Legislative inspiration in the Polish legislative process

The institution of legislative initiative is a key element of the legislative process, because it starts legislative works. This concept has been widely discussed in the doctrine of constitutional law and it is a reason why in this article has been paid special attention to the pre-legislative stage. An attempt was made to distinguish the concept of the legislative inspiration from the legislative initiative. Basic features of a legislative initiative have been identified on the basis of constitutional provisions. Entities and ways to inspire the relevant bodies (which are able to bring a draft of the bill to the Sejm) have been determined under the provisions of various laws.

Launching Legislative Initiatives in the Light of the Provisions  of the Sejm Regulations

The Speaker, as the executive body of Polish Parliament has the authority to coordinate legislative activities. The authority covers formal control over a project brought, especially its justification, disposition to print the project and deliver it to the members of parliament as well as – which needs to be stressed – resolving the decision to undertake substantial works on a legislative project brought. The binding regulations concerning coordination of legislative activities were analyzed in the context of the parliamentary opposition’s laws. The problem broached relates to the legal instruments by the use of which the parliamentary opposition may influence the Speaker’s decision on undertaking substantial works on a legislative project brought by it.

The Cooperation between the Federal Government and the Authorities  of the Subjects of the Russian Federation in the Implementation  of Legislative Initiatives. Introductory Remarks

This paper deals with selected aspects of the cooperation of the Government of the Russian Federation with authorities of the subjects of the Russian Federation in the realization of the legislative initiatives. It is shown that cooperation of the central government with local legislatives is aimed at linking in the federal legislative process the partial, particular and specific interests – characteristic for parts of the Russian Federation – with building effective state policies.

The legislative initiative of the Government as an instrument  of legislative planning in the Russian Federation

The analysis is focused on the issues of governmental legislative initiative as an instrument of legislation planning in the Russian Federation. The author makes a thesis that it is the Government who – due to its legal position and competencies – should be the authority developing legislative changes aimed at building effective state policies. And legislative forecasting, planning and programming of the Government of the Russian Federation should have the features of the state’s legislative forecasting and planning. The paper shows and explains how and in which period the planning and programming of Government legislation are implemented. It also describes conditions that must be met so they become effective.

Citizens’ Legislative Initiative in Italy – Legal Regulation and Practice

The Italian constitution of 1947 regulates two forms of direct democracy: people’s initiative and a referendum. According to its Art. 71 sec. 2, at least fifty thousand voters have the right to introduce legislation, a draft must be formulated in articles. Details of the procedure are laid down in Law 352/1970 “Norme sui referendum previsti in Costituzione e sull’iniziativa legislativa del popolo”. The signature collection procedure is complicated and requires the collection of many declarations and confirmations. A review of citizens’ bills submitted to the chambers of the Italian Parliament from 1996 to today shows that the number of these bills varies between twenty and thirty some in a term (several per year). Until 2020, there was no discernible trend in this respect, neither upward nor downward. A very small proportion of the citizens’ bills submitted becomes law. Therefore, it should be assessed that the right to submit citizenship bills is also treated – or perhaps even primarily – as a political tool, an instrument used to initiate discussions on socially and politically important topics.

Privileging of Government Draft Laws in the Spanish Legislative Process

In the article the author identifies the normative arguments as well as the arguments from the constitutional practice justifying the axiom contained in Article 89 of the Spanish Constitution that government draft laws are privileged at the stage of exercising the legislative initiative by constitutionally authorised entities. This allows us to conclude that the thesis of privileging government draft laws finds support in other constitutional provisions and in the provisions of the standing orders of both parliamentary chambers at the stage of initiating legislative proceedings, which allows the Government to have a real influence on the scope of the legislative matter considered by the Cortes Generales.