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40-430: The institution is a supreme federal authority only as far as it administers internal tasks such as personnel affairs, management of buildings or clearance of travel expenses and the like. Processing its core duties - auditing, reporting and counseling as external financial controllers - it is not part of the executive branch of Germany, but is positioned beyond the three classical constitutional powers. The Bundesrechnungshof

80-571: A classical system of the division of powers is disputed. The Bundesrechnungshof examines the financial management of the Federal Government , its various property funds and state-owned companies , carrying out sample audits of revenue and expenditure totalling over 500 billion Euros. Its audit mandate also covers social security institutions and the activities of the Federal Government in private-law enterprises of which it

120-555: A high office is influenced by the mismanagement of the Cabinet of Three Counts in Prussia (1702-1710). The " Preußische Oberrechnungskammer " (Prussian High Audit Office) was founded in 1714 by King Frederick William I as the " General-Rechen-Kammer " (General Audit Office), given more powers in 1723 becoming the " Ober-Kriegs- und Domänen-Rechenkammer " (High War and Domains Audit Office). This office did exist until 1945. It

160-571: A new Adolf Hitler and to ensure that there will not be a political vacuum left by the removal of Chancellor through a vote of confidence and the failure to elect a new one in their place, as had happened during the Weimar period with the Reichstag removing Chancellors but failing to agree on the election of a new one. If the Chancellor loses a simple confidence motion (without the election of

200-623: A new Chancellor by the Bundestag ), this does not force them out of office, but allows the Chancellor, if they wish to do so, to ask the President of Germany for the dissolution of the Bundestag , triggering a snap election within 60 days (this happened in 1972 , 1983 , and 2005 ), or to ask the President to declare a legislative state of emergency, which allows the cabinet to use a simplified legislative procedure, in which bills proposed by

240-471: A plurality of votes on this last ballot, as Chancellor or to dissolve the Bundestag and call a snap election within 60 days. Following their election in the Bundestag , the Chancellor-elect will visit Bellevue Palace , the residence of the President, to receive a certificate of appointment. This is the moment, the elected individual actually enters office. After this short appointment-ceremony,

280-421: Is a shareholder. This includes areas such as defence, roadworks, taxation, and the Federal Government's activity as a minority shareholder of the formerly nationalised railways , post , and phone companies ( Deutsche Bahn AG, Deutsche Post AG and Deutsche Telekom AG respectively). The Bundesrechnungshof makes recommendations on the basis of its audit experience and provides advice to the audited bodies, to

320-410: Is not subordinated to the federal government. Even the legislative (parliament) cannot instruct it. At best, the parliament can ask the authority to audit certain issues. From the third power, justice, it differs firstly by freely choosing the subject matters it intends to audit and secondly by not delivering legally binding rules, but by issuing recommendations. Bundesrechnungshof’s exact placement within

360-497: Is only limited by some constitutional provisions: The Chancellor has to appoint a Minister of Defence, a Minister of Economic Affairs and a Minister of Justice and is implicitly forbidden to head one of these departments himself, as the constitution invests these ministers with some special powers. For example, the Minister of Defence is commander-in-chief during peacetime (only in wartime does the Chancellor becomes supreme commander),

400-526: Is room for improvement. Performance is examined against suitable criteria, and the causes of deviations from those criteria or other problems are analysed. The aim is to answer key audit questions and to provide recommendations for improvement. Compliance audit focuses on whether a particular subject matter is in compliance with authorities identified as criteria. Compliance auditing is performed by assessing whether activities, financial transactions and information are, in all material respects, in compliance with

440-615: Is the basis of the " Rechnungshof des Norddeutschen Bundes " (Court of Auditors of the North German Confederation) founded in 1868, which was soon to become the " Rechnungshof des Deutschen Reiches " (Court of Auditors of the German Reich) in 1871. It was reestablished in 1948 as the " Rechnungshof im Vereinigten Wirtschaftsgebiet " (Court of Auditors of the United Economic Area), and with

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480-696: The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany ( Grundgesetz ). In contrast to the system under the Weimar Republic , the Bundestag may only dismiss the Chancellor with a constructive vote of no confidence (electing a new Chancellor at the same time) and can thereby only choose to dismiss the Chancellor with their entire cabinet and not simply individual ministers. These procedures and mechanisms were put in place to prevent election of

520-452: The Bundestag and take their oaths of office, completing the appointment-process. The Chancellor is the chief executive leader. Therefore, the whole cabinet's tenure is linked to the Chancellor's tenure: The Chancellor's (and the cabinet's) term automatically ends, if a newly elected Bundestag sits for the first time, if they are replaced by a constructive vote of no confidence , or if the Chancellor resigns or dies. Nevertheless, apart from

560-406: The Bundestag for a motion of confidence or ask the President for the appointment of new ministers. If an acting minister leaves the cabinet, another member of government has to take over their department. The Chancellor is responsible for guiding the cabinet and deciding its political direction ( Richtlinienkompetenz ). According to the principle of departmentalization ( Ressortprinzip ),

600-604: The German Basic Law , the Federal Government (German: Bundesregierung ), is the chief executive body of the Federal Republic of Germany . It consists of the Federal Chancellor and cabinet ministers . The fundamentals of the cabinet's organisation, as well as the method of its election and appointment, along with the procedure for its dismissal, are set down in articles 62 through 69 of

640-819: The Bundesrechnungshof's new headquarters were transferred from Frankfurt am Main to Bonn , effective 1 July 2000. The Bundesrechnungshof also has a branch office in Potsdam . The first precursor of that auditory branch in Germany is the Prussian Audit Office. Its name as " Rechnungskammer " comes from the medivial concept of a Chambres des Comptes overseeing the spending of the state. In medieval times it did have regulatory functions which it lost to various administrative offices, so much that only reporting functions were left. The installation of

680-414: The Chancellor returns to the Bundestag , in order to take the oath of office. Having taken the oath, the Chancellor will once again visit Bellevue Palace, this time joined by the individuals the Chancellor intends to propose as members of the cabinet. The President will officially appoint the new cabinet members, again handing over certificates of appointment. After the ministers are appointed, they return to

720-870: The Chief Financial Controller, the Office of the Comptroller General, the Office of the Auditor General, the Court of Accounts, or the Board of Audit. INTOSAI holds a triennial conference entitled the International Congress of Supreme Audit Institutions (INCOSAI). It publishes the quarterly International Journal of Government Auditing and publishes guidelines and international standards on auditing. INTOSAI

760-587: The Federal Government presents an annual report on arms exports, which contains statistical information on export permits issued and gives figures for the types of arms concerned as well as their destination. As a general rule, the Federal Government, if asked, is required to inform the Bundestag that the Federal Security Council has approved a given armaments export transaction or not. The current and 24th federal cabinet of Germany has been in office since 8 December 2021. It currently consists of

800-432: The Federal Government. The Bundesrechnungshof provides advice to the executive and legislative branches by including recommendations for improvement in its management letters and annual reports, as well as by commenting - orally or in writing - on topical issues such as government bills and major procurement projects, or in the course of the annual budget procedure. By virtue of legislation regarding German reunification ,

840-518: The German Parliament and the Federal Government. Its consulting activities have steadily increased and set out significant recommendations for quality improvement, pointing out the potential for savings or increases in revenue. The Bundesrechnungshof reports on its audit findings in management letters which are sent to the audited bodies for comment. In addition the Bundesrechnungshof submits an annual report ("Observations") to both Houses of

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880-465: The German Parliament, the Bundestag and the Bundesrat , as well as to the Federal Government. The annual report is also used as a basis for Parliament authorising the Federal Government's budget . The annual report is presented to the public at a federal press conference. The Bundesrechnungshof may at any time submit special reports on matters of major significance to both Houses of Parliament, and to

920-521: The INTOSAI Professional Standards Committee decided to merge the existing and new INTOSAI standards and guidelines into a framework. The framework comprises all documents endorsed by INCOSAI with the purpose of guiding the professional standards used by SAIs The list of ISSAIs is in the table below: Financial audit focuses on determining whether an entity’s financial information is presented in accordance with

960-534: The INTOSAI member representatives. The International Standards of Supreme Audit Institutions ( ISSAI ) are a benchmark for auditing public entities (External Audit Standards for public entities). The "INTOSAI Auditing Standards" had been approved by the INCOSAI in 1998 and updated in 2001. In its strategic plan 2005–2010, the INTOSAI decided to "provide an up-to-date framework of professional standards", so

1000-612: The Minister of Economic Affairs may veto decisions by the Federal Cartel Office and the Minister of Justice appoints and dismisses the Public Prosecutor General . If two ministers disagree on a particular point, the cabinet resolves the conflict by a majority vote ( Kollegialprinzip or principle of deference) or the Chancellor decides the case themselves. This often depends on the Chancellor's governing style. The Chancellor has to appoint one of

1040-400: The President of Germany with a majority of all members of the Bundestag ( Chancellor-majority ). However, the Bundestag is free to disregard the President's proposal (which has, as of 2023, never happened), in which case the parliament may within 14 days hold further ballots and try to elect another individual, which the parties in the Bundestag can now propose themselves, to the post with

1080-632: The Vice Chancellor) are present. The cabinet regularly convenes on Wednesday mornings in the Chancellery . According to established practice, decisions on important armaments exports are made by the Federal Security Council  [ de ] ( Bundessicherheitsrat ), a cabinet committee chaired by the Chancellor. Pursuant to its (classified) rules of procedure, its sessions are confidential. According to practice,

1120-470: The applicable financial reporting and regulatory framework. This is accomplished by obtaining sufficient and appropriate audit evidence to enable the auditor to express an opinion as to whether the financial information is free from material misstatement due to fraud or error. Performance audit focuses on whether interventions, programmes and institutions are performing in accordance with the principles of economy, efficiency and effectiveness and whether there

1160-554: The authorities which govern the audited entity. These authorities may include rules, laws and regulations, budgetary resolutions, policy, established codes, agreed terms or the general principles governing sound public sector financial management and the conduct of public officials. In addition to the INTOSAI members (the Supreme Audit Institutions ), the following intergovernmental organizations have adopted INTOSAI AS: The Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA)

1200-401: The cabinet ministers are free to carry out their duties independently within the boundaries set by the Chancellor's political directives. The Chancellor may at any time ask the President to dismiss a minister or to appoint a new minister; the President's appointment is only a formality, he may not refuse a Chancellor's request for dismissal or appointment of a minister. The Chancellor also decides

1240-478: The cabinet ministers as Vice Chancellor , who may deputise for the Chancellor in their absence. In coalition governments the Vice Chancellor is usually the highest ranking minister of the second-biggest coalition party. If the Chancellor dies or is unwilling or unable to act as Chancellor after the end of their term, until a new Chancellor has been elected, the Vice Chancellor becomes Acting Chancellor until

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1280-460: The cabinet only need the consent of the Bundesrat (as yet, this has never been applied). The President is, however, not bound to follow the Chancellor's request in both cases. The Chancellor and the other members of the cabinet are allowed to be also members of the Bundestag (though they are not required to be). The Chancellor is elected by the federal parliament ( Bundestag ) on proposal of

1320-400: The case of a constructive vote of no confidence , which by nature instantly invests a new Chancellor (and a new cabinet), the Chancellor and their ministers stay in office as an acting cabinet on the President's request, until the Bundestag has elected a new Chancellor. An acting cabinet and its members have (theoretically) the same powers as an ordinary cabinet, but the Chancellor may not ask

1360-414: The election of a new Chancellor by the Bundestag , who then has to form a new government. (To date, this has happened once: On 7 May 1974 Chancellor Willy Brandt resigned and declared his refusal to act as Chancellor until his successor's election. Vice Chancellor Walter Scheel was appointed as Acting Chancellor and served until the election of Helmut Schmidt on 16 May.) The Chancellor is in charge of

1400-435: The following ministers: International Congress of Supreme Audit Institutions The International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions ( INTOSAI ) is an intergovernmental organization whose members are supreme audit institutions . Nearly every supreme audit institution in the world is a member of INTOSAI. Depending on the type of system used in their home country, the members of INTOSAI may be variously titled

1440-705: The foundation of the West-German Federal Republic it became the " Bundesrechnungshof " (Federal Court of Audito). In 1989 the Bundesrechnungshof hosted XIII INCOSAI , the thirteenth triennial convention of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions . 50°43′40″N 7°06′42″E  /  50.72778°N 7.11167°E  / 50.72778; 7.11167 Cabinet of Germany The Federal Cabinet (German: Bundeskabinett pronounced [ˈbʊndəskabiˌnɛt] ), or according to

1480-534: The government's administrative affairs, which are usually delegated to the Head of staff of the Chancellery , who is usually also appointed as minister for special affairs. Details are laid down in the government's rules for internal procedures ( Geschäftsordnung ). These state, for example, that the cabinet is quorate only if at least half of the ministers including the chair (the Chancellor or in their absence

1520-478: The same so called Chancellor-majority, whom the President is then obliged to appoint. If the Bundestag fails to do so, a last ballot will be held on the 15th day (again the parties in the Bundestag may field candidates): If an individual is elected with the Chancellor-majority, the President must appoint them as Chancellor. If not, the President is free to either appoint the individual, who received

1560-465: The scope of each minister's duties and can at his own discretion nominate ministers heading a department and so-called ministers for special affairs without an own department. A Chancellor can also lead a department; this is not usual, but it has occurred on three occasions with Konrad Adenauer and Willy Brandt also serving as Minister of Foreign Affairs, while Helmut Schmidt held the post of Minister of Defence. The Chancellor's freedom to shape his cabinet

1600-677: Was founded in 1953 in Havana, Cuba . Thirty-four audit organizations formed the group originally and as of 2010 the current membership includes 193 institutions (188 national institutions, the European Court of Auditors and 4 associated members). The members of INTOSAI are the primary external auditors of the United Nations . The UN's General Assembly appoints the UN Board of Auditors (3 members appointed for 6 years) among

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