Expanding Formal Powers
Through legislation and, sometimes, constitutional amendment several legislatures have taken action to strengthen themselves as institutions. Several examples follow:
US: In response to President Nixon’s impounding funds that Congress provided for domestic programs, the US Congress adopted the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act (Budget Act) in 1974. The Act curtailed the president’s power to impound funds, created the Congressional Budget Office to provide independent budget expertise to Congress, and created the budget committees within each house.
Nicaragua: Reforms made by the Nicaraguan Assembly which took office with the departure of the Sandinistas from power in 1990 increased the power of the Assembly and reduced the independence of the military and the president. The reforms:
- Prohibited the President from appointing family members to political office;
- Reduced the power of the executive and put more fiscal authority in the hands of the National Assembly;
- Reduced the presidential term from 6 to 5 years, and prohibited the president from serving more than 2 nonconsecutive terms;
- Gave the Assembly sole authority to create, modify, and approve taxes;
- Gave the Assembly authority to approve international loans and treaties;
- Put the army under civilian control; and
- Reduced the role of the state in the economy
Uganda: Uganda’s 1995 constitution gave the parliament power to censure ministers and approve presidential appointments, and granted committees the authority to introduce legislation. Later reforms initiated by parliament established a permanent budget committee, established a professional budget office to assist MPs in analyzing the proposed executive budget, set limits on what government could borrow without prior parliamentary approval, and required Government to submit a draft executive budget to parliament three months prior to the normal budget submission date.
Mexico: 2004 constitutional amendments initiated by the Mexican Congress extended the period within which Congress considers the proposed executive budget (the executive must now present it two months earlier) and the length of the congressional spring term (from 47 to 87 days).
Kenya: Changes to parliament’s standing orders in 1997 established departmental committees with responsibility to review legislation within their areas of jurisdiction. By 2001 committees in the Kenya parliament were spending unprecedented numbers of days meeting as committees, holding hearings (on coffee, sugar, and health bills, for example) and amending government legislation (Nakamura & Johnson 2003).
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