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Standing Committee Act

1. Purpose: To improve the quality of legislation by inviting expert and public input on proposed legislation, and to improve democratic accountability of government by receiving periodic reports from government ministries and agencies.

2. The following permanent committees shall be establishe😛

a. Committee on Defense and National Security:
i. will be responsible for reviewing legislation and related issues regarding national defense, the Canadian Armed Forces and any other national defense organizations and command structures, civil defense infrastructure, intelligence, non-governmental organizations, IRC and forum security, and military cooperation.
ii. will review periodic reports from the Minister of Defense, the Minister of Public Safety, the Director of CSIS, and the Commanding General of the Canadian Armed Forces.
iii. will be composed of seven members.

b. Finance Committee
i. will be responsible for reviewing legislation and related issues dealing with the budget, national lottery and other revenue sources, taxation system, economic analysis, and government run companies.
ii. will review periodic reports from the Minister of Finance, the Minister of National Revenue, the Minister of Industry, and the Auditor General.
iii. will be composed of seven members.

c. Committee on Domestic Affairs
i. will be responsible for reviewing legislation and related issues dealing with areas of social services, internal communication, Congress, the constitution and associated legal codes, citizenship, and the Supreme Court.
ii. will review periodic reports from the Minister of State, the Minister of Justice, the Minister of Immigration & Citizenship, the Minister of Constitutional Affairs, the Minister of Education, the Minister of Heath, the Minister of Heritage and Official Languages, as well as other ministers and public officials at the discretion of the Prime Minister.
iii. will be composed of seven members.

d. Committee on Foreign Affairs
i. will be responsible for reviewing legislation and related issues dealing with diplomatic relations with other countries and the Ambassador Corps
ii. will review periodic reports from the Minister of Foreign Affars
iii. will be composed of seven members.

3. Committee Membership
a. All members of committees of congress will be current elected members of congress, who will normally be named on or before the fifth day of each session (30th day of each month).
b. The total membership of all committees will have membership proportional to the number of elected members of each party in Congress.
c. Committee chairs: In a majority Congress, the majority party in Congress will name all the committee chairs. In a Congress where no party has an elected majority, committee chairs will be assigned by a motion of Congress.
d. Committee members: Committee members will be assigned to committees by a motion of Congress.
e. If Congress is unable to choose committee members by a motion, sitting members will remain on committees, and the Speaker will fill committee vacancies as needed on an acting basis, in accordance with sections (a) and (b) above, until such time as Congress passes a motion to confirm committee memberships.

4. Government Reports
If not otherwise specified here, government ministries will provide reports to Congress once a month, between the first and fifteenth day of each month (the specific date at the discretion of the minister.

5. Committees and Legislation
a. Committees will review legislation referred to the committee from Congress. Committees will recommend in favor or against legislation, with an amendment to alter the wording if the committee deems such appropriate.
b. Committees may also propose legislation to Congress directly, by the committee chair or other member chosen by the committee, on the basis of a committee report.
c. Committee members or groups within committees who do not agree with the recommendation of the majority will submit a minority report to Congress at the time the committee majority offers its report.

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Notes:
1. (Section 3.b.) For example a party which elects a quarter of the membership of Congress will be entitled to name a quarter of the committee members.
2. (Section 3.c, 3.d.) In the great majority of cases, decisions about committee chairs and members will be negotiated among the leaders of the main parties to ensure this motion is passed. It would be expected that the largest party would get first pick, etc.
3. (Section 4.) Realistically, it would be expected that some ministry reports will be very short, especially in the initial months. Over time it would be hoped that some government reports would take a standardized format.
4. (Section 5.a.) It would be expected that any piece of legislation that is controversial and/or not completely obvious would be referred to committee. A motion to refer to committee is a subsidiary motion, which is to say it would be appropriate for the Speaker to call for a voice vote (quick informal survey) or just ask if there are any objections on the referral.

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