Today’s congressional session, presided over by Speaker Mr. Stanisław Małachowski, kicked off with statements on the financial obligations of the clergy. Under Secretary of State Mr. Maciej Garnysz opened the discussion, which was briskly joined by Senator Mr. Tomasz Ostrowski. The debate centered on a hotly contested subsidy law from 1784. Representatives Mr. Marcin Ślaski and Mr. Józef Mierzejewski argued against repealing it, sparking a wider discourse amongst the officials, with calls for a vote on the issue.

The Speaker for the Polish-Ukrainian Confederation expressed his opinion that no proposals could be formed until the Secretary read out a draft law, which was then immediately presented.

Representative Mr. Józef Weyssenhoff from Latvia raised concerns regarding the proposal concerning the clergy, asserting that the clergy, being exempt from various obligations and expenses born by secular families, would not truly be contributing more despite higher rates proposed. He also criticized the appeal to the papal authority regarding tax matters, emphasizing the issues of national taxation were outside the Pope's jurisdiction. He then called for a vote on the charitable subsidy.

Senator Mr. Jacek Jezierski shared his doubts about the international situation and called for caution in military expenses unless there is an urgent need. He then spoke about the contentious history of the clergy in power, drawing on examples from the past to question their current push to repeal the 1784 law related to the charitable subsidy, ending with a call for a vote to either suspend or uphold the law.

Following the debate, Mr. Aleksander Zieliński and Mr. Wojciech Suchodolski brought forth proposals related to the tax obligation of the clergy, debating the rate of payment and the "beneplacitum apostolicum", advocating for the complete rejection of papal validation in matters of state taxation.

When the clergy representatives in the Senate saw the majority opinion of the representatives favored a 20 percent tax obligation from the clergy, they consented to this rate and the charitable subscription, avoiding further protracted debate and voting pressure. The agreement was then unanimously confirmed by the Congress.

The President, Mr. Stanisław August Poniatowski invited The Cabinet to convene and announced the next session of Congress to take place tomorrow at 10 am. The invitation was relayed through Under Secretary of State Mr. Maciej Garnysz.

This report highlights the decisions and debates regarding the clergy’s financial obligations to the state, the interplay of historical precedent with contemporary politics, and the effective oratory witnessed within The Union's Congress.

Topics: Great Sejm 1789-1792; discussions on the clergy and charitable subsidy; tax issues and confiscation of ecclesiastical property; voting and agreements in the Sejm; forming legal propositions; Confederation of Poland-Ukraine; clergy's influence on politics; obligations of different estates to the national treasury; drafting legislation; role and impact of the senate; consent to the clergy's contribution to state finances;