| Law Making |
| Provincial Legislation |
| Section 114 and of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa states that the provincial Legislature may consider, pass, amend or reject any bill before the Legislature or initiate or prepare legislation except money bills. The following are the procedures for the introduction, consideration and passing of a bill: |
- The MEC introduces the bill in the House for consideration by the Legislature;
- The Speaker refers the bill to the relevant Standing Committee;
- A provisional committee plan outlining how and when the committee would deal with the bill is drafted;
- First stage: the committee should invite the MEC and the department for presentation on the bill in the present of the State law advisor;
- Second stage: the committee may choose to invite relevant stakeholders or the public to solicit their opinions through public hearings;
- Third stage: the committee will go through the bill clause by clause and amend the bill where necessary;
- Fourth stage: the committee should compile a report, ensuring that any dissenting views of members of the committee are appended to the report; and
- Lastly the committee should table its report and recommendations and ensure that procedural deadlines are adhered to.
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| National Council of Provinces Legislation |
| Section 117 and of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa states that the provincial Legislature shall consist of permanent delegates to the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) while Section 119 states that only members of the Executive Council of the province or a committee or member of provincial legislature may introduce the Bill in the legislature. In the case of informal referrals, the procedures below are followed: |
- The Speaker informally refers the bill to the relevant Standing Committee for information and planning purposes;
- A provisional committee plan outlining how and when the committee would deal with the bill is drafted in consultation with the Chairperson;
- Public hearings and/or educational workshops are arranged in consultation with the Petitions and Public Participation Office as and when necessary;
- Where necessary, submissions and/or presentations by the MEC and the Department are arranged.
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| In the case of formal referrals, the following procedures and stages are followed: |
- The bill gets formally referred for consideration and input;
- First stage: the committee is briefed on the bill by permanent delegates or the relevant department;
- Second stage: the committee is briefed by MEC and the department on the implications of the bill for the province;
- Third stage: the committee may choose to invite relevant stakeholders or the public to solicit their opinions through public hearings (except for Section 75 bills);
- Fourth stage: the committee goes through the bill clause by clause and prepares the negotiating mandate and later on the final voting mandate; and
- Final stage: the committee tables its report and recommendations in the House and it may send special delegates to attend the NCOP Plenary and support the provincial mandate.
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