Democratic countries are built on the balance of three branches of government: legislative, executive and judicial. In this article, attention will be paid to the first of them, and now we will consider what the State Duma of the Russian Federation and its functions are.
general information
So, for starters, the full name is the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation. This is the legislature. His work is regulated by the Constitution of the Russian Federation and federal laws. According to them, this authority can take decisions:
- About the approval of the draft law.
- On the consent of the President of the Russian Federation to the election and appointment of the Prime Minister.
- On the appointment or dismissal of the Chairman of the Accounts Chamber and half of its composition of auditors, the Central Bank and the Commissioner for Human Rights.
- About (in) trust in the Government of the Russian Federation.
- The announcement of the amnesty.
- About the charges against the President of the Russian Federation.
- Regarding the parliamentary request.
- About sending representatives of the State Duma to the Constitutional Court.
And that's not all. Only her main powers were listed. But due to the fact that the State Duma is the legislative body, which is the central representative of the legislative branch, that is, it must work out all aspects of cooperation, it should be noted that there are a fairly large number of institutions that help them in this matter.
The specifics of filing and reviewing laws
But speaking directly about the main functions of the State Duma, this is the development and adoption of the legislative framework on which the country lives. Who can contribute them? Draft decisions can be sent from deputies, the Federation Council (or its individual members), the President of the Russian Federation, commissions and committees of the State Duma, the Supreme and Supreme Arbitration Courts. Everything introduced is considered by the State Duma. Moreover, different documents have different ways of receiving and processing them. It should be noted that ordinary citizens cannot directly submit laws for consideration to the State Duma. But nevertheless, almost everyone can participate in the construction of the country. In this case, you can use the services of an intermediary. As such, the most often acts is a territorially assigned deputy, whom people turn to and offer their best practices. Although if the problem is thematic, then you can contact the appropriate committee.
About procedural aspects
If we talk about draft resolutions, they should be submitted to the Council of the State Duma with a minimum margin of three days along with the text of the request, appeal or statement. That is, if the document arrives on Monday, it will not be considered before Thursday. This is necessary so that all deputies can familiarize themselves with its contents. Although it should be noted a large number of different nuances that exist in connection with the presence of the principle of separation of powers. In this vein, one cannot but mention the process of considering and deciding on candidates for the post of Prime Minister. The president offers the person, and the State Duma makes a decision, fulfilling its functions. The State Duma of the Russian Federation, however, can reject proposals quite a limited number of times. So, if they did not agree on a candidacy, then the president himself can appoint the Prime Minister, dissolve the State Duma and call new elections.
How does the State Duma work?
The functions and powers of the legislative body, as we see, from this position are rather limited. But is this really so? It should be noted that the legislature can influence the executive, and very significantly. Thus, the State Duma may express distrust of the Government. For this, it is necessary that at least one fifth of the deputies make a corresponding proposal. After that there are discussions, in the framework of which questions are asked and answers are searched. All this happens with the involvement of the Prime Minister. If all the procedural steps are completed, then the decision may be adopted by secret or open ballot. In order for it to be successfully adopted, you need to get a majority of the votes. In the case of a positive decision, it is passed on to the president. He may dissolve the Government or disagree with the decision of the State Duma. In the second case, if she repeats this procedure in less than three months, the president will have little choice - to dismiss either the executive branch or the legislative branch.
Is the guarantor of the Constitution omnipotent?
It may seem that the president has too many powers. But he also has limitations. So, for example, he cannot personally dismiss the Government. It is simply not its function. The State Duma of the Russian Federation may consider his proposal and support the guarantor or refuse him. Moreover, if we talk about responsibility, it should be noted that the Government reports precisely to the State Duma. This system may seem rather confusing. But a similar approach is used in many countries to exclude the coming of authoritarian or totalitarian elements to power. We should not forget that the State Duma may contribute to the removal of the president from power.
About activities in the field of finance
If we talk about the functions, the State Duma of the Russian Federation is also important in that it affects what kind of people will manage the Central Bank. It is no secret that this structure has in its hands a lot of levers of influence on the existing financial situation. So, it depends on the State Duma who will be the chairman and which people will enter the board of directors. They report to the main legislative body once a year. It should be noted that in addition, hearings are held on the results of activities. All information received is subsequently sent to the president and the government. It should be noted that due to the provided independence of the Central Bank, appointment and dismissal is carried out according to a complicated procedure. So what are the State Duma performs functions? The State Duma is engaged in the appointment and controls the quality of work. If she believes that people cannot fulfill their duties in full, then they are suspended from their fulfillment.
Election monitoring
How diverse are the functions performed! The State Duma is responsible for a large number of aspects of public life, and one of the most important is elections. And she not only passes legislation on which they will be passed, but also participates in the formation of the Central Election Commission. So, five of its fifteen members are appointed by the State Duma. Another 5 to determine the Federation Council and the president. Such a distribution mechanism was chosen with the aim of monitoring the situation on the part of various branches of government and preventing fraud on the part of “politicians” who were not at hand.
The removal of the president from power
This procedure is described in detail in Chapter No. 22 of the Rules of Procedure of the State Duma. The removal of the president from power can be initiated if no less than a third of the State Duma’s corresponding initiative has received the corresponding initiative. In this case, it is necessary to make an indication of specific crimes that are charged to him. All material is sent to a special commission, which ensures that all points of the procedure are complied with. She checks the validity of the charge that has been brought forward. In addition, the commission must ensure that the quorum is respected and that the correct vote count is carried out. If there are no complaints, then you need to make sure that the requirements of other procedural rules have been met. At the meetings of the commission, all messages about known facts of the crime (s) are listened to and all relevant documents are considered. She is also required to listen to the representative of the President of the Russian Federation and make an opinion. After that, the issue raised is considered at a meeting of the State Duma. This is accompanied by discussions, which (for successful promotion) should receive two-thirds of the votes of deputies. Voting must be secret. It goes by filling out ballots. After a positive decision is made, it goes to the Federation Council, as well as to the Supreme and Constitutional Courts within five days. If two-thirds of the votes could not be obtained, a decision on refusal is issued.
Conclusion
As you can see, the State Duma boasts a rather extensive field of activity. But still, her main task is to ensure the legislative process in the country. She must prepare and adopt decisions, regulations and other documents that will improve the state apparatus and make life easier for people. In this case, it is necessary to take into account requests from different sectors of citizens. After all, it was precisely for the representation of the entire society of the Russian Federation that the State Duma was created. Although ordinary citizens cannot directly participate in the legislative process, there is no need to give up the possibility of at least indirectly affecting the future of their country.