On the permissible and necessary competence of the constitutional (statutory) councils of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation

After the 2020 amendments to the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the constituent entities of the Russian Federation will lose the right to have their own judicial bodies of constitutional control. At the same time, they were asked to create constitutional (statutory) councils as non-judicial bodies under the parliaments of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation. At the same time, the federal legislator did not fix the goals of creating councils and their competence. The function of legal protection of the Basic Law of the constituent entity of the Russian Federation is implied, because they are successor bodies of the constitutional (statutory) courts of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation (but are not their legal successors). Taking into account the fact that constitutional (statutory) councils are created by the constituent entities of the Russian Federation in the already established system of public authorities and cannot ignore the constitutional principle of separation of powers, the purpose of the publication is to determine the limits of competence and the most desirable powers of constitutional (statutory) councils as specialized protection bodies of the Basic law of the constituent entity of the Russian Federation, which can subsequently be used by the legislator to design laws on the legal status of constitutional (statutory) councils. It is concluded that the constitutional (statutory) councils of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation do not enter the traditional branches of state power and that they do not have the ability to independently deprive the normative acts of the legislative and executive authorities of legal force. Mechanisms are proposed for the constitutional (statutory) council of a constituent entity of the Russian Federation to initiate an administrative claim in a court of general jurisdiction in order to check the advising act for compliance with the constitution (statute) of a constituent entity of the Russian Federation. Two alternatives for securing the competence of constitutional (statutory) councils are analyzed: the first is the creation of a council as a declarative and largely fictitious body that is not endowed with serious powers to exercise normative control (as well as other significant powers); the second is the adjustment of the system of public authority of the constituent entity of the Russian Federation and the empowerment of the council with effective powers. The conclusion about the preference of the second alternative is substantiated. Amendments to the federal legislation for its practical implementation are proposed. The approach of the legislators of Bashkiria and Yakutia, who established the constitutional councils as advisory bodies not endowed with power, is criticized.