Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union

History

The Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union (Верхо́вный Сове́т СССР, Verkhovny Sovet SSSR) was the highest legislative body in the Soviet Union from 1938 to 1991. It succeeded the Congress of Soviets of the Soviet Union and functioned as the nominal supreme organ of state power according to the 1936 Soviet Constitution.

The Supreme Soviet replaced the Congress of Soviets in 1938 and was theoretically the highest authority in the USSR. In practice, however, it usually rubber-stamped decisions made by the Communist Party and its Politburo.

Although the Supreme Soviet was formally the highest organ of state power, real authority rested with the Communist Party until Mikhail Gorbachev's reforms in the late 1980s. Under perestroika, it became a somewhat genuine parliamentary body after the creation of the Congress of People's Deputies of the Soviet Union in 1989, from which the Supreme Soviet was elected as a smaller working legislature.

The last session of the Supreme Soviet was held in December 1991, shortly before the formal dissolution of the USSR.

Structure

The Supreme Soviet was composed of two chambers, each with equal legislative powers:

• The Soviet of the Union, which represented the population of the Soviet federation as a whole, with each deputy representing the same number of voters.
• The Soviet of Nationalities, which represented the ethnic populations as units, with members elected on the basis of 32 deputies from each union republic, 11 from each autonomous republic, five from each autonomous oblast (region), and one from each autonomous okrug (district). The administrative units of the same type would send the same number of members regardless of their size or population.

Under the 1936 Constitution, the Supreme Soviet was elected for a four-year term, and the Soviet of the Union had one deputy for every 300,000 people. This was changed by the 1977 constitution; the term was extended to five years, and the number of seats in the Soviet of the Union was changed to be the same as the Soviet of Nationalities, regardless of the population size.

The Supreme Soviet convened twice a year, usually for less than a week. For the rest of the year, the Presidium performed its ordinary functions. Often, the CPSU bypassed the Supreme Soviet altogether and had major laws enacted as Presidium decrees. Nominally, if such decrees were not ratified by the Supreme Soviet at its next session, they were considered revoked. In practice, however, the principle of democratic centralism rendered the process of ratifying Presidium decrees a mere formality. In some cases, even this formality was not observed.

After 1989 it consisted of 542 deputies (divided into two 271 chambers) decreased from a previous 1,500. The meetings of the highest organ of state authority were also more frequent, from six to eight months a year. In September 1991, after the August Coup, it was reorganised into the Soviet (council) of Republics and the Soviet of The Union, which would jointly amend the Soviet Constitution, admit new states, hear out the President of the Soviet Union on important home and foreign policy issues, approve the union budget, declare war and conclude peace. The Soviet of Republics would consist of 20 deputies from each union republic, plus one deputy to represent each autonomous region of each republic, delegated by the republics' legislatures. Russia was an exception with 52 deputies. The Soviet of the Union consisted of deputies apportioned by the existing quotas.

Powers

The Supreme Soviet had authority to:

• Enact laws and amend the Constitution of the Soviet Union.
• Elect the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, which acted as a collective head of state between sessions.
• Appoint the Council of Ministers (executive branch).
• Ratify international treaties and approve economic plans.

Sessions were generally short, held twice a year, with most legislative work done by standing commissions or the Presidium.

Between sessions, its powers were exercised by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, which could issue decrees (ukazy) with the force of law, subject to later approval.

In 1988, the constitution was amended to create a new body, the Congress of People's Deputies, with many of the powers formerly assigned to the Supreme Soviet. The Congress also served as an electoral college with the duty to elect the Supreme Soviet, which accordingly became a subsidiary of the new body, in a relationship somewhat similar to the Supreme Soviet's own relationship with its Presidium.

By 1989, its powers were:

• Passing and initiating laws.
• Submitting questions to the President of the Soviet Union, the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union, scheduling elections of deputies.
• Convening the Congress of People's Deputies.
• Appointing the Chairman of the Council of Ministers on the submission of the President.
• Ratifying the composition of the Council of Ministers and changes in it on the submission on the Chairman.
• Forming and disbanding ministries and state committees on the proposal of the Council of Ministers.
• Overriding a presidential veto with a two-thirds majority.
• Ratifying presidential declarations of war.
• Impeaching the President.
• Hearing reports by organs of appointed officials.
• Implementing laws regulating property, management of the economy, social and cultural issues, budget and finance, salaries, prices, taxes, environmental protection, natural resource, and civil rights,
• Laying down the principals of local and republic state power and the legal status of social organisations,
• Submitting for ratification (and ratifying and amending) by the congress long-term national and social and economic development plans, the national budget, monitoring implantation of the state plan and budget, and ratifying reports on their performance.
• Ratifying international treaties.
• Overseeing the granting of foreign aid and negotiating foreign loans.
• Determining basic measures for national security, including declarations of war, mobilizing troops, and meeting international treaty obligations.

Acts by the Supreme Soviet entered into force after signature by the President and their subsequent publication.

Between 1938 and February 1990, more than 50 years, only 80 laws were passed by the Supreme Soviet, less than 1% of total legislative acts.

Leaders

Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet (1938–1989)

Chairmen of the Supreme Soviet (1989–1991)

Convocations

• 1st convocation session 1938–1946, World War II (elections on 12 December 1937)
  • 1,143 (initially, 569 to the Soviet of the Union and 574 to the Soviet of Nationalities)
  • 387 (added, after annexation of Baltic states, eastern Poland, and eastern Romania)
  • 6 (added following World War II and annexation of Tuva)
• 2nd convocation session 1946–1950 (elections on 10 February 1946)
  • 1339 (initially)
  • 48 (added)
• 3rd convocation session 1950–1954 (elections on 12 March 1950)
  • 1,316 (initially)
  • 48 (added)
• 4th convocation session 1954–1958 (elections on 14 March 1954)
  • 1,347 (initially)
  • 33 (added)
• 5th convocation session 1958–1962 (elections on 16 March 1958)
  • 1,378 (initially)
• 6th convocation session 1962–1966 (elections on 18 March 1962)
  • 1,443 (initially)
• 7th convocation session 1966–1970 (elections on 12 June 1966)
  • 1,517 (initially)
• 8th convocation session 1970–1974 (elections on 14 June 1970)
  • 1,517
• 9th convocation session 1974–1979 (elections on 16 June 1974)
  • 1,517
• 10th convocation session 1979–1984 (elections on 4 March 1979)
  • 1,500
• 11th convocation session 1984–1989 (elections on 4 March 1984)
  • 1,500
• 1st convocation 1989–1991 (26 March — 21 May 1989, unofficially 12th convocation), sessions were conducted in the form of Congress of People's Deputies of the Soviet Union
  • 2,250
• New composition 1991, (unofficially 13th convocation) unlike previous convocations, there were no elections for the new composition of the Supreme Council instead members of the council were delegated from the council of union republics that continued to be members of the Soviet Union.

Supreme Soviets of the republics

Beside the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union, each of its constituting union republics and each autonomous republic had a supreme soviet. These supreme soviets also had presidiums, but all consisted of only one chamber. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, some soviets of the succeeded independent republics simply changed their name to their more historic name or to emphasise their importance as a national parliament, while others changed to double-chamber assemblies.

Supreme soviets of the union republics

Main article: Supreme Soviet

Supreme soviets of the autonomous republics

List of known autonomous republics councils:

Notes

References

References

1. (18 December 1972). "Совместное заседание Совета Союза и Совета Национальностей Верховного Совета СССР восьмого созыва. Кремль.". Rossiya Segodnya media group.
2. (22 July 1975). "Совместное заседание Совета Союза и Совета Национальностей третьей сессии Верховного Совета СССР девятого созыва. Кремлевский Дворец Съездов (ныне – Государственный Кремлевский дворец).". Rossiya Segodnya media group.
3. Armstrong, John Alexander. (1986). "Ideology, Politics, and Government in the Soviet Union: An Introduction". [[University Press of America]].
4. [http://bse.sci-lib.com/article004390.html Верховный Совет СССР], [[Great Soviet Encyclopedia]]
5. (1979). "The 1977 Soviet Constitution: A Historical Comparison". Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law.
6. (1979). "The Theories and Realities of Modern Soviet Constitutional Law: An Analysis of the 1977 USSR Constitution". University of Pennsylvania Law Review.
7. Peter Lentini (1991) in: ''The Journal of Communist Studies'', Vol. 7, No.1, pp. 69–94
8. «Avante!», newspaper of [[Portuguese Communist Party]], February 22, 1990, section «Em Foco», p. ix
9. [https://web.archive.org/web/20160204085149/http://vs.sssr.su/ Supreme Council of the Soviet Union]. "[http://sssr.su/ Portal SSSR]".
10. [https://web.archive.org/web/20160204084725/http://vs.sssr.su/13/ Supreme Council of the Soviet Union new composition]. "[http://sssr.su/ Portal SSSR]".