Laws and acts
Laws are general legal acts that - in a state governed by the rule of law - regulate those rights and duties of legal entities which are not regulated by the Constitution. In terms of their form and content, laws are subordinate to the Constitution but superior to any other legal act in the country. Laws are adopted by the legislative body (parliament, assembly, congress; in Slovenia: the National Assembly) in the so-named legislative procedure. Executive acts include: decrees, rules, orders, and instructions.
The following databases are available on-line:
- Consolidated Texts of Laws - consolidated texts of laws adopted after 29 November 2002 and published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia.
- Adopted Laws - laws adopted by the National Assembly and published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia since independence on 25 June 1991.
- Adopted Acts - acts adopted by the National Assembly and published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia since 28 November 1996.
- Draft Laws - draft laws submitted for discussion in the current term of the National Assembly (the database also contains adopted draft laws which have not yet been published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia).
- Readings of Laws - End of Procedure - archive of all readings of a law submitted for discussion in the National Assembly after 28 November 1996.
- Draft Acts - draft acts submitted for discussion in the current term of the National Assembly (the database also contains adopted draft acts which have not yet been published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia).
- Readings of Acts - End of Procedure - archive of all readings of an act submitted for discussion in the National Assembly after 28 November 1996.
- Draft Ordinances - draft ordinances submitted for discussion in the current term of the National Assembly (the database also contains adopted draft ordinances which have not yet been published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia).
- Readings of Ordinances - End of Procedure - archive of all readings of an ordinance submitted for discussion in the National Assembly after 28 November 1996.
The texts of laws and acts are only available in Slovene.
Constitution of the Republic of Slovenia
The origins of the Constitution of the Republic of Slovenia go back to March 1990 when a constitutional amendment was adopted to delete the term "socialist" from the name of the country. The old Constitution of 1974 was subject to a total of 100 amendments (in 1981, 1989, 1990 and 1991) which considerably altered the then existing constitutional system (abolition of socially-owned property and self-government, of the delegates' system, of the principle of unity of the power, of the assembly system, and introduction of private property, multiparty competition, the principle of division of powers, the parliamentary system, etc.).
The Constitution currently in force was adopted in December 1991 and includes: a preamble, general provisions, provisions on human rights and fundamental freedoms, on economic and social relations, on the organisation of the state, on local self-government, on public finance, on constitutionality and legality, on the Constitutional Court, on the procedure for amending the Constitution, as well as transitional and final provisions.
Rules of Procedure of the National Assembly
The Rules of Procedure of the National Assembly is a general legal act regulating the internal organisation and work of the National Assembly, and the rights of the deputies.
The National Assembly's right to adopt its Rules of Procedure is based on Article 94 of the Constitution, providing that the Rules of Procedure are adopted by a two-thirds majority vote of the deputies present, meaning that a greater majority is required than for the adoption of most of the laws.
There are certain distinctive features concerning the adoption of the Rules of Procedure which are not regulated by such. They arise from the specific nature of the Rules and include the right to propose a draft Rules of Procedure, the right to table amendments, etc. Such power can not be held by the Government or the voters who normally have legislative initiative.
EU law
The National Assembly participates in the formulation of positions of the Republic of Slovenia in relation to those EU affairs that given their subject matter would come under its jurisdiction in accordance with the Constitution and laws. The National Assembly discusses draft positions within the time limits required by the work within EU institutions. The National Assembly also discusses amendments to the Treaties on which the EU is founded. At least once a year the National Assembly discusses the state of affairs in the EU and the position of the Republic of Slovenia therein, and adopts positions on the political guidelines for Slovenia's activity in EU institution. In the National Assembly, EU affairs are discussed by the Committee on EU Affairs which dealing with all EU-related issues, except for the Common Foreign and Security Policy which falls under the competence of the Committee on Foreign Policy. The two competent committees also cooperate with other working bodies of the National Assembly.
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