ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC

Draft Law No. 777 / XII-4ª

It gives the Constitutional Court jurisdiction to appreciate and scrutinize the accounts of parliamentary groups by proceeding to the sixth amendment to Law No. 28/82 of November 15, and to the fifth amendment to Law No. 19/2003 of 20

of June.

Explanatory statement Through the publication of Law No. 55/2010 of December 24, the Assembly of the Republic expressed a legislative choice for the assessment and surveillance of the accounts of political parties including their parliamentary groups to job of the Constitutional Court, thus giving an unequivocal signal of aiming for a coherent, unique and focused system of surveillance and sanctionalism. On grounds of formal reasons the Constitutional Court, by Judgment No. 801/2014, published in the Journal of the Republic 1ª series, paragraph 247 of December 23, 2014, declared the unconstitutionality with general binding force of Article 5º (8) of the Act 19/2003, of June 20, and of Article 3º (4) of Law 55/2010 of December 24, precisely of the standard through which the legislator intended to make clear the exact extent of the Constitutional Court's scrutinizing competence. It is now about welcoming the constitutional court's ruling and reconducting to constitutional normality the legislator's express willingness to confirm competence to appreciate the regularity and legality of the parliamentary groups ' bills in the context of the same appreciation already made to party accounts in general, with obedience to the same accounting regime, to the same legal regime and to the same sanctionatory regime. The present Law Project has by main object, in the legislative seat of its own and by the constitutionally appropriate form-Organic Law-to clearly set out the competence of the Constitutional Court provided for by the respected Organ Law of organization, operating and process and adapting the Political Parties ' and Election Campaign Finance Act to the necessary to enable this desideratum, without constitutional embarrassment and expunging the remissive references to the stated standard unconstitutional. There is an amendment of mere detail that gives clarity to the rules of counting deadlines for answers to the Constitutional Court. Thus, in the applicable constitutional and regimental terms, the Deputies of the Parts with the undersigned parliamentary seat present the following Project of Organic Law to be approved by the Assembly of the Republic in the

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terms in which it provides Article 164º (c) and Article 166º (2), both of the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic:

Article 1º Amendment to the Law for the organization, operation and process of the Court

Constitutional

Articles 9º and 43º of Law No. 28/82 of November 15, as amended by Law No. 143/85 of November 26, by Law No. 85/89 of September 7, by Law No. 88/95 of September 1, by Law No. 13-A/98 of February 26 and by the Law Organic No. 1/2011, of November 30, go on to have the following essay:

" Article 9º [...]

It is incumbent upon the Constitutional Court: (a) (...) (b) (...) (c) (...) (...) (...) (...) (...) and) Appreciate the regularity and legality of the accounts of political parties, in them including those of parliamentary groups, single representative of a party and of MPs not enrolled in parliamentary group or independent deputies in the Assembly of the Republic and the Legislative Assemblies of the Autonomous Regions, and of the election campaigns, under the law, and apply the corresponding sanctions; f) (...). "

" Article 43º [...]

1. Applies to the Constitutional Court the general regime on judicial vacations regarding the non-preemptive abstract supervision proceedings of the constitutionality and legality of legal norms, the appeals of judicial decisions and the answers in the processes of appreciation of the regularity and legality of the accounts of political parties and electoral campaigns. 2. (...) 3. (...) 4. (...)

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5. (...) 6. (...) 7. (...). "

Article 2º Amendment to the Law on Financing of Political Parties and Campaigns

Electoral

Articles 5º and 12º of Law No. 19/2003 of June 20, in the wording given to it by Law No. 55/2010 of December 24, go on to have the following essay:

" Article 5 [...]

1-(...) 2-(...) 3-(...) 4-A each parliamentary group, the sole representative of a party and the non-enrolled Member of the Assembly of the Assembly of the Republic is conferred, annually, a grant for advice charges to the deputies, for the political and partisan activity in which they participate and for other operating expenses, corresponding to four times the annual IAS, plus half of the value of the same, per Member, to be paid monthly, pursuant to paragraph 6. 5-(...) 6-(...) 7-(...) "

" Article 12.

[...] 1-(...) 2-(...) 3-(...) 4-(...) 5-(...) 6-(...) 7-(...) 8-(...) 8-(...)

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9-The accounts of the regional structures referred to in paragraph 4 shall include, in

annex, for the purpose of assessing and monitoring the totality of its revenue

and expenses referred to in Articles 23 and below, those relating to

subsidized grants directly, or through the groups

parliamentarians and the sole representative of a party, of the

legislative assemblies of the autonomous regions.

10-For the purposes of the necessary appreciation and surveillance, to which the

articles 23 and following, with the necessary adaptations, Members do not

enrolled in parliamentary group of the Assembly of the Republic and Members

independent of the legislative assemblies of the autonomous regions

present, to the Constitutional Court, the accounts for the grants

ausores, pursuant to this Law. "

Article 3º

Legal effects

For the purposes of the delivery of the accounts at the Constitutional Court with a view to its assessment and surveillance of this Law shall apply to the economic exercise of 2014 and following.

Article 4º Entry into force

This Law shall come into force on the day following its publication, without prejudice to the provisions of the preceding Article.

Assembly of the Republic, February 12, 2015

The Deputies,

LOUIS MONTENEGRO (PSD); FERRO RODRIGUES (PS); NUNO MAGALHÃES (CDS); JOÃO OLIVEIRA (PCP); PEDRO FILIPE SOARES

(BE); HELOÍSA APOLONIA (PEV)