The legislative competence of the Senate: the scope of the amendments to the political practice and jurisdiction of the Constitutional Tribunal

The amendments proposed by the Senate from an important element in terms of legislative proceedings. The current arrangements specified in the Constitution of the Republic of Poland regarding the Senate are raising many doubts, as they are clearly creating uncertainty about the authority of this body. This is being demonstrated in the jurisdictional practice of the Constitutional Tribunal, as well as in the political practice. The origin of the scope of the issue of the amendments can be found in the disputes over authority between the Sejm and the Senate after 1989. The jurisdiction of the Polish Constitutional Tribunal over the body in question has been exercised in a way which has significantly influenced the process of limiting the Upper Chamber’s authority. The current experience regarding the amendments proposed by the Senate shows that this aspect of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland needs to be reformed.

Commemorative resolutions of the Senat in the Polish legal order

The author at the outset clarifies the title concept of „commemorative resolution”. The Senat’s commemorative resolution is a symbolic, nonbinding, nonauthoritative and solemn form of parliamentary expression. The given kind of resolution is neither normative act (source of law) nor an act of law administration. It doesn’t belong to the legal system, but is part of the broader construct of the legal order. There are two types of commemorative resolutions, namely commemorative resolutions in the strict sense and the so called problem resolutions. The first ones serve to pay tribute to national heroes and to commemorate important moments in the nation’s and the state’s history and tradition. With the second ones the Senat usually addresses the current domestic and international affairs. In this form MPs turn to specified authorities to take appropriate actions to achieve the desired purposes anticipated by parliament. The next part of the article presents the procedure for adopting commemorative resolutions, in particular with an emphasis on the aspects distinguishing it from the procedure for adopting ordinary resolutions. The author references to relevant provisions of The Standing Orders of the Senat including it’s amendment introduced in the Resolution of 20 June 2013. The last section of the study deals with commemorative resolutions in the Senat’s parliamentary practice in the years 1997–2013. The author gives statistical data related to these resolutions and contained in three tables. Based on quantitative research He indicates that number of commemorative resolutions has increased from 5 in the Senat of the fourth term to 38 in the Senat of the seventh term. Finally, the author concludes that commemorative resolutions are part of the historical policy of the state. In this way, the upper house „safeguards the national heritage”, as required by article 5 of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland and „bequeaths to future generations all that is valuable from over one thousand years’ (Poland’s) heritage” as referred to in the preamble to the same act.