Monday, January 5, 2009

January Student Congress Topics

Domestic
Port Security
House of Representative Term Limits

International
US-Sudanese Relations
US-Venezuelan Relations

Virginia
College Savings Plan
Standards of Learning

Economic
Federal Reserve
College Affordability

TDL 4 will take place Saturday, January 17th, at Frank W. Cox High School. Legislation must be submitted as a comment on this post by midnight Tuesday, January 14th. If you are new to this process, you can find instructions in an earlier post.

22 comments:

Anonymous said...

A Bill to end the Standards of Learning


BE IT ENACTED BY THE STUDENT CONGRESS HERE ASSEMBLED THAT:
SECTION 1. The purpose of this bill is to end the standards of learning tests in all Virginia schools.
SECTION 2. Define any ambiguous terms inherent in the first section.
SECTION 3. The Virginia Department of Education will oversee the enactment of this bill.
SECTION 4. This bill will be enacted by May 2009.
SECTION 5. All laws in conflict with this legislation are hereby declared null and void.
Introduced by Tyler Hasty of Landstown High School

Anonymous said...

WHEREAS Hugo Chavez has gone down a route of negotiating with nations across the globe that threaten the ideals of freedom and democracy,

WHEREAS Hugo Chavez has centralized the government in Venezuela to an almost dictatorial socialist state,

WHEREAS Hugo Chavez yet still ignores the growing problem of human trafficking in his nation,

WHEREAS Hugo Chavez rules by decree and not by a more democratic, legislative process,

WHEREAS Hugo Chavez seeks to create a new world of socialism and authoritarian government in South America,

WHEREAS Hugo Chavez expelled Israeli diplomats, without cause, in an attempt to destabilize world politics,

RESOLVED by Congress here assembled that the United States of America:

1.Formally condemn the actions of Hugo Chavez. Also, the United States of America should cut off all foreign aid to the nation of Venezuela and seek to establish better relations with the democratic nations of South America.

2.Recommend that the United States Secretary of State make a trip to the nations of South America that are still friendly to the ideas of freedom.


3.Cut all imports of Venezuelan oil in half by the year 2010 with a continued goal of being energy independent of Venezuela by the year 2012.

4.Place tariffs on all Venezuelan goods. These tariffs to be set by a proportionate bi-partisan Congressional committee with the money to be set aside for the American Department of Education.

5.Recommend to President Obama that the United States invest more heavily in alternative and domestic energy sources so as to eliminate the need for foreign oil from Venezuela.

Respectfully Submitted,
John Woolard-First Colonial High School

Anonymous said...

A BILL TO INCREASE PORT SECURITY IN ORDER TO PREVENT FUTURE TERRORIST ATTACKS AND TO PROTECT THE AMERICAN PUBLIC AND INFRASTRUCTURE.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE STUDENT CONGRESS HERE ASSEMBLED THAT:

Section 1:This bill shall increase port security.

Section 2:Port security efforts shall increase due to the alamring threat in the War on Terrorism.

Section 3:This bill go into effect in the year 2010.

Section 4:The Department of Homeland Security will oversee this bill.

Section 5:All laws in conflict with this legislation are hereby declared null and void.

Introduced by David Decker
Grassfield High School

Anonymous said...

A Bill to End the Federal Reserve Bank


BE IT ENACTED BY THE STUDENT CONGRESS HERE ASSEMBLED THAT:
SECTION 1. The Federal Reserve bank be eliminated and the nation return its currency to the gold standard.
SECTION 2. The Treasury Department will oversee the enforcement of this bill.
SECTION 3. This Bill will go into effect immediately.
SECTION 4. All laws in conflict with this legislation are hereby declared null and void.
Introduced by First Colonial High School

Anonymous said...

A Resolution Amending the Constitution to
Limit the House of Representatives Terms


WHEREAS, The current terms of the House of Representatives render the Representatives unable to represent their constituents effectively.
RESOLVED, That upon approval of two-thirds of the chamber of this Student Congress here assembled, the following Constitutional amendment be sent to the state legislatures for approval:
SECTION 1: That The House of Representatives members be limited to three terms of office.
SECTION 2: The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Introduced by First Colonial High School

Anonymous said...

A bill to impose a four terms of two years, term limit to the House of Representatives.

Be it enacted by the Student Congress here assembled that:

Section 1: This bill will set a four term limit in the House of Representatives.

Section 2: Term limits will limit the amount of Professional Politicians in the House and bring the House of Representatives back to what the founding fathers meant it to be.

Section 3: This bill will go into effect in the next fiscal year.

Section 4: All laws in conflict with this legislation are hereby declared null and void.

Introduced by Ashley Baggett of Bayside High School

Rachel Brooks said...

A Bill to Improve College Affordability

Article I: The United States Federal Government will hereby increase academic scholarships for higher education to highly qualified candidates from families with low incomes with special consideration to any desire of the candidates to enter essential job fields.
Article II: A highly qualified candidate is defined as a student with a notable grade point average, admirable class rank, exceptional extracurricular involvement, and related achievements. A recommended low income is defined as a household income of under $50,000 per year. An essential job field is defined as a career that is crucial to society and requires higher education yet maintains a lack of student interest.
Article III: The Department of Education will oversee this bill.
Article IV: This bill will be implemented immediately upon passage.
Article V: All other laws that are in conflict with this new policy shall hereby be declared null and void.
Respectfully submitted,
Senator Rachel Brooks
Princess Anne High School

Anonymous said...

A BILL FOR THE UNITED STATES TO ESTABLISH A CRUDE OIL EMBARGO AGAINST VENEZUELA

BE IT ENACTED BY THE STUDENT CONGRESS HERE ASSEMBLED THAT:
Article I: The United States will hereby establish an embargo against Venezuela.

Article II: This embargo will be imposed on all U.S oil companies importing crude oil from Venezuela in support of Hugo Chavez.

Article III: This Bill shall take effect immediately upon passage.

Article IV: The United Nations will oversee this embargo.

Article V: All laws in conflict with this bill will hereby be declared null and void.

Respectfully Submitted,

Grassfield High School

Anonymous said...

DCHS Debate Team said...
A Bill to end the Standards of Learning

Article I: The United States Government hereby dismisses Virginia Standards of Learning tese from Virginia Public Schools.

Article II: The Virgina Standards of Learning is a test used to determine capability or set expectations for students learning.

Article III: this bill will be seen by the Virginia Board of Education.

Article IV: the bill will possibly take effect in 1 year prior to passage.

V: All laws in conflict with this legislation are hereby declared null and void.

Respectfully submitted,
Senator Ivana Baker
Deep Creek High School

Anonymous said...

DCHS Debate said...
A Bill to increase college savng plans

Article I: The United States Government hereby increases college saving plans

Article II: A college saving plan is an account used to help students save for college.

Article III: The Virginia Department of Education will oversee the enactment of this bill.

Article IV: The bill will possibly take effect in 1 year prior to passage.

Article V: All laws in conflict with this legislation are hereby declared null and void.

Respectfully submitted,
Senator Oshayia Nixon
Deep Creek High School

Anonymous said...

A BILL TO ABANDON THE STANDARDS OF LEARNING TESTS AND TO PROPOSE A BETTER WAY TO ASSESS A STUDENT'S KNOWLEDGE OF A PARTICULAR SUBJECT.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE STUDENT CONGRESS HERE ASSEMBLED THAT:
Section 1:This bill shall abandon the standards of learning tests in order to determine a student's knowledge of a particular subject in a less restricted curriculum.
Section 2:The Virginia standards of learning tests were developed to determine a student's knowledge of a specific subject.

Section 3:The Virginia Department of Education will oversee this bill.
Section 4:This bill will be enacted by 2011.
Section 5:All laws in conflict with this legislation are hereby declared null and void.
Introduced by David DeckerGrassfield High School

Anonymous said...

A Bill to make college tuition more affordable for the average American household.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE STUDENT CONGRESS HERE ASSEMBLED THAT:
SECTION 1. This bill is to help the average American family to be able to afford
paying for their children’s college admissions, by giving more money plus FAFSA, to go toward their child’s education
SECTION 2. There are many way now for financial aid like FAFSA. But sometimes
that still isn’t enough. This bill will help every family so no child has to
give up education. With this bill there would be an financial opportunity
called Tuition America, which is where every person applying to college
would fill out this application and get at least fifteen thousand dollars off
on their whole college career or more than fifteen thousand if they needed
it.
SECTION 3. The Virgina Department of Education will oversee this bill
SECTION 4. This bill will go into effect during the 2010-2009 school year
SECTION 5. All laws in conflict with this legislation are hereby declared null and void.
Introduced by Amanda Seymour of Hickory High School

-----------------------------------

A Bill to Eliminate Standards of Learning Tests (SOL's)


BE IT ENACTED BY THE STUDENT CONGRESS HERE ASSEMBLED THAT:
SECTION 1. This bill is to eliminate SOL's from the education system of the schools of
Virginia.
SECTION 2. SOL's are standards of learning test that students attending a public school
in Virginia are required to take for several subjects.
SECTION 3. This bill take immediately upon passage.
SECTION 4. The passage of this bill will be overseen by the Virginia Board of
Education
SECTION 5. All laws in conflict with this bill will be declared null and void.
Introduced by Falak Kamran of Hickory High School

-----------------------------------

A Bill to Establish Limits on Consecutive Terms on the House of Representatives



Section 1: Individuals elected to the House of Representatives may only serve a limited

number of consecutive terms as defined in section two below. There shall be no limit on

the number of non-consecutuve terms an individual may serve.

Section 2: Individuals elected to the House of Representatives shall be limited to no

more than four consecutive two-year terms. At the conclusion of the fourth term, the

representative shall be prohibited from again serving as a representative. After having

skipped at least one term, the representative may again be elected and serve.

Section 3: The Congress of the United States of America will enforce this policy in

accordance with their Constitutional authority to make their own rules and regulations.

Section 4: This policy shall be implemented in the year 2010 at the time of the next

regularly scheduled election for representatives to the House of Representatives, or on the

first Tuesday of Nevember 2010, whichever shall come first.

Section 5: All laws in conflict with this policy are hereby declared null and void.

Introduced by Justice Kaufman of Hickory High School

----------------------------------

A Bill to Lengthen a House of Representative's Term to 3 Years

BE IT ENACTED BY THE STUDENT CONGRESS HERE ASSEMBLED THAT:
SECTION 1: This bill shall lengthen a House of Representative's term from 2 years to 3 years.

SECTION 2: A House of Representative is apart of the United States Congress

SECTION 3: The U.S. Constitution will oversee the enforcement of this bill.

SECTION 4: This bill shall take effect after each individual representative's term is completed and the office is up for election, therefore whoever wins shall be granted with a 3 year term.

SECTION 5: All laws in conflict with this legislation are hereby declared null and void.

INTRODUCED BY:
Kelli Montgomery of Hickory High School

-----------------------------------

A Bill To Abolish SOLs To Improve

Virginia's Standards for Education





BE IT ENACTED BY THE STUDENT CONGRESS HERE ASSEMBLED THAT:



Section 1: The state of Virginia shall discontinue the Standards of

Learning assessment tests.
Section 2: Standards of Learning is a program of the Commonwealth of

Virginia; it sets forth learning and achievement expectations

for grades Kindergarten through 12th grade.


Section 3: The Virginia Department of Education shall oversee this

change.

Section 4: This bill shall take effect upon the start of the 2009-2010

school year.
Section 5: All laws in conflict with this bill shall be declared null and

void.

Introduced by Kiara Scruggs of Hickory High School

----------------------------------

A Bill to Implement a Tax Credit to Assist with College Costs

BE IT ENACTED BY THE STUDENT CONGRESS ASSEMBLED THAT:



SECTION 1: The United States government will attempt to alleviate the burden of expensive college costs.

SECTION 2: Each state government, through federal subsidies, will offer a onetime $4000 tax credit to any student who hopes to or currently attends a public college or university. These students must complete 100 hours of community service within a 24 month period before applying for the credit. This credit will be available to high school juniors and seniors, as well as current college students.

SECTION 3: The Department of Education will oversee the enforcement of this bill.

SECTION 4: This bill shall take effect January 1st, 2011. Beginning on January 1st, 2010, students will be able to start earning service hours.

SECTION 5: All laws in conflict with this legislation are hereby declared null and void.

Introduced by Marshele Bryant of Hickory High School


-----------------------------------

Helping Hand Bill


BE IT ENACTED BY THE STUDENT CONGRESS HERE ASSEMBLED THAT:
SECTION 1. The U.S. will establish a joint organization with the cooperation of other
global nations to provide developmental and humanitarian aid to Sudan.
SECTION 2. Humanitarian aid is defined as material or logistical assistance to alleviate
human suffering, maintain human dignity, and save lives. Developmental
aid helps address the socioeconomic factors that led to the crisis.
SECTION 3. The United Nations will oversee the enforcement of this bill.
A. This new organization will be considered a part of the United Nations.
SECTION 4. This bill shall take effect June 21, 2009.
SECTION 5. All bills in conflict with this bill will hereby be declared null and void.
Introduced by Samantha Carter of Hickory High School

----------------------------------

A Bill to Abolish the SOL’s

BE IT ENACTED BY THE STUDENT CONGRESS HERE ASSEMBLED THAT:

Section I: This bill shall enforce the Virginia Department of Education to abolish the State based exam known as the SOL’s (Standard of Learning) Will replace the SOL with the normal end of course final.

Section II: The Virginia Department of Education shall move to abolish the SOL. Therefore, allowing teachers to have more independence in the classroom; and not having them to teach an SOL curriculum.

Section III: This bill shall take effect in the 2009-2010 school year.

Section IV: The Virginia Department of Education will oversee the enforcement of this bill.

Section V: All laws in conflict with this bill are hereby null and void.



Introduced by Steevi Seals from Hickory High School


-----------------------------------

Resolution to Stop Corruption in Venezuela

WHEREAS, Stated by the United States Government that Hugo Chávez is a threat to democracy; and

WHEREAS, Hugo Chávez has been in President of Venezuela since 1998 which has given him a choke-hold on the Venezuela government and military; and

WHEREAS, He has lead to numerous mayors and governors to be removed from office because they opposed his views; and

WHEREAS, That Hugo Chávez has blamed the US for some of the numerous riots and revolts against him ; and

SO BE IT RESOLVED, By the Student Congress assembled here that we take a stand and state that we had nothing to do with the revolts and that Hugo Chávez is the one to blame for the Corruption of his country. And that if Hugo Chávez really wants democracy for his country. Then Hugo Chávez should listen to the people of his country instead of leading it towards socialist ideals.

Introduced by Steven Diehl of Hickory High School

Unknown said...

A Resolution to Increase the Export Tax on Electrical Equipment and Machinery Sales to Pressure China to Reduce the Sale of Advanced Weapons to Sudan


WHEREAS, There is civil war in Sudan,
WHEREAS, The advanced weapons used in the civil war in Sudan are being sold by China,
WHEREAS, The advanced weapons that are being used perpetuate war and increase bloodshed in Sudan and decrease the chances to achieve peace by diplomatic means,
WHEREAS, China imports electrical equipment and machinery from the U.S. in high levels, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Student Congress here assembled make the following recommendation that the United States of America increase the export tax on electrical equipment and machinery in order to pressure China to reduce the sale of advanced weapons to Sudan.
Introduced by Natalie Powers of Grassfield High School

Anonymous said...

BE IT ENACTED BY THE STUDENT CONGRESS HERE ASSEMBLED THAT:

SECTION 1. Under the jurisdiction of the Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Customs and Boarder Protection will increase its efforts in physically inspecting cargo containers entering U.S. sea ports.

SECTION 2. The Department of Homeland Security will raise standards in security and oversight at all U.S. seaports handling commercial shipping.

SECTION 3. Collaboration will be streamlined under the Department of Homeland Security to reduce bureaucracy within the Coast Guard, US Customs and Boarder Protection, Maritime Administration, and the Transportation Security Agency.

SECTION 4. All laws in conflict with this legislation are hereby declared null and void.

Respectfully Submitted,
Kristina Brown-First Colonial High School

Anonymous said...

Bill to Simplify the Virginia College Savings Plan

I. The Virginia State Government hereby eradicates the Virginia Prepaid Education Program, CollegeAmerica Program, and the CollegeWealth program.
II. The Virginia College Savings Plan consists of four plans that act as investment strategies for aiding families in the payment of higher education expenses. The plan includes the Virginia Education Savings Trust, the Virginia Prepaid Education Program, CollegeAmerica Program, and the CollegeWealth program.
III. The Virginia Department of Education will oversee this bill.
IV. This bill will be implemented immediately upon passage.
V. All other laws that are in conflict with this new policy shall hereby be declared null and void.
Respectfully submitted,
Senator Sunny Gautam
Princess Anne High School

Anonymous said...

Amendment for House Term Limits

ARTICLE I: The United States Constitution is hereby amended to prohibit congressmen in the House of Representatives from serving more than six terms in the House.
ARTICLE II: The US Constitution defines one term in the House of Representatives as two years (Article II, Section 1).
ARTICLE III: This bill will be overseen by the respective executive agencies.
ARTICLE IV: This bill shall go into effect immediately upon its passage in Congress and ratification by 3/4ths of the States.
ARTICLE V: All other laws in conflict with this bill are hereby declared null and void.

Respectfully Submitted,
Krista O’Connell
Princess Anne High School

Anonymous said...

A Resolution to Go Into of Sudan
1 Whereas Sudan has large amounts of oil and is of interest to the American people
2 Whereas America has previously stood by when people have been killed in genocide
3 Whereas President-elect Obama plans to take aggressive action in Sudan
4 Therefore be it resolved by this Student Congress here assembled that the United States 5 send military aid to Sudan in order to assists the present forces with helicopters and 6 other logistical needs and equipment.
Respectfully submitted
Tom Scott-Sharoni
Princess Anne High School


Act to Enhance the Standards of Learning

Article1: Virginia State Government hereby raises the passing score of Standard of Learning Test to 420 and 516 for advanced proficiency score.
Article 2: Standards of Learning (SOL) is a program of the Commonwealth of Virginia. It sets forth learning and achievement expectations for grades K-12 in Virginia's Public Schools. The standards represent what many teachers, school administrators, parents, and business and community leaders believe schools should teach and students should learn.
Article 3: This bill shall be implemented immediately upon passage.
Article 4: Overseen by the Department of Education.
Article 5: All laws in conflict are hereby declared null and void.


Respectfully submitted by
David Choi


Port Security Act

Article I: The United States Federal Government shall hereby create new underwater surveillance systems to defend American ports from underwater intruders.
Article II: Underwater surveillance is a system that uses tools such as sonar to identify credible threats to ports and surrounding waters.
Article III: This bill will be implemented immediately.
Article IV: This bill will be enforced by the Department of Defense.
Article V: All laws in conflict with this bill are null and void.

Respectfully submitted,
Joseph Newton
Princess Anne High School

Anonymous said...

A Bill to transfer control of the Federal Reserve

Be it enacted by the Student Congress here assembled that:
Article I: The Federal Reserve and all its component parts be put under the control of the President.
Article II:The President will have control over all the current activities of the Federal Reserve.
Article III: This Bill will take effect immediately upon passage.
Article IV: Congress will oversee the transfer of power.
Article V: All laws in conflict with this legislation are hereby declared null and void.

Introduced by Ben Midas of Grassfield High School

Anonymous said...

A bill to improve banking regulations

Article I: The Federal Reserve hereby declares that all central banks must keep at least 10% of their revenue within the bank at all times. The banks cannot loan this money or use it for any other project within or outside of the bank.
Article II: A bank’s revenue is the money deposited into accounts by its customers.
Article III: This bill will be implemented immediately.
Article IV: This bill will be overseen by the Treasury department.
Article V: All other laws in conflict with this bill are hereby declared null and void.

Respectfully submitted,
Senator Ying Zhou
Princess Anne High School

Anonymous said...

Resolution to Reduce Imports from Venezuela

WHEREAS, Venezuela exports about 50.0% of its goods to the United States,
WHEREAS, US and Venezuelan relationships have been fraying in the past years,
WHEREAS, Venezuela is a major transit country of heroin and cocaine into the United States,
WHEREAS, Venezuela has publicly denounced the US government and befriended Cuba,
WHEREAS, the United States has no transit relations with Cuba,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE STUDENT CONGRESS HERE ASSEMBLED THAT:
The United States Federal Government hereby requests a reduction of its imports from Venezuela to 50.0% every four years till 2025, when it finally ends all trade, or until the Venezuelan government reduces its relations with Cuba, increases relations with us, and increases its Anti-drug efforts.

Respectfully submitted,
Pratyush Agarwal
Princess Anne High School

Anonymous said...

A bill to improve banking regulations

Article I: The Federal Reserve hereby declares that all central banks must keep at least 10% of their revenue within the bank at all times. The banks cannot loan this money or use it for any other project within or outside of the bank.
Article II: A bank’s revenue is the money deposited into accounts by its customers.
Article III: This bill will be implemented immediately.
Article IV: This bill will be overseen by the Treasury department.
Article V: All other laws in conflict with this bill are hereby declared null and void.
Respectfully submitted,
Senator Ying Zhou
Princess Anne High School

Anonymous said...

The Educaion Standards Bill

Aticle I: All multiple choice standardized tests in Virginia will be replaced by performance based assessments.
Article II: Performance based assessments are defined as assessments which use essays and projects to evaluae the skills of a student, as opposed to a multiple choice test.
Article III: This legislation will be implemented starting in the 2009-2010 school year.
Article IV: This legislation will be ovrseen by the Virginia Department of Educaion.
Article V: All laws in conflict with this legislation shall hereby be declared null ad void.
Respectfully Submitted,
Billy Annunziata
Princess Anne High School