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______  CULTURAL      EXCHANGE        PROGRAM       -    _-
PROJ2ECT:  LaTSGATIVJ'_ OfRAV7IZAT"JTT" A-T) 1ROCEDTJPR1
1. Problem
German legislative bodies haive not developed internal or"-anization
or rules of precedure that:  (a) mnake possible effective presentation to
the
legislature of diverse points of vie-;-, (b) give voice to individual memibers
on the floor of the legislature, (c) provide effective means of control over
the administration through 'interpellations and question periods, (d) produce
statutes containing limnitations on administrative discretion thyrough proper
standards, precise definitions, and clear delegation of authority, and (e)
make use of available sources of information. There rere evidences of this
weakness in the German legislative process even before the time of the Nazis.
During the Nazi regime democratic legislative processes were completely ignor'ed
and relegated to the ash heao.  Moreover, in this period and the period imme-
diatel1y following the war the Germans h-iv e been out of touch with the
tradi-
tions and developments in legislative processes in democratic countries in
the outside world. The Germans should nowt be enabled to find out and learn
for themselves what democratic countries have been doing in this critical
field so that this aspect of demrocratic government may become firmly rooted
in German thinking on goverrnmental problems and thereby the groundw,-ork
laid
for what is hoped will later bf a strong and well entrenched tradition.
2. Objective
To make the German legislative bodies more effective instruments
of popular action and democratic control.
3. Method
A Legislation Bureau should the established in the proposed Institute
of Public Affairs. Its functions would be to disseminate information and
assistance in the field of democratic legislation and legislative techniques.
To these ends it would maintain a legislative reference library adequately
stocked with relevant books, both German and foreign, available to all Ger-ians
interested in legislation. Its staff vroul]d provide expert research and
legal
draftsmanship assistance to legislative committees. It would provide assistance
and guidance to law schools and universities teaching courses in legislation
by furnishing reference books and publications to them and by facilitating
the exchange of literature between the German school materials. It would
act to coordinate all the separate educational programs, designed to aid
Germans in emphatic democratic principles to both thee substances and the
procedures of legislation. These would include the various "'visiting
experts"
projects in the legislation field. The Bureau would facilitate surreys made
by these experts, provide them, if necessary, with skilled German interpreters
and insure the maximum benefit from such surveys bar bringing their conclusions
to the greatest number of Gerrman legislators and students. Thesn surveys,
as
availability of experts and working time permit, should be concerned writh
(a)
legislative procedure: rules of debate, handling of bills, printing, voting
and roll-calls; (b) legislative organization: number, size and functions
of
standing committees, method of reporting, relation to the ministries and
ad-
ministrative offices, powers, party composition of committeeo and control
of
31.
20 DECEMBER 1948