Constitutional Tribunal President Submits 78 Million PLN Budget Directly to Sejm

Direct submission to parliamentary leadership

Constitutional Tribunal President Bogdan Święczkowski sent an urgent letter and the tribunal's 2027 draft financial plan to Sejm Speaker Włodzimierz Czarzasty on Wednesday. The formal submission was also addressed to Deputy Speakers Szymon Hołownia, Dorota Niedziela, Monika Wielichowska, Piotr Zgorzelski, Krzysztof Bosak, and the recently elected Marcin Horała. In the document, Święczkowski stated that he was acting in a state of higher necessity because the future financing of the constitutional organ remained unresolved. The submission included financial documentation prepared by the director of the Chancellery of the Constitutional Tribunal and approved by Święczkowski himself. He specifically requested that parliamentary leaders distribute the letter and the attached budget documentation to all members of the Sejm for upcoming legislative work.

Government exclusion of court expenditure

The Polish government adopted the 2027 draft budget act on Tuesday without including revenue and expenditure allocations for the Constitutional Tribunal. Representatives of the Ministry of Finance and Economy explained that the tribunal's funding was excluded because the figures provided to Finance Minister Andrzej Domański had not been formally adopted by the General Assembly of Constitutional Tribunal Judges as required by statutory rules. According to estimates provided by Święczkowski, tribunal expenditures for 2027 will exceed 78 million PLN. Over 85% of these planned funds are designated to cover the statutory salaries and emoluments of 38 retired judges. Both the Fiscal Council and the plenary session of the Social Dialogue Council had previously recommended including a dedicated funding source for the tribunal within the 2027 state budget.

Quorum collapse and disputed assemblies

The absence of a formal resolution followed two unsuccessful attempts to convene the General Assembly of Judges on 24 June and 14 July. In statements made in early September, Święczkowski explained that the 24 June meeting was disrupted when two uninvited individuals forced their way into the assembly area. The subsequent session on 14 July failed when Judge Dariusz Szostek and Judge Magdalena Bentkowska walked out of the room, intentionally breaking the quorum needed to adopt a valid resolution. Following the July meeting, Szostek stated that lawful decisions required the proper seated participation of all eligible judges.

We left the General Assembly because as Constitutional Tribunal judges we take the constitution very seriously. We take the Tribunal very seriously. We take Polish law very seriously.

Statutory arguments and parliamentary proceedings

In his correspondence to parliamentary leaders, Święczkowski argued that provisions in the Act on the Organization and Proceedings Before the Constitutional Tribunal govern internal operations but do not impose a strict statutory deadline for passing a budget resolution. He noted that the revenue and expenditure draft along with an auto-amendment had been approved in compliance with the calendar specified in the finance minister's regulation. Święczkowski maintained that direct submission to the lower house is currently the sole mechanism that allows parliament to fulfill its duty to fund a constitutional state institution. The Sejm will now decide whether to integrate the 78 million PLN financial plan into the 2027 budget act during committee and plenary debates.