Statecorp
Statecorps are government owned or controlled business enterprises. In the United Orcs, statecorps have a very long-standing presence and have been instrumental in the formation of the Union.
They can provide services required by the public that otherwise would not be economically viable as a private enterprise, or that do not fit exactly within the scope of any ministry. They are involved in everything from the distribution, use, and price of certain goods and services to energy development, resource extraction, public transportation, cultural promotion, and property management.
Example industries
Statecorps primarily operate in the domain of infrastructure, strategic goods and services (e.g. comms services, arms manufacturing and procurement), natural resources and energy (e.g. power facilities, alternative energy delivery), politically sensitive business, broadcasting, banking, demerit goods, and merit goods (healthcare). Cabinet ministers often control the shares of statecorps relevant to their ministry.
Statecorps can also help foster industries that are considered economically desirable and that would otherwise not be developed through private investments. When nascent or 'infant' industries have difficulty getting investments from the private sector (perhaps because the good that is being produced requires very risky investments, when patenting is difficult, or when spillover effects exist).
Some statecorps are expected to be profitable organisations, while others are non-commercial and rely entirely on public funds to operate. Further, in the federal sphere, certain statecorps can be an agent or non-agent of the United Orcs. One with agent status is entitled to the same constitutional prerogatives, privileges, and immunities held by the Government. The government is thus entirely responsible for the actions of these organisations. The UO is not liable for statecorps with non-agent status, except for actions of that corporation carried out on instruction from the government, though there may be "moral obligations" on the part of the government in other circumstances.
History
Prior to the formation of statecorps as presently understood, much of UO space was settled and governed by a similar type of entity called a chartered company. These companies were established by a royal charter by the King of Orceron, but were owned by private investors typically from powerful Orc clans. They fulfilled the dual roles of promoting government policy abroad and making a return for shareholders. Certain companies were mainly trading businesses, by some were given a mandate (by royal charter) to govern a specific territory called a charter colony, and the head of this colony, called a proprietary governor, was both a business manager and the governing authority in the area.
With the founding of HFed and the disbanding of the UO as a federal state, the Collective assumed direct control of all statecorp assets.
List of UO statecorps
- Cermonik Terminals Inc.
- Orceronian Broadcasting Company (partial investment)
- Orcish Tourism Commission
- Orcish Transport Security Authority
- Orcish War Museum
- SMOYCorp (partially owned)
- Union Central Bank
- Union Deposit Insurance Corporation
- Union Post Corporation
- Union Pilotage Authority
- Union Prospections & Explorations Corporation (UNIPEX)
- United Armaments Research & Procurement
- United Defence Construction
- United War Systems (UWS)
- UO Council for the Arts
