Imperial Proclamation Agni 1: Votes, Boundies and Budgets

[Kaiser Agni I]

First off, I remind people that proclamations are opinion of the Kaiser, and have no actual power. They are official position statements from the throne, and need not be acted upon.

The voting system
I was originally going to voice a word of displeasure with the current vote credit system, but as I sat here to write this I began to ponder the matter and realized it makes sense. For an economy to function there must be flow of money, and needs or wants to encourage the flow of that money. The vote credit system, combined with the bounty system provide a good start.
The vote credit system provides a need to drive the acquisition of money, but specifically for dukes. This is not a want, but in fact a Need. It is not an option for Dukes to do without buying vote credits if they are to have any influence in the Landsraad. This means that dukes must find some means by which to generate revenue, whether by taxation or by earning their own funds, this can put varying levels of activity into the system.
This system does however have a flaw when it comes to Duke's who may not be able to generate large cash flows compared to other Dukes. Perhaps they have a small population, or are not in a position to generate the funds themselves. This is one reason I would suggest that all duchies have a permanent 1 vote credit at all times, that cannot be revoked. Doing so would allow for the continued operation of the Landsraad even during times of economic downturn or inactivity. If we found that all dukes had no credits, the Landsraad could not function.
With the fact that credits are reset monthly, makes such a clause even more important, as this increases the likelihood that a Duchy may have no credits. But, having credits disappear does have the effect of maintaining the balance in the Landsraad. By resetting vote credits we are sure that no single duchy will have to great a lead over other duchies, and will once again encourage the flow of money.

Bounties
The system of bounties adds yet another level to this system as the system is inherently designed to reward activity and creativity. In turn, this creates a sort of Meritocracy in the Landsraad. Those dukes that produce and create more, will have more money, and thus can have more voting credits in the Landsraad. With the credit resets, this encourages continuous productivity.
However, we must always be sure that bounties are being payed, and in a fair manner. This is why I would encourage that more then just the Minister of Trade be permitted to authorize the payment of bounties. While I as Kaiser, and the Steward, have authority to pay bounties, no other official aside from the Minister of Trade has such authority.

Governmental Budget
To this end I would encourage the creation of a budget, by the Landsraad, by which we can authorize ministries and other governmental bodies to pay out bounties of their own. This would spread the responsibility of bounties beyond a single minister. I feel this would get more money out to those that deserve it, and encourage a sense of fair play when it came to bounties, as it would reduce the threat of favoritism, or corruption. I am not saying the current MiniTrade is corrupt, simply that the system must be prepared for such a situation.
I would propose a cap based budget, with each ministry and any other governmental body authorized, given a set number of erb they can hand out each month. At the end of the month this amount is refreshed to the cap. This will provide adequate funds for distribution and prevent pooling or hoarding by a single ministry or body. If in a case more money is needed, there should be a provision for requesting additional funds from the Kaiser, MiniTrade or Landsraad.

[Andreas the Wise]

Sounds good. On the Voting System, I'll note that one of your concerns is already met - I wrote the legislation so that each time credits are reset, all Duchies start with 1 VC. If all the Dukes decided one month they wanted to go back to 1 duke 1 vote, it's entirely possible to do that, without even needing to remove the voting system.

On the budget, I shall be in further communication with your imperial niftiness.

[Kaiser Agni I]

Oh Excellent. I had a feeling it might have already been dealt with, but figured I'd say it anyways. That means the system is nice and flexible, lovely!

Well, I'd leave it to the Landsraad to produce a budget and means to implement it. I see no need for doing that myself. The Landsraad is more then capable of such a task. But I will take part in the discussion.