Eliminating Financial Barriers to Voting
Category: Furtherment of Democracy | Strength: Significant | Proposed by: Barfleur
Whereas a state has no legitimate interest in reserving the right to vote to persons of any one financial status; and
Whereas the exclusion of poor and insolvent citizens from elective franchise—a. ensures that only the wealthy have a role in determining national policy, when such policy has an impact on the nation as a whole, and
b. is often applied as a means of disenfranchising racial, ethnic, or religious minorities, while still complying with national and international regulations prohibiting such disenfranchisement; and
Whereas the imposition of a poll tax or other tax as prerequisite to vote is fundamentally anti-democratic: Now, therefore,
The World Assembly, with the advise and consent of the nations and delegates thereof, and by the authority of the same, in this present session assembled, hereby enacts as follows:
1. In this resolution—a. the term "member nation" means all nations which are members of the World Assembly, as well as all political and territorial subdivisions of such nations,
b. the term "poll tax" means any tax in which every taxed person is assessed the same fixed sum of money,
c. the term "fee" means any amount of money charged as a condition of completing any action, and
d. the term "person" refers only to sapient beings;
2. Member nations shall not—a. restrict the right of any person to vote at any primary or general election, referendum, plebiscite, or other election at which such person would otherwise be entitled to vote, solely on account of such person's inability to pay a poll tax or failure to pay any other type of tax,
b. require any person to pay a fee as prerequisite for casting a ballot or registering to vote under the laws of such member nation, or
c. criminalize the inability to pay a poll tax or other tax if the party in question has made a bona fide attempt to pay the tax but is left unable to provide for their basic needs; and
3. Nothing in this resolution shall be construed to require member nations to hold elections; nor to prohibit member nations from criminalizing the deliberate evasion of lawful taxes when there is no pressing necessity to do so.
How does this not contradict GA#476?
5. Bars member nations from invoking a person's debts, financial obligations arising from previous state of captivity, fines, or fees as reason to deprive that person of the right to vote in any election, referendum, or plebiscite in which they would otherwise be eligible;
6. Clarifies that [...] for the purposes of this resolution, tax liabilities are not included in any definition of debt or financial obligation.
A good-faith interpretation of GA#476 reveals that such resolution bars member nations from using private debts and fines imposed by courts as reason to disenfranchise a voter, but unpaid taxes (including poll taxes) are still legal grounds for disenfranchisement.
Edit Log
9/21/20: Drafted
9/21/20: Changed "eligible person" to "taxed person" in clause 1b and added "registration fee" in clause 2. Amended clause 2 to allow states to allow non-citizens to vote, should they so choose, with the same restrictions as would apply to citizens. Changed title from "Against Poll Taxes" to "Eliminating Financial Barriers to Voting".
9/21/20: Basically reworked everything after the enacting clause
