SABOR COMMITTEE SUGGESTS GREATER POWERS FOR HOUSE OF COUNTIES

ZAGREB, Sept 21 (Hina) - The Croatian Sabor's Committee on the Constitution, Rule Book and the Political System on Thursday completed its debate on regulations regarding Sabor's organisation with a discussion about a draft on changes to the Constitution. The Committee will suggest that the House of Counties, apart from the right of legislative initiative, be given the right to decide about laws which regulate the jurisdiction and organisation of local self-government and state authority, the Committee's chairman Mato Arlovic told reporters. Both parliamentary chambers would be given 15 days to reach an agreement on specific laws. If they failed to do so, the legal text adopted by the House of Representatives would be considered authentic and sent to the President of the Republic for proclamation, Arlovic explained. He added that according to the Committee's proposals, the House of Counties would lose the right to veto laws on which it decides equally with the House of Representatives. Arlovic also said that the working group of the President of the Republic, in charge of drawing up constitutional changes, abided by its proposal that the House of Counties should be dissolved. The Committee today also completed a debate on constitutional regulations on human and civic rights and liberties, and will discuss constitutional powers of the President of the Republic this afternoon. Proposals on constitutional changes have been submitted for consideration by a government working group and the group appointed by the President of the Republic. The Committee is considering both proposals. (hina) rml.