Form of government of the Russian Federation article. Form of government: concept and types

The form of government is the organization of the highest bodies of state power, their structure, order of formation, distribution of competence and relationships with the population.

There are two main forms of government:

1. Monarchy- a form of government in which supreme power is exercised by one person who receives this power, usually by inheritance.

All power belongs to the monarch, i.e. The final decision on absolutely any issue depends on him, he makes decisions on his own behalf, can create and abolish any bodies, etc. There are no legal restrictions on the powers of the monarch. The monarch uses the title (king, tsar, emperor, etc.) and has the right to receive funds from the state treasury to support himself and his family. The monarch receives power, as a rule, by inheritance. The stay in power is not limited by any period.

Depending on the scope of powers vested in the monarch, there are:

- absolute(unlimited) monarchy - concentration of all power in the hands of the monarch; There are no legal restrictions on the powers of the monarch.

- limited monarchy- the power of the monarch is limited both by law and by the existence of a representative body. Depending on how limited the power of the monarch is, they distinguish:

A) dualistic monarchy– the principle of separation of powers has already been implemented here: the executive power remains with the monarch, and the legislative power, in principle, belongs to parliament. The monarch exercises executive power through the government he appoints. The monarch has the right of absolute veto and the right to dissolve parliament, can issue emergency decrees that replace or cancel decrees, but he is forced to reckon with parliament.

B) parliamentary monarchy– the power of the monarch is limited in almost all areas of activity. The monarch plays a mainly representative role and is a “symbol of the nation.” Legislative power belongs to parliament. Executive power is exercised by the government, which is formed by and responsible to parliament. The monarch cannot reject a member of the government if it has passed through parliament. Without the signatures of the head of government or minister, decrees issued by the monarch have no legal force.

2. Republic- this is a form of government in which the supreme power in a given state is exercised by elected bodies.

The source of power in a republic is the people, who at certain intervals elect the highest representative bodies of the state (popular sovereignty). The people elect the highest legislative body - the parliament and, in some cases, the president. All other supreme bodies of the state are formed by these representative bodies. The powers of the highest elected bodies are limited to a certain period. The principle of separation of powers was implemented.

According to the nature of the relationship between the legislative and executive authorities, they are distinguished:

- parliamentary republic– a strong legislative branch, and the executive branch is subordinate to it. Here the supremacy of parliament exercises legislative power. The government is formed by parliament and is responsible to it. The post of president may be provided, but he does not have broad powers and is dependent on the government for his activities. A significant place is occupied by the head of government - the prime minister (federal chancellor) - he is elected by parliament. The government is formed by the leader of the party that wins the elections and remains in power as long as it has the support of the majority of parliamentarians. Members of the government are responsible to parliament for their activities.

- presidential republic– the president occupies a very significant place in the state apparatus. Legislative power belongs to the highest representative body - parliament, which issues laws, and executive power belongs to the government. Parliament does not form the executive branch, and the latter is not responsible to it. The president is the head of state and head of the executive branch; he independently appoints ministers and forms the government. The government is responsible to the president and not responsible to parliament for its activities. The president is elected by popular vote.

- mixed republic– combines elements of presidential and parliamentary republics. There is a strong president, elected by the people, who is the chief executive and runs the government. But parliament must take part in the formation of the latter.

In Russia, a mixed (semi-presidential) form of government prevails. A sign is that the constitution establishes the possibility of dissolving parliament or its lower house on the initiative of the president in the event of an insurmountable conflict between executive authorities and parliament at the same level.

13. Form of government: concept, classification. Form of government in the Russian Federation

Form of government- this is an element of the form of the state that characterizes the internal structure of the state, the method of its political and territorial division, which determines certain relationships between the organs of the entire state and the organs of its constituent parts.

With the help of this concept, the state structure is characterized from the point of view of the distribution of power in the center and locally.

Depending on this criterion, the following forms are distinguished:

I) unitary- a simple, unified state, parts of which are administrative-territorial units and do not possess signs of state sovereignty; it has a unified system of supreme bodies and a unified system of legislation, as, for example, in Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria, Italy.

In a unitary state, all external interstate relations are carried out by central bodies that officially represent the country in the international arena. The state, not the territory, has the monopoly right of taxation. Collection of local taxes, as a rule, is allowed with the sanction of the state. Territories, unlike the state, do not have the right to establish and collect taxes at their own discretion. Unitary states can be centralized - Norway, Romania, Sweden, Denmark, etc., and decentralized - Spain, France, etc., in which large regions enjoy broad autonomy and independently resolve issues delegated to them by the central authorities;

2) federal- a complex, union state, parts of which are state entities and have, to one degree or another, state sovereignty and other signs of statehood; in it, along with the highest federal bodies and federal legislation, there are the highest bodies and legislation of the constituent entities of the federation, as, for example, in Germany, India, Mexico, Canada; federations can be built on a territorial (USA) or national-territorial principle (Russia).

Federations are built on the basis of the distribution of functions between its subjects and the center, fixed in the union constitution, which can only be changed with the consent of the subjects of the federation. Moreover, one part of the powers is the exclusive competence of the union bodies; the other - the subjects of the federation; the third - the joint competence of the union and its members). There are currently 24 federal states in the world.

3)confederation- a temporary union of states formed to achieve political, military, economic and other goals. The Confederation does not have sovereignty, because there is no central state apparatus common to the united entities and there is no unified system of legislation. Within the framework of the confederation, union bodies can be created, but only on those problems for the sake of which they united, and only of a coordinating nature.

The confederation is a fragile state formation and exists for a relatively short time: they either disintegrate (as happened with Senegambia - the unification of Senegal and Gambia in 1982-1989), or are transformed into federal states (as was the case, for example, with Switzerland, which confederation of the Swiss Union, which existed in 1815-1848, was transformed into a federation).

A new form of associated state association has emerged, called the commonwealth of states. An example would be the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States). It is a more amorphous and indeterminate form than a confederation.

In addition to the above-mentioned forms of government, there have been some other specific forms in history - empires, protectorates, etc. Thus, empires are state formations, the distinctive features of which are an extensive territorial basis, strong centralized power, asymmetrical relations of domination and subordination between the center and the periphery , heterogeneous ethnic and cultural composition of the population. Empires (for example, Roman, British, Russian) existed in different historical eras.

A protectorate is the formal guardianship of a weak state by a stronger one, leading to the loss of the weak one, and may be accompanied by its occupation.

In Russia, the form of government is a federation, built on the national-territorial principle. The Russian Federation includes 84 constituent entities (Irkutsk Region and Ust-Ordynsky Buryat Autonomous Okrug cease to exist as constituent entities of the Russian Federation on January 1, 2008)

republics - 21

regions - 47

federal cities - 2

autonomous regions - 1

autonomous okrugs - 5

Article 1 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation characterizes Russia as a state with a republican form of government.

At the same time, the Constitution does not determine what type of republic the Russian Federation belongs to - parliamentary or presidential. But at the same time, the Constitution of the Russian Federation tells us that in our country preference is given to the presidential form of government.

The President of the Russian Federation can be classified as a completely independent type of government body, since he is proclaimed the head of state, and not the head of the executive branch, as was the case under the Constitution of the RSFSR of 1978. Therefore, he does not lead the Government. Based on the Federal Constitutional Law “On the Government of the Russian Federation” adopted on December 17, 1997, which consolidated the new position of the Government of the Russian Federation in the system of government bodies. The government is the highest body exercising executive power and heading the executive power in the Russian Federation. Since executive power is now entirely vested in the Government, the President is not directly responsible for the policies and actions of the executive branch. The President of the Russian Federation and the branch of the executive branch are separated, which means that a step has been taken away from the model of a presidential republic created in the States, which assumes a close connection between these two branches of government.

And again, but the President is endowed with certain powers that allow him to assert that he has the functions of executive power. Among them, we include leadership of a number of executive authorities, foreign policy, and the right to chair government meetings. Also, the President, exercising his constitutional powers, exercises executive power by adopting numerous decrees driven by the requirement to carry out political, economic and social reforms, including decrees on issues within the competence of the Government of the Russian Federation.

The Constitution granted the President of the Russian Federation, as the head of state, who has a number of functions that place him above other authorities, with the authority to coordinate the functioning and interaction of the Government of the Russian Federation and other government bodies, as well as to form the government and direct its activities. The President may be removed from office by the Federation Council on the basis of an accusation brought by the State Duma in the case of high treason or the commission of another serious crime, which must be confirmed by the conclusion of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation on the presence of signs of a crime in the actions of the President and by the conclusion of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation on compliance with the established procedure for bringing charges.

The Constitution changed the principle of relations between the legislative and executive authorities, as well as the level of responsibility of the government to parliament. The appointment of the Chairman of the Government is agreed upon with the State Duma; this chamber has the right to pass a vote of no confidence in the government, and the chairman of the government to raise the question of confidence before it. state government Duma power

The Constitution, having proclaimed the principle of separation of powers, removed the government from direct subordination to parliament, retaining control over the State Duma in a key area - budget policy. Now the Government submits a report to the Duma on the federal budget and its execution, informs about the progress of execution of the federal budget, and also provides information to the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation when exercising control over the execution of the federal budget. In accordance with the Constitution and the Federal Law “On the Government of the Russian Federation”, the Government provides written opinions on bills requiring funding from the federal budget, administration or the abolition of taxes. The government, as the highest state executive body, must execute and enforce federal laws. The activities of the Government are assessed by considering the practice of implementing specific laws by the chambers of the Federal Assembly.

The government interacts with the judiciary and, to the extent of its powers, exercises independent justice and execution of court decisions. The Constitution gives the Government the right to apply to the Constitutional Court with requests for compliance of federal laws, regulations, constitutions of republics, statutes of the Constitution, with requests for interpretation of the Constitution. If the courts recognize acts of the Government or their individual provisions as inconsistent with the Constitution, federal laws and presidential decrees, the Government shall bring these acts and provisions into compliance with the law.

Courts personify the judicial power, which is in accordance with Art. 10 of the Constitution of one of the three branches of government. In Russia there are federal, constitutional and magistrate courts that make up the judicial system of the Russian Federation.

The Constitution states that the Federal Assembly is a legislative body. This means that the Federal Assembly performs the functions of issuing legal acts of the highest legal force, after the Constitution and international treaties. The Federal Assembly is the only body of federal legislative power. Its acts cannot be canceled or changed by any other government body.

The modern form of government in the Russian Federation was preceded by the symbiosis (cohabitation) of the power of the Soviets and the emerging presidential power in the USSR. Two terms of government of the first Russian president passed, and he was subsequently replaced by another. This period was difficult; the presidential form of government withstood serious tests. The President received the opportunity to influence parliamentary decisions through a loyal majority in the factions of the State Duma. In my opinion, the system of presidential power in Russia is already a structure, of course, developing, with its own contradictions, but already relatively mature.

Form of government

The Constitution of the Russian Federation, adopted on December 12, 1993, served as the basis for streamlining the system of federal relations. One of the fundamental principles was the equality of rights of the subjects of the federation. This equality applies to all subjects of the federation, and is realized both in the relations of individual subjects of the federation with the center, and in the relations of the subjects of the federation with each other.

Subjects of the federation have a number of common features:

1) Their own local parliaments and their governments (administrations);
2) Have the right to their own legislation;
3) division of powers, stipulated in constitutions; 4) In federations, the upper house of parliament is the body of representation of subjects, designed to express their specific interests. Typically, this chamber is formed on the basis of equal representation of the constituent entities of the federation;

Subjects of the federation must take part in solving federal issues in various forms. The organizational form is the upper house. The Constitution most precisely defines issues that can be resolved without its participation (for example, amendments to the federal constitution); a meeting is convened to discuss important issues. To resolve the most important issues, the meeting is convened by the president, with the invitation of the leaders of the federation and constituent entities.

A federal state, regardless of its type, is characterized by the following state and legal features:

1) the state is united and complex, since it consists of subjects, each of which has significant independence;
2) a contract or constitution acts as a legal form of consolidating state relations;
3) a single territory formed as a result of the unification of the territories of its subjects;
4) in addition to federal citizenship, the citizenship of its individual subjects may be retained at the same time;
5) public authorities are common to the entire state. At the same time, the subjects of the federation have the right to have their own legislative and executive bodies of state power;
6) unified armed forces;
7) the monetary system is uniform throughout the entire state;
8) federal tax system.

The Russian Federation is slightly different from a number of other federations. The nature of the modern Russian federal state is that it is based on a constitutional-contractual, voluntary division of powers between federal government bodies and government bodies of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation. The document that laid down the principle of delimitation of these powers is the federal agreement. Its contents and provisions are fully included in the Constitution of the Russian Federation.

The centuries-old history of the Russian state could not but be reflected in the Constitution of the Russian Federation, which established the different status of the subjects of the federation.

In Part 1 of Art. 65 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation determines that the Russian Federation includes the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, and then republics are listed in alphabetical order, then territories, regions, cities of federal significance, autonomous regions and autonomous districts. This method of arrangement suggests that our countries are divided into different types. Proof of this division of federal subjects into types is the constitutional provision that the status of different types of federal subjects is determined by different types of regulatory legal acts: the status of a republic - by the Constitution of the Russian Federation and the Constitution of the Republic; the status of a region, region, city of federal significance, autonomous region, autonomous district - by the Constitution of the Russian Federation and the charter of the region, region, city of federal significance, autonomous region, autonomous district, adopted by the legislative (representative) body of the corresponding subject of the Russian Federation. But right there in Part 1 of Art. 5 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation proclaims the equality of all subjects of the Russian Federation.

Here we can say that the Constitution of the Russian Federation enshrines the division of the subjects of the federation, precisely depending on what type they are: - national-state (republic), administrative-territorial (krai, region, city), national-territorial (autonomous region, autonomous okrugs). Although such a division in its pure form is not fixed in legislation, it can be discussed based on the content of Articles 65-66 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation.

Part 5 art. 66 states that “the status of a subject of the Russian Federation can be changed by mutual consent of the Russian Federation and the subject of the Russian Federation in accordance with the federal constitutional law.” In practice, we see that the republics occupy a stronger place in the system of federal relations than other subjects of the federation. In relation to them, federal authorities, as a rule, refrain from any harsh methods of influence. This cannot be said about other subjects of the federation. That is, elements of inequality in Russian federalism seem to be noticeable.

In the modern form of the state (territorial-political) structure of the Russian Federation, there are significant changes in nature in the form of management of territories, regions (federal districts), but not yet in the territorial structure of the federation itself. The struggle for powers and competence takes place within the unchanged federal national-territorial form of state organization. This is largely facilitated by the unclear constitutional description of the Russian federal structure, supplemented by the peculiarities of the contractual status of individual subjects of the federation.

The republics that are part of the Russian Federation are subjects with a huge political advantage over other subjects, as stated in Part 2 of Art. 5 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation. The main criterion that allows the existence and identification of republican political systems is the national-territorial principle.

The Russian Federation is a republic of a mixed type, since the formation of the Government of the Russian Federation is carried out by the President of the Russian Federation with the participation of the State Duma. The President, at the proposal of the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation, appoints Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation and federal ministers to positions. However, the President of the Russian Federation can appoint the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation only with the consent of the State Duma.

The republican form of government in Russia has features compared to the typical forms of presidential and parliamentary republics. The “hybrid” nature of the new form of government is due to the specifics of the historical evolution of the institution of the head of the Russian state, socio-political and socio-economic conditions for carrying out reforms. Combining the features of a presidential and parliamentary republic, the form of government retains most of the components of a dualistic regime with the dominance of the president in the system of government bodies. 2

The general features of the republican form of government are:

the existence of a single and collegial head of state;

election for a certain term of the head of state and other supreme bodies of state power;

the exercise of state power not at its own behest, but on behalf of the people;

legal responsibility of the head of state in cases provided for by law;

binding decisions of the supreme state power2

There are several main types of republican government. In turn, they are divided according to the form of government into:

parliamentary

presidential

A parliamentary republic is a type of modern form of government in which supreme power in the organization of public life belongs to parliament.3

In such a republic, the government is formed by parliamentary means from among deputies belonging to those parties that have a majority of votes in parliament. The government is collectively responsible to parliament in its activities. It remains in power as long as they have a majority in parliament. If the majority of members of parliament lose confidence, the government either resigns or, through the head of state, seeks to dissolve parliament and call early parliamentary elections4.

The head of state in a parliamentary republic has the powers: he promulgates laws, issues decrees, appoints the head of government, is the supreme commander of the armed forces, etc.

The head of government (prime minister, chairman of the council of ministers, chancellor) is usually appointed by the president. He forms the government he heads, which exercises supreme executive power and is responsible for its activities before parliament. The most essential feature of a parliamentary republic is that any government is only competent to govern the state when it enjoys the confidence of parliament.4

The main function of parliament is legislative activity and control over the executive branch. Parliament has important financial powers, since it develops and adopts the state budget, determines the prospects for the development of the country's socio-economic development, and resolves major issues of foreign policy, including defense policy. The parliamentary form of republican government is a structure of the highest bodies of state power that actually ensures democracy in public life, personal freedom, and creates fair conditions for human life based on the principles of legal legitimacy.

A presidential republic is one of the varieties of the modern form of government, which, along with parliamentarism, combines in the hands of the president the powers of the head of state and the head of government.5

The most characteristic features of a presidential republic:

extra-parliamentary method of electing the president and forming the government;

the government's responsibility is to the president, not to parliament;

broader powers of the head of state than in a parliamentary republic.

The presidential form of government in different countries has its own characteristics. In Russia, the president is elected by universal suffrage. The candidate who receives the absolute number of votes is considered elected. This procedure for electing the president was established in Russia in 1991.

Characteristic of all presidential republics, despite their diversity, is that the president either combines the powers of head of state and head of government and participates in the formation of the cabinet or council of ministers. The president is also vested with other important powers: as a rule, he has the right to dissolve parliament, is the supreme commander in chief, declares a state of emergency, approves laws by signing them, often represents in the government, and appoints members of the Supreme Court.

In accordance with Part 1 of Article 1 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the Russian Federation is a state with a republican form of government.

Main characteristics of the Russian Federation as a republic:

The President of the Russian Federation is the head of state (Article 80 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation).

The Chairman of the Government of Russia is appointed by the President of Russia with the consent of the State Duma (Part 1 of Article 111 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation).

In accordance with these characteristics, the Russian Federation can be defined as a mixed (semi-presidential) republic.

The formation of Russian statehood is a long and multi-stage process. It went through several stages, but very soon the desire to implement progressive ideas of reforming the state began to conflict with the real prerequisites for the formation of the Russian state. And yet, new state forms were created, analogues of which cannot be found not only in post-revolutionary, but also in pre-revolutionary Russia. The permanent legislative body, constitutional proceedings, and the institution of presidential power irreversibly changed the face of the country's state power.

According to the classification adopted in the science of constitutional law, in the Russian Federation there was a model of a semi-presidential or mixed form of government, i.e. combining the features of both presidential and parliamentary republics. This model is sometimes called French, since it was this form of government that was initiated in 1958 by General de Gaulle. At that time, a similar form existed even before the reform of the Constitution of the French Republic. Krasnov M.A. Russia as a semi-presidential republic // State and Law, 2003, No. 10. P. 16

Later the situation changed

In the Constitution of the Russian Federation, adopted on December 12, 1993, Article 1 states: “The Russian Federation - Russia is a democratic federal legal state with a republican form of government.” Constitution of the Russian Federation. Art. 1

The President of the Russian Federation was proclaimed the head of state, and not the head of the executive power, despite the fact that executive power is directly vested in the government.

At the same time, the Constitution granted the President of the Russian Federation, as the head of state, who has a number of functions that place him above other authorities, including the executive, extensive powers to ensure the coordinated functioning and interaction of the Government of the Russian Federation and other government bodies, as well as to form the government, direct it activities. The government resigns its powers to the newly elected President. The President appoints the chairman (with the consent of the State Duma) and members of the government, makes decisions on his resignation and on the dismissal of individual government members, approves the structure of federal executive bodies, and has the right to cancel decrees and orders of the federal government.

The President is endowed by the Constitution and federal laws on its basis with certain powers that make it possible to assert that the head of state has the functions of executive power. These include, in particular, the leadership of a number of executive authorities, foreign policy, the right to chair government meetings, etc.

In addition, the president, exercising his constitutional powers to determine the main directions of the domestic and foreign policy of the state, exercises executive power in practice, adopting numerous decrees driven by the requirement to carry out political, economic and social reforms, including decrees on issues within the competence of the government . Krasnov M.A. Russia as a semi-presidential republic // State and Law, 2003, No. 10. P. 18

The President may be removed from office by the Federation Council on the basis of a charge brought by the State Duma of treason or committing another serious crime, confirmed by the conclusion of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation on the presence of signs of a crime in the president’s actions and the conclusion of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation on compliance with the established procedure for bringing charges.

The Federal Constitutional Law “On the Government of the Russian Federation”, adopted on December 17, 1997, established on the basis of the Constitution the new position of the Government of the Russian Federation in the system of public authorities of Russia as the highest body exercising executive power and heading a unified system of executive power in the Russian Federation

The Constitution changed the principle of relations between the legislative and executive authorities, as well as the nature of the government’s responsibility to parliament. The appointment of the Chairman of the Government is agreed upon with the State Duma; this chamber has the right to pass a vote of no confidence in the government, and the chairman of the government to raise the question of confidence before it. Artemyeva O.V. Formation of Russian statehood // State and Law, 2004, No. 4. P. 113

The Constitution, having proclaimed the principle of separation of powers, removed the government from direct subordination to parliament, retaining control over the State Duma in a key area - budget policy. The government submits to the Duma the federal budget and a report on its execution, informs the Duma about the progress of execution of the federal budget, and provides the necessary information to the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation when it exercises control over the execution of the federal budget. In accordance with the Constitution and the Federal Law "On the Government of the Russian Federation", the Government gives written opinions on bills requiring funding from the federal budget, on the introduction or abolition of taxes, exemption from their payment, on the issuance of government loans, on changes in the financial obligations of the state and other projects .

The government, as the highest state body exercising executive power, must execute and enforce federal laws. At the same time, laws often not only define the competence of the government in the relevant area, but also contain instructions for implementing the laws. The activities of the Federal Government are also assessed when the chambers of the Federal Assembly examine the practice of implementing specific laws.

As a subject of legislative initiative, the government ensures the preparation and submission of a significant part of bills to the State Duma. The government may send official feedback on federal laws and bills under consideration to the chambers of the Federal Assembly. Interaction between the government and the chambers of the Federal Assembly is ensured by plenipotentiary representatives of the government in the relevant chambers, appointed to positions by the government, and secretaries of state - deputy heads of federal executive bodies. there, s. 114

The Chairman of the Government or his deputy gives oral or written answers to parliamentary inquiries, requests and appeals from members of the Federation Council and deputies of the State Duma.

The government interacts with the judiciary, ensures, within its powers, the possibility of independent administration of justice, execution of court decisions, and participates in judicial reform.

If the courts recognize acts of the government or their individual provisions as inconsistent with the Constitution, federal laws and presidential decrees, the government makes decisions to bring these acts into compliance with federal legislation. The Constitution gives the government the right to apply to the Constitutional Court with requests for compliance with the Constitution of federal laws, regulations of federal government bodies, constitutions of republics, charters, as well as regulations of the subjects of the Federation, some other legal acts defined by the Constitution, with requests for interpretation of the Constitution, and also in connection with the resolution of disputes about competence.

The Constitution defines the Federal Assembly as the legislative body. This means that the Federal Assembly is entrusted with the function of issuing legal acts of the highest legal force, above which the legal force is only the Constitution itself and international treaties. The Federal Assembly is the only body of federal legislative power. Its acts - federal laws - cannot be repealed or amended by any other government body, since they comply with the Constitution. In cases where they contradict the federal Constitution, they lose their legal force by decision of the Constitutional Court. Acts of any other government bodies must not contradict federal laws.

Courts personify the judicial power, which is in accordance with Art. 10 of the Constitution of one of the three branches of government. Justice in Russia is administered only by courts established in accordance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation and federal constitutional law. In Russia there are federal courts, constitutional (statutory) courts and magistrates of the constituent entities of the Federation, which make up the judicial system of the Russian Federation. There, p. 116

The modern form of government in the Russian Federation was preceded by a short-lived symbiosis of Soviet power and the emerging presidential power in the USSR. Two terms of government of the first Russian president passed; he was legitimately replaced by another. This period was difficult; the presidential form of government withstood serious tests. It has stabilized; there has been a non-revolutionary transfer of power, although it is still successive. The President received the opportunity to influence parliamentary decisions through a loyal majority in the factions of the State Duma; the heads of the constituent entities of the federation no longer form a powerful association in the Federation Council. Essentially, the system of presidential power in Russia is an already formed structure, of course, developing, with its own contradictions, but already relatively established. Levakin I.V. Modern Russian statehood // State and rights, 2003. No. 1, p. 5

Article 1 of the Russian Constitution states: “The Russian Federation - Russia is a democratic federal legal state with a republican form of government.”
The President of the Russian Federation was proclaimed the head of state, and not the head of the executive power, despite the fact that executive power is directly vested in the government. At the same time, the Constitution granted the President of the Russian Federation, as the head of state, who has a number of functions that place him above other authorities, including the executive, extensive powers to ensure the coordinated functioning and interaction of the Government of the Russian Federation and other government bodies, as well as to form the government, direct it activities. The government resigns its powers to the newly elected President. The President appoints the chairman (with the consent of the State Duma) and members of the government, decides on his resignation and the dismissal of individual government members, approves the structure of federal executive bodies, and has the right to cancel decrees and orders of the federal government.
The President is endowed by the Constitution and federal laws on its basis with certain powers that make it possible to assert that the head of state has the functions of executive power. These include, in particular, the leadership of a number of executive authorities, foreign policy, the right to chair government meetings, etc.
In addition, the president, exercising his constitutional powers to determine the main directions of the domestic and foreign policy of the state, exercises executive power in practice, adopting numerous decrees driven by the requirement to carry out political, economic and social reforms, including decrees on issues within the competence of the government .
The President may be removed from office by the Federation Council on the basis of a charge brought by the State Duma of treason or committing another serious crime, confirmed by the conclusion of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation on the presence of signs of a crime in the president’s actions and the conclusion of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation on compliance with the established procedure for bringing charges.
The Federal Constitutional Law "On the Government of the Russian Federation", adopted on December 17, 1997, established on the basis of the Constitution the new position of the Government of the Russian Federation in the system of government bodies of Russia as the highest body exercising executive power and heading a unified system of executive power in the Russian Federation
The Constitution changed the principle of relations between the legislative and executive authorities, as well as the nature of the government’s responsibility to parliament. The appointment of the Chairman of the Government is agreed upon with the State Duma; this chamber has the right to pass a vote of no confidence in the government, and the chairman of the government to raise the question of confidence before it.
The Constitution, having proclaimed the principle of separation of powers, removed the government from direct subordination to parliament, retaining control over the State Duma in a key area - budget policy. The government submits to the Duma the federal budget and a report on its execution, informs the Duma about the progress of execution of the federal budget, and provides the necessary information to the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation when it exercises control over the execution of the federal budget. In accordance with the Constitution and the Federal Law "On the Government of the Russian Federation", the Government gives written opinions on bills requiring funding from the federal budget, on the introduction or abolition of taxes, exemption from their payment, on the issuance of government loans, on changes in the financial obligations of the state and other projects .
The government, as the highest state body exercising executive power, must execute and enforce federal laws. At the same time, laws often not only define the competence of the government in the relevant area, but also contain instructions for implementing the laws. The activities of the Federal Government are also assessed when the chambers of the Federal Assembly examine the practice of implementing specific laws.
As a subject of legislative initiative, the government ensures the preparation and submission of a significant part of bills to the State Duma. The government may send official feedback on federal laws and bills under consideration to the chambers of the Federal Assembly. Interaction between the government and the chambers of the Federal Assembly is ensured by plenipotentiary representatives of the government in the relevant chambers, appointed to positions by the government, and secretaries of state - deputy heads of federal executive bodies.
The Chairman of the Government or his deputy gives oral or written answers to parliamentary inquiries, requests and appeals from members of the Federation Council and deputies of the State Duma.
The government interacts with the judiciary, ensures, within its powers, the possibility of independent administration of justice, execution of court decisions, and participates in judicial reform.
If the courts recognize acts of the government or their individual provisions as inconsistent with the Constitution, federal laws and presidential decrees, the government makes decisions to bring these acts into compliance with federal legislation. The Constitution gives the government the right to apply to the Constitutional Court with requests for compliance with the Constitution of federal laws, regulations of federal government bodies, constitutions of republics, charters, as well as regulations of the subjects of the Federation, some other legal acts defined by the Constitution, with requests for interpretation of the Constitution, and also in connection with the resolution of disputes about competence.
The Constitution defines the Federal Assembly as the legislative body. This means that the Federal Assembly is entrusted with the function of issuing legal acts of the highest legal force, above which the legal force is only the Constitution itself and international treaties. The Federal Assembly is the only body of federal legislative power. Its acts - federal laws - cannot be repealed or amended by any other government body, since they comply with the Constitution. In cases where they contradict the federal Constitution, they lose their legal force by decision of the Constitutional Court. Acts of any other government bodies must not contradict federal laws.
Courts personify the judicial power, which is in accordance with Art. 10 of the Constitution of one of the three branches of government. Justice in Russia is administered only by courts established in accordance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation and federal constitutional law. In Russia there are federal courts, constitutional (statutory) courts and magistrates of the constituent entities of the Federation, which make up the judicial system of the Russian Federation