Territoraile Selbstverwaltung in polnischen Verfuassungen
Local authority in Polish constitutions

Summary/Abstract: The study has been devoted to the analysis of regulations concerning local authority in Polish constitutions. The whole study has been divided into three periods: 1918 – 1939 – the principal place among the legal acts of the time was taken by the Constitution of 17th March 1921, which stated that the state structure was based on the principle of wide local and professional authority. The next Constitution of 23rd April 1935 yielded a substantial centralisation of state structure. What is noticed in this Constitution is a considerable reduction of local authority regulations. 1944-1950 – this period is designated in literature as the period of forming the fundamental concept of local administration model. At first, legally binding prescriptive solutions of 1918 – 1939 were applied. However, what won in 1950 r. was the concept of people’s councils being the uniform state authorities. Thus, local authority was eradicated. 1990 – 1997 – thorough political changes were initiated by means of amendments to the Constitution starting from 1990. The changes first of all consisted in reactivating local authority. The idea of this authority was at first fully formed in the constitutional law of 17th October 1992 and then, in the Constitution of the Republic of Poland of 2 April 1997.

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