Provincial Assembly Decision on the Assembly of the Autonomous Province Of Vojvodina
("Official Gazette of AP Vojvodina", number 28/2014)
Pursuant to Article 31, Line 2 and Article 43, Paragraph 1 of the Statute of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina ("Official Journal of the the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina", no. 20/2014),
the Assembly of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, at the session held on 2th July 2014 , enacted
PROVINCIAL ASSEMBLY DECISION
ON THE ASSEMBLY OF THE AUTONOMOUS PROVINCE OF VOJVODINA
BASIC PROVISIONS
Article 1
This Provincial Assembly decision shall lay down the organisation and the method of work of the Assembly of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina (hereinafter: the Assembly), as well as the rights and responsibilities of the deputies, the financing of the Assembly, the publicity of the Assembly work and the status of the Assembly Service (hereinafter: the Service), as well as other matters of concern to the Assembly.
Any matters with regard to organisation and the method of work of the Assembly and its working bodies, procedures for enactment of the Assembly acts and other relevant procedures, as well as other issues which are not regulated by this Decision, shall be regulated in more detail by the Rules of Procedure of the Assembly (hereinafter: the Rules of Procedure) and other Assembly acts.
Article 2
The Assembly shall constitute the supreme authority and a normative power holder in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina (hereinafter: the AP Vojvodina), in accordance with the Constitution, the law and and the Statute.
Article 3
The seat of the Assembly shall be in Novi Sad.
Article 4
The Assembly shall be represented by the Assembly President.
Article 5
The Assembly's work shall be made public.
Article 6
The Assembly shall have a seal.
The seal shall be of round shape and contain the Coat of Arms of the Republic of Serbia and the Coat of Arms of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, as well as the following text underneath: "the Republic of Serbia – the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina-the Assembly of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina ", inscribed in the Serbian language, Cyrillic script, as well as in the Hungarian, Slovak, Croatian, Romanian and Ruthenian language and script.
The seal text shall be written in concentric circles around the Coat of Arms of the Republic of Serbia and the Coat of Arms of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, in accordance with the law.
Article 7
The Assembly shall enact and amend the Statute, enact the Provincial Assembly decisions, decisions, resolutions, declarations, recommendations, the Rules of Procedure, conclusions and other general acts.
Procedures for enactment of the acts referred to in Paragraph 1 of this Article, shall be regulated in more detail by the Rules of Procedure.
The acts referred to in Paragraph 1 of this Article shall be published in the "Official Journal of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina".
Article 8
The Serbian language and Cyrillic script shall be in official use in the work of the Assembly, along with the Hungarian, Slovak, Croatian, Romanian and Ruthenian languages and their respective scripts, in accordance with the law.
CONSTITUTION OF THE ASSEMBLY
Article 9
The Assembly shall comprise 120 deputies.
The Assembly shall enact the decision on verification of the deputies' terms of office at its first session, in accordance with the procedure laid down in the Rules of Procedure.
The Assembly shall be constituted upon verification of terms of office of the two-thirds of deputies.
The President and the Vice-Presidents of the Assembly shall be elected, the Assembly Secretary General shall be appointed, deputies’ groups, as well as working bodies of the Assembly shall be established at the first session of the Assembly.
THE ASSEMBLY ORGANISATION
The Assembly President
Article 10
The Assembly President shall represent the Assembly in the country and abroad, chair and moderate the Assembly session, schedule the deputies' elections, sign the acts enacted by the Assembly and perform other tasks stipulated by the Statute and the Rules of Procedure.
Article 11
The Assembly President shall be elected from among the deputies.
The procedure for the election of the Assembly President shall be regulated in more detail by the Rules of Procedure.
Article 12
The Assembly President's term of office shall be for the period of four years.
The Assembly President's office shall be terminated prior to the expiry of the term to which he/she was elected due to: resignation, relief of duty or termination of the deputies' term of office.
The office of the Assembly President shall be temporarily discharged by the oldest Vice-President of the Assembly, until the election of the new President.
The procedure in case of the termination of the Assembly President’s office prior to the expiry of the term to which he/she was elected, shall be regulated in more detail by the Rules of Procedure.
The Assembly Vice-President
Article 13
Whenever it is constituted, the Assembly shall determine the number of the Assembly Vice-Presidents, by means of special decision, at the President's proposal.
The Assembly Vice-President shall assist the Assembly President in discharge of duties within his/her scope of activity.
In case that the Assembly President is absent or prevented from fulfilling his/her duties, one of the Assembly Vice-Presidents shall stand in for him/her, in accordance with the Rules of Procedure.
Article 14
The provisions of this decision pertaining to the election and termination of the Assembly President's office shall be applicable to the election and termination of the Assembly Vice-President’s office.
The College of the Assembly
Article 15
The College of the Assembly (hereinafter: the College) shall be the Assembly body convened by the Assembly President with a view to coordinating the work of and making consultations with regard to the work of the Assembly.
The College shall comprise the Assembly President, the Assembly Vice-Presidents and the Presidents of the Assembly Deputies' Groups.
The College meetings may be attended by the persons who are not the College members should they be summoned by the Assembly President.
The College shall assist the Assembly President in representing the Assembly, convening of the Assembly sessions, establishing the agenda proposal, coordinating the work of working bodies and any other matters falling within the Assembly President's competence.
The Assembly President shall enact the Rules on the College Work.
Working Body for National Equality
Article 16
The Assembly shall establish the Working Body for National Equality.
The election, competences and methods of work of the Working Body for National Equality shall be regulated by the Rules of Procedure.
Working Bodies of the Assembly
Article 17
The Assembly shall establish standing working bodies, but may also form temporary working bodies.
Standing working bodies shall include committees.
Temporary working bodies shall include boards of inquiry and commissions.
The committees shall be established with the aim of considering and discussing specific issues falling within the competence of the Assembly, proposing acts, analysing the situation in particular fields as well as performing other tasks stipulated by the Rules of Procedure.
A temporary working body shall be set up with the aim of analysing the situation in particular field and establishing the facts on specific occurrences and events.
The composition and tasks of the temporary working body shall be determined by the Assembly decision.
Article 18
The committee shall have a Chairperson and a Deputy Chairperson.
The committee Chairperson shall administer the work of the committee.
The election, composition, scope and method of work of the committee shall be regulated by the Rules of Procedure.
Deputies’ Groups
Article 19
In the Assembly, deputies' groups may be established from among the deputies.
A deputies' group shall be represented by the President of the deputies' group.
The terms under which the deputies' group shall be established, as well as the method of work and representation of deputies' groups, shall be regulated by the Rules of Procedure.
Informal Groups
Article 20
Deputies of the Assembly may organise into specific informal groups for the purpose of promoting the rights of particular groups and raising awareness of their role in the society, as well as promoting specific social values.
The terms under which the informal group shall be established, as well as the method of work and representation of informal groups, shall be regulated by the Rules of Procedure.
The Secretary General of the Assembly
Article 21
The Secretary General of the Assembly (hereinafter: the Secretary General) shall be appointed by the Assembly, at the proposal of the Assembly President.
The Secretary General shall assist the President and Vice-Presidents of the Assembly in preparing and running the Assembly sessions, see to the implementation of the Assembly decisions and conclusions, manage the work of the Service and perform other tasks stipulated by the decision and the Rules of Procedure.
The Secretary General shall be accountable to the Assembly and the Assembly President for his/her work.
The Secretary General's office shall be terminated on the day of appointment of the Secretary of the new Assembly, or as a result of his/her resignation or relief of duty.
Article 22
The Secretary General shall have his/her Deputy to assist him/her and stand in for him/her in the event he/she is absent or prevented from discharging his/her duties.
The Deputy Secretary General shall be appointed by the Assembly, at the Secretary General's proposal and upon the consent of the Assembly President.
The number of deputies of the Secretary General shall be stipulated by the Rules of Procedure.
The Deputy Secretary General shall be accountable to the Assembly and the Assembly President for his/her work.
The Deputy Secretary General's office shall be terminated on the day of appointment of the new Deputy Secretary General, or as a result of his/her resignation or relief of duty.
Article 23
The Secretary General and the Deputy Secretary General shall be relieved of duty according to the procedure envisaged for their appointment.
Until the moment of appointment of the new Secretary General, the Secretary General's duties shall be performed by the Deputy Secretary General.
METHOD OF THE ASSEMBLY’S WORK
Article 24
The Assembly shall perform its duties at the Assembly sessions, in accordance with the Statute and the Rules of Procedure.
The Assembly session shall be convened by the Assembly President.
The Assembly President may convene a ceremonial session on the occasion of marking national and international holidays, as well as historical anniversaries.
For the purpose of considering the issues pertaining to pursuing a policy within the specific field and issues of greater economic, cultural and political importance, the Assembly President may convene a thematic session.
Convening and holding of the Assembly sessions shall be regulated by the Rules of Procedure.
Article 25
The Assembly shall make decisions by a majority vote at the session at which majority of the total number of deputies are present, unless the Statute stipulates a specific majority.
The Assembly shall make decisions by a two-thirds majority vote of the total number of deputies, regarding:
- enactment and amendment of the Statute;
- enactment of the Provincial Assembly Decision on the Implementation of the Statute;
- enactment of the Provincial Assembly Decision on the Symbols of the AP Vojvodina;
- election and relief of duty of the Provincial Protector of Citizens- Ombudsman;
The Assembly shall make decisions by a majority vote of the total number of deputies, regarding:
- early termination of the Assembly’s term of office;
- scheduling of the Provincial referendum;
- enactment of the budget of the AP Vojvodina and adoption of the annual balance sheet;
- election and relief of duty of the Assembly President and Vice-Presidents;
- election and relief of duty of the President, Vice-Presidents and members of the Provincial Government;
- enactment of the Assembly Rules of Procedure.
Article 26
Committees and working bodies shall perform their duties at sessions.
Sessions of the Assembly committees shall be public, unless a committee decides otherwise for a particular session.
Voting within the committee shall be public.
The committee shall make decisions by a majority vote at the session at which majority of the total number of the committee members are present.
Article 27
The Assembly whose term of office has been terminated prior to the expiry of its term of office, shall only perform current and urgent tasks stipulated by the law and the Provincial Assembly decision.
RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF DEPUTIES
Article 28
A deputy's term of office shall commence on the day of validation of his/her term in the Assembly and shall last for four years, that is, until the termination of the term of office of the deputy in that Assembly.
The deputy identification card shall be issued to the deputy, which he/she shall use to confirm their deputy status, as well as to exercise the rights stipulated by the decision.
The deputy identification card shall also be used as the identification card for electronic voting during the Assembly sessions.
The form, content and manner of issuance of identification cards as well as record-keeping for the issued identification cards shall be prescribed in the act of the Assembly committee in charge of administrative issues.
Article 29
The deputy shall freely dispose of his/her term of office in accordance with the Constitution and the Provincial Assembly decision regulating the election of deputies to the Assembly.
Article 30
The deputy shall decide, act and cast a vote in accordance with his/her own beliefs.
In exercising his/her office, the deputy may not be called to account criminally, detained or punished for the expressed opinion orally or in writing or a vote cast at the sessions of the Assembly and its working bodies.
Article 31
The deputy may not discharge any other public office and duty incompatible with the deputy's office, in accordance with the Constitution and the law.
Article 32
The deputy shall be entitled to use the language and script in the Assembly, the official use of which shall be stipulated by the Statute, the Provincial Assembly decision and the Rules of Procedure.
Article 33
In accordance with the Provincial Assembly decision and the Rules of Procedure, the deputy shall be entitled to:
1. propose the Provincial Assembly decisions, decisions and other acts;
2. put forward amendments to the proposals of the Provincial Assembly decisions and other acts;
3. participate in the discussion and decision-making on the proposals of the Provincial Assembly decisions and other acts, at the sessions of the Assembly and its committees;
4. put forward the proposal to establish a board of inquiry or a commission;
5. put forward the proposal for the Assembly to act as a mover of the Republic law, that is, to put forward the amendment to the proposed Republic law;
6. propose amendments to the agenda;
7. table the deputy's questions;
8. undertake other activities in discharge of his/her office of the deputy in accordance with the Rules of Procedure.
The deputy who is not a committee member may participate in the committee's work without the decision-making right and in accordance with the Rules of Procedure.
Article 34
The deputy shall be entitled and obliged to be timely and completely informed about all issues falling within the Assembly's competence as well as entitled to request the information that is necessary for him to discharge the office of the deputy, from the Assembly President, a committee chairperson and other working bodies of the Assembly, a member of the Provincial Government and office holders in other provincial authorities and organisations.
The manner of exercising the right referred to in Paragraph 1 of this Article shall be regulated by the Rules of Procedure in more detail.
Article 35
To exercise his/her office, the deputy shall be entitled to a salary, compensations and other income, in accordance with the law and the act of the Assembly committee in charge of administrative issues.
Article 36
The deputy who earns an income in the Assembly shall be entitled to the compensation of income upon the termination of the deputy's office for the three-month period at most, on the basis of the submitted request.
This entitlement may be extended to up to three months should he/she be entitled to retirement benefits within that period.
The deputy who was sentenced to the non-suspended imprisonment of at least six months under the legally-binding court ruling shall not be entitled to the right from Paragraph 1 of this Article.
The entitlement from Paragraph 1 of this Article shall be terminated: at the deputy's request, upon the commencement of employment, by earning the right to retirement benefits, as well as in the event of election, that is, appointment to the other office on account of which he/she shall earn an income.
Article 37
The deputy's term of office shall be terminated upon the termination of the Assembly's term of office, as well as in the cases stipulated by the Provincial Assembly decision which shall regulate the election of deputies to the Assembly.
Article 38
The deputy shall be obliged to:
- observe the Constitution, the law and the Rules of Procedure;
- attend the sessions and participate in the work of the Assembly and its committees of which he/she shall be the member;
- act in accordance with the decisions of the competent Assembly committee;
- use his/her identification card in the manner prescribed by the Rules of Procedure;
- in discharging the office of the deputy and in his/her personal conduct, to safeguard the reputation, observe the dignity and order at the sessions of the Assembly, committees and deputies' groups;
- address other deputies with respect, without resorting to offensive language and presenting the facts and views concerning the private life of other persons;
- deal with the funds from the Budget of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina earmarked for the Assembly's work, in a responsible and rational manner;
- submit the report to the competent public authority on its property and income, in accordance with the law;
- perform other duties, in accordance with the Provincial Assembly decision and the Rules of Procedure.
FINANCING OF THE ASSEMBLY
Article 39
The funds required for the exercise of the Assembly competences shall be provided for in the Budget of the AP Vojvodina (hereinafter: the Budget of the AP Vojvodina).
Article 40
The Assembly shall independently determine and dispose of the funds required for the work of the Assembly (hereinafter: the Assembly Budget).
The Assembly Budget shall constitute an integral part of the Budget of the AP Vojvodina.
The Provincial Government may not cancel, delay or restrict the execution of the Assembly Budget, without the consent of the Assembly President.
The Secretary General shall be the order-issuing authority for the use of funds from the Assembly Budget.
The procedure for establishing of the Assembly Budget shall be regulated by this Decision.
Article 41
The Secretary General shall prepare the Assembly Budget Proposal, in accordance with regulations governing the budget system and submit it to the competent committee of the Assembly.
The competent committee of the Assembly shall define the Assembly Budget Proposal and send it to the Provincial Secretariat of Finance to provide the opinion.
The Provincial Secretariat of Finance shall send the justified opinion on the proposal, referred to in Paragraph 2 of this Article, to the competent committee of the Assembly and declare directly at the session of the competent committee of the Assembly, for the purpose of reaching the agreement.
In case of reaching the agreement, referred to in Paragraph 3 of this Article, the competent committee of the Assembly shall establish the Assembly Budget, which the Provincial Secretariat of Finance shall incorporate unamended into the Draft Budget of the AP Vojvodina and the Provincial Government shall incorporate unamended into the Proposal of the Provincial Assembly Decision on the Budget of the AP Vojvodina.
In case the agreement has not been reached between the competent committee of the Assembly and the Provincial Secretariat of Finance, the latter shall incorporate the unamended Assembly Budget Proposal, referred to in Paragraph 2 of this Article, into the Draft Budget of the AP Vojvodina, while the Provincial Government shall incorporate it unamended into the Proposal of the Provincial Assembly Decision on the Budget of the AP Vojvodina.
In case referred to in Paragraph 5 of this Article, the Provincial Government shall state in its explanatory note, the reasons for which the Provincial Secretariat of Finance considers this Assembly Budget Proposal unacceptable.
Article 42
The control of the Assembly Budget execution shall be conducted according to the regulations pertaining to the budget inspection and state audit.
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE ASSEMBLY AND THE PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT
Article 43
The Provincial Government shall be accountable to the Assembly for its work.
The Provincial Government shall submit its regular annual Activity Report to the Assembly, while at the request of the Assembly, it shall also submit its special activity reports.
The procedure aimed at supervision of the work of the Provincial Government or the member of the Provincial Government shall be regulated in more detail by the Rules of Procedure.
At the beginning of each Assembly session, prior to determining of the agenda, the deputies shall have the opportunity to table their questions and require information during the part of the session titled “Deputies’ Questions, Proposals and Information”.
The deputies’ questions shall be addressed by the President, Vice-Presidents and members of the Provincial Government or persons authorised by them.
Part of the session reserved for questions and requiring information shall last not longer than 60 minutes.
The procedure regarding the “Deputies’ Questions, Proposals and Information” shall be regulated in more detail by the Rules of Procedure.
COOPERATION WITH TERRITORIAL COMMUNITIES OF OTHER STATES
Article 44
The Assembly shall cooperate with relevant authorities of territorial communities and other forms of autonomy of other states within the foreign policy of the Republic of Serbia and with the obligation to respect its territorial integrity and adhere to its legal system.
The Assembly shall conclude agreements with relevant territorial communities of other states in accordance with the law.
Forms of cooperation and the procedure during the conclusion of agreements shall be regulated in more detail by a special act.
PUBLICITY OF THE ASSEMBLY’S WORK
Article 45
The publicity of the Assembly's work shall be provided as follows: by creating conditions for television broadcasting of the Assembly's sessions, organising press conferences, official press releases, enabling media, observers of domestic and foreign organisations, non-governmental organisations and interested citizens to monitor the Assembly's work, by examining the Assembly's documentary and archive material, the minutes from the Assembly's sessions, by means of the Internet, or in any other way, in accordance with the law and the Rules of Procedure.
The internal order in the building of the Assembly, during the sessions, shall be regulated in more detail by a special act.
Article 46
The public may be excluded from the Assembly sessions in cases stipulated by the law.
The procedure referred to in Paragraph 1 of this Article shall be regulated by the Rules of Procedure.
THE ASSEMBLY SERVICE
Article 47
The Service shall perform professional, administrative and technical tasks for the purposes of the Assembly and its working bodies, deputies, the Assembly President and Vice-Presidents, deputies’ groups at the Assembly, as well as other tasks, in accordance with the Rules of Procedure, other acts of the Assembly and its working bodies.
Article 48
The Service shall be managed by the Secretary General.
Article 49
As regards the management of the Service, commencement and termination of employment, exercise of rights, duties and responsibilities of employees in the Service, as well as the use of work equipment of the Assembly and the Assembly Service, the Secretary General shall have rights and responsibilities of the office holder managing a provincial administration authority.
Article 50
Other matters of concern for the Service's organisation and method of work shall be regulated in more detail by the Decision on the Service.
Article 51
The Secretary General shall pass rulebooks, decisions, ordinances, instructions and rulings.
The Rulebook on Internal Organisation and Job Classification in the Assembly Service shall be adopted by the Secretary General and approved by the competent committee in charge of administrative issues.
FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 52
On the day this Provincial Assembly decision comes into force, the Decision on the Assembly of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina shall be put out of force. („Official Journal of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, No. 6/2010, 8/2010- correction and 21/2010).
Article 53
This Provincial Assembly decision shall come into force on the eighth day of the date of its publication in the "Official Journal of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina".
ASSEMBLY OF THE AUTONOMOUS PROVINCE OF VOJVODINA
Novi Sad: 02nd July 2014
PRESIDENT OF THE
ASSEMBLY OF THE AP VOJVODINA
Pásztor István, duly signed
(Pásztor István, s.k.)