Resolution No. 1 of 4 June 2018 on Constitutional Case No. 7/2018
Referring Authority and Subject Matter of the Case
The case was initiated upon a request by the President of the Republic of Bulgaria, submitted on the grounds of Article 149, paragraph 1, item 2 of the Constitution, seeking a declaration of unconstitutionality of Article 24, paragraph 2 of the Radio and Television Act (promulgated in State Gazette, issue No. 138/1998, last amended in State Gazette, issue No. 44/2018), which provides that the acts of the National Assembly and of the President for filling the quotas in the Council for Electronic Media enter into force simultaneously.
Summary of the Court’s Reasoning
The request maintains that the challenged provision is inapplicable and internally contradictory, since following the amendments to Article 29, paragraph 1, second sentence of the Radio and Television Act in 2010, the quotas of the National Assembly and of the President are renewed during different time periods. According to the applicant, this results in a violation of the principle of the rule of law under Article 4, paragraph 1 of the Constitution, as well as of the principle of separation of powers under Article 8 of the Constitution, since the acts of two constitutionally autonomous bodies are made dependent upon one another in the absence of shared competence.
Following the admission of the request for consideration on the merits, during the course of the proceedings an Act Amending the Radio and Television Act was adopted, by which the challenged provision of Article 24, paragraph 2 of the Radio and Television Act was repealed in its entirety. As a result, the case before the Constitutional Court became devoid of subject matter and, pursuant to Article 19 of the Constitutional Court Act and Article 22, paragraph 3 and Article 26, paragraph 1 of the Rules of Procedure of the Constitutional Court, the request is to be dismissed and returned to the applicant, and the proceedings on the case are to be terminated.
Grounds for the Ruling and Disposition
Pursuant to Article 19 of the Constitutional Court Act (the competence to rule on the admissibility of a request), the Constitutional Court dismisses the request of the President of the Republic of Bulgaria seeking a declaration of unconstitutionality of the provision of Article 24, paragraph 2 of the Radio and Television Act (promulgated in State Gazette, issue No. 138/1998, last amended in State Gazette, issue No. 44/2018), terminates the proceedings on Constitutional Case No. 7/2018, and returns the request to the applicant.