Dhe CDU member of the Bundestag, Thomas Heilmann, wants the Federal Constitutional Court to stop the planned heating law before the summer recess. Heilmann sees through the legislative process of the traffic light government to amend the Building Energy Act (GEG) violated his rights.
The deputy has therefore requested, according to his own statements, that the Karlsruhe judges should determine that “the legislative process in relation to the GEG massively violates his rights as a deputy to equal participation in parliamentary decision-making”.
At the same time, he filed an application for an interim order to prohibit the Bundestag from conducting the final deliberation and vote on the GEG without the announced amendments to the GEG not having been sent to the deputies in writing at least 14 days in advance.
In fact, the proposed amendments to the bill by the Economics Minister, which have been announced for weeks Robert Habeck (Greens) not in writing to date. In the meantime, there have been several alleged agreements between the three governing parties, but the written basis so far is only a bilateral so-called “Guard Rail” paperon which the amendments should be based.
What is certain is that the law to be passed will no longer have much in common with the original draft. However, the interpretations of the FDP and the Greens, in particular, as to which exact changes have been agreed, still differ widely to this day. The written amendments should not be available until this evening or Friday morning. The deputies would then only have the weekend to work through the extensive legal texts, the document should have a volume of around 170 pages.
A second hearing of the Committee on Climate Protection and Energy on the amended draft law is to take place on Monday. In the course of the same week, the law is then to be passed by the Bundestag in the second and third reading before the members of parliament go on summer break at the end of next week.
Heilmann and his fellow MPs from the opposition are not the only ones criticizing the unusual legislative process. Numerous associations that have been invited to the expert hearing on Monday also have virtually no time to deal intensively with the details of the planned changes.
However, it is unclear whether the path to Karlsruhe has any chance of success. A 2017 elaboration by the Bundestag’s research service on deadlines in the legislative process states: “The Bundestag must discuss bills within a reasonable period of time and pass resolutions”. This is evident from Article 76, Paragraph 3, Clause 6 of the Basic Law. But: “There are no specific constitutional dates and times for determining this period,” writes the scientific service. “Rather, it depends on the circumstances of the individual case and the specific subject matter.”
Deadlines are mentioned in the Bundestag’s rules of procedure, but at first glance they do not contradict the traffic light schedule. Accordingly, the second reading may begin no earlier than “the second day after distribution of the recommended resolution and the committee report”. However, the deadlines in the rules of procedure can also be canceled with a two-thirds majority.
Heilmann wants to present details of his legal arguments in the early afternoon. However, he also emphasizes that he is only concerned with the legislative process, but that he considers the law to be sensible and necessary for climate protection.
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