[[Victor Gil de Rubio]]
Aside from Star Law the UPF has created several
government agencies to handle certain common
problems which stem from governing such a large
amount of territory. The success of these agencies has
long been questioned, but they are the best that the
UPF can create, limited by the amount of influence they
can exert on the sovereign rights of each inhabited
planet in the Frontier.
League of Ambassadors (LA)
The League of Ambassadors is a government agency
created after the First Sathar War in an effort to use
diplomacy whenever possible when dealing with races
that are not members of the UPF. Lately though the
League has had its mandate broadened to allow them
to serve as go-betweens between member races in an
effort to avoid escalating a conflict.
The League of Ambassadors’ duties often involve any
negotiation between planetary and interstellar societies
and the UPF. They are also mandated to oversee any
first-contact negotiations, which puts them at odds
with the Frontier Office of Survey and Statistics.
The Colonial Affairs Committee (CAC)
This government agency handles matters pertaining to
the colonization of planets. Any authorized colony in
the Frontier has at least one small office where a
representative from the CAC works. The Colonial Affairs
Committee’s job is to insure that the regulations set
out in the Frontier charter are observed in regards to
any new colony. These rules generally amount to
guidelines regarding the sovereignty of higher lifeforms
encountered on planets. In the event of a first
contact situation occurring, the CAC officer must notify
the LA office closest to the colony world, and has the
authority to establish first contact rules with the new
species until a LA representative arrives.
The CAC officer has the right to take over the
management of a colony in the case of an emergency,
or if the colonial government is found violating Frontier
guidelines, but may only control the colony until he is
relieved by a new colonial government agent, or a
representative from a mega-corp if the colony is owned
by a mega-corp.
Frontier Office of Survey and Statistics
The Frontier Office of Survey and Statistics is
mandated to survey the worlds of the Frontier and to
keep accurate records of all worlds in the Frontier. The
Exploration Service (ES) is charged with exploring the
known Frontier and what lies beyond the Frontier. The
exploration division has the authority to certify worlds
for colonization, and can make detailed observations
about new species encountered and recommend how
the LA should approach a first contact situation.
UPF Trade Commission
In response to the growing number of aggressive
Mega-Corps, the UPF has created a government agency
whose responsibilities is to set tariffs, duties, rules and
regulations for all merchant ships in the Frontier,
whether they are corporate or independent. All
merchants must be licensed by the UPFTC in order to
work in the Frontier. However, the UPFTC has no
authority in the Rim, and many merchants who cannot
pay the high tariffs have started to move to the Rim.
At present UPFTC depends on Star Law to enforce its
policies, and their constantly trying to convince the UPF
that if they had their own enforcement arm, it would
free up Star Law resources. At present, though, their
requests have met with refusal. UPFTC operates many
customs houses throughout the Frontier. Depending on
the population of a star system this can either be a
small office with 2-5 customs officers or can be large
building employing hundreds and operating large
warehouses and impound lots.
Frontier Trade Administration (FTA)
While the UPFTC oversees the operations of merchant
ships throughout the Frontier, the FTA oversees
corporate practices, and is a judicial branch of
government authorized to fine or otherwise punishes
corporations who do not follow fair trade standards.
The FTA has only been in operation for two decades but
its power has, on more than one occasion, been felt by
mega-corps who have been caught participating in
illegal activities such as selling junk bonds, or
participating in “ice wars”.
UPF Postal Service
The Frontier is huge and getting messages from one
planet to another is vital to maintaining the Federation.
The UPFPS or just the PS as it is often called is in
charge of interstellar communications. The PS
maintains a fleet of courier type ships that make mail
runs throughout the Frontier, but they often contract
privately owned merchant ships, or purchase space on
corporate owned star craft, to deliver correspondence,
and packages throughout the known Frontier.
The Warmaster’s Guild
The Warmaster’s Guild was an independently operated
guild which ran a registry for mercenary companies in
the Frontier. Eventually, the guild received a license
from the UPF and the Rim Coalition. The Warmaster’s
guild is responsible for assuring that mercenary
companies follow strict guidelines regarding the terms
of war, the treatment of captives, and what weapons
are outlawed by the UPF and Rim Coalition. To insure
that licensed mercenary groups obey the regulations,
the WG often assigns company overseers to travel
along with mercenary companies to hotspots. These
overseers often act as go-betweens and diplomats, but
may defend themselves as needed. The WG also
maintain a standing military force, in case a situation
gets out of hand they have to be called in to resolve a
matter.