(2008-11) Internal Rules of the Senate of Haiti, 8th edition, adopted 14 November 2008 (Le Moniteur reproduction for material errors, 12 August 2009)
Summary — The 8th edition of the Haitian Senate's internal rules, adopted 14 November 2008 under Senate President Joseph Lambert following a modernization review by a dedicated working group, republished in a special Le Moniteur issue on 12 August 2009 to correct errors in the version first printed 3 June 2009. It governs the Senate's organization, composition of 30 senators (3 per department, staggered 6-year terms), the Bureau's election and duties, seat validation, and oath-taking procedures.
Key Findings
- Reforms the Senate's internal rules across fifteen designated areas, from Bureau elections to government-oversight and bicameral-shuttle procedures.
- Defines the Senate's dual mission as legislating and overseeing government/autonomous-agency action, including sitting as a Haute Cour de Justice.
- Confirms a 30-seat Senate (3 per department) with staggered 6-year terms renewed by thirds every two years.
- Sets a 90-day deadline for by-elections to fill Senate vacancies (Article 22).
- Requires the Bureau's composition to reflect, as far as possible, the Assembly's political balance (Article 13).
Full Description
This special Le Moniteur issue reproduces the Haitian Senate's Règlement Intérieur, 8th edition, adopted 14 November 2008 — the culmination of a modernization effort launched by then-Senate President Joseph Lambert, who convened a working group under the Commission Législation with non-member senators, a French Senate-provided legisticien expert, and two staff, to overhaul provisions the foreword describes as obsolete after repeated partial revisions (1933, 1937, 1947, 1951, 1953, 1988, 1996). The reform targeted fifteen areas including the Bureau d'âge, Bureau elections, closed-door sessions, censure motions, amendment procedure, navette (bicameral shuttle) rules, bill filing and examination, government oversight, committee formation, joint and non-joint commissions, vote delegation, and transitional/final provisions, with a stated goal of rebalancing time between committee review and plenary debate and strengthening parliamentary oversight of the Executive. Substantively, Article 1 affirms the Senate's institutional autonomy from other branches; Articles 4-6 define its legal personality and dual mission (legislating and overseeing government/autonomous-agency action, including budget-execution follow-up, investigative missions, sitting as Haute Cour de Justice, and participating in appointments to the Conseil Electoral Permanent, Cour de Cassation and Cour Supérieure des Comptes); Articles 7-11 set registration, seat-validation and oath-taking procedures for the 30 senators (elected 3 per department for 6-year terms, renewed by thirds every two years); and Articles 12-18 detail the biennial Bureau election (President, Vice-President, Questeur, Secretaries) with a requirement that Bureau composition reflect the Assembly's political balance. This copy is a corrected reproduction of the text first printed as Le Moniteur Spécial No. 4 (3 June 2009).