Chapter VII: Section II: Legislative Provisions

D.--LEGISLATION.

ARTICLE 34.

The Chamber/Dail Eireann shall in relation to the subject matter of money bills as hereinafter defined have legislative authority exclusive of the Senate/Seanad Eireann.

A money Bill means a Bill which contains only provisions dealing with all or any of the following subjects, namely, the imposition, repeal, remission, alteration or regulation of taxation; the imposition for the payment of debt or other financial purposes of charges on public moneys or the variation or repeal of any such charges; supply; the appropriation, receipt, custody, issue or audit of accounts of public money; the raising or guarantee of any loan or the repayment thereof; subordinate matters incidental to those subjects or any of them. In this definition the expressions "taxation," "public money" and "loan" respectively do not include any taxation, money or loan raised by local authorities or bodies for local purposes.

The Chairman of the Chamber/Dail shall certify any bill which in his opinion is a money bill to be a money bill, but, if within three days after a Bill has been passed by the Chamber/Dail, two-fifths of the members of either House by notice in writing addressed to the Chairman of the House of which they are members so require, the question whether the Bill is or is not a money bill shall be referred to a Committee of Privileges consisting of three members elected by each House with a Chairman who shall be the senior judge of the Supreme Court able and willing to act and who, in the case of an equality of votes, but not otherwise, shall be entitled to vote. The decision of the Committee on the question shall be final and conclusive.

ARTICLE 35.

The Chamber/Dail Eireann shall as soon as possible after the commencement of each financial year consider the Budget of receipts and expenditure of the Irish Free State/Saorstat Eireann for that year, and, save in so far as may be provided by specific enactment in each case, the legislation required to give effect to the Budget of each year shall be enacted within that year.

ARTICLE 36.

Money shall not be appropriated by vote, resolution or law, unless the purpose of the appropriation has in the same session been recommended by a message from the Representative of the Crown acting on the advice of the Executive Council.

ARTICLE 37.

Every Bill initiated in and passed by the Chamber/Dail Eireann shall be sent to the Senate/Seanad Eireann and may, unless it be a Money Bill, be amended in the Senate/Seanad Eireann and the Chamber/Dail Eireann shall consider any such amendment; but a Bill passed by the Chamber/Dail Eireann and considered by the Senate/Seanad Eireann shall, not later than two hundred and seventy days after it shall have been first sent to the Senate/Seanad, or such longer period as may be agreed upon by the two Houses, be deemed to be passed by both Houses in its form as last passed by the Chamber/Dail; Provided that any Money Bill shall be sent to the Senate/Seanad for its recommendations and at a period not longer than fourteen days after it shall have been sent to the Senate/Seanad, it shall be returned to the Chamber/Dail which may pass it, accepting or rejecting all or any of the recommendations of the Senate/Seanad, and as so passed shall be deemed to have been passed by both Houses. When a Bill other than a Money Bill has been sent to the Senate/Seanad a Joint Sitting of the Members of both Houses may on a resolution passed by the Senate/Seanad be convened for the purpose of debating, but not of voting upon, the proposals of the Bill or any amendment of the same.

ARTICLE 38.

A Bill may be initiated in the Senate/Seanad Eireann and if passed by the Senate/Seanad shall be introduced into the Chamber/Dail Eireann. If amended by the Chamber/Dail the Bill shall be considered as a Bill initiated in the Chamber/Dail. If rejected by the Chamber/Dail it shall not be introduced again in the same session, but the Chamber/Dail may reconsider it on its own motion.

ARTICLE 39.

A Bill passed by either House and accepted by the other House shall be deemed to be passed by both Houses.

ARTICLE 40.

So soon as any Bill shall have been passed or deemed to have been passed by both Houses, the Executive Council shall present the same to the Representative of the Crown for the signification by him, in the King's name, of the King's assent, and such representative may withhold the King's assent or reserve the Bill for the signification of the King's pleasure; Provided that the Representative of the Crown shall in the withholding of such assent to or reservation of any Bill, act in accordance with the law, practice, and constitutional usage governing the like withholding of assent or reservation in the Dominion of Canada.

A Bill reserved for the signification of the King's Pleasure shall not have any force unless and until within one year from the day on which it was presented to the Representative of the Crown for the King's Assent, the Representative of the Crown signifies by speech or message to each of the Houses of the Parliament/Oireachtas, or by proclamation, that it has received the Assent of the King in Council.

An entry of every such speech, message or proclamation shall be made in the Journal of each House and a duplicate thereof duly attested shall be delivered to the proper officer to be kept among the Records of the Irish Free State/Saorstat Eireann.

ARTICLE 41.

As soon as may be after any law has received the King's assent, the clerk, or such officer as the Chamber may appoint for the purpose, shall cause two fair copies of such law to be made, one being in the Irish language and the other in the English language (one of which copies shall be signed by the Representative of the Crown to be enrolled for record in the office of such officer of the Supreme Court as the Chamber/Dail Eireann may determine) and such copies shall be conclusive evidence as to the provisions of every such law, and in case of conflict between the two copies so deposited, that signed by the Representative of the Crown shall prevail.

ARTICLE 42.

The Parliament/Oireachtas shall have no power to declare acts to be infringements of the law which were not so at the date of their commission.

ARTICLE 43.

The Parliament/Oireachtas may create subordinate legislatures, but it shall not confer thereon any powers in respect of the Navy, Army or Air Force, alienage or naturalisation, coinage, legal tender, trade marks, designs, merchandise marks, copyright, patent rights, weights and measures, submarine cables, wireless telegraphy, post office, railways, aerial navigation, customs and excise.

ARTICLE 44.

The Parliament/Oireachtas may provide for the establishment of Functional or Vocational Councils representing branches of the social and economic life of the Nation. A law establishing any such Council shall determine its powers, rights and duties, and its relation to the government of the Irish Free State/Saorstat Eireann.

ARTICLE 45.

The Parliament/Oireachtas has the exclusive right to regulate the raising and maintaining of such armed forces as are mentioned in the Scheduled Treaty in the territory of the Irish Free State/Saorstat and every such force shall be subject to the control of the Parliament/Oireachtas.