State constitution (Germany)

In Germany, the constitutions of the federal states are referred to as state constitutions .

The federal structure of the Federal Republic of Germany means that the German states represent their own states with their own state authority and their own parliaments , governments and constitutional courts . According to Article 28, Paragraph 1, Clause 1 of the Basic Law (GG), the state constitutions must comply with “the principles of the republican , democratic and social constitutional state ” (principle of homogeneity ). However, you may deviate from the provisions of the Basic Law within this framework. So have z. For example, many state constitutions have elements of direct democracy that are unknown at the federal level . The state constitutions of the eastern German states have often adopted basic social rights , but these are not enforceable. Such constitutionally guaranteed fundamental rights remain in force regardless of the priority of federal law ( Art. 31 GG) according to Art. 142 GG, insofar as they are in accordance with Art. 1 to Art. 18 GG.

In addition - apart from the state organization regulations, the structure of authorities, etc. - the practical significance of the state constitutions is small. In historical terms, many are older than the Basic Law (e.g. the Bavarian Constitution of 1946 ) and in some cases also served as a model for the federal constitution.

State constitutions

Former state constitutions

literature

Jörg Menzel : State constitutional law. Constitutional sovereignty and homogeneity in the constitutional federal state . Richard Boorberg Verlag, Stuttgart / Munich / Hanover / Berlin / Weimar / Dresden 2002, ISBN 3-415-02987-5 .
Christian Pestalozza : Constitutions of the German Federal States , 9th edition, Munich 2009 (as of August 1, 2009), ISBN 978-3-406-59108-2 .