundium," a nonexistent word, has been replaced by "contio,"as this is the current term and apparent meaning desired; it is unlikely that "trinum nundinum," a genitive plural denoting a period of twenty-four days, was intended. A. Tullia Scholastica, interpres linguae Latinae, scriba praetoris et magistri araneari].

Passed by Dictatorial Edictum

30 Quintilis MMDCCLII

TABVLARIVM

spt