State Council of the People's Republic of China


The State Council, constitutionally synonymous with the Central People's Government since 1954, is the chief administrative authority of the People's Republic of China. It is chaired by the premier and includes the heads of each of the cabinet-level executive departments. Currently, the council has 35 members: the premier, one executive vice premier, three other vice premiers, five state councillors, and 25 in charge of the Council's constituent departments. In the politics of the People's Republic of China, the Central People's Government forms one of three interlocking branches of power, the others being the Communist Party of China and the People's Liberation Army. The State Council directly oversees the various subordinate People's Governments in the provinces, and in practice maintains membership with the top levels of the Communist Party of China.

Organization

The State Council meets every six months. Between meetings it is guided by a Standing Committee that meets weekly. The standing committee includes the premier, one executive vice premier, three vice premiers, and five other state councilors.
The vice-premiers and state councilors are nominated by the premier, and appointed by the president with National People's Congress' approval. Incumbents may serve two successive five-year terms.
Each vice premier oversees certain areas of administration. Each State Councilor performs duties as designated by the Premier. The secretary-general heads the General Office which handles the day-to-day work of the State Council. The secretary-general has relatively little power and should not be confused with the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China.
Each ministry supervises one sector. Commissions outrank ministries and set policies for and coordinate the related activities of different administrative organs. Offices deal with matters of ongoing concern. Bureaus and administrations rank below ministries.
In addition to the 25 ministries, there are 38 centrally administered government organizations that report directly to the state council. The heads of these organizations attend full meetings of the state committee on an irregular basis.
In practice, the vice premiers and State Councilors assume responsibility for one or more sectors or issues, and remain in contact with the various bodies responsible for policy related to that area. This allows the Standing Committee to oversee a wide range of government functions.
The State Council, like all other governmental bodies, is nominally responsible to the NPC and its Standing Committee in conducting a wide range of government functions both at the national and at the local levels, and nominally acts by virtue of the NPC's authority. In practice, however, the NPC had historically done little more than ratify decisions already made by the State Council. More recently, however, the NPC has taken on a more independent role. There has been at least one case where the NPC has outright rejected an initiative of the State Council and a few cases where the State Council has withdrawn or greatly modified a proposal in response to NPC opposition.
The State Council and the Communist Party of China are also tightly interlocked. With rare exceptions, State Councilors are high-ranking members of the CPC. Although, as Party members, they are supposed to follow Party instructions, because they tend to be senior members of the Party they also have substantial influence over what those instructions are. This results in a system which is unlike the Soviet practice in which the Party effectively controlled the State. Rather, the Party and State are fused at this level of government. The members of the State Council derive their authority from being members of the state, while as members of the Party they coordinate their activities and determine key decisions such as the naming of personnel.
There were attempts to separate the party and state in the late 1980s under Deng Xiaoping and Zhao Ziyang and have the Party in charge of formulating policy and the State Council executing policy, but these efforts were largely abandoned in the early 1990s.
As the chief administrative organ of government, its main functions are to formulate administrative measures, issue decisions and orders, and monitor their implementation; draft legislative bills for submission to the NPC or its Standing Committee; and prepare the economic plan and the state budget for deliberation and approval by the NPC. The State Council is the functional center of state power and clearinghouse for government initiatives at all levels. With the government's emphasis on economic modernization, the State Council clearly acquired additional importance and influence.
The State Council controls the Ministry for National Defense but does not control the People's Liberation Army, which is instead controlled by the Central Military Commission.

Members

Executive Meeting

Plenary Meeting

The Plenary Meeting of State Council is hosted by the Premier, joined by Vice Premiers, State Councilor, Ministers, Ministers, the Governor of People's Bank, the Auditor-General and the Secretary General. It usually runs bi-annually and when necessary, non-members can be invited to participate.

Organizational structure

General Office of the State Council

Special Organization directly under the State Council

  1. General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China
  2. State Administration of Taxation
  3. State Administration for Market Regulation
  4. National Radio and Television Administration
  5. General Administration of Sport
  6. National Bureau of Statistics
  7. China International Development Cooperation Agency
  8. National Healthcare Security Administration
  9. Counsellors' Office of the State Council
  10. National Government Offices Administration, formerly the "Government Offices Administration of the State Council"
  11. National Press and Publication Administration, additional name "National Copyright Administration", a name reserved by the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China
  12. National Religious Affairs Administration, a name reserved by the United Front Work Department of the Communist Party of China
  13. Office for Safeguarding National Security of the CPG in the HKSAR

    Administrative Offices of the State Council

  14. Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office of the State Council
  15. State Council Research Office
    Reserved Names
;Ministry-level
  1. Xinhua News Agency
  2. Chinese Academy of Sciences
  3. Chinese Academy of Engineering
  4. Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
  5. Development Research Center of the State Council
  6. China Media Group
  7. China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission
  8. China Securities Regulatory Commission
;Sub-ministry-level
  1. China Meteorological Administration

    State Administrations and Bureaus administrated by ministry-level agencies

  2. National Public Complaints and Proposals Administration, administrated by the State Council General Office
  3. National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration, administrated by the National Development and Reform Commission
  4. National Energy Administration, administrated by the National Development and Reform Commission
  5. State Administration for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense, administrated by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology
  6. State Tobacco Monopoly Administration , administrated by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology
  7. National Immigration Administration, administrated by the Ministry of Public Security
  8. National Forestry and Grassland Administration, administrated by the Ministry of Natural Resources
  9. National Railway Administration, administrated by the Ministry of Transport
  10. Civil Aviation Administration of China , administrated by the Ministry of Transport
  11. State Post Bureau, administrated by the Ministry of Transport, officially sharing its office with China Post Group Corporation
  12. National Cultural Heritage Administration, administrated by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism
  13. National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, administrated by the National Health Commission
  14. National Coal Mine Safety Administration, administrated by the Ministry of Emergency Management
  15. State Administration of Foreign Exchange, administrated by the People's Bank of China
  16. National Medical Products Administration, formerly China Food and Drug Administration , now administrated by the State Administration for Market Regulation
  17. National Intellectual Property Administration, administrated by the State Administration for Market Regulation
    Names Reserved