According to the Constitution of 1982, the National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China (NPC) is the highest organ of state power. Its permanent body is the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress. The National People's Congress and its Standing Committee exercise the legislative power of the state.

Organization

The National People's Congress is composed of deputies elected from the provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government and of deputies elected from the armed forces. All minority nationalities are entitled to appropriate representation. Election of deputies to the National People's Congress is conducted by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

The National People's Congress is elected for a term of five years.

The National People's Congress meets in session once a year and is convened by its Standing Committee. A session of the National People's Congress may be convened at any time the Standing Committee deems it necessary or when more than one-fifth of the deputies to the National People's Congress so propose.

When the National People's Congress meets, it elects a Presidium to conduct its session.

Standing Committee

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

The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress is composed of the Chairman, the Vice Chairmen, the Secretary-General and the members.Minority nationalities are entitled to appropriate representation on the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress. The National People's Congress elects, and has the power to recall, members of its Standing Committee.

The Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress directs the work of the Standing Committee and convenes its meeting. The Vice Chairmen and the Secretary-General assist the Chairman in his work.

The Chairman, the Vice Chairmen and the Secretary-General constitute the Council of Chairmen which handles the important day-to-day work of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

Special Committees

The National People's Congress establishes a Nationalities Committee, a Law Committee, a Finance and Economic Committee, an Education, Science, Culture and Public Health Committee, a Foreign Affairs Committee, an Overseas Chinese Committee and such other special committees as are necessary. These special committees work under the direction of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress when the Congress is not in session.

The special committees examine, discuss and draw up relevant bills and draft resolutions under the direction of the National People's Congress and its Standing Committee.

Functions and Powers of NPC

The National People's Congress exercises the following functions and powers:

(1) to amend the Constitution;
(2) to supervise the enforcement of the Constitution;
(3) to enact and amend basic laws governing criminal offenses, civil affairs, the state organs and other matters;
(4) to elect the President and the Vice President of the People's Republic of China;
(5) to decide on the choice of the Premier of the State Council upon nomination by the President of the People's Republic of China, and on the choice of the Vice Premiers, State Councilors, Ministers in charge of ministries or commissions, the Auditor General and the Secretary General of the State Council upon nomination by the Premier;
(6) to elect the Chairman of the Central Military Commission and, upon, nomination by the Chairman, to decide on the choice of all other members of the Central Military Commission;
(7) to elect the President of the Supreme People's Court;
(8) to elect the Procurator General of the Supreme People's Procuratorate;
(9) to examine and approve the plan for national economic and social development and the report on its implementation;
(10) to examine and approve the state budget and the report on its implementation;
(11) to alter or annul inappropriate decisions of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress;
(12) to approve the establishment of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government;
(13) to decide on the establishment of special administrative regions and the systems to be instituted there;
(14) to decide on questions of war and peace; and
(15) to exercise such other functions and powers as the highest organ of state power should exercise.

The National People's Congress has the power to remove from office the following persons:

(1) the President and Vice President of the People's Republic of China;
(2) the Premier, Vice Premiers, State Councilors, Ministers in charge of ministries or commissions, the Auditor General and the Secretary General of the State Council;
(3) the Chairman of the Central Military Commission and other members of the Commission;
(4) the President of the Supreme People's Court; and
(5) the Procurator General of the Supreme People's Procuratorate.

Functions and Powers of the Standing Committee

The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress exercises the following functions and powers:

(1) to interpret the Constitution and supervise its enforcement;
(2) to enact and amend laws, with the exception of those which should be enacted by the National People's Congress;
(3) to partially supplement and amend, when the National People's Congress is not in session, laws enacted by the National People's Congress provided that the basic principles of those laws are not contravened;
(4) to interpret laws;
(5) to review and approve, when the National People's Congress is not in session, partial adjustments to the plan for national economic and social development or to the state budget that prove necessary in the course of their implementation;
(6) to supervise the work of the State Council, the Central Military Commission, the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate;
(7) to annul those administrative rules and regulations, decisions or orders of the State Council that contravene the Constitution or the law;
(8) to annual those local regulations or decisions of the organs of state power of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government that contravene the Constitution, the law or the administrative rules and regulations;
(9) to decide, when the National People's Congress is not in session, on the choice of Ministers in charge of ministries or commissions, the Auditor General or the Secretary General of the State Council upon nomination by the Premier of the State Council;
(10) to decide, upon nomination by the Chairman of the Central Military Commission, on the choice of other members of the Commission, when the National People's Congress is not in session;
(11) to appoint or remove, at the recommendation of the President of the Supreme People's Court, the Vice Presidents and Judges of the Supreme People's Court, members of its Judicial Committee and the President of the Military Court;
(12) to appoint or remove, at the recommendation of the Procurator General of the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the Deputy Procurators-General and procurators of the Supreme People's Procuratorate, members of its Procuratorial Committee and the Chief Procurator of the Military Procuratorate, and to approve the appointment or removal of the chief procurators of the people's procuratorates of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government;
(13) to decide on the appointment or recall of plenipotentiary representatives abroad;
(14) to decide on the ratification or abrogation of treaties and important agreements concluded with foreign states;
(15) to institute systems of titles and ranks for military and diplomatic personnel and of other specific titles and ranks;
(16) to institute state medals and titles of honor and decide on their conferment;
(17) to decide on the granting of special pardons;
(18) to decide, when the National People's Congress is not in session, on the proclamation of the state of war in the event or an armed attack on the country or in fulfillment of international treaty obligations concerning common defense against aggression;
(19) to decide on general mobilization or partial mobilization;
(20) to decide on the imposition of martial law throughout the country or in particular provinces, autonomous regions, or municipalities directly under the Central Government; and
(21) to exercise such other functions and powers as the National People's Congress may assign to it.

The National People's Congress and its Standing Committee, when they deem necessary, appoint committees of inquiry into special questions and adopt relevant resolutions in the light of their reports.

All organs of state, public organizations and citizens concerned are obliged to furnish when necessary information to the committees of inquiry when they conduct investigations.

Deputies to the National People's Congress and members of its Standing Committee have the right, in accordance with the procedures prescribed by law, to submit bills and proposals within the scope of the respective functions and powers of the National People's Congress and its Standing Committee.

Deputies to the National People's Congress and members of its Standing Committee have the right, during the sessions of Congress and the meetings of the Committee, to address questions, in accordance with procedures prescribed by law, to the State Council or the ministries and commissions under the State Council, which must answer the questions in a responsible manner.

See the Profile of current NPC Chairman, Mr. Li Peng

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