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Major contracts

In the normal course of business, it is expected that the organization must enter into various minor contracts with other entities. These are to be distinguished from "major" contracts, which constitute a long-term committment which significantly binds the organization's freedom of action.

Major contracts between the organizations and other entities must be ratified by the legislature before taking effect, with a vote threshold of 2/3.

Before the legislature can ratify, the Court must examine the major contract and declare whether or not the major contract conflicts with the Bylaws or with any Found Rights. If the major contract does conflict, then an amendment to the Bylaws must be made which removes the impediment, and the Court must declare that the impediment has been removed, before ratification can proceed.

If the major contract falls solely within the sphere of external affairs, then it must be ratified only by the external affairs component of the legislature. If the major contract also commits the organization on non-external affairs topics, then it must first be ratified by the external affairs component, and then also by the primary component.

Ratification consists of the passage of an act of ratification. Note that, notwithstanding the requirements above about primary versus external affairs components, the Forum alone may pass a resolution to ratify, and if it is not vetoed by another house, this is sufficient to pass any act of ratification.

When legislation includes a target quantity that is expected to be met only with further action by the legislature, and for which whether or not the target is met has no consequences caused by legislation, that target quantity is called "ineffectual". An ineffectual target is effectively a promise by the legislature to solve some problem in the future. Ineffectual targets must be passed with a vote threshold of 2/3, like a major contract.