Meetings of the Standing Committee and their Procedures

Convocation of meetings

The NPC Standing Committee usually holds a meeting once every other month, usually late in even-numbered months. It may also hold interim meetings if there is a special need. The meetings are convened and chaired by the NPC Standing Committee Chairperson. The chairperson may delegate a vice-chairperson to preside over the meeting on his or her behalf. A meeting of the Standing Committee may not be held unless more than half of the members are present. The Council of Chairpersons shall draft the agenda for a meeting of the Standing Committee and refer it to a plenary meeting of the Standing Committee for a decision.

Form of meetings

When the Standing Committee is in session, it holds plenary meetings, group meetings and joint group meetings. A plenary meeting is held primarily to determine agendas for the meetings of the Standing Committee. It also serves to hear explanations on bills or proposals, to hear special work reports of the State Council, the National Supervisory Commission, the Supreme People’s Court and the Supreme People’s Procuratorate, and to vote on bills or proposals.

Group meetings are held primarily to examine relevant bills, proposals and reports. The 13th NPC Standing Committee is divided into six groups to examine bills or proposals. On the basis of the deliberation through group meetings, joint group meetings are held to hear and examine reports of the special committees on the results of their deliberation over bills or proposals, to discuss issues listed on the agenda, to hear the supplementary explanation on bills or proposals from the sponsors who are in charge of the bills or proposals.

Putting forward bills and proposals

Council of Chairpersons may put forward bills or proposals concerning matters within the scope of the respective functions and powers of the Standing Committee to the Standing Committee for deliberation.

The State Council, the Central Military Commission, the Supreme People’s Court, the Supreme People’s Procuratorate and the NPC special committees may bring to the Standing Committee bills or proposals concerning matters within the scope of the respective functions and powers of the Standing Committee. The Council of Chairpersons then decides whether to refer a bill to a plenary meeting of the Standing Committee for deliberation or to give it to an appropriate special committee to deliberate and report on before deciding whether to refer it to a plenary meeting of the Standing Committee for deliberation.

A group of 10 or more members of the Standing Committee may jointly put forward to the Standing Committee any bills or proposals that are within the scope of the respective functions and powers of the Standing Committee. The Council of Chairpersons then decides whether to refer the bill or proposal to the Standing Committee for deliberation or to give it to an appropriate special committee to deliberate and report on before deciding whether to refer it to the Standing Committee for deliberation. Any bill or proposal that is not referred to the Standing Committee for deliberation must be reported to the Standing Committee, or an explanation must be given to the sponsor.

Deliberating and voting on bills or proposals

Normally, a legislative bill on the agenda of a meeting of the Standing Committee requires three readings at three separate meetings of the Standing Committee before being voted on. At the first reading, an explanation of the legislative bill made by its sponsor shall be heard in a plenary meeting of the Standing Committee and then it shall be preliminarily deliberated at group meetings. At the second reading, a report of the Constitution and Law Committee on the revision of the draft law and main problems concerned shall be heard in a plenary meeting, and then the legislative bill shall be further deliberated at group meetings. At the third reading, a report of the Constitution and Law Committee on the results of its deliberation over the draft law shall be heard in a plenary meeting, and then the revised draft of the law shall be deliberated at group meetings. After the revised draft law has been deliberated at the meetings of the Standing Committee, the Constitution and Law Committee revises it in accordance with the deliberation opinions of the Standing Committee members and prepares the final version to be voted on. The Council of Chairpersons then refers the legislative bill to the Standing Committee for a vote. A simple majority of all Standing Committee members is needed to pass the law.

If there are no major differences of opinions about a legislative bill on the agenda of the meeting of the Standing Committee, the legislative bill may be put to a vote after two readings by the Standing Committee. If the issue being adjusted in the legislative bill is simplistic or a small part of the law is revised, and opinions from all quarters are almost the same, the legislative bill may be put to vote after one reading by the Standing Committee. If a legislative bill put before Standing Committee meetings for deliberation has been shelved for two full years because of significant differences of opinions among Standing Committee members concerning important matters, such as its necessity or feasibility, or if it has not been placed on the agenda of a meeting of the Standing Committee for two years after it was suspended to be put to the vote, the Council of Chairpersons shall report this matter to the Standing Committee, and the deliberation process of the legislative bill shall be terminated.

Laws passed by the Standing Committee are promulgated by the President of the People ’ s Republic of China by issuing an order of the President.

A plenary meeting of the Standing Committee hears special work reports by the State Council, the National Supervisory Commission , the Supreme People’ s Court and the Supreme People ’ s Procuratorate, the implementation report of plans for national economic and social development, the implementation report of the State budget, the report on the final account of central government revenue and expenditure, the report on audit work, the law enforcement report by the law-enforcement inspection team of the Standing Committee, and others. These reports will then be deliberated at group meetings and joint group meetings. The Council of Chairpersons may decide to hand the work report over to the relevant special committee of the NPC for deliberation and the special committee is supposed to put forward its opinion on it. The Standing Committee may make a resolution on a work report, if it deems it necessary. The State Council, the National Supervisory Commission, the Supreme People’ s Court and the Supreme People’ s Procuratorate must be serious with the opinions or suggestions put forward by the members of the Standing Committee on their work reports and law-enforcement reports. They must present a written follow- up report to the Standing Committee explaining what they have done about these opinions or suggestions after they have consulted with the NPC special committees and relevant working organs of the Standing Committee.