A joint committee is a

committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly or other form of organization. A committee may not itself be considered to be a form of assembly or a decision-making body. Usually, an assembly o ...

made up of members of the two chambers of a

bicameral Bicameralism is a type of legislature that is divided into two separate Deliberative assembly, assemblies, chambers, or houses, known as a bicameral legislature. Bicameralism is distinguished from unicameralism, in which all members deliberate ...

legislature. In other contexts, it refers to a committee with members from more than one organization.

Germany

A joint committee ('' Gemeinsamer Ausschuss'') comprises both members of

Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet (assembly), Diet") is the lower house of the Germany, German Federalism in Germany, federal parliament. It is the only constitutional body of the federation directly elected by the German people. The Bundestag wa ...

(two thirds) and representatives of the '' Länder'' (one third). It exists to ensure a working legislature during a state of defense. A mediation committee (''Vermittlungsausschuss''), consisting in equal numbers of members of Bundestag and representatives of the states, facilitates compromises between Bundestag and Bundesrat in legislation - especially if the consent of Bundesrat is constitutionally required.

India

In India, a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) is one type of

ad hoc ''Ad hoc'' is a List of Latin phrases, Latin phrase meaning literally for this. In English language, English, it typically signifies a solution designed for a specific purpose, problem, or task rather than a Generalization, generalized solution ...

Parliamentary committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly or other form of organization. A committee may not itself be considered to be a form of assembly or a decision-making body. Usually, an assembly o ...

constituted by the

Indian parliament The Parliament of India (ISO: ) is the supreme legislative body of the Government of the Republic of India. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok Sabha (House of the People). The President o ...

. A Joint Parliamentary Committee is formed when a motion is adopted by one house and it is supported or agreed by the other house.

Philippines

A bicameral conference committee is formed for each bill where the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

and the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

have conflicting versions. The committee has the same number of members from each chamber. Once passed, the chambers then have to approve the version passed by the bicameral conference committee in order for it to be sent for the president's signature. If

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

is short on time, a chamber may approve the other chamber's version instead.

Republic of Ireland

A Joint Committee of the Irish

Oireachtas The Oireachtas ( ; ), sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the Bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of the president of Ireland and the two houses of the Oireachtas (): a house ...

(parliament) comprises members of both

Dáil Éireann Dáil Éireann ( ; , ) is the lower house and principal chamber of the Oireachtas, which also includes the president of Ireland and a senate called Seanad Éireann.Article 15.1.2° of the Constitution of Ireland reads: "The Oireachtas shall co ...

(the lower house) and

Seanad Éireann Seanad Éireann ( ; ; "Senate of Ireland") is the senate of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (defined as the house of representatives). It is commonly called the Seanad or ...

(the upper house).

United Kingdom

Joint committee of the Parliament of the United Kingdom A joint committee of the Parliament of the United Kingdom is a Joint committee (legislative), legislative joint committee formed to examine a particular issue, whose members are drawn from both the House of Commons and House of Lords of the Parlia ...

is a

parliamentary committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly or other form of organization. A committee may not itself be considered to be a form of assembly or a decision-making body. Usually, an assembly o ...

consisting of members of both the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

and the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

. Joint Committees can be permanent or temporary. Three permanent committees meet on a regular basis to consider

Human Rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

, National Security Strategy and Statutory Instruments. A Joint Committee on Consolidation Bills, which was first appointed in 1894, considers all bills that seek to consolidate existing statutes. In a similar way, a Joint Committee on Tax Law Rewrite Bills scrutinizes all bills that seek to simplify tax laws. Temporary committees have considered specific topics ranging from draft bills on financial services and climate change to restoration of the Palace of Westminster. There are two statutory committees that have members from both Houses, the Ecclesiastical Committee and the Intelligence and Security Committee.

United States

A Joint Committee of the United States Congress is a congressional committee consisting of both

and

House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...

members and having jurisdiction over matters of joint interest. An example of a joint committee is the Joint Committee on the Library. Most joint committees are permanent (as with the Library Committee) but temporary joint committees have been created to address specific issues (such as the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

). Joint committees are also a feature for upper and lower houses of State legislatures in some States.

References

{{authority control Westminster system Joint committees of the United States Congress Terminology of the United States Congress Committees * Political terminology Government commissions