Chapter III

The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress

Article 22 The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress is responsible to and reports its work to the National People's Congress.

Terms of the Standing Committee are aligned with terms of the National People's Congress. The Standing Committee shall exercise its functions and powers until a new Standing Committee is elected by the succeeding National People's Congress.

Article 23 The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress shall be composed of the following personnel:

the Chairperson;

the Vice-Chairpersons;

the Secretary-General; and

other members.

Members of the Standing Committee shall be elected by the National People's Congress from among its deputies.

Members of the Standing Committee shall not hold office in administrative, supervisory, judicial, or procuratorial organs of the state. Where they do serve in the said organs, they shall resign from their positions in the Standing Committee.

Article 24 The Chairperson of the Standing Committee shall preside over meetings of the Standing Committee and direct its work. The Vice-Chairpersons and the Secretary-General shall assist the Chairperson in his work. When entrusted by the Chairperson, a Vice-Chairperson may exercise certain functions and powers of the Chairperson.

Should the Chairperson of the Standing Committee be incapacitated for work for reasons of health or should his office fall vacant, the Standing Committee shall choose one of the Vice-Chairpersons to exercise the functions of the Chairperson until the Chairperson's recovery or until a new Chairperson is elected by the National People's Congress.

Article 25 A Council of Chairpersons composed of the Standing Committee's Chairperson, Vice-Chairpersons and Secretary-General shall handle the important day-to-day work of the Standing Committee, which shall consist of the following:

(1) to decide on the duration for each meeting of the Standing Committee, draft the agenda of the meeting, and propose suggestions on adjusting the agenda when necessary;

(2) to decide whether the bills, proposals and written inquiries submitted to the Standing Committee should be referred to the relevant special committees or submitted to a general meeting of the Standing Committee for deliberation;

(3) to decide whether or not to refer bills, proposals, draft decisions, and draft resolutions to a plenary meeting of the Standing Committee for votes, and put forward opinions on subsequent handling of those yet to be referred;

(4) to adopt annual work outlines, legislative plans, oversight plans, deputies work plans, plans for special tasks, documents of work disciplines and rules, etc. of the Standing Committee;

(5) to direct and coordinate the day-to-day work of the special committees; and

(6) to handle other important day-to-day work of the Standing Committee.

Article 26 The Standing Committee shall establish a Credentials Committee.

Candidates for the Chairperson, Vice-Chairpersons and members of the Credentials Committee shall be nominated by the Council of Chairpersons from among members of the Standing Committee, and appointed and removed from office by the Standing Committee.

Article 27 The Standing Committee shall establish a general office which shall work under the direction of the Secretary-General.

The Standing Committee shall install Deputy Secretaries-General, whom it shall appoint or remove upon recommendation by the Chairperson of the Standing Committee.

Article 28 The Standing Committee establishes working bodies as needed, such as the Legislative Affairs Commission and the Budgetary Affairs Commission.

The chairperson, vice-chairpersons and members of the working bodies shall be appointed or removed by the Standing Committee upon recommendation by its Chairperson.

The establishment, duties, as well as the appointment and removal from office of the members of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Basic Law Committee and the Macao Special Administrative Region Basic Law Committee shall be in accordance with relevant laws and relevant decisions of the National People's Congress.

Article 29 The Council of Chairpersons, a special committee of the National People's Congress, the State Council, the Central Military Commission, the National Commission of Supervision, the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, or a group of ten or more members of the Standing Committee may present bills and proposals to the Standing Committee that fall within the scope of the latter's functions and powers.

Article 30 While the Standing Committee meets in session, a group of ten or more members of the Standing Committee may submit to the Standing Committee written inquiries addressed to the State Council and departments thereof, the National Commission of Supervision, the Supreme People's Court, and the Supreme People's Procuratorate.

Article 31 While the National People's Congress is out of session, the Standing Committee may, based on the nomination of the Premier of the State Council, decide to appoint or remove from office other members of the State Council; it may also, according to the nomination of the Chairperson of the Central Military Commission, decide to appoint or remove from office other members of the Central Military Commission.

Article 32 While the National People's Congress is out of session, the Standing Committee may, upon recommendation of the Council of Chairpersons or the Premier of the State Council, decide to dismiss some other members of the State Council from their posts, and may, according to the recommendation of the Chairperson of the Central Military Commission, decide to dismiss some other members of the Central Military Commission from their posts.

Article 33 During each session of the National People's Congress, the Standing Committee must make a report on its work to the National People's Congress.

Chapter III

The Committees of the National People's Congress

Article 34 The National People's Congress establishes special committees that it deems necessary, including the Ethnic Affairs Committee, the Constitution and Law Committee, the Supervisory and Judicial Affairs Committee, the Financial and Economic Affairs Committee, the Education, Science, Culture and Public Health Committee, the Foreign Affairs Committee, the Overseas Chinese Affairs Committee, the Environmental Protection and Resources Conservation Committee, the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee and the Social Development Affairs Committee. Those special committees are led by the National People's Congress while the National People's Congress is in session, and by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress while the National People's Congress is out of session.

Each special committee shall be composed of a chairperson, vice-chairpersons and members.

The candidates for the chairpersons, vice-chairpersons and members of the special committees are generated by votes in a session of the National People's Congress after nominated by the Presidium from among the deputies. While the National People's Congress is out of session, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress may appoint or remove from office vice-chairpersons and members of the special committees after nomination by the Council of Chairpersons and votes at the meetings of the Standing Committee.

Article 35 Terms of the special committees are aligned with terms of the National People's Congress. The special committees shall perform their duties until their members for new term are elected by the succeeding National People's Congress.

Article 36 The chairperson of each special committee shall preside over meetings of the committee and direct its work. The vice-chairpersons shall assist the chairperson in his work.

The special committees may appoint a certain number of experts as advisers, if their work so requires. The advisers may attend special committee meetings and express their opinions.

The advisers shall be appointed or removed by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

Article 37 The work of the special committees shall be as follows:

(1) to deliberate on bills and proposals received from the Presidium or the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress;

(2) to submit to the Presidium or the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress bills and proposals which are relevant to the work of the special committees and which fall within the scope of functions and powers of the National People's Congress or its Standing Committee, and to organize the drafting of laws and proposals;

(3) to undertake the specific work of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress in listening to and examining reports on special tasks;

(4) to organize and undertake the specific work of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress in inspecting the implementation of laws;

(5) to undertake the specific work of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress in questioning about specific issues;

(6) to listen to reports of the State Council, the National Commission of Supervision, the Supreme Peoples Court, and the Supreme People's Procuratorate on specific issues, and then bring forward suggestions, in accordance with the work arrangements of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress;

(7) to investigate and propose solutions to issues which are related to the special committees and which fall within the scope of functions and powers of the National People's Congress or its Standing Committee;

(8) to examine and offer comments on documents referred by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress which are considered to be in contravention of the Constitution or laws, namely: administrative regulations, decisions and orders issued by the State Council; orders, directives and rules issued by departments of the State Council; supervision regulations issued by the National Commission of Supervision; local regulations, decisions and resolutions issued by the people's congresses of the provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government, cities divided into districts, and autonomous prefectures, as well as by the standing committees of the said congresses; decisions, orders and rules issued by the people's governments of the provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government, cities divided into districts, and autonomous prefectures; autonomous regulations and separate regulations issued by ethnic autonomous areas; regulations for special economic zones; and interpretations of the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate on application of laws;

(9) to examine written inquiries referred by the Presidium or the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, to hear the replies given by the organs inquired and, when necessary, to submit reports to the Presidium or the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress;

(10) to study and handle suggestions, criticisms, and opinions of the deputies, and to be responsible for supervising and urging such handling;

(11) to engage in the work of foreign exchange and communication in keeping with arrangements of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress;

(12) to undertake other work assigned by the National People's Congress and its Standing Committee.

Article 38 The Ethnic Affairs Committee may investigate and study issues related to strengthening unity among all ethnic groups and bring suggestions thereon; and shall review the autonomous regulations and separate regulations submitted by the autonomous regions to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress for approval and submit a report to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

Article 39 The Constitution and Law Committee undertakes duties including implementation of the Constitution, interpretation of the Constitution, constitutionality review, constitutional supervision, and cooperation in the publicity of the Constitution.

The Constitution and Law Committee deliberates on all draft laws and draft decisions on laws submitted to the National People's Congress or its Standing Committee. Other special committees submit to the Constitution and Law Committee their comments on the drafts which concern their work.

Article 40 The Financial and Economic Affairs Committee reviews draft plans for national economic and social development, draft outlines of five-year plans, central and local draft budges, drafts of central final accounts, as well as relevant reports and adjusted plans, and the Committee brings forward preliminary review comments and reports on the results of the reviews thereafter. Other special committees may submit to the Financial and Economic Affairs Committee their comments on the drafts which concern them.

Article 41 The National People's Congress and its Standing Committee may appoint committees for the investigation of specific issues. The organization and work of the committees shall be decided by the National People's Congress or its Standing Committee.