Committee meetings¹

98.

The Chairman of a committee shall call the members of the Committee to regular meetings at times set by the Committee; Urgent meetings of the Committee shall be called by the Chairman upon his initiative, or upon a request by one-third of the Committee members, or upon a request by the Government.

Committee meetings during recess

99.

(a)

The House Committee may assign to any of the Knesset committees the task of continuing its work during the recess.

(b)

During the recess the Speaker shall convene any of the Knesset committees upon a request by the Government, or by one-third of the members of that committee.

Quorum at committee meetings

100.

The Chairman of a committee may hold meetings of the Committee with any number of members present, provided that all members were called to the meeting.²

Open meetings (amendment No. 93)

101.

The meetings of a committee will be open unless the Committee has decided otherwise.

Special deliberation arrangements (amendment No. 58,  84 & 86)

101a.

(a)

Such deliberation arrangements shall apply when the House Committee deliberates requests to determine immunity or the removing of immunity, or a right of a Knesset Member, or to apply reservations to his ability to fulfill certain functions in the Knesset, or on its behalf, including suspension from certain functions in the Knesset ,or on its behalf, including suspension from those functions or his removal from performing them, following a request by the Knesset Member that the Knesset decide that he should have immunity from criminal proceedings, or a request by the Attorney General to lift his immunity, or following the holding of criminal proceedings against him, or after he has been convicted of a criminal offence.

(b)

Should the deliberation be related to a Knesset Member, who is a member of the Committee, this Member shall not participate, as a member of the Committee, in the deliberations of the Committee and its voting; The parliamentary group to which that Member belongs, is entitled to send another representative to the Committee in his place.

(c)

(1)

Only a Knesset Member, who took part in all the meetings in which a substantial deliberation on one of the topics enumerated in clause (a), is entitled to participate in a vote.

(2)

Despite what is said in paragraph (1), should a Knesset Member announce before a meeting that he is unable to participate in that meeting due to a medical reason, or some other justified reason, the House Committee is entitled to decide, on the date of the holding of each meeting, that his said absence will not prevent him from participating in the vote, as long as he participated in at least half the meetings on that topic.

(3)

Should the House Committee start to deliberate a topic from among the topics enumerated in clause (a), and should the Knesset Member be unable to participate in the following meetings due to a medical reason, or some other justified reason that was approved by the House Committee, the chairman of his parliamentary group is entitled to inform the Chairman of the House Committee that another member of the group will participate in the following deliberations, and paragraphs (1) and (2) shall apply to the other Knesset Member with regards to the period after the announcement was submitted.

(4)

With regards to this article presence in at least half the duration of a deliberation will be considered participation.

(d)

A Member whose matter is being deliberated in the Committee, is entitled to be represented in the Committee by an attorney, or by another Member.

(e)

The Chairman of the House Committee shall inform the members of the Committee in advance of the dates of the meetings, and at a meeting that precedes a vote, shall announce which Knesset Members are entitled to participate in the vote.

(f)

Should meetings have taken place on different dates, all the minutes shall be available for the perusal of the Knesset Members entitled to participate in the vote.

The minutes (amendments Nos. 20, 24, 26, 41 & 81)

102.

(a)

Minutes shall be taken at committee meetings, that shall contain a list of those present at the meeting, a summary of the proceedings, committee proposals and resolutions. The Chairman of the Committee is entitled, at his initiative, or on the basis of a request by a member of the Committee, to hold a roll-call vote, and note in the minutes how every one of the Knesset Members, who participated in the vote, voted.

(a1)

At the top of the minutes it shall be noted that .these minutes consist of a summary of what was stated, and it was not corrected by the persons speaking.; In addition, one of the following shall be indicated: .public meeting., .meeting in camera., or .confidential meeting., depending on the situation.

(b)

Anyone who wishes to correct a distortion, mistake, or omission in the minutes, shall approach the Chairman of the Committee in writing, and specify the requested correction; The Chairman of the Committee shall bring the proposed correction to the Committee for its decision at its first meeting.

Members' inspection of minutes (amendments Nos. 20, 24, 38, 41 & 52

102a.

(a)

Any Member of the Knesset is entitled to inspect the minutes of that Committee, that have been opened to the public.s inspection, as stated in article 102b, in the Committee.s chambers, and he is entitled to receive a copy thereof.

(b)

(1)

Any Member of the Knesset is entitled to inspect the minutes of all the Committees, including minutes of committees from previous Knessets, except for confidential meetings, with the approval of the Committee.s Chairman. Should the Chairman of the Committee refuse to permit inspection as aforesaid - the Speaker shall decide the matter.

(2)

The inspection shall take place in the Committee.s chambers, but the Chairman of the Committee is entitled to permit the said inspection outside the Committee.s chambers as well, provided that the Knesset Member shall not photocopy the minutes, shall not publish them, and shall not pass them on for the inspection of anyone unauthorized to inspect them.

(3)

The Chairman of a committee shall authorize one of the Committee members to permit inspection as aforesaid in his absence, and that member shall have, for this purpose, all the powers of the Committee.s Chairman.

(c)

(1)

A member of a committee is also entitled to inspect the minutes of confidential meetings of that committee, including minutes of that committee from previous Knessets. However, he shall not be entitled to inspect the minutes of confidential meetings of the Committee.s sub-committees; This restriction shall not apply to the Chairman of the Committee.

(2)

A member of a sub-committee is entitled to inspect the minutes even of confidential meetings of that sub-committee, including minutes from previous Knessets.

(d)

Regarding this article and articles 102 and 102b, "confidential meeting" means -

(1)

Any meeting of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee, or of a sub-committee thereof, except for a meeting regarding which the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee has announced that it is not confidential.

(2)

Any meeting of another committee, or a sub-committee, regarding which the Chairman of the permanent committee has announced, no later than 48 hours after the end of the meeting, that it is confidential.

(3)

Any meeting of a committee deliberating a motion referred to it under article 79.

(4)

Any meeting of a sub-committee set up under the Knesset Law.

Inspection of minutes (amendments Nos. 20, 24, 40 & 41)

102b³

(a)

Minutes of meetings that are not confidential, shall be open for public inspection, but a chairman of a committee is entitled, with the approval of the Committee, not to allow inspection of certain minutes or part of it, in one of the following:

(1)

Should this be necessary in order to protect vital interests of the State;

(2)

Should this be necessary to protect the morals, or a matter concerning a minor, or a helpless person;

(3)

At the request of an invitee - should the opening of the minutes for inspection harm the invitee or another person .

(b)

The Chairman of a committee is entitled, with the approval of the Committee, to cancel a prohibition on inspection of minutes, as stated in paragraph (a).

(b1)

A decision not to permit inspection of minutes, and its reasons, shall be noted in separate minutes, that shall not be open to inspection by the public.

(c)

Minutes of the Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee.s meetings, which are not public, shall be open to inspection by the public if a period of 30 years has elapsed since the day on which the deliberation in the Committee plenum was terminated, or of 50 years since the day on which the deliberation in a sub-committee of the Committee was terminated, unless the Chairman of the Committee is of the opinion that inspection might harm the security of the State, its foreign relations or confidential international economic activities, or Jewish communities or publics the world over, and endanger their immigration to Israel.

(d)

The Speaker shall lay down procedures, in which, inter alia, the place and time at which the minutes shall be made available to the public.s inspection, shall be indicated, and shall lay down the maximal time between the date of the meeting, and the date on which the minutes of the meeting shall be made available to the public.s inspection.⁴

(e)

The Chairman of a committee is entitled to permit the handing over of minutes to state bodies, for the purpose of their work.

Application of Archives. Regulations (amendments Nos. 20 & 24)

102c.

The instructions of the Archives Regulations (Inspection of Archival Material deposited in the State Archive), 1966, shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to the inspection of minutes, and the furnishing of copies thereof.

The agenda

103.

(a)

The agenda for a committee meeting shall be set by the Chairman of the Committee; Members of the Committee are entitled to add items to the agenda, with the concurrence of a majority of the Committee, provided that the deliberation on such items shall take place after the deliberation on items placed on the agenda by the Chairman of the Committee.

(b)

Precedence shall be given to the deliberation of bills included on the agenda.

Call to order in committee (amendment No. 16)

103a.

A Member of the Knesset, who behaves at a committee meeting, in a manner offensive to the dignity of the Knesset, or of the Committee, or of one of its members, shall be admonished by the Chairman of the Committee with a call to order.

Denial of the right to speak, removal and exclusion from meeting (amendment No. 16)

103b.

After the Chairman of the Committee has called a Member of the Knesset to order three times at one meeting, the Chairman is entitled to deprive him of his right to speak at that meeting, or have him removed from the meeting, and if need be - give an instruction to have him removed by force.

Use of mobile radio-phone (amendment No. 61)

103b1

A Member of the Knesset who is present at a committee meeting, and whose mobile radio-phone or the paging machine at his disposal keeps going off, or who speaks on his mobile radio-phone, shall be removed from the meeting by the Chairman.

Replacement of Member removed from meeting (amendment No. 16)

103c.

Should a Member of the Knesset be removed from a meeting, or meetings of a committee, his parliamentary group may send another Member to replace him.

Voting (amendment No. 16)

103d.

Should a Knesset Member removed from a meeting, or meetings of a committee, belong to a single-member parliamentary group, he shall be permitted to enter a meeting for the purpose of voting only.

Appeal (amendments Nos. 16 & 46)

103e.

The Knesset Member, who has been removed from a committee meeting, is entitled to appeal his removal before the Knesset Ethics Committee.

Deliberation by Ethics Committee (amendments Nos. 46 & 68)

103f.

(a)

Should the Chairman of the Committee be of the opinion that the conduct of the Member of the Knesset, who has been removed from the Committee meeting was grave, he is entitled to bring the matter before the Knesset Ethics Committee.

(b)

Should the Chairman of the Committee bring the matter before the Ethics Committee, the latter is entitled to decide upon the exclusion of the Knesset Member from a number of meetings of that Committee that shall not exceed ten; Should the Knesset Member not be a member of the Committee from which he was excluded, the Ethics Committee is entitled to exclude him, as aforesaid, from one of the Committees of which he is a member.

(c)

Nothing in the provisions of this article shall detract from the right of any person to complain to the Ethics Committee, in accordance with the Rules of Ethics for Members of the Knesset, about the conduct of the Member of the Knesset in the Committee.

Restriction on participation in committee meetings

103g.

(a)

Members of a committee shall participate in its deliberations, and in the votes taken by it, subject to the Rules of Ethics for Members of the Knesset.

(amendment No. 30)

(b)

A Member of the Knesset, who is a party to a complaint, shall be present at the meeting of the House Committee, in order to present his arguments, and to give answers to questions, and shall also be present at the stage at which the complaint is investigated; Once the Committee has completed its deliberations, it shall sum up its position, and adopt its decision in the absence of the Knesset Member, as aforesaid, even if he is a member of the Committee.

(c)

In the matter of paragraph (b), "a party to the complaint" is:

(1)

The person, who has made the complaint, and the person against whom the complaint has been made under article 13(a)(1);

(2)

The person who has requested the exclusion of the Knesset Member from sittings of the Knesset, or from meetings of a committee, and the Member whose exclusion has been deliberated under articles 70(b), 72(b) or 103f(a);

(3)

A Member of the Knesset, who has appealed the decision of the Chairman of the sitting, or of a committee chairman under articles 68(b) and 103(e), and the Chairman of the sitting or the Committee chairman concerned.

Participation of Knesset Members not members of the Committee (amendments Nos. 38 & 46)

104.

(a)

The Chairman of a permanent committee shall invite to its deliberation a Member of the Knesset who is not a member of the Committee, who has made a proposal, that has been referred for deliberation in the Committee, or who has proposed an amendment to any proposal within the sphere of its deliberations (hereinafter - the proposer), so that he may present his proposal.⁵

(b)

Should the meeting be confidential, within the meaning of the term in article102a(d) - the Chairman of the Committee shall determine the extent of the proposer's participation in the deliberation held, after he has presented his proposal.

(c)

In a meeting that is not confidential, the proposer shall be invited to participate in the deliberation.

(d)

(1)

Should the proposer belong to a parliamentary group that is represented in the Committee, the Chairman of the Committee shall decide whether to give him the right of reservation, if his proposal was not accepted by the Committee;

(2)

Should the proposer belong to a parliamentary group that is not represented in the Committee, he is entitled to make a reservation, if his proposal was not accepted by the Committee.

Invitation of observers

105.

A permanent committee is entitled to invite to its deliberations permanent observers from amongst the representatives of the parliamentary groups not represented on that Committee, provided there is no objection to this in the Committee.

Invitation of experts etc.

106.

A permanent committee is entitled, from time to time, to invite to its sittings -

(amendment No. 35)

(1)

An expert on the matter being deliberated by the Committee, whether he be a Member of the Knesset or not;⁶

(2)

Any person, or the representative of any particular body or circle, who has an interest in the matter being deliberated by the Committee, so as to hear his opinion, and to ask him to reply to questions it sees fit to put to him.

Invitation of employees and office holders (amendment No. 35)

106a.

(a)

Without derogating from the provisions of article 106, and subject to the provisions of article 21(b) of Basic Law: The Knesset, a permanent committee is entitled to invite to its meetings civil servants, employees of government corporations, employees of associations established by law, employees of local authorities, and employees of religious councils, concerning any matter which the Knesset plenum has referred for deliberation by the Committee under articles 14(a), 111, 118 and 138, and under any other legal provision; Any person so invited, must appear before the Committee and furnish it with the information that he has regarding the issue under deliberation; However, the Minister in charge, or the head of the body in whose service the invitee acts, may notify the Committee that he himself will appear instead of the person summoned.

(b)

The provision of paragraph (a) shall also apply to office-holders who hold other positions in bodies as mentioned in paragraph (a), even if they do not work in them.

Manner of invitation (amendment

106b.

(a)

A civil servant shall be summoned by means of the Minister concerned, and in coordination with him.

No. 35)

(b)

An employee of a government corporation, or an employee of an association established by law, shall be summoned by means of the Director General of the corporation or association, as the case may be; A director general of such a corporation or association, shall be summoned with the knowledge of the Chairman of the Board of Directors, or of the Council of the corporation or association, as the case may be; A director or member of the Board in a government corporation or an association established by law, shall be summoned by means of the Chairman of the Board of Directors or of the Council of the corporation or the association, as the case may be, and all this - in coordination with the Minister concerned.

(c)

A council member of a local authority, and an employee of a local authority, shall be summoned by means of the head of the local authority.

(d)

A member or employee of a religious council shall be summoned by means of the Chairman of the religious council, and with the knowledge of the Minister for Religious Affairs.

(e)

In this article and in Article 106e, "the Minister concerned " is -

(1)

The Minister in charge of the Ministry, or of implementing the law by force of which the association was established;

(2)

Regarding a government corporation - the Minister determined by law to be responsible for the corporation's affairs;

(3)

Regarding a religious council - the Minister for Religious Affairs.

Minister's appearance (amendment No. 35)

106c.

A permanent committee is entitled to demand that a Minister, or his representative, appear before it once a month, with regards to article 14(b).

Privacy of appearance (amendment No. 35)

106d.

Should he so request of the Committee.s Chairman, the appearance of a person invited to present himself before a permanent committee under articles 14, 106 or 106a, shall be in the absence of other invitees, who are not government representatives.

Non-

appearance (amendment No. 35)

106e.

Anyone invited to present himself before a permanent committee, who failed to do so, the Committee shall notify the fact to the Minister concerned, or to the head of the local authority concerned, and these shall notify the Committee of the disciplinary steps they have taken in the case.

Representa-

tion of Minister

107.

A Minister is entitled to bring to the deliberations of a committee the assistants whom he needs, or to be represented by an assistant, who the Minister has authorized to do so.

Contact with Ministries

108.

The contact between any of the Knesset committees, and any of the Government ministries, shall be maintained exclusively by means of the Minister concerned .⁷

Recommenda-tions

109.

(a)

On a matter concerning which a Minister is entitled to give an instruction to institute regulations with legislative effect, the Committee is only entitled to take a vote on recommendations.

(b)

On a matter which requires legislation by the Knesset, the Committee is only entitled to make a recommendation on a specific matter.

Reconsidera-

tion

110.

In every case in which there is a majority in a committee, that demands to reconsider a resolution adopted by the Committee, but not yet laid on the Knesset.s table, the matter on which the resolution was adopted should be reconsidered.

Committee.s conclusions and treatment thereof (amendments Nos. 8, 10 & 18)

111.

(a)

On a matter, which is not a bill, and was referred by the Knesset for deliberation to one of the Committees, the Committee shall bring its conclusions⁸ to the attention of the Knesset Members, by laying them on the Knesset.s table, unless the Committee has decided, for special reasons that it shall note in its decision, not to publish its conclusions, and the Committee is entitled not to publish the reasons for its decision. Committee conclusions that are laid on the Knesset.s table - shall have appended to them the conclusions of the minority, or of an individual member of the Committee, if such existed.

(b)

In any case in which there is no ב priori decision by the Knesset to hold a debate on the Committee.s conclusions, the Government is entitled to propose to include a debate on the Committee's conclusions on the Knesset.s agenda; Any Member of the Knesset, is similarly entitled to propose to include such a debate on the Knesset.s agenda, by means of a motion for the agenda.

(c)

The Speaker shall refer the conclusions of the Committee to the Minister within the sphere of whose duties the matter lies. Should it not be clear who the Minister is within the sphere of whose duties the matter lies, the Speaker shall refer the Committee's conclusions to the Prime Minister.

(d)

Within three months of receiving the conclusions, the Minister shall inform the Speaker in writing of any action which he has taken in consequence of the conclusions. The Minister's statement shall be laid on the Knesset.s table.

'

(e)

The Committee.s conclusions shall be appended to the Knesset Record.

Announce-

ment on Committee.s work (amendments 32 and 54)

112.

(a)

Should three months have elapsed from the day on which an issue was referred to a committee under article 111, or from the day on which a bill was referred to a committee under article 116(a), article 117, article 138(a), or article 141, and the Committee has not included the issue on its agenda - a member of the Committee is entitled to approach the House Committee, and request its intervention.

(b)

Should six months have passed from the day on which an issue was referred to a committee under article 111, or from the day on which a bill was referred to a committee under article 116(a), article 117, article 138(a), or article 141, and the Committee has not laid its conclusions on the Knesset.s table, or has not returned the bill to the Knesset, or has not acted as provided in article 138(b), as the case may be, the Chairman of the Committee shall inform the Speaker in writing of the reasons thereof, and he shall do so from time to time, should a further six months have elapsed; The Speaker shall transmit a copy of the announcement for the information of the House Committee. Recess days shall not enter into the reckoning of the periods mentioned in this article.

(c)

For the purpose of paragraph (b), regarding an issue or bill that the Knesset has determined which committee shall deal with them - the day on which they are referred to the Committee shall be considered the day on which the Knesset decided to refer them to the Committee; In the case of an issue or bill that the House Committee has been charged with deciding which committee shall deal with them - the day on which they are referred to the Committee shall be considered the day on which the House Committee decided upon the Committee, and should the House Committee decide to refer the issue or the bill to a joint committee - the day on which the Joint Committee was formed.

(d)

A Member of the Knesset, who has initiated a private members. bill, or who has raised a motion for the agenda, and six months have elapsed since these were referred to one of the Knesset committees, is entitled, should the Committee have failed to act as provided in paragraph (b), to approach the House Committee, and request its intervention.

(e)

The House Committee may set an additional time limit for the said Committee, within which it should bring its deliberations to a conclusion and to a vote, and it is entitled to transfer the continuation of deliberation of the issue, or of the bill to another committee, together with setting a time limit as aforesaid.

¹ (1) Committee meetings may take place in Tel Aviv on Friday, as agreed by the Speaker with the Committee Chairmen; However

the Speaker may permit a committee to meet in Tel Aviv on Thursday instead of Friday, should he consider it to be justified. (HCR - 20.2.1973)

(2) A committee meeting is not to take place during a plenum sitting, except with the Speaker.s approval. (letter of the Speaker of 11.6.1981)

(3) Should a committee hold a meeting with the approval of the Speaker as stated, the meeting shall stop during voting in the plenum, and shall continue thereafter. (HCR - 24.6.1991)

² (a) The Chairman of the Committee is entitled to approach a Member who is absent from the meetings of the Committee, and

draw his attention to his absence. (HCR - 28.11.1949)

(b) The parliamentary group of a Member of the Knesset who is temporarily absent from the deliberations of a committee of which he is member, may appoint another Member to take his place. The replacing Member shall make a statement to the Chairman of the Committee, which shall be noted in the minutes. (HCR - 16.1.1972); This instruction shall not apply to membership in the Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee. (HCR - 14.7.1980)

(c) A Member, who is not a member of the House Committee, who has handed an appeal to the House Committee regarding the urgency of a motion for the agenda, shall not be able to act for a committee member from his parliamentary group, who is absent from the meeting. (HCR - 11.12.1989)

³ The beginning of the application of paragraphs (a), (b) and (b1) - on the first day of the Knesset.s Winter Session of 1995

⁴ See "Decisions on Matter of Procedure", on "viewing of the minutes of committee meetings".

⁵ A proposal for an amendment to a law that is being deliberated by the Committee, under article 104 in the Knesset Rules of

Procedure (what is referred to as a .reservation.) shall be submitted to the Committee in writing before the deliberation. The Knesset is entitled to request that the Committee shall deliberate his proposal even in his absence; A Member who has not submitted his proposal in writing, is entitled to ask to be invited to participate in the deliberation of the Committee, and during the deliberation shall present his proposal.. (HCR - 22.1.1996)

⁶ In connection with the appearance of a Member of the Knesset before committees in the name of interested bodies, see the Rules

of Ethics of Members of the Knesset.

⁷ The House Committee took note of the Minister of Justice.s statement, made in the name of the Government, that - unless

otherwise decided on behalf of the Government - the Minister who answered from the Knesset podium during a preliminary debate on a private members. bill, shall represent the Government himself, or by means of his representative, in the Committee deliberation of the bill.. (HCR - 13.1.1976)

⁸ In a deliberation on the issue referred to a committee in consequence of a motion for the agenda, the Committee shall not diverge

in its conclusions from the subject as defined and explained during the Knesset debates; Should a member of the Committee or a representative of the Government argue, that the conclusions proposed in the Committee, or part of them, diverge from the limits of the subject as referred to the Committee, the Chairman of the Committee shall raise the matter before the House Committee, and the Chairman of the House Committee shall place it as the first item on the agenda of its first regular meeting, after which the decision of the House Committee shall be final; Should the claim come from a Member of the Knesset, who is not a member of the Committee, the Committee shall decide whether to raise the matter before the House Committee. (HCR - 14.3.1972).