9.1.2010   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 6/14

1.

The term of office of a member or alternate shall commence on the date on which his appointment by the Council takes effect.

2.

The term of office of a member or alternate shall be terminated by resignation, the end of the electoral mandate on the basis of which he was appointed, or death.

3.

A resigning member or alternate must notify the President of the Committee of his intention in writing, specifying the date on which his resignation is to take effect. The President shall inform the Council, which shall confirm the vacancy and implement the replacement procedure.

4.

A member or alternate whose term of office at the Committee ends because the electoral mandate, on the basis of which he was appointed, expires shall immediately inform the President of the Committee of the fact in writing.

5.

In the cases referred to in Rule 3(2), a replacement shall be appointed by the Council for the remainder of the term.

1.

Any member prevented from taking part in a Plenary Session may be represented by an alternate from his national delegation; he may also be represented for a period limited to individual days of the Plenary Session. All members and their duly mandated alternates shall sign an attendance list.

2.

Any member prevented from taking part in a commission meeting or any other meeting which has been approved by the Bureau may be represented by another member or an alternate from his national delegation, political group or interregional group. All members and their duly mandated alternates shall sign an attendance list.

3.

A member or alternate appointed to the list of replacements for the members of a working group, established on the basis of Rule 36 or 57 of the Rules of Procedure, may replace any member of that working group belonging to the same political group.

4.

An alternate or a member acting as an alternate can stand in for one member only. They shall exercise the same powers as a member at the relevant meeting. The Secretariat-General must be notified in line with notification requirements of the delegation of vote, which must be received no later than the day before the meeting.

5.

At a Plenary Session the expenses of only the member or the alternate shall be reimbursed. The detailed provisions shall be laid down by the Bureau in the implementing arrangements regarding travel and subsistence expenses.

6.

An alternate who has been appointed rapporteur may present the draft opinion or report for which he is responsible at the Plenary Session at which the draft opinion or report is on the agenda. This shall apply even if the member whom he has been designated to replace is also at the meeting. The member may delegate his vote to his alternate while the draft opinion or report in question is being discussed. The Secretary-General must be notified in writing of the delegation of vote before the relevant meeting.

7.

Without prejudice to Rule 23(1), any delegation shall cease to have effect from the moment the member who is unable to attend ceases to be a member of the Committee of the Regions.

1.

The members and alternates from each Member State shall form a national delegation. Each national delegation shall adopt its own internal rules and shall elect a chairman. The Committee President shall be officially informed of the name of the person elected.

2.

The Secretary-General shall make arrangements, within the Committee’s administration, for national delegations to receive assistance. These arrangements shall also permit each individual member to receive information and assistance in his official language. The arrangements shall form part of a specific service consisting of Committee of the Regions officials or other servants and shall ensure that national delegations can make appropriate use of the Committee’s facilities. Specifically, the Secretary-General shall provide the national delegations with suitable means for holding meetings immediately before or during Plenary Sessions.

3.

The national delegations shall also be assisted by national coordinators, who are not part of the staff of the Secretariat-General. They contribute to members efficiently executing their responsibilities as members of the Committee.

4.

The Secretary-General provides the national coordinators with appropriate support, in particular to enable them to make proper use of the Committee’s infrastructures.

1.

Members and alternates may form groups which reflect their political affinities. The criteria for membership shall be laid down in the internal rules of each political group.

2.

At least 18 members/alternates, half of whom at least must be members, representing at least one fifth of the Member States, shall be needed to form a political group. A member/alternate may belong to only one political group. A political group shall be dissolved if its membership falls below the required number.

3.

The Committee President shall be notified in a statement when a political group is set up, dissolved or otherwise changed. The statement notifying the formation of a political group shall specify the name of the political group, its members and its bureau.

4.

Each political group shall be assisted by a secretariat staffed by Secretariat-General personnel. The political groups may submit proposals to the appointing authority for the selection, appointment and promotion of such staff and for extending their contracts. The appointing authority shall make its decision after consulting the chairman of the political group concerned.

5.

The Secretary-General shall provide the political groups and their constituent bodies with adequate resources for meetings, activities and publications and for the work of their secretariats. The resources for each political group shall be earmarked in the budget. The political groups and their secretariats may make appropriate use of the Committee’s facilities.

6.

The political groups and their bureaux may meet immediately before or during Plenary Sessions. They may hold extraordinary meetings twice a year. An alternate attending these meetings is only entitled to travel and subsistence expenses if he is representing a member from his political group.

7.

Non-attached members shall be provided with administrative support. The detailed arrangements shall be laid down by the Bureau on a proposal from the Secretary-General.

1.

At the first meeting, the interim president shall inform the Committee of the communication from the Council concerning the appointment of its members and report on any action he has undertaken to represent the Committee. If requested, the interim president may decide to verify the appointment and credentials of members, after which he shall declare the Committee installed in office for the new term.

2.

The interim bureau shall remain in office until the results of the elections of the members of the Bureau have been declared.

(a)

to adopt opinions, reports and resolutions;

(b)

to adopt the draft estimates of expenditure and revenue of the Committee;

(c)

to adopt the political programme of the Committee at the beginning of every term;

(d)

to elect the President, the first Vice-President and the remaining members of the Bureau;

(e)

to set up commissions;

(f)

to adopt and revise the Rules of Procedure of the Committee;

(g)

having verified that there is a quorum under the first sentence of Rule 21(1) of the Rules of Procedure, to take a decision, by a majority of the votes cast, on a proposal by the President of the Committee, or the competent commission acting in accordance with Rules 53 and 54, to bring an action before the Court of Justice of the European Union. When such a decision is adopted, the action shall be brought by the President on behalf of the Committee.

1.

The President of the Committee shall convene the Plenary Assembly at least once every three months. The dates of the Plenary Sessions are to be fixed by the Bureau during the third quarter of the previous year. A Plenary Session can meet on one or more days.

2.

At the written request of at least one quarter of the members, the President shall be obliged to convene an extraordinary Plenary Session, which shall take place not sooner than one week and not later than one month after the date of the request. The written request shall state the subject matter which is to be discussed at the extraordinary Plenary Session. No other matter may be dealt with.

1.

The preliminary draft agenda containing a provisional list of the draft opinions, reports and resolutions to be discussed at the next but one Plenary Session together with all the other documents requiring a decision shall be prepared by the Bureau.

2.

The draft agenda accompanied by all the documents requiring a decision listed therein shall be emailed by the President to the members and alternates in each respective official language at least 20 working days before the opening of the Plenary Session. Documents shall also be made accessible electronically at the same time.

3.

The draft opinions, reports and resolutions shall in principle be put on the agenda in the order in which they were adopted by the commissions or submitted in accordance with the Rules of Procedure. Account shall also be taken of agenda items which deal with related subject matter.

4.

In exceptional and duly motivated cases where the deadline referred to in paragraph 2 cannot be met, the President may decide to include a document requiring a decision on the draft agenda provided the relevant document has been received by the members and alternates in their official language not later than one week before the opening of the Plenary Session. The reason for the application of this procedure shall be indicated by the President on the cover page of the document requiring a decision.

5.

Written amendments to the draft agenda must be submitted to the Secretary-General not later than three working days before the opening of the Plenary Session.

6.

The Bureau shall finalise the draft agenda at its meeting immediately prior to the opening of the Plenary Session. At this meeting the Bureau may decide, by a two-thirds majority of the votes cast, to include on the agenda matters of an urgent or topical nature whose discussion cannot be deferred until the next Plenary Session.

7.

On a proposal from the President, a political group or 32 members, the Bureau or the Plenary Assembly may decide to:

This provision shall not apply in cases where a deadline set by the Council, the Commission or the European Parliament makes it impossible to defer the adoption of a document for decision.

A document for decision deferred to a future session of the Plenary Assembly shall be accompanied by all the related duly tabled amendments.

When a document is referred back to the relevant commission, the related amendments shall lapse and the rapporteur shall assess the extent to which their content:

The document shall be placed on the agenda of the commission for decision.

1.

Plenary Sessions shall be open to the public, unless the Plenary Assembly decides otherwise in respect of the whole meeting or a specific item on the agenda.

2.

Representatives of the European Parliament, Council and Commission may attend Plenary Sessions. They may be asked to take the floor.

3.

The President, acting on his own initiative or at the request of the Bureau, may also invite other distinguished guests to address the Plenary Assembly. A general debate may follow, during which the general rules on speaking time shall apply.

4.

The Bureau may, in accordance with Rule 15(1) and (6), propose to the Plenary Assembly that a general debate be held on topical political issues of regional and local relevance (topical debate slot). The general rules on speaking time shall apply.

1.

The Plenary Assembly shall, at the beginning of its meeting and acting on a proposal from the Bureau, allocate speaking time for every item on the agenda. During a Plenary Session the President, acting on his own initiative or at the request of a member, shall arrange for a decision to be taken to limit speaking time.

2.

The President, acting on a proposal from the Bureau, may propose to the Plenary Assembly that when debates are held on general or specific issues, speaking time should be divided among the political groups and national delegations.

3.

As a general rule, speaking time shall be limited to one minute for comments on minutes, for points of order and for comments on amendments to the final draft agenda or the agenda.

4.

If a speaker exceeds his allotted speaking time, the President may, after an initial call to order, forbid him to speak.

5.

Any request by a member that the debate be brought to a close shall be put to the vote by the President.

1.

The names of members who ask to speak shall be entered in a list in the order in which their requests are received. The President shall call upon members to speak on the basis of this list, ensuring as far as possible that speakers of different political views and from different national delegations are heard in turn.

2.

Priority may be given, however, to the rapporteur of the commission concerned and to the representatives of the political groups and national delegations wishing to speak on behalf of their group or delegation.

3.

No-one may take the floor more than twice on the same subject, except by leave of the President. The chairman and the rapporteur of the commission concerned shall, however, be allowed to speak at their request for a period to be decided by the President.

1.

A member shall be allowed to speak to raise a point of order or to draw the attention of the President to any failure to respect the Rules of Procedure. The point of order must concern the agenda or the subject under discussion.

2.

A request to raise a point of order shall take precedence over all other requests to speak.

3.

The President shall take an immediate decision on points of order in accordance with the Rules of Procedure and shall announce his ruling immediately after the Rules of Procedure have been invoked. No vote shall be taken on the President’s ruling.

1.

A quorum shall exist at a Plenary Session if a majority of the members is present. The quorum shall be verified at the request of a member if at least 15 members vote in favour of the request. If the verification of a quorum is not requested, all votes shall be valid regardless of the number of members present. The President may interrupt the Plenary Session for up to 10 minutes before proceeding with a verification of the quorum. Members who have requested verification of the quorum but are no longer present in the Plenary Session chamber shall be considered to be present for the purposes of the count. If fewer than 15 members are present, the President may rule that there is no quorum.

2.

If it is established that there is no quorum, all items on the agenda which require voting shall be postponed until the following meeting day, when the Plenary Assembly may hold a valid vote on these items whatever the number of members present.

1.

The Plenary Assembly shall decide by a majority of the votes cast, save where otherwise provided in these rules.

2.

The valid forms of vote shall be ‘for’, ‘against’ and ‘abstention’. In calculating the majority, only the votes cast for and against shall be taken into account. In the event of a tied vote, the text or proposal shall be deemed rejected.

3.

If the result of the count is queried, a fresh vote may be called for by the President or may take place at the request of a member, provided that at least 15 members vote in favour of the request.

4.

At the proposal of the President, a political group or 32 members, submitted before the final agenda is adopted, the Plenary Assembly may decide to hold a roll call vote for one or more agenda items, which shall be recorded in the plenary session minutes. Unless the Plenary Assembly decides otherwise, the use of a roll call vote shall not apply to amendments.

5.

At the proposal of the President, a political group or 32 members, a decision may be taken to vote by secret ballot if the decision concerns persons.

6.

The President may at any time decide that a vote shall be conducted by electronic means.

1.

Only members and duly mandated alternates — and, for his own opinion, any non-mandated alternate appointed as rapporteur — may table amendments to documents requiring a decision, in accordance with rules on tabling amendments.

The right to table amendments at a plenary session may only be exercised either by a member or by his duly mandated alternate. Amendments validly tabled by a member or alternate who subsequently loses that office, or before the granting or withdrawal of a delegation, shall remain valid.

2.

Without prejudice to the provisions of Rule 26(1), amendments to documents requiring a decision must be submitted either by a political group, or by at least six members or duly mandated alternates and must bear their names. National delegations with fewer than six members may submit amendments, provided that these amendments are submitted by and bear the names of all the members of the delegation or their duly appointed alternates.

3.

They must reach the Secretary-General at least nine working days before the opening of the Plenary Session. Amendments must be electronically retrievable as soon as they have been translated, but not later than four working days prior to the Plenary Session.

The amendments shall be translated as a matter of priority and sent to the rapporteur to allow him or her to forward his or her own amendments to the Secretariat-General no later than two working days before the opening of the plenary session. The rapporteur’s amendments must be associated and related to one or more amendments referred to in paragraph 1. The rapporteur’s amendments shall be retrievable only at the opening of the plenary session.

The deadline for the submission of amendments can be reduced to three working days by the President in cases where Rule 15(4) is applied. The deadline shall also not apply in the case of amendments to urgent matters pursuant to Rule 15(6).

4.

All amendments shall be distributed to members before the beginning of the Plenary Session.

1.

If one or more amendments have been tabled to a part of a text, the President, the rapporteur or the authors of these amendments may in exceptional cases propose compromise amendments during the debate. Where possible, the text of a compromise amendment should be forwarded in advance and in writing to the President and to the Secretariat-General before the subject concerned is discussed.

2.

Voting on amendments shall follow the order of the points in the text and the following order of priority:

Once adopted, rapporteur’s amendments and compromise amendments replace the amendments from which they derive.

The President may order a joint vote on amendments with a similar content and objective.

3.

A rapporteur may draw up a list of amendments tabled to his draft opinion or report which he recommends be adopted (voting recommendation). If the rapporteur has made a voting recommendation, the President may decide that all the amendments covered by the recommendation are to be voted on together. Any member may, however, object to the voting recommendation, specifying amendments which should be voted on separately.

4.

Amendments shall have priority over the text to which they relate and shall be put to the vote before that text.

5.

If two or more mutually exclusive amendments have been tabled to the same part of a text, the amendment that departs furthest from the original text shall have priority and shall be put to the vote first.

The President shall announce before the vote is taken whether the adoption of an amendment would negate one or more other amendments, either because these amendments are mutually exclusive if they refer to the same passage, or because they are contradictory. An invalid amendment shall not be put to a vote unless its authors dispute its invalidity and the Plenary Assembly agrees to put the disputed amendment to a vote.

6.

The final vote shall be on the text as a whole, whether amended or not. An opinion which does not obtain an absolute majority of the votes cast shall be returned to the competent commission or shall lapse.

1.

Draft opinions or reports adopted unanimously by a (lead) commission shall be submitted to the Plenary Assembly for adoption without change unless at least 32 members or duly mandated alternates or a political group table an amendment in accordance with the first sentence of Rule 23(3). In this case, the amendment shall be dealt with by the Plenary Assembly. The draft opinion or report shall be presented by the rapporteur at the Plenary Session and may be the subject of a debate. It shall be forwarded to members together with the draft agenda.

2.

If the (lead) commission is of the view that the Committee has no reason to comment on or propose changes to a document referred to it by the Bureau, it may propose that no objections be raised to the document. The proposal shall be submitted to the Plenary Assembly for adoption without debate.

1.

The Committee recognises and adopts the following Union symbols:

2.

The Committee shall celebrate Europe Day on 9 May.

3.

The flag shall be displayed in the buildings of the Committee and to mark official occasions.

4.

The anthem shall be played at the opening of every inaugural session at the beginning of a term of office and to mark other commemorative sessions, e.g. when welcoming heads of state or government, or new members following an enlargement.

(a)

the President;

(b)

the first Vice-President;

(c)

one Vice-President per Member State;

(d)

27 other members;

(e)

the chairmen of the political groups.

—

:

3 seats

:

Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Poland, United Kingdom,

—

:

2 seats

:

Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Greece, Ireland, Lithuania, Hungary, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Finland, Sweden,

—

:

1 seat

:

Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, Slovenia.

1.

The national delegations shall appoint a member or alternate from the delegation as ad personam replacement for each of their members of the Bureau, except for the President and the first Vice-President.

2.

For each political group chairman, the political group in question shall name one of its members or alternates as ad personam replacement.

3.

An ad personam replacement shall be entitled to participate in meetings with speaking and voting rights only when he is replacing the Bureau member in question. The delegation of vote must be notified in writing to the Secretary-General prior to the relevant meeting.

1.

The Bureau shall be elected by the Plenary Assembly for two and a half years.

2.

The election shall be held under the chairmanship of the interim president in accordance with Rules 11 and 12. All candidatures must be submitted in writing to the Secretary-General at least one hour before the beginning of the Plenary Session. The elections shall take place only if at least two-thirds of the members are present.

1.

Before the elections, candidates for the posts of President and first Vice-President may make a short statement before the Plenary Assembly. The speaking time for candidates shall be of equal length and shall be laid down by the interim president.

2.

The election of the President and the first Vice-President shall take place separately. They shall be elected by a majority of the votes cast.

3.

The valid forms of vote shall be a vote for and an abstention. In calculating the majority, only the votes cast for shall be taken into account.

4.

If no candidate obtains a majority in the first ballot, a second ballot shall be held in which the candidate receiving the highest number of votes shall be deemed to be elected. In the event of a tied vote, a decision shall be taken by drawing lots.

1.

A joint list may be drawn up for the candidates from those national delegations which nominate only one candidate for each of the seats allocated to them on the Bureau. This list may be adopted in a single ballot if it obtains a majority of the votes cast.

In cases where a joint list of candidates is not adopted, or where the number of candidates exceeds the number of seats allocated to a national delegation on the Bureau, each of these seats shall be decided in separate ballots; in this case the provisions on the election of the President and the first Vice-President shall be applicable in accordance with Rules 31 and 32(2) to (4).

2.

With a view to the election of the chairmen of the political groups as members of the Bureau, a list of their names shall be submitted to the Plenary Assembly for adoption.

(a)

establishment and submission to the Plenary Assembly of its policy programme at the beginning of its term, and monitoring of its implementation; at the end of its term, submission to the Plenary Assembly of a report on the implementation of the programme;

(b)

organisation and coordination of the work of the Plenary Assembly and the commissions;

(c)

adoption, on the proposal of the commissions, of their annual work programme;

(d)

overall responsibility for financial, organisational and administrative matters concerning members and alternates; internal organisation of the Committee, its Secretariat-General, including the establishment plan, and its constituent bodies;

(e)

The Bureau may:

(f)

engagement of the Secretary-General and the officials and other servants listed in Rule 69;

(g)

submission of the draft estimates of expenditure and revenue to the Plenary Assembly in accordance with Rule 72;

(h)

authorisation of meetings away from the usual place of work;

(i)

drawing-up of provisions for the membership and working methods of working groups, joint committees with applicant countries and other political bodies in which Committee members participate;

(j)

having verified that there is a quorum under the first sentence of Rule 37(2), taking a decision to bring an action before the Court of Justice of the European Union, when the Plenary Assembly is not able to take a decision within the deadline, by a majority of the votes cast, on a proposal by the President of the Committee or the competent commission acting in accordance with Rules 53 and 54. When such a decision is adopted, the President shall bring the action on behalf of the Committee and shall ask the Plenary Assembly at its next session to decide whether to maintain the action. If, having verified the existence of the quorum referred to in the first sentence of Rule 21(1), the Plenary Assembly takes a decision by the majority required in Rule 13(g) not to bring the action, the President shall withdraw the action.

1.

The Bureau shall be convened by the President, who shall set the date of the meeting and the agenda in agreement with the first Vice-President. The Bureau shall meet at least once every three months, or within 14 days following receipt of a written request by at least one quarter of its members.

2.

A quorum shall exist at a Bureau meeting if at least one half of its members are present. The quorum shall be verified at the request of a member, provided that at least six members vote in favour of the request. If the verification of a quorum is not requested, all votes shall be valid regardless of the number of members present. If it is established that there is no quorum, the Bureau may continue its discussions but voting shall take place at the next meeting.

3.

The Bureau shall decide by a majority of the votes cast, save where otherwise provided for in these rules. Rule 22(2) and (5) shall also apply.

4.

In preparation for the Bureau decisions, the President shall ask the Secretary-General to draw up discussion documents and recommendations for a decision on each item to be discussed; these documents and recommendations shall be enclosed with the draft agenda.

5.

The documents must be emailed to members at least 10 days before the opening of the meeting. Amendments to Bureau documents must reach the Secretary-General not later than the third working day before the opening of the Bureau meeting, in accordance with the applicable rules, and shall be electronically retrievable as soon as they have been translated.

6.

In exceptional circumstances, the President may have recourse to a written procedure for the adoption of a decision other than a decision relating to individuals. The President shall send members the proposed decision and ask them to inform him in writing, within five working days, of any objections they may have. If no objections are received, the decision shall be adopted.

1.

The President shall direct the work of the Committee.

2.

The President shall be the Committee’s representative. He may delegate these powers.

3.

If the President is absent or unable to attend, he shall be represented by the first Vice-President; if the first Vice-President is absent or unable to attend, the President shall be represented by one of the other Vice-Presidents.

(a)

when it is consulted by the European Parliament, by the Council or by the Commission where the Treaties so provide and in all other cases, in particular those which concern cross-border cooperation, in which one of these institutions considers it appropriate;

(b)

on its own initiative when it considers it appropriate;

(c)

when, in the event of the Economic and Social Committee being consulted under Article 304 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, it considers that specific regional interests are involved.

1.

The President shall assign documents received from the Council, Commission or European Parliament to the responsible commission; the Bureau shall be informed of this at its next meeting.

2.

If the subject of an opinion or report falls within the area of competence of more than one commission, the President shall designate a lead commission and, where necessary may propose that the Bureau set up a working party comprising representatives of the commissions concerned.

3.

If a commission does not agree with a decision of the President taken under Rule 40(1) and (2), it may via its chairman submit an application for a Bureau decision.

1.

If the commission concerned cannot draw up a draft opinion or report by the deadline set by the Council, Commission or European Parliament, the Bureau may propose that the Plenary Assembly appoint a rapporteur-general, who shall submit his draft opinion or report straight to the Plenary Assembly.

2.

When a deadline set by the Council, Commission or European Parliament does not give the Plenary Assembly time to appoint a rapporteur-general, the rapporteur-general may be appointed by the President; when this is the case, the Plenary Assembly shall be informed at its next meeting.

3.

In both cases, the commission concerned shall meet, where possible, to hold a general exploratory debate on the subject.

1.

Applications for own-initiative opinions or reports may be submitted to the Bureau by three of its members, by a commission via its chairman or by 32 members of the Committee. These applications must be submitted, with reasons, and together with all the other discussion documents in accordance with Rule 37(4), wherever possible, before the annual work programme is adopted.

2.

The Bureau shall decide on applications for own-initiative opinions or reports by a majority of three quarters of the votes cast. The opinions or reports shall be referred to the relevant commissions in accordance with Rule 40. The President shall inform the Plenary Assembly of all Bureau decisions approving and allocating own-initiative opinions or reports.

3.

This rule shall apply mutatis mutandis in the case of opinions which come under Rule 39(c).

1.

Resolutions are to be put on the agenda only if they refer to the activities of the European Union, deal with important concerns of regional and local authorities and are of topical interest.

2.

Draft resolutions or applications for the drafting of a resolution may be submitted to the Committee by at least 32 members or a political group. All drafts or applications, indicating the names of the members or political group supporting them, shall be submitted to the Bureau in writing. They must reach the Secretary-General not later than three working days before the opening of the Bureau meeting.

3.

If the Bureau decides that the Committee is to discuss a draft resolution or an application for the drafting of a resolution, it may

4.

Draft resolutions referring to an unforeseeable event occurring after the expiry of the deadline stipulated in Rule 43(2) (urgent resolutions) and complying with the provisions of Rule 43(1) may be submitted at the beginning of the Bureau meeting. If the Bureau decides that the proposal concerns the key tasks of the Committee, the proposal shall be dealt with under Rule 43(3)(c). Amendments to urgent resolutions may be tabled by any member during the Plenary Session.

1.

At the beginning of each five-year term, the Plenary Assembly shall set up commissions to prepare its work. It shall decide on their composition and powers on a proposal from the Bureau.

2.

The composition of the commissions shall reflect the national composition of the Committee.

3.

Members of the Committee must belong to at least one commission but may not belong to more than two. Exceptions may be made by the Bureau for members belonging to national delegations which have fewer members than the number of commissions.

1.

At its first meeting each commission shall appoint from among its members a chairman, a first vice-chairman and no more than two vice-chairmen.

2.

Where the number of candidates corresponds to the number of seats to be filled, the election may take place by acclamation. Where this is not the case, or one sixth of the members of the commission so request, the election shall be in accordance with the provisions laid down in Rule 32(2) to (4) for the election of the Committee President and first Vice-President.

3.

If a commission bureau member terminates his Committee membership or resigns as a commission chairman or vice-chairman, the vacancy shall be filled in accordance with the provisions of this rule.

1.

In accordance with the powers assigned to them by the Plenary Assembly on the basis of Rule 45, the commissions shall debate Union policies. They shall in particular draw up the draft versions of opinions, reports and resolutions. These drafts shall be submitted to the Plenary Assembly for adoption.

2.

They shall draw up their annual work programmes in accordance with the Committee’s political priorities and submit them to the Bureau for adoption.

1.

The dates of meetings and their agendas shall be set by the chairman of each commission acting in agreement with the first vice-chairman.

2.

A commission shall be convened by its chairman. The convening notice for an ordinary meeting together with the agenda must reach members not later than four weeks before the date of the meeting.

3.

At the written request of at least one quarter of its members, the chairman shall be obliged to convene an extraordinary commission meeting, which must be held not later than four weeks after the submission of the request. The agenda for an extraordinary meeting shall be set by the members submitting the request for such a meeting. It shall be forwarded to members together with the convening notice.

4.

All draft opinions and other discussion documents to be translated and made available before a meeting shall be sent to the secretariat of the commission in question not later than five weeks before the date set for the meeting. They shall then be emailed to members not later than 10 working days before the date of the meeting. In exceptional cases the above time limits may be amended by the chairman.

1.

The proceedings of the commissions shall be open to the public, unless a commission decides otherwise in respect of the whole meeting or of a specific item on the agenda.

2.

Representatives of the European Parliament, Council and Commission as well as other visitors may be invited to participate in the meetings of the commissions and to reply to questions from members.

1.

The commissions shall present their draft opinions or reports within the time limits set out in the interinstitutional calendar. The discussion of a draft opinion or report shall require no more than two meetings, not including the first meeting at which the work shall be organised.

2.

In exceptional cases the Bureau may authorise further meetings to discuss a draft opinion or report, or may extend the time limit for the presentation of the draft.

1.

A Committee opinion or report shall set out the Committee’s views and recommendations on the question under consideration, if appropriate together with specific proposals for changes to the document under consideration.

2.

Committee opinions shall contain an explicit reference to the application of the subsidiarity and proportionality principles.

3.

These opinions and reports shall also, wherever possible, address the expected impact on administration and regional and local finances.

4.

If necessary, an explanatory statement shall be drawn up under the responsibility of the rapporteur and shall not be put to the vote. It must, however, accord with the text of the opinion that was put to the vote.

1.

During the period following the adoption of an opinion, the chairman and the rapporteur of the commission appointed to draw up the draft opinion shall, with the assistance of the Secretariat- General, monitor the course of the procedure underlying the Committee’s consultation.

2.

If the commission deems it necessary, it may ask the Bureau for permission to draw up a revised draft opinion on the same subject and, where possible, with the same rapporteur, in order to take account of and respond to developments in the procedure underlying the Committee’s consultation.

3.

The commission shall meet, where possible, to hold a debate and adopt the revised draft opinion, which shall be sent to the next plenary session.

4.

In the event that progress in the procedure underlying the Committee’s consultation does not allow enough time for the commission to state its views, the chairman of this commission shall immediately inform the Committee President in order to allow the procedure for appointing a rapporteur-general under Rule 41 to be invoked.

1.

The President of the Committee or the commission responsible for drawing up the draft opinion may propose bringing an action before the Court of Justice of the European Union for infringement of the subsidiarity principle by a legislative act on which the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union provides that the Committee be consulted.

2.

The commission shall take its decision by a majority of the votes cast, having verified the existence of the quorum referred to in Rule 59(1). The commission proposal shall be sent for decision to the Plenary Assembly in accordance with Rule 13(g) or to the Bureau in the cases referred to in Rule 36(j). The commission shall state the reasons for its proposal in a detailed report, including, where appropriate, the reasons for the urgency of the decision on the basis of Rule 36(j).

1.

When the Committee has not been consulted in cases provided for by the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, the President of the Committee or a commission may propose to the Plenary Assembly, in accordance with Rule 13(g), or to the Bureau in the cases referred to in Rule 36(j), that an action be brought before the Court of Justice of the European Union.

2.

The commission shall take its decision by a majority of the votes cast, having previously verified that the quorum referred to in Rule 59(1) exists. The commission shall state the reasons for its proposal in a detailed report, including, where appropriate, the reasons for the urgency of the decision on the basis of Rule 36(j).

1.

Each commission, acting on a proposal from its chairman, shall appoint a rapporteur or, in duly motivated cases, two rapporteurs to draw up a draft opinion or report.

2.

In appointing rapporteurs each commission ensures a fair and balanced allocation of opinions and reports.

3.

In urgent cases the commission chairman may apply a written procedure to appoint a rapporteur. The chairman shall ask the members of the commission to submit any objections to the appointment of the proposed rapporteur in writing within three working days. In the event of objection, the chairman and first vice-chairman shall decide by mutual agreement.

4.

If the chairman or one of the vice-chairmen of a commission is appointed rapporteur, he shall, during the discussion of his draft opinion or report, hand over the chairmanship of the meeting to a vice-chairman or to the oldest member present.

5.

If a rapporteur ceases to be a member or alternate of the Committee, a new rapporteur of the same political group shall be appointed within the commission, if necessary by following the procedure provided for in paragraph 3.

1.

In duly motivated cases the commissions may set up working parties, with the approval of the Bureau. Working party members may also come from other commissions.

2.

A working party member who is unable to attend a meeting may be represented by a member or alternate from his political group and from the list of replacements for the working party.

3.

Each working party can appoint a chairman and a vice-chairman from among its members.

1.

The members of the commissions may call on the services of an expert.

2.

A commission may appoint experts to assist it in its work and to assist any working parties which it has set up. At the invitation of the chairman, these experts may take part in meetings of the commission or of one of its working parties.

3.

Only rapporteurs’ experts and experts invited by the commission shall be entitled to travel and subsistence expenses.

1.

A quorum shall exist at a commission meeting if more than one half of its members are present.

2.

The quorum shall be verified at the request of a member if at least 10 members vote in favour of the request. If the verification of a quorum is not requested, all votes shall be valid regardless of the number of members present. If it is established that there is no quorum, the commission may address the remaining items on the agenda that do not require a vote, postponing discussion and voting on the suspended agenda items to the next meeting.

1.

Decisions shall be taken by a majority of the votes cast. Rule 22(2) shall also apply.

2.

If a commission has interrupted voting on an opinion, it may decide, by a majority of the votes cast, to resubmit the amendments already adopted to a vote when it takes a decision on the text as a whole.

1.

Amendments must be sent to commission secretariats at least seven working days before the date of the meeting. In exceptional cases the above time limit may be amended by the chairman.

Commission amendments may be tabled only by the members of that commission, or members or alternates duly mandated under the conditions set out in Rule 5(2), and, for his own opinion, by any non-mandated alternate appointed as rapporteur.

The right to table commission amendments may only be exercised either by a member of that commission or by another duly mandated member or alternate. Amendments validly tabled by a member or alternate who subsequently loses that office, or before the granting or withdrawal of a delegation, shall remain valid.

The amendments shall be translated as a matter of priority and sent to the rapporteur to allow him to forward his own amendments to the Secretariat-General no later than two working days before the date of the meeting. The rapporteur’s amendments must be associated and related to one or more amendments referred to in paragraph 1. The rapporteur’s amendments shall be electronically retrievable as soon as they have been translated and must be distributed in written form at the latest at the opening of the meeting.

The provisions of Rule 24(1) to (5) shall apply mutatis mutandis.

2.

Voting on amendments shall follow the order of the points in the draft opinion or report under discussion. Thereafter the whole text shall be voted on.

3.

Once a draft opinion or report has been adopted by a commission, it shall be forwarded by the commission chairman to the President of the Committee.

1.

In exceptional circumstances, the commission chairman may have resort to a written procedure for the adoption of a decision on the operation of his commission.

2.

The chairman shall send the proposal for a decision to the members and ask them to send him any objections in writing within three days.

3.

If there is no objection, the decision shall be adopted.

1.

In the case of referrals where a Committee response is deemed desirable but, for reasons of priority and/or because relevant opinions have already been adopted in the recent past, a new opinion is not considered necessary, the concerned commission may decide not to issue an opinion. In this case, the Committee may respond to the European Union Institutions in the form of a letter signed by the Committee President.

2.

The letter shall be prepared by the chairman of the responsible commission in consultation with the rapporteurs of the previous opinions on the same subject.

3.

If deadlines allow, the letter shall be presented for discussion at the first available meeting of the relevant commission, before it is submitted to the Committee President for signature.

1.

The Committee shall be assisted by a Secretariat-General.

2.

The Secretariat-General shall be headed by a Secretary-General.

3.

The Bureau, acting on a proposal from the Secretary-General, shall organise the Secretariat-General in such a way that it can ensure the efficient functioning of the Committee and its constituent bodies and help the members of the Committee in the performance of their duties. The services to be provided by the Secretariat-General for members, national delegations, political groups and non-attached members shall be determined in the process.

4.

The Secretariat-General shall draw up the minutes of the meetings of the Committee’s constituent bodies.

1.

The Secretary-General shall be responsible for giving effect to the decisions taken by the Bureau or the President pursuant to these Rules of Procedure and the applicable legal provisions. The Secretary-General shall attend the meetings of the Bureau in an advisory capacity and shall keep the minutes of those meetings.

2.

The Secretary-General shall discharge his duties under the direction of the President, representing the Bureau.

1.

The Bureau shall engage the Secretary-General on the basis of a decision adopted by a two-thirds majority of the votes cast, the existence of a quorum having been verified in accordance with the first sentence of Rule 37(2), pursuant to the provisions of Article 2 and related provisions of the Conditions of Employment of other servants of the European Communities.

2.

The Secretary-General shall be engaged for five years. The detailed provisions of his contract of employment shall be laid down by the Bureau.

The Secretary-General’s term of office may be renewed once only for a maximum of five years.

3.

The powers which the Conditions of Employment of other servants of the European Communities confer on the authority responsible for concluding contracts shall be exercised, in the case of the Secretary-General, by the Bureau.

1.

The powers which the Staff Regulations of officials of the European Communities confer on the appointing authority shall be exercised as follows:

2.

The powers which the Conditions of Employment of other servants of the European Communities confer on the authority competent to conclude contracts of employment shall be exercised as follows:

Temporary staff employed in the private office of the President or the first Vice-President shall be engaged until the end of the President’s or the first Vice-President’s term of office:

1.

The Bureau shall, in accordance with Rule 36, set up an advisory Commission for Financial and Administrative Affairs, chaired by a member of the Bureau.

2.

The Commission for Financial and Administrative Affairs shall have the following responsibilities:

3.

The chairman of the Commission for Financial and Administrative Affairs shall represent the Committee vis-à-vis the budget authorities of the Union.

1.

The Commission for Financial and Administrative Affairs shall submit the preliminary draft estimates of the Committee’s expenditure and revenue for the following financial year to the Bureau. The Bureau shall submit the draft to the Plenary Assembly for adoption.

2.

The Plenary Assembly shall adopt the estimates of the Committee’s expenditure and revenue and forward them to the Commission, Council and European Parliament in good time to ensure that the deadlines laid down in the financial provisions are met.

3.

The Committee President, after consulting the Commission for Financial and Administrative Affairs, shall execute, or cause to be executed, the statement of revenue and expenditure, in accordance with the internal financial rules adopted by the Bureau. He shall perform these functions in accordance with the provisions of the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities.

1.

The Committee’s opinions and reports, as well as any communication relating to the use of a simplified procedure under Rule 26 or a decision not to draw up an opinion or report under Rule 62, shall be addressed to the Council, Commission and European Parliament. As in the case of resolutions, they shall be forwarded by the President.

2.

The opinions, reports and resolutions of the Committee shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

1.

Any citizen of the Union and any natural or legal person residing or established in a Member State has a right of access to the documents of the Committee of the Regions in accordance with the provisions of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, subject to the principles, conditions and limits laid down in Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council and to the arrangements laid down by the Committee Bureau. Access to Committee documents shall as far as possible be granted in the same way to other natural or legal persons.

2.

The Committee shall establish a register of Committee documents. The Bureau shall adopt the internal rules governing access and shall draw up a list of directly accessible documents.

(a)

The Committee’s debates shall be accessible in the official languages unless the Bureau decides otherwise.

(b)

All members shall have the right to address the plenary session in whichever official language they choose. Statements in one of the official languages shall be interpreted into the other official languages and any other language the Bureau considers necessary.

(c)

At Bureau, commission and working party meetings, interpreting shall be available from and into the languages used by the members that have confirmed they will attend the meeting.

1.

The Plenary Assembly shall decide by a majority of its members if there is a need to amend these Rules of Procedure, either in part or in full.

2.

It shall appoint an ad hoc commission to draw up a report and a draft text as a basis for the adoption of new rules by a majority of its members. The new rules shall enter into force the day after their publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.