National Council (Slovenia)


The National Council is according to the Constitution of Slovenia the representative of social, economic, professional and local interest groups in Slovenia.
The Council may be regarded as an upper house within a distinctively incomplete bicameralism; it has a legislative function as a corrective and oversight mechanism for the National Assembly, though it does not itself pass acts. It is not elected directly by the population, but is meant to represent significant interest groups in the country. Councilors are elected for a five-year term. Elections to the National Council are not regulated by the Constitution, but by a two-thirds majority of the National Assembly.
The current president of the National Council is Marko Lotrič.
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Composition

The council has 40 members:
  • 22 representatives of local interests,
  • 6 representatives of non-commercial activities,
  • 4 representatives of employers,
  • 4 of employees,
  • 4 representatives of farmers, crafts, trades and independent professionals.
The local councilors are elected by municipal bodies, while the remaining "functional" councilors are elected by professional and interest-group associations.
The 22 respresentatives of local interest are elected in 22 electoral districts based on the 58 "administrative units" (upravne enote). These districts vary widely in number of inhabitants. The largest has more than ten times the population of the smallest district.
The Council is officially nonpartisan, though national political parties exert an influence on the selection of local councilors.

History

The pre-1992 legislature of the Socialist Republic of Slovenia had a tricameral structure, comprising a Sociopolitical Assembly, a Municipalities' Assembly, and an Assembly of United Labor. The National Council informally succeeded the latter two chambers, and is similarly geared toward the representation of local, economic, and occupational interests.
The emblem of the Council is a stylized rendition of the Plečnik Parliament, an unrealized 1947 design for a new national legislature by the country's most eminent architect, Jože Plečnik.

Competences

Most of the National Council's powers are advisory in nature, with the chamber mainly intended to serve as an institutional source of oversight of the National Assembly. The Council may:
  • propose laws or amendments to the National Assembly
  • present a resolution on a matter to the National Assembly
  • request a parliamentary inquiry by the National Assembly into a matter
  • demand the National Assembly clarify or disambiguate a law
  • petition the Constitutional Court to review a law or regulation for compliance with the constitution
The Council also possesses a single non-advisory power, the suspensive veto: it may by majority vote suspend any new law within seven days of its passage. Laws suspended by a Council veto can be reconfirmed by the Assembly, but an absolute majority of the chamber is required on second passage. Laws pertaining solely to the state budget are exempt from the veto, and the Council cannot veto the same law a second time.
The most notable use of the suspensive veto occurred on October 11th, 2022, when the Council voted to suspend a newly-passed law permitting same-sex marriage. The veto was overridden by the Assembly on October 18th.

Presidents of the National Council

  1. Ivan Kristan : 23 December 1992 – 17 December 1997
  2. Tone Hrovat : 17 December 1997 – 17 December 2002
  3. Janez Sušnik : 17 December 2002 – 12 December 2007
  4. Blaž Kavčič : 12 December 2007 – 12 December 2012
  5. Mitja Bervar 12 December 2012 – 12 December 2017
  6. Alojz Kovšca 12 December 2017 – 19 December 2022
  7. Marko Lotrič 19 December 2022