In Venezuela
In Venezuela, enabling laws allowing the President to rule by decree in selected matters were granted to Rómulo Betancourt (1959), Carlos Andrés Pérez (1974), Jaime Lusinchi (1984), Ramón José Velásquez (1993) and Rafael Caldera (1994). Pérez issued over 3000 decrees under the powers delegated to him.
In mid-2000 a similar law enabled Hugo Chávez to legislate on issues related to the economy, reorganization of government ministries, and crime for one year. Chávez did not take advantage of this act until shortly before its expiration, when he passed 49 decrees in rapid succession, many of them highly controversial. In 2007, a new enabling act granted President Chávez powers for 18 months, giving the president the ability to rule by decree over certain economic, social, territorial, defense, and scientific matters as well as control over transportation, regulations for popular participation, and rules for governing state institutions.
Read more about this topic: Enabling Act