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Legislative power in such a legal form as parliament has been established in most countries of the world. Parliamentarism has become a worldwide principle of organizing State power based on the rule of law. Today, more than 200 countries are governed by parliaments. In 50 of them, parliaments consist of two chambers, in the rest - unicameral.

In Russia, the modern form of parliament was established in 1993. Prior to that, legislative functions were performed by the Congress of People's Deputies and the Supreme Council of People's Deputies of the RSFSR (later - the Russian Federation), elected in the spring of 1990 and lasted until October 1993. Their short life was the first experience of the separation of powers and the formation of an independent legislative power in the modern history of Russia. The Supreme Soviet of the Russian Federation has not become a full-fledged parliament, that is, a body engaged exclusively in legislative activity and occupying a dominant position in the system of power. He had to act in a difficult situation associated with acute economic and social problems, in a legislative vacuum, when the life of a country that had turned towards market reforms was regulated by laws and the Constitution of a past era that did not reflect the new realities. The complexity and inconsistency of that time was reflected in the nature of the Supreme Soviet's activities. Lacking a solid legislative framework, the executive and legislative branches of government have taken decisions that are crucial for the country's future, such as radical ones such as price liberalization, privatization, and a whole host of others.

After the famous events of September-October 1993, the Supreme Soviet was replaced by the Parliament in its current form. According to the Constitution of the Russian Federation, adopted in December 1993, the Russian Parliament - the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation-consists of the State Duma and the Federation Council. Both houses of Parliament operate on a permanent basis. Traditionally, the Federation Council is called the upper house of Parliament, and the State Duma is called the lower house, although they are equal in position and each performs its own functions defined by the country's Constitution.

The presence of two chambers in the Parliament is connected with the federal structure of the country. Currently, Russia has 21 republics with the status of a state, 6 territories, 49 regions, 1 autonomous region, 10 autonomous districts, and two federal cities-Moscow and St. Petersburg. All these administrative divisions are formed by 89 constituent entities of the Russian Federation, which have geographical, economic, political, social, national-demographic, and cultural peculiarities, which are directly reflected in their interests, which require special legal status and, consequently, special representation in the legislative body.

There are some differences between the Chambers due to their socio-political status and constitutional powers. The State Duma provides more representation of the interests of the main social groups and political forces of the country. The Federation Council represents the above-mentioned interests and, of course, the interests of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation. But both chambers draw up laws for the entire society, the national economy of Russia, for all economic structures, basic spheres and branches, for all social groups and every citizen, without exception. The main goal of both chambers and the Parliament as a whole is to ensure the well - being and prosperity of the peoples of Russia, the integrity and independence of the state, and the protection of human rights and freedoms. At the same time, each of the Chambers, pursuing common goals, solves special tasks inherent in their constitutional status, which are of the nature of constitutional powers and competence.

The legal and political status of chambers is determined by the Constitution of the Russian Federation and a number of federal laws. The order of formation of each of them has its own specifics. Thus, the State Duma is elected by the population by 50% in single-mandate districts and by 50% on party lists. In total, 450 deputies are elected to it. State Duma elections are held once every 4 years.

The Federation Council, unlike the lower house, is not a directly elected body, but is formed from the heads of administrations elected by the people, as well as heads of legislative bodies of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation. Thus, the composition of the upper chamber of the Federal Assembly is determined by the number of heads of executive and legislative authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation and has 178 members. And since they were elected to their positions at different times, their terms of office as members of the Federation Council are also different. For example, as of January 23, 1996, when the current composition of the upper house began to work, it turned out that all the heads of legislative bodies were elected in different terms: one in 1992, 4 in 1993, 58 in 1994, 21 in 1995, and 2 in 1996 G. Of the 86 heads of executive power who were initially members of the Federation Council, 35 were elected by the population, and 44 were appointed by Presidential Decrees. Only after the end of the gubernatorial elections (until April 1998) did the composition of the Federation Council stabilize. At the same time, it is more mobile than the composition of the State Duma, and it is constantly changing. The update takes place as the heads of administrations and legislative bodies of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation are re-elected.

The powers of the Chambers determined by the Basic Law of the country are also somewhat different.

According to Article 102 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the Federation Council is responsible for approving changes in the borders between the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, approving Presidential Decrees on the introduction of martial law and a state of emergency, deciding on the possibility of using the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation outside the territory of Russia, calling elections for the President of the Russian Federation and removing him from office, appointing judges of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, The Supreme Court and the Supreme Commercial Court of the Russian Federation, appointment and dismissal of the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation, the Deputy Chairman of the Accounts Chamber and half of its auditors.

Article 103 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation defines the jurisdiction of the State Duma. Among them - giving consent to the President of the Russian Federation to appoint the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation, resolving the issue of confidence in the Government of Russia, appointing and dismissing the Chairman of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, the Chairman of the Accounts Chamber and half of its auditors, the Commissioner for Human Rights acting in accordance with the federal constitutional law, declaring against the President of the Russian Federation in order to remove him from office.

Federal Assembly (Parliament) The Russian Federation performs a number of functions. The main ones are representative, legislative, financial and budgetary, control and power.

The representative function of the Parliament is related to its purpose to express the will of the people who elected it. Representation of the interests of various social strata and groups of the country's population is achieved both by organizing elections and by delegating territorial representatives to the Parliament - heads of the executive and legislative branches of government of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation. The composition of the Parliament is determined in one way or another by the will of the voters. The lower chamber - during the election of deputies to the State Duma, and the upper chamber - during the election of presidents of republics, heads of administrations and legislative bodies of regions.

The main task of the Parliament is to develop and adopt normative legal acts. This activity is its legislative function. Laws regulate public relations within the country and the most important aspects of foreign policy activities. They are aimed at ensuring and protecting the interests of the state, the needs of society, its main classes and social groups, as well as the interests and rights of individuals, and are designed to ensure the well-being of the country's citizens and the prosperity of the state as a whole.

The constitutions of most countries of the world stipulate that the Parliament approves items of income and expenditure (budget) states, thereby realizing their financial and budgetary function. Consideration and adoption of the state budget is one of the most important areas of legislative work, since the socio-economic "well-being" of the country and its population depends on the legislation in the financial and budgetary sphere. In addition, the Parliament forms tax and banking legislation, analyzes and practices the financial justification of any costly law-a draft law, the implementation of which is related to the expenditure of public funds.

The control function of Parliament is enshrined in the constitutions of many countries around the world. It is caused by the fact that without effective control, it is impossible to successfully implement legislative norms and requirements. The object of control is most often the executive branch. In Russia, control over the implementation of laws is outside the scope of the legislative process. This function of the Parliament in our country is very limited. The Parliament is effectively deprived of the function of monitoring the activities of the executive branch. The State Duma, pursuant to Article 103 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, has the right to dismiss the Government by expressing no confidence in it, and the President of Russia, in accordance with paragraph 4 of Article 111 and paragraph 3 of Article 117 of the Constitution, can make the decision on this issue dependent on the dissolution of the State Duma. The Federation Council does not have the right to express distrust or confidence in the Government of Russia, which the lower house has. Thus, the upper house of parliament cannot participate in resolving this important issue for the country, provide support or, conversely, act as a counterweight to the State Duma.

The power function consists in the fact that the parliament is an organic part of the state power, and exercises its powers in the forms and methods inherent in the legislative body, mainly by adopting laws regulating various spheres of society.

Despite the specifics of the formation and differences in powers, the Federation Council and the State Duma are parts of a single parliamentary body, and their separation is simply unthinkable. The procedures for approving laws are such that one of the chambers without the other, from the point of view of the legislative process, is incapacitated. The State Duma cannot submit a law to the President without bypassing the Federation Council, and the upper house without the lower one (for example, if the Duma is dissolved) is also Constitutionally unable to do so independently.

The organization of the Federal Assembly (Parliament) of the Russian Federation is structured in accordance with its constitutional powers and power functions. In general, the structure of the State Duma consists of two large blocks: party factions and deputy groups, committees and commissions. The leadership of the lower house consists of the Chairman and his deputies. Organizational and technical support is provided by the State Duma Staff, which also has a rather complex structure. The State Duma and the Federation Council have councils of chambers as advisory bodies.

Let's take a closer look at the structure of the upper house of parliament - the Federation Council. Its main purpose is to review and approve laws adopted by the lower house. Since legislation is designed to cover all the main spheres of society and protect the interests of absolutely all social groups and strata, the structure of the Federation Council should also cover all the diversity of these areas and problems.

Today, the Federation Council consists of 11 committees: on constitutional legislation and judicial and legal issues; on security and defense; on budget, tax policy, financial, currency and customs regulation, banking; on social policy; on economic policy; on international affairs; on CIS affairs; on agrarian policy The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, the Federal Treaty and regional policy; on science, Culture, Education, Health and ecology; on the affairs of the North and small-numbered peoples. In addition to them, there is also one commission - on the Rules of Procedure and parliamentary procedures.

The main regulatory act that determines the organization of the work of the upper chamber is the Rules of Procedure of the Federation Council. In accordance with it, the committees and the commission are given powers corresponding to their functions. They prepare opinions on draft federal constitutional laws approved by the State Duma, on federal laws adopted by it and submitted to the Federation Council for consideration. Draft laws and other legal acts are developed and pre-examined on the basis of legislative initiative. They organize parliamentary hearings, round tables, scientific and practical conferences and other events aimed at improving legislative activity.

The composition of committees and commissions is formed in accordance with the procedure established by the Chamber's Rules of Procedure. All members of the Federation Council are members of committees, with the exception of the Chairman of the Federation Council and his deputies. The composition of each committee (at least 10 members of the Federation Council) is approved by a majority vote and formalized by a resolution of the Chamber. The committee consists of members of the Federation Council who are most competent in matters related to its profile. So, the Federation Council Committee on Security and Defense consists of 13 people representing such important regions from the point of view of defense and security of the country as Khabarovsk, Primorsky Krai, Sverdlovsk, Murmansk, Tula, Volgograd regions and other regions. According to the Rules of Procedure, the Committee prepares opinions on the federal laws adopted by the State Duma on internal and external security of Russia, the status and protection of the state border, war and peace, protection of state, official or other legally protected secrets, combating organized crime, corruption, crimes against the Russian state, as well as on the approval of presidential decrees on the introduction of martial law, state of emergency, and others. Together with other committees of the Chamber, it prepares draft resolutions of the Federation Council on the use of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation outside the territory of Russia, cooperation with the CIS countries on issues of collective defense and security, social protection of military personnel and their families, veterans of the Armed Forces, the Great Patriotic War, international soldiers, etc. Along with the actual legislative activity, the committee conducts extensive analytical work, parliamentary hearings, and roundtables on issues within its competence. Members of the committee are directly involved in the drafting of major legal acts related to military reform, Russia's military doctrine, and other issues vital to the country's defense and security.

Members of the Federation Council visit military districts and fleets, pay constant attention to patronizing military units and ships, and provide them with all-round assistance. One of the many examples of this is the meeting of members of the Federation Council with the Navy command that took place this year. On it, the heads of regional administrations identified a wide range of specific measures to help ensure the vital activity of the fleet forces.

Obviously, readers will be interested in looking into the parliamentary "kitchen", to find out how laws are born. The legislative functions of the Chambers of Parliament are implemented as follows. If a bill comes to the lower house from one of the 723 subjects of legislative initiative (bodies and persons defined by Article 104 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation), it passes all stages of discussion in the Duma - in the relevant committee of the chamber, three readings at its plenary sessions - and, if adopted, is sent to the Federation Council. It makes decisions: approves the law and sends it to the President for signature, or disapproves and returns the law to the Duma. In the second case, a conciliatory commission consisting of deputations of the Chambers may be established. If it develops a mutually acceptable version of the law, a protocol is drawn up on this, which is submitted to the State Duma for consideration. When the deputations do not find a common solution, a protocol is also drawn up, which is submitted to the Chambers for discussion. They decide by a majority vote: to continue the work of the conciliation commission or to update its composition, or to return to the rejected version of the law, or to reject the law. In the latter case, work on the law starts all over again. If the State Duma does not agree with the decision of the Federation Council, a federal law is considered adopted if at least two-thirds of the total number of deputies of the lower house voted in favor of it during repeated voting.

The Federation Council has the right of legislative initiative. If it has developed a bill, it sends it to the Duma, where it passes the generally accepted procedure for discussion, is adopted as law, and goes to the upper house for consideration.

Often there are situations when the State Duma passes a law, the Federation Council approves it, and the President does not sign or vetoes it. In this case, a tripartite conciliation commission is established. If the Duma re-passes the law in its previous form and the Federation Council re-approves it by a majority of at least two-thirds of the total number of members of the Federation Council, then the President must sign the law in accordance with Article 107 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation.

Legislative work is being carried out intensively. During the 5 years of the Russian Parliament's existence in its current form, the State Duma has passed 1,300 laws, the Federation Council has approved over 800 laws, and the President has signed about 800. The pace of legislative activity is, frankly, impressive. At the same time, there are still many unresolved issues and shortcomings in the activities of the Federal Assembly. Practice shows that significant clarifications of the constitutional powers of the chambers of Parliament are needed, and some procedural issues have not been worked out. Many basic laws (such as the Land Code) are lacking to continue the process of modern Russia's renewal. Instead, many so-called "point" laws are adopted that solve local and current problems.

Speaking about the shortcomings, we must take into account both the difficulties of the current period in Russia and the relative youth of our parliament. Five years of its activity in comparison with the centuries of English parliamentarism is, of course, very little. In order to increase the efficiency of their work, Russian parliamentarians actively study and learn from the experience of mature parliamentary countries. A permanent exchange of parliamentary delegations with many countries of the world has been established:

Germany, England, France, Canada, USA, Sweden, Finland, China. There is an intensive training of civil servants of legislative bodies in our country. In addition, the European Council and the United Nations have established special training programs for Russian parliamentarians and employees of the offices of the Federal Assembly of Russia.

The parliamentary form of government is the surest and shortest way to establish peace, tranquility, business cooperation among all segments of the population, and strengthen the power and independence of the state. World history does not know of any other more effective and democratic form of public administration. The experience of Russian parliamentarism, even if it is not too long and far from perfect in everything, clearly confirms this truth, which has been repeatedly tested by world practice. Analyzing it, you are convinced again and again that the path to Russia's prosperity and prosperity also lies through improving parliamentary activity, increasing its effectiveness in solving the most complex problems that our country is facing in the coming century.

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