Austria - Constitution - Chapter IV Legislation and Execution by the States

Article 95 [State Parliaments]
(1) The legislation of the States is carried out by the State Parliaments. Their members are elected on the basis of proportional representation by equal, direct, secret, and personal suffrage of all male and female federal nationals who in accordance with the State Parliament electoral regulations are entitled to vote and who have their domicile in the State concerned. The provision of Article 26 (1) last sentence applies analogously; the reasons which are held to excuse abstention may not be more restrictive than in the electoral regulations for the House of Representatives.
(2) The State Parliament electoral regulations may not impose more stringent conditions for suffrage and electoral eligibility than the electoral regulations for the House of Representatives.
(3) The voters exercise their franchise in constituencies each of which must comprise a territorial unit. The number of members shall be divided among the constituencies in proportion to the number of nationals. A division of the electorate into other electoral bodies is not admissible.
(4) Public employees, including members of the Federal Army, who seek a seat in or are elected for membership of a State Parliament shall be granted the time necessary for canvassing or fulfilling their membership duties. Service regulations will lay down details.

Article 96 [Immunity]
(1) The members of a State Parliament enjoy the same immunity as the members of the House of Representatives, the provisions of Article 57 apply analogously.
(2) The provisions of Articles 32 and 33 apply to the meetings of State Parliaments and their committees.

Article 97 [State Legislation]
(1) A State law requires a vote by a State Parliament, authentication and countersignature in accordance with the provisions of the State concerned, and publication by the State-Governor in the State Law Gazette.
(2) Inasmuch as a State law foresees in its execution the co-operation of Federal authorities, the approval of the Federal Government must be obtained. The approval shall be deemed given if within eight weeks from the day of the enactment's receipt at the Federal Chancellery the Federal Government has not informed the State-Governor that the co-operation of the Federal authorities is refused. Before the expiry of this deadline publication of the enactment may only ensue if the Federal Government has expressly agreed.

Article 98 [Notification, Objection]
(1) All State Parliament enactments shall, immediately after they have been passed by a State Parliament, be notified by the State-Governor to the competent Federal Ministry prior to their publication.
(2) The Federal Government can within eight weeks from the day of an enactment's receipt at the Federal Chancellery enter a reasoned objection to a State Parliament enactment as endangering Federal interests. If the Federation was prior to the initiation of the legislative procedure for enactment given opportunity to comment on the draft bill, the objection may only be founded on an alleged encroachment on the Federation's competence. In case of an objection, the law may only be published if the State Parliament in the presence of at least half the members once more votes its enactment.
(3) Publication prior to expiry of the deadline for objection is admissible only if the Federal Government expressly agrees.
(4) The provisions of the Constitutional Finance Law apply to State Parliament enactments which deal with taxation.

Article 99 [State Constitutions]
(1) The State Constitution to be enacted by a State constitutional law can, inasmuch as the Federal Constitution is not affected thereby, be amended by State constitutional law.
(2) A State constitutional law can be passed only in the presence of half the members of the State Parliament and with a two thirds majority of the votes cast.

Article 100 [Dissolution]
(1) Every State Parliament can be dissolved by the Federal President at the request of the Federal Government and with the sanction of the Senate. The motion in the Senate must be carried in the presence of half the members and with a two thirds majority of the votes cast. The representatives of the State whose State Parliament is to be dissolved may not participate in the division.
(2) In case of dissolution, writs for new elections shall be issued within three weeks in accordance with the provisions of the State constitution; the convocation of the newly elected State Parliament must take place within four weeks after the election.

Article 101 [State Government]
(1) The executive power in each State is exercised by a State Government to be elected by the State Parliament.
(2) The members of a State Government need not belong to the State Parliament. Nevertheless, only persons eligible for the State Parliament can be elected to membership of the State Government.
(3) The State Government consists of the State-Governor, the requisite number of deputies, and other members.
(4) Before assumption of office, the State-Governor renders to the Federal President, the other members of the State Government render to the State-Governor, an affirmation with respect to the Federal Constitution. The addition of a religious assertion is admissible.

Article 102 [State-Governor]
(1) In the sphere of the States, in so far as no direct federal administration exists, the State-Governor and the State authorities subordinate to him exercise the executive power of the Federation. In so far as federal authorities, especially Federal public safety authorities, are entrusted with the execution of matters which are performed as indirect Federal administration, these federal authorities are subordinate to the State-Governor and bound by his instructions (Article 20 (1)); whether and to what extent such federal authorities are entrusted with executive acts is regulated by federal laws; these may, in so far as they do not concern the mandate stated in Paragraph (2), only be published with the sanction of the States concerned.
(2) The following matters can, within the framework of the constitutionally established sphere of competence, be directly performed by the federal authorities:
- demarcation of frontiers, trade in goods and livestock with other countries, customs regulation and control of entry into and exit from federal territory,
- Federal finances monopolies, the weights and measures, standards and hallmark system, technical experiments,
- administration of justice, passports, residence registration,
- matters of weapons, ammunition and explosives as well as the use of fire-arms,
- patent matters and the protection of designs, trade marks, and other commodity descriptions,
- the traffic system, river and navigation police, the postal and telecommunications system, mining, Danube control and conservation, regulation of torrents, construction and maintenance of waterways,
- surveying, labor legislation, social insurance, the preservation of monuments,
- operation and conduct of the Federal police and the Federal gendarmerie, including the exceptional circumstances where on the day of entry into force of this Federal Constitutional Law the local sphere of competence for a Federal public safety authority does not coincide with the territory of a Federal State,
- the maintenance of peace, order and security, excluding the local public safety authorities,
- Press affairs, matters of association and assembly, and the aliens police,
- military affairs, welfare measures for combatants and their dependents,
- population policy in so far as it concerns the grant of children's allowances and the organization of burden equalization on behalf of families schooling as well as education in matters of pupil and student hostels with the exception of agricultural and forestry education in matters of student hostels.
(3) The Federation remains entitled to delegate to the State-Governor its executive power also in the matters enumerated in Paragraph (2).
(4) The establishment of federal authorities for matters other than those specified in Paragraph (2) above can ensue only with the sanction of the States concerned.
(5) No other regional authority may set up and maintain a constabulary in the local sphere of competence of a Federal public safety administration to which a Federal police force is attached. The dissolution of constabularies whose establishment or continuance is contrary to this provision falls under the executive power of the Federation.
(6) The establishment of Federal public safety authorities, the definition of their local sphere of competence and of their substantive sphere of competence in administrative fields which in accordance with Article 10 provide for execution by Federal public safety authorities, as well as the issue of a special service code for their officials ensue on Federal Government ordinance. In so far as such an authority is to be assigned the performance of matters which fall into the autonomous sphere of execution by a State, the ordinance can be issued only if the assignment of such business to the Federal public safety authority has been enunciated in a law of the State in question.
(7) Should in particular Counties the need arise to take special measures because of danger to public peace and order, the competent Federal Minister can for the duration of the danger entrust special Federal officials with these measures.

Article 103 [Instructions]
(1) In matters of the indirect Federal administration the State-Governor is bound by instructions from the Federal Government and individual Federal Ministers (Article 20) and he is obliged, in order to effect the implementation of such instructions, to employ the powers available to him in his capacity as a functionary of the State's autonomous sphere of competence.
(2) A State Government, when it draws up its Standing Orders, can decide that specific categories of business of the indirect Federal administration shall be conducted by members of the State Government in the name of the State-Governor because of their substantive relationship with matters of the State's autonomous sphere of competence. In such business the members concerned of the State Government are as much bound by the instructions of the State-Governor (Article 20) as is the latter by the instructions of the Federal Government or individual Federal Ministers.
(3) Instructions issued by the Federal Government or individual Federal Ministers in accordance with Paragraph (1) shall also in instances falling under Paragraph (2) be addressed to the State-Governor. The latter, should he not himself be conducting the relevant business of the indirect Federal administration, is responsible (Article 142 (2)(d)) for passing the instruction in writing without delay and unaltered to the State Government member concerned and for supervising its implementation. If the instruction is not complied with although the State-Governor has made the necessary arrangements, the State Government member concerned is, pursuant to Article 142, responsible to the Federal Government as well.
(4) In matters of indirect Federal administration, in so far as it is the State-Governor's responsibility as the appeal authority to reach a decision and federal law because of the matter's importance does not exceptionally provide otherwise, the State-Governor is the final instance of appeal; if the decision rests in the first instance with the State-Governor, the stages of administrative appeal in matters of the indirect Federal administration extend, unless provided otherwise by federal law, to the competent Federal Minister.

Article 104 [Assignment]
(1) The provisions of Article 102 shall not apply to agencies for the performance of Federal business specified in Article 17.
(2) Nonetheless, the Federal Minister entrusted with the administration of Federal assets can assign the performance of such business to a State-Governor and the authorities subordinate to him. Such an assignment can at any time be revoked in part or in whole. To what extent in exceptional instances the Federation makes recompense for the accrued costs of performing such business will be regulated by federal law.

Article 105 [Representation, Deputy State-Governor, Responsibility]
(1) The State-Governor represents the State. In matters of the indirect Federal administration, he is, pursuant to Article 142, responsible to the Federal Government. The State-Governor has a member of the State Government as Deputy State-Governor selected by the State Government to substitute him. This appointment shall be notified to the Federal Chancellor. Should the need for substitution occur, the member of the State Government appointed as substitute is, pursuant to Article 142, likewise responsible to the Federal Government in matters of the indirect Federal administration. Immunity does not bar responsibility on the part of the State-Governor or the member of the State Government, who acts for him. Immunity also does not bar responsibility on the part of a member of the State Government in a case arising under Article 103 (3).
(2) The members of the State Government are responsible to the State Parliament pursuant to Article 142.
(3) A vote to prefer a charge within the meaning of Article 142 requires the presence of half the members.

Article 106 [State Administrative Director]
An administrative civil servant with legal training will be appointed to take charge as State Administrative Director of the State Government Office's internal services. He is also the official assistant of the State-Governor in matters of the indirect Federal administration.

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