Bavarian Senate
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The Bavarian Senate (German Bayerischer Senat) was the corporative
Composition
The 60 members of the Senate had to be at least 40 years of age and could not be a member of the Landtag (the other and more important chamber of the Bavarian parliament). Every other year, a third of the Senate's members would be elected by corporations representing social, economic, municipal or cultural groups or appointed by religious denominations for a term of six years. The number of seats representing each group was fixed by the constitution of Bavaria:
- 11 representatives of agriculture or forestry
- 5 representatives of industry and commerce
- 5 representatives of craftsmen
- 11 representatives of unions
- 4 representatives of professions
- 5 representatives of cooperatives
- 5 representatives of religious denominations
- 5 representatives of social welfareorganisations
- 3 representatives of universities and colleges
- 6 representatives of municipalities and municipal associations
Internationally, the Senate's composition was similar to the
Role
The Senate's main role was consulting other state institutions and delivering legal opinion. It also had the power to delay state legislation passed by the Landtag within a month (one week for urgent acts). However, the Landtag could overturn the veto by a simple majority, the same majority required to pass a law in the first place.
Criticism and dissolution
In the 1990s, public opinion in
In June 1997, a
On 1 January 2000, the law abolishing the Senate came into effect.
Presidents of the Senate of Bavaria
Name | Period |
---|---|
Josef Singer | 1947–1967 |
Hippolyt Baron Poschinger of Frauenau | 1968–1982 |
Hans Weiß | 1982–1993 |
Walter Schmitt Glaeser | 1994–1996 |
Heribert Thallmair | 1996–1999 |
See also
External links
- Gegenentwurf des Landtags zum Volksentscheid am 8. Februar 1998 (Senatsreformgesetz) (pdf) (34 kB) (in German) The counter-proposal by the Christian Social Union
- Amtliche Ergebnisse des Volksentscheids "Abschaffung des Senats" am 8. Februar 1998 (in German) Official voting results
- Urteil des Bayerischen Verfassungsgerichtshofes nach dem Volksentscheid zur Abschaffung des Bayerischen Senats (in German) Court ruling on the abolishment of the Senate