The 13th NPC Standing Committee (NPCSC) concluded its 28th session on Thursday, April 29. It approved the Rural Revitalization Promotion Law [乡村振兴促进法] and the Anti–Food Waste Law [反食品浪费法], revised the Maritime Traffic Safety Law [海上交通安全法] and a quasi-legislative decision on budget oversight, amended another ten laws, and authorized a set of regulatory pilot programs in China’s free trade zones. Below we take a closer look at some of these bills.
Continue reading “NPCSC Passes Legislation to Support Rural Revitalization Campaign, Curb Food Waste & Combat Identity Thefts in School Admissions”Tag: Rural Revitalization Promotion Law
NPCSC Session Watch: Rural Revitalization, Data Protection, Food Waste, Futures & More (Updated)

UPDATE (Apr. 28, 2021): According the readout of a Council of Chairpersons meeting on Wednesday morning, the NPCSC is scheduled to also approve the draft amendment to the Measures for Electing Delegates from the Chinese People’s Liberation Army to the NPC and Local People’s Congresses at or Above the County Level and the draft revision to the Decision on Strengthening the Review and Oversight of the Central Budget on Thursday.
UPDATE (Apr. 26, 2021): According to the readout of the session’s first plenary meeting on Monday morning, the NPC Constitution and Law Committee recommended that the NPCSC approve the following bills at this session: the draft Rural Revitalization Promotion Law, the draft Anti–Food Waste Law, the draft amendment to the Education Law, and the draft revision to the Maritime Traffic Safety Law. The readout also disclosed that the NPC Foreign Affairs Committee had submitted a draft Land Borders Law [陆地国界法] for review.
On Friday, April 16, the Council of Chairpersons decided to convene the 28th session of the 13th NPC Standing Committee (NPCSC) from April 26 to 29. The NPCSC will review at least fourteen bills at its upcoming four-day session. A quick rundown follows.
Continue reading “NPCSC Session Watch: Rural Revitalization, Data Protection, Food Waste, Futures & More (Updated)”NPCSC Seeks Public Comments on Draft Amendments to NPC Organic & Procedural Rules, Maritime Traffic Law Revision, Anti–Organized Crime Law, Anti–Food Waste Law, Two Military Bills & Two Other Bills
The NPC Standing Committee (NPCSC) is soliciting public comments on the following nine bills through January 29, 2021:
Draft Name | Chinese Text | Explanatory Document |
---|---|---|
NPC Organic Law (2nd Draft Amendment) 全国人民代表大会组织法修正案草案二次审议稿 | ||
NPC Rules of Procedure (2nd Draft Amendment) 全国人民代表大会议事规则修正案草案二次审议稿 | ||
Rural Revitalization Promotion Law (2nd Draft) 乡村振兴促进法草案二次审议稿 | ||
Hainan Free Trade Port Law (Draft) 海南自由贸易港法草案 | ||
Anti–Organized Crime Law (Draft) 反有组织犯罪法草案 | PDF (English) | |
Anti–Food Waste Law (Draft) 反食品浪费法草案 | ||
Law on the Protection of the Status, Rights, and Interests of Military Personnel (Draft) 军人地位和权益保障法草案 | ||
Maritime Traffic Safety Law (Draft Revision) 海上交通安全法修订草案 | ||
Military Facilities Protection Law (Draft Revision) 军事设施保护法修订草案 |
English translations will be provided if and when available. All explanatory documents are in Chinese. The NPCSC also reviewed a second draft of the Coast Guard Law [海警法], a draft Supervisors Law [监察官法], and a draft revision to the Military Service Law [兵役法] at last week’s session, but did not also release them for public comments today.
Continue reading “NPCSC Seeks Public Comments on Draft Amendments to NPC Organic & Procedural Rules, Maritime Traffic Law Revision, Anti–Organized Crime Law, Anti–Food Waste Law, Two Military Bills & Two Other Bills”NPCSC Session Watch: Criminal Justice, Maritime & Military Affairs, Hainan Free Trade Port, Food Waste & a Lot More (Updated)
UPDATE (Dec. 21, 2020): According to an NPCSC spokesperson, the NPCSC will continue deliberating the draft revision to the Rural Revitalization Promotion Law and the draft Coast Guard law in 2021. These two bills thus will not pass at this NPCSC session.
On Friday, November 27, the Council of Chairpersons took the unusual step of announcing the next NPC Standing Committee (NPCSC) session almost a month in advance. It decided that the 13th NPCSC will convene for its 24th session from December 22 and 26 and tentatively placed a whopping 18 legislative bills on the agenda, including 16 draft laws and 2 draft decisions. There is a little something for everyone: the bills touch on issues ranging from criminal justice to military affairs, from trade and intellectual property to maritime issues. A quick preview of the session follows.
Continue reading “NPCSC Session Watch: Criminal Justice, Maritime & Military Affairs, Hainan Free Trade Port, Food Waste & a Lot More (Updated)”NPCSC Seeks Public Comments on Draft Veterans Support Law & Rural Revitalization Promotion Law
The NPC Standing Committee (NPCSC) is soliciting public comments on the following two bills through July 21, 2020:
- draft Veterans Support Law 退役军人保障法草案
- draft Rural Revitalization Promotion Law 乡村振兴促进法草案
All linked files are PDF documents in Chinese. English translations will be provided if and when available. The accompanying explanations of these drafts can be read here (PDF).
The draft Law on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region [香港特别行政区维护国家安全法] was reviewed together with those two bills last week, but were not released today. Since the NPCSC will meet again on Sunday and will likely adopt that Law, it seems all but certain that the NPCSC will not release a draft of the Law for public comments. We have summarized and analyzed an excerpted explanation of the bill here.
Continue reading “NPCSC Seeks Public Comments on Draft Veterans Support Law & Rural Revitalization Promotion Law”NPCSC Session Watch: Public Employee Sanctions, Veterans Support, Rural Revitalization & (Temporary?) Absence of Hong Kong National Security Law (Updated)
UPDATE (June 19, 2020): The NPCSC most certainly will not approve the Hong Kong National Security Law (HKNSL) on Saturday, the last day of its ongoing session, according to the latest information. The Council of Chairpersons met on Friday and approved the voting versions of several bills, which did not include the HKNSL. Similarly, multiple sources told the South China Morning Post that the Law “was unlikely to be passed during this meeting or come into effect on Saturday even if it was endorsed on the same day.”
UPDATE (June 18, 2020): Xinhua reports on Thursday that a draft Law on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region [香港特别行政区维护国家安全法] has been submitted to the NPCSC for review. Follow us on Twitter or subscribe to our blog posts for future updates.
Our assessment as of June 18 is that the NPCSC will not pass the Hong Kong National Security Law at this session. Recall that for the Law to be enforced in Hong Kong, it is not enough that the NPCSC adopts it—it must also be listed in Annex III of the Hong Kong Basic Law. Were both actions—NPCSC approval and Annex III listing—to occur during a single session, by convention, the NPCSC would have to pass the Law first, and wait until the next day at least to list the Law in Annex III. This sequence of events theoretically could happen during this three-day session, but only if the NPCSC passes the Law on Friday (so that the listing can occur on Saturday). It does not appear that a plenary meeting (where voting occurs) is scheduled for Friday, however. The Law is thus unlikely to pass on Saturday, because the NPCSC would then have to wait till the next session (whether in July or August) to add it to Annex III—which would unnecessarily delay the process. The more likely scenario is that the NPCSC will consider the draft Law again in the near future, before approving it and listing it in Annex III during that meeting. This assessment is subject to change, however, as more information (such as the ongoing session’s daily schedule) becomes available. (Of course, that the Legislation Law essentially bars the NPCSC from adopting a new law after only a single review would be another reason why this Law won’t pass on Saturday, assuming the NPCSC follows the Legislation Law.)
The Council of Chairpersons decided on Tuesday, June 9 to convene the 19th session of the 13th NPC Standing Committee (NPCSC) from June 18 to 20. According to the official readout of the Council’s meeting, the upcoming session will consider five legislative bills. The readout does not mention the closely watched Hong Kong national security law that was authorized by the NPC’s May 28 decision, but this bill may still appear on the finalized agenda next week. A quick rundown follows.
Continue reading “NPCSC Session Watch: Public Employee Sanctions, Veterans Support, Rural Revitalization & (Temporary?) Absence of Hong Kong National Security Law (Updated)”