Tatarstan adopted a law on the Constitutional Council – Kommersant

Yesterday, the State Council of Tatarstan adopted the law “On the Constitutional Council of the Republic of Tatarstan” in the first and third readings. According to the head of the parliamentary committee on state building and local self-government, Albert Khabibullin (United Russia), the new “permanent state body” will issue “conclusions on the constitutionality or unconstitutionality” of the laws of the republic and other regulations. The head (rais) of Tatarstan, the regional parliament and its deputies, the government, all municipalities and ombudsmen of the republic will apply to the council with requests. In addition, the council will explain the norms of the constitution of Tatarstan, as well as express “an opinion on the conformity of the constitution” of draft treaties and agreements. Citizens and organizations will be able to apply to the Constitutional Council if “their rights have been violated.”

The Council is being created to replace the Constitutional Court of Tatarstan, which operated in 2000–2022. Earlier, the State Duma amended the federal law “On the Judicial System” in connection with the adoption of a new version of the Constitution of the Russian Federation. It established a list of courts that make up the judicial system, but regional constitutional courts were not included in it (at that time they operated in 16 constituent entities of the Russian Federation). The federal legislator demanded that they be eliminated by 2023, but allowed the creation of constitutional councils. At the moment, such bodies have already been created in several regions, for example, in Bashkiria.

“Acts of the Constitutional Council are obligatory for execution or obligatory only for consideration? What is their legal force? Igor Bikeev, a member of the United Russia faction, asked at a meeting of the State Council. Mr. Khabibullin answered him that “for consideration”: “They do not have the power of a decision that is binding on execution.”

Another United Russia party, Ramil Tukhvatullin, asked: “Which branch of government will the council be based in?” According to Albert Khabibullin, it is “an independent state body.” Speaker of the State Council of Tatarstan Farid Mukhametshin explained that “there were lengthy discussions with the federal center, long discussions within the republic.” “We came to the conclusion that we need to make it independent, small, but authoritative. In order for the population to have the opportunity to apply to the Constitutional Council, and not to go to St. Petersburg to the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, ”concluded Mr. Mukhametshin.

The new council has not yet been formed. The law adopted by the State Council must be signed by the head of the republic, Rustam Minnikhanov. The Council shall consist of three members appointed by the Parliament of the Republic. Two candidates will be proposed by the speaker of the State Council, one by the rais of Tatarstan. The chairman of the council will be appointed by the parliament on the proposal of the head of the republic. The Constitutional Court of Tatarstan consisted of six judges. In 2022, the budget of the republic spent 69 million rubles on its maintenance. How much the maintenance of the Constitutional Council will cost is not clear from the adopted law.

Kirill Antonov, Kazan