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Standing Orders of the Congress of Deputies

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Standing Orders of the Congress of Deputies CONGRESS OF DEPUTIES STANDING ORDERS OF THE CONGRESS OF DEPUTIES MADRID 2004 STANDING ORDERS OF THE CONGRESS OF DEPUTIES ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS Page PRELIMINARY PART. Constituent meeting of Congress........................... 145 PART I. Status of Members................................................................ 146 Chapter I. Rights of Members.................................................................. 146 Chapter II. Parliamentary Privileges ........................................................ 148 Chapter Ill. Duties of Members ................................................................ 150 Chapter IV. Acquisition, suspension and loss of Member Status............ 151 PART II. Parliamentary Groups........................................................... 152 PART III. Organization of Congress..................................................... 155 Chapter I. The Bureau ............................................................................. 155 Division I. Functions of the Bureau and its members.......................... 155 Division 2. Election of members of the Bureau ................................... 158 Chapter II. The Board of Spokesmen...................................................... 159 Chapter Ill. Committees ........................................................................... 160 Division 1. Committees. General rules ................................................ 160 Division 2. Standing Committees......................................................... 163 Division 3. Ad hoc Committees............................................................ 165 Chapter IV. Plenary sittings ..................................................................... 167 Chapter V. Permanent Deputation........................................................... 168 Chapter VI. Human and material resources ............................................ 169 141 Page PART IV. General arrangement of business ........................................ 170 Chapter I. Sessions and sittings .............................................................. 170 Chapter II. Agenda................................................................................... 172 Chapter III. Debates................................................................................. 174 Chapter IV. Voting .................................................................................... 178 Chapter V. Calculation of terms and lodging of documents .................... 182 Chapter VI. Urgent procedure.................................................................. 183 Chapter VII. Publications of Congress and publicity of its business ....... 183 Chapter VIII. Maintenance of order ......................................................... 185 Division 1. Penalties for breach of Member’s duties ........................... 185 Division 2. Calls to Order..................................................................... 186 Division 3. Order within the parliamentary precincts............................. 188 PART V. Legislative procedure............................................................ 189 Chapter I. Initiative of Bills ....................................................................... 189 Chapter Il. Ordinary legislative procedure ............................................... 190 Division 1. Government Bills................................................................ 190 I. Tabling of amendments............................................................... 190 II. Debates on the whole bill in plenary sitting ............................... 192 III. Deliberation in Committee ........................................................ 193 IV. Deliberation on the floor of the House...................................... 194 V. Deliberation on resolutions of the Senate ................................. 196 Division 2. Private Members’ Bills........................................................ 197 Division 3. Withdrawal of Government Bills and of private Member’s Bills .................................................................................... 198 Chapter III. Special Rules on legislative procedure................................. 199 Division 1. Organic Bills....................................................................... 199 Division 2. Finance Bill......................................................................... 201 Division 3. Statutes of Devolution........................................................ 202 I. Ordinary procedure..................................................................... 202 II. Procedure pursuant to Section 151 of the Constitution............. 203 Ill. Reform of Statutes .................................................................... 206 Division 4. Constitutional review and reform ....................................... 207 142 Page Division 5. Full legislative authority of Committees ............................. 208 Division 6. Consideration of a Bill in single reading ............................ 209 PART VI. Control over Government provisions having the force of an Act. ................................................................................... 210 PART VII. Granting of authorizations and other acts of the Congress having direct legal effect....................................................... 212 Chapter I. International Treaties .............................................................. 212 Chapter II. Consultative referendum........................................................ 215 Chapter Ill. States of alert, emergency and siege ................................... 215 Chapter IV. Acts of Congress in relation to Self-governing Communities... 217 Chapter V. Indictment of members of the Government for treasonable offences against the security of the State ............................ 219 PART VIII. Granting and withdrawal of confidence ................................ 220 Chapter I. Investiture ............................................................................... 220 Chapter II. The question of confidence.................................................... 221 Chapter Ill. The motion of censure .......................................................... 222 PART IX. Interpellations and questions................................................ 225 Chapter I. Interpellations.......................................................................... 225 Chapter II. Questions............................................................................... 227 Chapter Ill. Common rules....................................................................... 230 PART X. Non-legislative motions......................................................... 230 PART XI. Examination and debate of Government communica- tions, programmes or plans and other reports ..................... 232 Chapter I. Government communications ................................................. 232 Chapter II. Examination of programmes and plans submitted by the Government.......................................................................... 233 Chapter Ill. Examination of reports laid before Congress........................ 234 Chapter IV. Information by the Government ............................................ 235 143 Page PART XII. Nominations and appointments ............................................ 236 PART XIII. Business pending upon expiry of the term of Congress....... 238 REPEALS................................................................................................... 238 FINAL PROVISIONS .................................................................................. 239 TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS .................................................................. 240 144 PRELIMINARY PART Constituent meeting of Congress 68, 67, 62, Section 1 1 23, 99, Following a general election to the Con- 115 C gress, a constituent meeting of the House 147 SO shall be held in accordance with Section 68.6 168 C of the Constitution, on such day and at such 5 SO Calling of the time as specified in the Royal Decree issued to meeting call the election. Section 2 The constituent meeting shall be chaired ini- Provisional tially by the oldest of the Members-elect pre- Bureau sent, assisted by the two youngest acting as Secretaries. Section 3 1. The Chairperson shall open procee- Procedure at dings and one of the Secretaries shall read out meeting the Royal Decree calling the election, the roll 36 SO of Members-elect and any appeals lodged against the election results, specifying the Members-elect who may be affected by the decision on such appeals. Election of 2. The Bureau of the Congress shall then final Bureau 145 be elected in accordance with the procedure 37 SO described in Section 37 hereof. Section 4 Oath or 1. After the voting has concluded, those pledge of elected shall take an oath or pledge to ob- allegiance to serve the Constitution, for which purpose 9 C the 20, 59 SO Constitution their names shall be called out in alphabeti- cal order. The Speaker shall then declare Congress constituted, and shall adjourn the sitting. 2. The constitution of Congress shall be notified by the Speaker to the King, the Sena- te and the Government. Section 5 State Within the period of fifteen days from the 1 SO opening of constituent meeting, the State opening of the Parliament parliamentary term shall be held. PART I Status of Members CHAPTER I Rights of Members Section 6 Attendance of 1. Members shall be entitled to attend and 67 C sittings vote at plenary
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