Zewei (Whiskey) Liao

Zewei (Whiskey) Liao has been the assistant manager of NPC Observer since January 2022. He spent two years at Wesleyan University where he majored in the College of Social Studies before he transferred to the University of Chicago to study Sociology and Statistics.

A Guide to China’s 2023 State Council Restructuring

UPDATE #2 (Mar. 23, 2023): Chinese authorities released the full Party and State Institutional Reform Plan on March 16, and the new State Council announced its organizational structure on March 20. We have accordingly updated our bilingual State Council organizational chart and this guide. Click here to jump to the update.

UPDATE #1 (Mar. 10, 2023): The NPC approved the State Council Institutional Reform Plan on March 10 and has released its full text, which is identical to the version discussed in this post.

On Tuesday, March 7, China unveiled details of its 2023 State Council Institutional Reform Plan (Plan) [国务院机构改革方案]. The National People’s Congress (NPC) is set to approve the Plan on March 9, ahead of its votes to appoint a new slate of State Council officials on March 10–11. This would be the ninth round of State Council reorganization since the Reform Era began. Previous rounds took place in 1982, 1988, and every five years thereafter.

Continue reading “A Guide to China’s 2023 State Council Restructuring” →

NPC 2023: How China Selects Its State Leaders for the Next Five Years

NPC delegates reading election ballots during the 2013 NPC session. Photo by Tencent.

The 14th National People’s Congress (NPC) will convene for its inaugural session on Sunday. One closely watched task for the session this year is to fill an array of positions in core state institutions whose five-year terms are about to expire, from the nation’s head of state to hundreds of new members on various legislative committees. In this post, we will explain what those positions are, introduce the two methods of selection (election and appointment), discuss the Communist Party-controlled nomination process, and lastly take a look at how the NPC will deliberate and vote on the nominations in the next several days.

There are few standing legal rules on China’s quinquennial state leadership changes. Instead, they follow the ad hoc procedural rules adopted by the NPC every five years, as well as the Party’s internal practices on the selection of candidates. This post is based on those past rules and practices. While the details have changed from cycle to cycle, the fundamentals have remained the same. We will update this post once the NPC approves the ad hoc rules that will govern this year’s elections and appointments.

Continue reading “NPC 2023: How China Selects Its State Leaders for the Next Five Years” →

NPC Calendar: July 2022

The Stamp Tax Law [印花税法] (adopted on June 10, 2021) takes effect on July 1.

The NPC Standing Committee (NPCSC) is seeking public comments on the following bills through July 23:

The NPCSC will convene for its next regularly scheduled session in late August.

NPC Calendar: June 2022

The Wetlands Protection Law [湿地保护法] and the Law on the Prevention and Control of Noise Pollution [噪声污染防治法] (both adopted on Dec. 24, 2021) take effect on, respectively, June 1 and June 5.

The 13th NPC Standing Committee (NPCSC) will convene for its 35th session from June 21 to 24. It will review the following bills:

For more information, please see this post.

NPC Calendar: May 2022

The Anti–Organized Crime Law [反有组织犯罪法] (adopted Dec. 24, 2021) and the revised Vocational Education Law [职业教育法] (adopted Apr. 20, 2022) take effect on May 1.

The NPC Standing Committee (NPCSC) is soliciting public comments on the following draft laws through May 19:

The NPCSC will convene for its next regularly scheduled session in late June.

NPC Calendar: April 2022

The 13th NPC Standing Committee (NPCSC) is expected to convene for its 34th session in late April. The Council of Chairpersons is expected to meet in mid-April to decide on the agenda and dates of the session. The session is expected to review the following bills:

  • draft Futures and Derivatives Law [期货和衍生品法];
  • draft revision to the Vocational Education Law [职业教育法];
  • draft plan for allocating seats in the 14th NPC among electoral units;
  • draft plan for allocating ethnic-minority seats in the 14th NPC among electoral units and minority groups; and
  • draft plan for selecting delegates who represent Taiwan in the 14th NPC.

For background information on the allocation of seats in the NPC, please see this post.

The session may also consider one or more of the following bills:

The NPCSC is expected to release its annual plans on legislative, oversight, and delegates work for 2022 after this month’s session.

NPC Calendar: March 2022

The following legislation takes effect on March 1:

The Decision on the System of Ranks for the Active-Duty Soldiers of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army [关于中国人民解放军现役士兵衔级制度的决定] (adopted Feb. 28, 2022) takes effect on March 31.

China’s 13th National People’s Congress (NPC) will convene for its fifth and final annual session on Saturday, March 5. The session’s tentative agenda includes the following items:

  • Deliberate the Government Work Report;
  • Deliberate work reports by the NPC Standing Committee, the Supreme People’s Court, and the Supreme People’s Procuratorate;
  • Review a report on the execution of the 2021 National Economic and Social Development Plan and on the draft 2022 National Economic and Social Development Plan; and review the draft 2022 National Economic and Social Development Plan;
  • Review a report on the execution of the 2021 Central and Local Budgets and on the draft 2022 Central and Local Budgets; and review the draft 2022 Central and Local Budgets;
  • Deliberate a draft amendment to the Organic Law of Local People’s Congresses at All Levels and Local People’s Governments at All Levels  [地方各级人民代表大会和地方各级人民政府组织法];
  • Deliberate a draft Decision on Issues Concerning the Quotas and Elections of Delegates to the 14th NPC [关于第十四届全国人民代表大会代表名额和选举问题的决定]; and
  • Deliberate two draft measures for electing delegates to the 14th NPC from Hong Kong and Macao, respectively.

On March 4, the NPC session will convene for a preparatory meeting to select members of the Presidium (an ad hoc body of around 170 members that will preside over the session) and to finalize the session’s agenda. The Presidium will then immediately meet to decide on the session’s daily schedule and designate a spokesperson. Shortly thereafter the session is expected to hold its first press conference.

Like its last two annual meetings, the NPC’s 2022 session will likely last seven days, to close on March 11. All reports and bills submitted for review are expected to be approved on the last day.