Constitution of the Canton of Zug (Kantonsverfassung, KV) (KV)

1. The Canton of Zug is a democratic free state.

2. As such, to the extent that cantonal sovereignty is not limited by the Federal Constitution, it is a sovereign member state of the Swiss Confederation.

1. If the proposed constitution is approved by the majority of eligible voters participating in the vote, it must be published without delay and comes into force immediately.

1. Sovereignty resides in the entirety of the people.

1. Existing laws and regulations, insofar as they do not contradict the current constitution, shall remain in force until they are amended by the competent authority.

2. Those laws that conflict with the constitution shall be revised immediately.

3. The Cantonal Council shall designate special commissions for the preliminary discussion of these legislative drafts.

1. Freedom of Belief and Conscience, as well as the Free Exercise of Religious Acts, shall be guaranteed in accordance with Articles 49 to 53 of the Federal Constitution of May 29, 1874.

1. Where the constitution or a law refers to persons of the male gender, this provision also applies to persons of the female gender, unless something else expressly or implicitly arises from the purpose.

1. The canton, supported by the municipalities, ensures public education in compliance with Article 27 of the Federal Constitution.

2. The establishment of private schools and private educational institutions is guaranteed; insofar as they pertain to primary school education, the provisions of the second paragraph of Article 27 of the Federal Constitution remain reserved.

1. All citizens are equal before the law.

2. The Canton promotes the realization of true equality between men and women.

1. The cantonal council shall immediately after the adoption of the constitution establish the timings at which the authorities provided for in this fundamental law are to be elected, and shall determine their initial term of office.

2. The elections of the political and judicial authorities shall not take place at the same time.

1. No one may be deprived of their constitutional and lawful judge. Extraordinary courts must not be established.

2. Arbitration courts are permitted.

1. The gratuitous nature of legal aid and legal representation is ensured in cases of demonstrated need. Conditions and organization are determined by law.

1. The term of office of the members of the Council of States commencing on January 1, 2007, is extended by one year. It ends at the beginning of the winter session of the Council of States in the year 2011.

1. Personal freedom is guaranteed.

2. Every accused is to be considered innocent until proven guilty by a verdict.

3. No one shall be arrested except in the cases provided for by law and in the prescribed manner. Every detained person shall generally be interrogated immediately.

4. The state shall provide satisfaction and adequate compensation to those unlawfully or wrongfully detained.

5. No coercive measures shall be used to obtain a confession.

1. Municipal clerks who were elected at the ballot box before the amendment to § 78 paragraph 1 letter c) of the Cantonal Constitution came into force shall remain in office until the end of the current term of office.

1. The right to inviolability of the home is protected. Exceptions remain for cases regulated by law to protect a prevailing public or private interest.

1. The freedom of expression through speech and writing, as well as the rights of petition, association, and assembly, are guaranteed. The misuse of these rights is subject to the provisions of the criminal law.

1. The property of private individuals, ecclesiastical and secular corporations, and municipalities is inviolable. The administration of such property, and the lawful or foundation-consistent disposal of its yield, is also guaranteed to municipalities and ecclesiastical and secular corporations under the supervision of the state.

2. The establishment of new corporations is subject to the approval of the cantonal council.

3. The expropriation of real property for public purposes can only be demanded out of considerations for the general welfare of the state or municipalities and with full compensation.

**1. The transparency of the entire state budget is guaranteed; no eligible voter of the canton can be denied access to it.**

1. The freedom of trade and commerce is recognized. The law, within the boundaries of the Federal Constitution, enacts those restrictive provisions which the general welfare requires.

1. Buildings must be insured against fire and elemental damage under the law with the cantonal building insurance.

1. Taxpayers are required to contribute to state and municipal burdens in proportion to the means available to them.

2. Exempt from taxation are the state, municipal, citizen, and church communities, church and benefice assets and their revenues, as well as assets and income dedicated exclusively to public charitable purposes. The law may grant further claims for tax exemption or reduction.

3. The right to vote obligates one to a moderate contribution to public burdens, equally imposed on all.

4. The state is authorized to introduce new indirect taxes in addition to the existing ones. It must continue to allocate the shares currently assured to the municipalities, as well as legally determined shares from the new indirect taxes.

5. The state levies an inheritance tax progressively based on the degree of kinship and the size of the inheritance. The law determines the degrees of kinship and minimum amounts exempt from this tax. Furthermore, the law regulates the distribution of taxes between the canton and the municipalities, with at least half of the inheritance taxes allocated to the municipalities.

6. Legislation will enact provisions deemed useful for the precise determination of tax capacity.

1. Every eligible voter is obligated to attend the municipal meetings and participate in the deliberations.

2. Electoral bribery and electoral intimidation are prohibited. The penal code will determine the punishment for violations.

1. The cantonal authorities and officials elected by the people or the Cantonal Council, as well as the municipal authorities and officials elected by the people, shall be sworn in or take an oath of allegiance to the constitution and the laws at the beginning of each term of office.

**1. The state and municipalities, as well as their authorities and officials, are liable for their activities within the framework of the law.**

**2. In the same manner, other bodies and institutions of public law are liable.**

**3. ...**

1. Members of the Cantonal Council, the Government Council, the Supreme Court, and the Administrative Court cannot be held legally responsible for oral or written statements made during the proceedings of the Cantonal Council and its committees.

2. The Cantonal Council may waive immunity if it is being abused.

1. Members of a judicial or executive authority may not simultaneously be

a) Two individuals who are married to each other, living in a registered partnership, or maintaining a permanent cohabitation;

b) Relatives and in-laws in a direct line or up to the third degree in a collateral line;

c) Two individuals whose spouses, registered partners, or partners are siblings.

2. The same must be observed between members and the secretary of such an authority.

1. The legislative, executive, and judicial powers are separate. No power may interfere with the domain of the others as established by the constitution or law.

2. No one may simultaneously be a member of the Cantonal Council, the Executive Council, or a court.

3. The heads of offices and departments according to the law on the organization of the state administration, persons with prosecutorial functions, and court clerks, as well as the chief clerk, may not be members of the Cantonal Council, the Executive Council, or a court.

4. The law may provide for further incompatibilities.

5. Paragraph 3 does not apply to the election of court clerks as extraordinary substitute members of a court as defined in § 41 letter l number 5.

1. Every citizen of the canton enjoys, subject to compliance with legal regulations, the right of free establishment in all municipalities.

2. The establishment of Swiss citizens is governed by federal regulations, and that of foreigners is subject to existing international treaties.

1. The cantonal citizenship can only be granted to persons who possess municipal citizenship. The acquired municipal citizenship becomes void if the cantonal citizenship is not obtained within one year.

2. Further details are determined by law.

1. The Canton of Zug consists of the eleven municipalities Zug, Oberägeri, Unterägeri, Menzingen, Baar, Cham, Hünenberg, Steinhausen, Risch, Walchwil, and Neuheim.

2. The city of Zug is the capital of the canton and the seat of the cantonal authorities.

1. Voting Capacity is Threefold

a) for Federal,

b) for Cantonal, and

c) for Municipal Matters.

1. The right to vote in federal elections and referendums is governed by federal legislation; it is exercised in the municipality where the individual resides, i.e., where they have their ordinary residence.

1. The right to vote in cantonal elections and referenda shall be exercised exclusively in the municipality of residence.

2. The right to vote and be elected is granted to: all citizens of the canton and all Swiss citizens legally residing in the canton who have reached the age of 18.

3. ...

1. The law defines the circle of eligible voters for each type of municipality.

1. The law regulates the establishment of electoral registers and the procedure for elections and voting.

1. Transparency in Politics is Ensured by

a) the political parties represented in the Cantonal Council disclosing their financing;

b) the disclosure of financing for significant campaigns in relation to cantonal elections and referendums;

c) individuals elected by the people to public cantonal offices disclosing their conflicts of interest.

2. The law regulates the details.

1. The sovereign people exercise their sovereignty rights partly by themselves and partly delegate their exercise to their representatives.

1. Constitutional Rights are Exercised by the People

a) through the acceptance or rejection of the constitution and its amendments;

b) through the approval or rejection of laws;

c) through the right of proposal (initiative);

d) through the election of the following authorities and officials

1. the two members of the Swiss Council of States for a four-year term of office;

2. the members of the Cantonal Council;

3. the members of the Government Council;

4. * the members and substitute members of the Cantonal Court, the Criminal Court, the Supreme Court, and the Administrative Court; the election of extraordinary substitute members by the Cantonal Council pursuant to § 41 letter l remains reserved;

1. Any amendment to the Swiss Federal Constitution must be submitted to the people for acceptance or rejection.

2. The result of the subsequent vote also serves as the cantonal vote on the Federal Constitution.

1. Laws and generally binding decisions of the Cantonal Council, as well as decisions resulting in a new one-time expenditure exceeding 500,000 Swiss francs or a new recurring expenditure exceeding 50,000 Swiss francs per year, are subject to a public referendum if a request signed by 1,500 eligible voters is submitted (referendum).

2. The referendum period is 60 days from the official publication of the Cantonal Council's decision.

3. Eligibility to vote must be officially certified by the municipality.

4. Furthermore, the public referendum can be directly decided by one-third of the members of the Cantonal Council immediately after the final vote (authorities' referendum).

5. The public referendum must be conducted within six months after the submission of the signatures to the State Chancellery or after the decision in the Cantonal Council. If a federal or cantonal vote is scheduled within three months after the expiration of this period, the referendum may be combined with that vote.

6. The Cantonal Council has the right to submit a law or decision in its entirety or by individual subject matter to a vote.

1. 2,000 eligible voters can submit a request in writing for the enactment, repeal, or amendment of a law or a Cantonal Council decision (legislative initiative) and can also demand the submission of an initiative to the federal government. Exempt are decisions that fall exclusively within the jurisdiction of the Cantonal Council.

2. Such requests can be submitted in the form of a general suggestion or as a formulated draft. They must relate only to a single subject matter (unity of matter). The initiatives must contain a withdrawal clause.

3. Eligibility to vote must be officially verified by municipality.

4. The Cantonal Council acknowledges the initiative at its first session following the submission of the signatures. It must address the matter conclusively within one year. Exceptionally, it may extend the period by a maximum of six months based on an interim report from its preparatory committee.

5. The Cantonal Council must decide whether it intends to comply with the initiative or reject it. If it does not comply with the request, a public referendum must be held within six months of the final vote. If a federal or cantonal ballot takes place within three months after this deadline, the referendum may be combined with it.

6. If the Cantonal Council rejects the initiative, it must propose to the public the rejection of the request or counter the initiative with an alternative proposal in the form of a general suggestion or a developed draft.

7. If the public accepts an initiative or an alternative proposal in the form of a general suggestion, the corresponding enactment must be set into force within three years of the referendum, subject to the terms of a referendum. The Cantonal Council may exceptionally extend this period by a maximum of one year based on an interim report.

1. Referendums on the constitution and laws, initiative proposals, and decisions of the Cantonal Council shall be conducted secretly and by ballot.

2. The detailed procedure shall be regulated by legislation in order to facilitate voting as much as possible.

3. In all referendums, the decision is made by an absolute majority of the voters.

1. All popular initiatives are exempt from stamp duty. No fees may be charged for the certification of voting eligibility.

1. The legislative and supervisory authority is exercised by the Cantonal Council. It consists of 80 members.

2. The general renewal elections of the Cantonal Council are conducted according to the principle of proportional representation.

3. Electoral districts are the municipal communities. The number of Cantonal Council seats for the electoral districts is determined by a simple resolution of the Cantonal Council based on the updated population statistics (figures published by the Federal Government in the previous year concerning the permanent resident population). Each electoral district is allocated at least two seats.

4. The allocation of seats based on vote counts is first carried out among the parties and political groups according to their electoral strength in the canton. Subsequently, the seats of the parties and political groups are allocated to the electoral districts based on their number of seats pursuant to paragraph 3 (double proportional allocation procedure).

1. The Cantonal Council appoints from among its members, by secret ballot, the President, the Vice President, and two vote counters for a term of two years.

2. ...

1. The Cantonal Council has the following responsibilities

a) the decision regarding the credentials of its members;

b) the exclusive right to legislate, subject to the provisions of §§ 33, 34, and 35;

c) the supreme oversight over the authorities as well as the maintenance and execution of the constitution and laws;

d) the supreme oversight over the state budget;

e) the determination of salaries and official fees;

f) the right of pardon and amnesty for political crimes and offenses;

g) * the resolution on the official reports of the Executive Council, the Supreme Court, and the Administrative Court as well as on the annual state accounts submitted by the Executive Council;

h) * the resolution on budgets and supplementary credits, as well as the approval of performance mandates;

i) the approval of all contracts with other cantons, subject to federal competence, as well as contracts regarding salt supplies;

k) the handling of incoming petitions and complaints;

l) * for a term of six years

1. * the determination of the number of members and substitute members of the Cantonal Court and the Criminal Court,

2. the determination of the number of full-time judges in each court and their election from the members of the respective court,

3. * the election of the presidents of the Cantonal Court and the Criminal Court from the members of these courts,

4. the election of the president of the Supreme Court and the Administrative Court from the members of these courts,

5. * the election of extraordinary substitute members of the courts; details are regulated by law.

m) the election of the state secretary;

n) * the confirmation of the selection made by the Executive Council of the members of the Bank Council and the Audit Office of the Zug Cantonal Bank to be elected by the canton;

o) the decision on jurisdictional disputes between the executive and judicial authorities;

p) * ...

q) the exercise of all remaining sovereignty rights, insofar as they are not expressly limited by the existing federal and cantonal constitution;

r) the exercise of the federal participatory rights granted to the cantons in the Federal Constitution (convocation of the Federal Assembly, referendum, cantonal initiative).

1. The members of the Cantonal Council are remunerated by the canton.

1. The Cantonal Council shall convene as often as deemed necessary by the President, and also when the Government Council or one-quarter of the Cantonal Councillors request it in writing, stating the reasons.

2. Sessions of the Cantonal Council are generally public.

1. In order to validly negotiate, the presence of the absolute majority of the members of the Cantonal Council is required. No legislative proposal can be definitively adopted before it has been deliberated in two sessions, between which a period of at least two months must elapse. The specifics are determined by the regulations.

1. The government council consists of seven members.

2. No members of the government council may sit in the federal councils.

1. From among its members, the Cantonal Council elects the Landammann and the Statthalter for a term of two years. In the absence of the Landammann and the Statthalter, the member with the longest tenure presides over the Government Council.

1. The Executive Council is charged with the execution of laws, ordinances, and resolutions, as well as with state administration and accounting in all parts. It is specifically endowed with the following powers and responsibilities

a) The management of internal and external affairs.

b) The provision for the maintenance of public order and security.

c) The supervision and direction of all branches of administration.

d) * The issuance of necessary ordinances.

e) The submission of proposals for laws and resolutions to the Cantonal Council.

f) The presentation of a report on its conduct of business, the state accounts, and the budget for the next fiscal year.

g) * Proposals for the elections of authorities and officials, which are subject to confirmation by the Cantonal Council.

h) * The supervision of the lower administrative authorities and the decisional authority over related disputes and complaints, subject to the jurisdiction of the Administrative Court.

i) * The execution of judicial sentences that have become final, unless the law stipulates otherwise.

k) * The conduct of all elections to which the canton is entitled, which are not transferred by constitution or law to another authority or the people.

2. The members of the Executive Council have an advisory voice in the Cantonal Council and the right to propose motions on all matters.

1. The rules of procedure for the government council are determined by regulations established by the cantonal council.

1. The regular conciliation authority is the Justice of the Peace.

2. Each municipality elects a Justice of the Peace and the number of substitutes determined by law.

3. The law may provide that two or more municipalities appoint a joint Justice of the Peace.

1. The law may designate special conciliation authorities for certain disputes.

1. The Cantonal Court consists of the President and a number of members and substitute members determined by the Cantonal Council.

2. ...

1. The criminal court consists of the president and a number of members and substitute members determined by the Cantonal Council.

2. ...

1. The Supreme Court consists of the president and a number of members and deputy members as determined by law.

2. It is the highest cantonal judicial authority in civil and criminal matters and exercises supervision over all civil and criminal justice administration—excluding the police command and the municipal misdemeanor authorities—as well as over the bankruptcy office and the debt collection offices.

3. In this area, it may propose the enactment of laws and resolutions to the Cantonal Council.

1. The Administrative Court consists of the President and a number of members and substitute members as determined by law.

2. The Administrative Court is the highest cantonal judicial authority in administrative matters.

3. In the field of administrative jurisdiction, it may propose the enactment of laws and decrees to the Cantonal Council.

1. The law regulates the organization of juvenile criminal justice. It may provide for special courts for this purpose.

1. The law determines the organization and jurisdiction of the judicial authorities.

2. Within the courts, divisions with specific jurisdictions may be established, and certain decision-making powers may be granted to the presidents and individual judges.

1. Court proceedings are public.

2. The law determines the exceptions.

1. To render a valid legal judgment, the presence of the prescribed number of court members or their divisions is required.

1. The administration of justice is the responsibility of the courts. The law regulates the details.

2. Disputes arising from employment relationships of authority members and staff who are under the supervision of the Supreme Court shall be adjudicated by the Administrative Court. The Supreme Court is competent to adjudicate disputes arising from employment relationships of authority members and staff who are under the supervision of the Administrative Court.

1. The municipal community comprises all individuals residing within the municipality.

2. The municipal council manages the affairs of the municipality in accordance with the constitution and the law.

3. ...

4. ...

5. ...

6. ...

1. The citizen community includes all individuals entitled to residency in that municipality.

1. The parish comprises persons residing in its area who share the same denomination.

2. Patronage rights are reserved, but can be redeemed for the benefit of the parish.

3. ...

4. ...

5. ...

1. The participants in corporation property form a corporation community.

2. The corporation property is to be preserved in its entirety as indivisible property; charitable contributions are excepted.

1. The municipalities, with the exception of corporate municipalities, levy taxes if their revenues are insufficient to fulfill their responsibilities.

2. The law regulates the financial equalization among the municipalities.

1. No one is obliged to pay taxes that are specifically imposed for the actual religious purposes of a religious community to which they do not belong.

1. The detailed organization of the municipalities and their powers shall be determined by law.

2. ...

3. ...

1. The term of office for cantonal authorities and officials elected by the people or the cantonal council, as well as for authorities and officials elected by the people of the municipalities, is four years.

2. The term of office for members and substitute members of the courts, as well as conciliation authorities, is six years. By-elections and supplementary elections are conducted for the remainder of the term of office.

1. The following are elected at the polls

a) the two Council of States members;

b) * by the cantonal authorities: the members of the Cantonal Council, the Government Council, the Supreme Court, the Cantonal Court, the Criminal Court, and the Administrative Court;

c) * by the municipal authorities: the members of the Large Municipal Council, the Municipal Council, the Audit Commission, and their presidents, as well as the Justice of the Peace.

2. In the elections of the members of the Cantonal Council and the Large Municipal Council, as soon as more than two members are to be elected to the same authority in an electoral district, the principle of proportional representation must be applied.

2a. The full renewal elections of the Cantonal Council are conducted according to proportional representation as defined in § 38.

3. The remaining elections are conducted by majority vote.

4. ...

5. ...

1. The constitution may be revised at any time, in whole or in part.

2. The revision is carried out through the legislative process. If the revision is demanded by a popular initiative (constitutional initiative), the provisions concerning legislative initiatives apply.

3. The constitutional revision is subject to a mandatory referendum.

4. The Cantonal Council has the right to submit a constitutional revision to a vote either in its entirety or by separate subject areas.

1. For the protection of the population and to avert immediate danger, emergency legal measures must be provided through legislation in the event of disasters, military actions, or other emergencies, which cannot be managed through the prescribed procedures and ordinary means due to extraordinary factual and temporal urgency.

2. In this law, temporary powers may be granted to the Cantonal Council and the Government Council that deviate from the constitution. Decrees and measures adopted in the exercise of these powers must be repealed, unless extended by normal procedure, as soon as the conditions pursuant to paragraph 1 no longer exist.