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At a regional level the Regional Assembly is the legislative institution, and at a federal level the National Assembly and Federal Council together. The National Assembly and Regional Assembly are elected directly; the Regional Assembly elects the members of the Federal Council. The Regional Assembly is therefore the parliament of the freely elected representatives of the people of Salzburg. Its seat is in the Chiemseehof in Salzburg, the capital of Land Salzburg. The 36 members of the Salzburg Regional Assembly are elected on the basis of the general, equal, immediate, secret and personal proportional representation electoral system for a period of five years (legislative period). The population is not obliged to vote. Every person who on the decisive day of the election has their regular domicile in Salzburg land, is an Austrian citizen and over the age of 16 is eligible to vote. The members of the Regional Assembly are not bound to a specific task in exercising their electoral mandate and form an important link between the interests and problems of the population and the activities of the regional government and administration. Within its constitutional responsibilities the Regional Assembly passes laws of the Land Salzburg (right of legislation), supervises their implementation (supervisory right), elects the regional government (president, two deputy-presidents and four regional councillors) and the federal councillors (four members and four deputy members of the Federal Council), as well as the director of the regional audit office. Furthermore the Regional Assembly concludes the annual regional budget, thus determining with an obligatory character the main emphasis of regional policy. It also has to approve the annual closing of accounts (budget law). Functional supervisory institutions of the Regional Assembly are the federal court of auditors, the regional court of auditors in Salzburg and the ombudsman. The Regional Assembly elects from its body the president of the Regional Assembly as well as the second president (deputy-president), who form the board of the Regional Assembly. The presidents, as well as the chairmen of the Regional Assembly fractions (each Regional Assembly fraction consists of at least three members), form the cabinet conference chaired by the president of the Regional Assembly. It is their duty to advise the president in fundamental matters of the Regional Assembly, especially concerning the preparation and holding of negotiations concerning the Regional Assembly. Furthermore, 11 parliamentary committees are elected for preliminary consultations concerning all subjects to be negotiated (e.g. constitutional and administrative committee, finance committee, finance supervision committee).
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