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Parliament gets Constitution-related verdicts from 58 regions, may study them March 14

The bill on amendments to the Constitution will be put to the vote across the nation only if the Constitutional Court’s conclusion is positive

© Anton Novoderezhkin/TASS

MOSCOW, March 12. /TASS/. Russia’s Federation Council (upper house) has received verdicts regarding the bill on amendments to the Constitution from 58 regional legislatures. The Committee on Constitutional Legislation and State Building suggests the upper house of parliament discuss a resolution on the results of the bill’s consideration in regions at an early meeting on Saturday, March 14, the committee’s chairman, co-chairman of the working group on the Constitution Andrei Klishas said, adding that all conclusions were positive.

"The Federation Council has received the results of voting from 58 regional legislatures, two-thirds of Russia’s regions, just as article 136 of the Russian Constitution provides for. I am sending a proposal to Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko for including this issue in the agenda of the March 14 session," Klishas said.

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No plans for now to postpone nationwide vote on constitutional amendments — Kremlin

The Federation Council met for a plenary session on Wednesday to vote for a bill on amendments to the Constitution. The proposed changes expand the powers of parliament, introduce certain restrictions obligatory for senior officials and the possibility of being elected president no more than two times, however, the incumbent head of state will be able to run for president again after the amendments take effect.

On the same day the bill was forwarded to the 85 regional legislatures for consideration. In case of support from two-thirds of the regional parliaments the Federation Council will be obliged to pass a resolution on the results of the bill’s consideration in the regions.

Under article 9 of the Constitution the amendments to the fundamental law shall be adopted in accordance with procedures established for a federal constitutional law and take effect after their approval by no less than two thirds of the regional legislatures. However, in this particular case in accordance with the rules proposed in President Vladimir Putin’s bill only article 3 of the law will come into force at first. Two other articles of the bill: number one (the proposed amendments to the Constitution as such) and number 2 (on the nation-wide public vote on the proposed amendments) are to be submitted to the Constitutional Court for consideration. The bill on amendments to the Constitution will be put to the vote across the nation only if the Constitutional Court’s conclusion is positive.

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