Order No. 191
The "Administrative Measures for the National Specialized Standardization Technical Committee" was reviewed and adopted at the executive meeting of the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) on 10 October 2017 and is hereby promulgated, taking effect on 1 January 2018.
Director
30 October 2017
Administrative Measures for the National Specialized Standardization Technical Committee
Chapter I General Provisions
Article 1 To strengthen the administration of National Specialized Standardization Technical Committees (hereinafter "Technical Committees"), to carry out standardization work in various specialized technical fields scientifically and impartially, and to improve the quality of standards formulation, these Measures are formulated in accordance with the Standardization Law of the People's Republic of China and the Implementing Regulations of the Standardization Law of the People's Republic of China.
Article 2 A Technical Committee is a non-legal-person technical organization that, within a defined specialized field, undertakes standardization work such as the drafting and technical review of national standards.
These Measures apply to the composition, establishment, term renewal, adjustment, and supervision and administration of Technical Committees.
Article 3 AQSIQ is responsible for the unified administration of Technical Committees.
The Standardization Administration of China (SAC) is responsible for the planning, coordination, establishment, and administration of Technical Committees and performs the following duties:
(I) Implementing policies and systems related to the administration of Technical Committees;
(II) Planning the overall development and layout of Technical Committees;
(III) Coordinating and deciding on the establishment, term renewal, adjustment, dissolution, and de-registration of Technical Committees;
(IV) Organizing training of Technical Committee personnel;
(V) Supervising and inspecting the work of Technical Committees and organizing performance evaluations;
(VI) Directly administering comprehensive, fundamental, and cross-departmental, cross-disciplinary Technical Committees;
(VII) Other duties related to the administration of Technical Committees.
Article 4 The relevant administrative departments of the State Council and relevant industry associations, as authorized by SAC, administer Technical Committees in their departments and industries and provide professional guidance to Technical Committees on the formulation and revision of national standards and on international standardization work.
Article 5 The standardization administrative departments of provincial, autonomous regional, and municipal people's governments, as authorized by SAC, assist SAC in administering Technical Committees within their administrative regions and create conditions for Technical Committees to carry out their work.
Article 6 Technical Committees shall carry out their work in a scientific, reasonable, open, fair, standardized, and transparent manner, and shall undertake the following duties within their specialized fields:
(I) Putting forward policy and measure proposals for standardization work in the specialized field;
(II) Developing the national standards system for the specialized field and, on the basis of needs from various sectors of society, putting forward proposals for national standards formulation and revision projects;
(III) Carrying out drafting, soliciting opinions, technical review, review of national standards, and the organization of translation and review of foreign-language editions of national standards;
(IV) Carrying out outreach for national standards in the specialized field and training drafters of national standards;
(V) Undertaking, as authorized by SAC, the interpretation of national standards under its responsibility;
(VI) Carrying out assessment, research, and analysis of standards implementation;
(VII) Conducting comparative analysis between domestic and foreign standards in the field and tracking and studying the development trends and dynamics of international standardization in related areas;
(VIII) Administering subordinate sub-Technical Committees;
(IX) Other tasks assigned by SAC.
Technical Committees may, as commissioned by government departments, social organizations, enterprises, and public institutions, undertake standardization work related to their specialized fields.
The duties of sub-Technical Committees shall be carried out by reference to those of Technical Committees.
Chapter II Organizational Structure
Article 7 A Technical Committee shall be composed of members who are broadly representative and who may come from producers, operators, users, consumers, public-interest stakeholders, and other relevant parties. Members from any single party shall not exceed half of the total number of members. Education and research institutions, relevant administrative departments, testing and certification bodies, and social organizations may serve as representatives of public-interest stakeholders.
Article 8 A Technical Committee shall have no fewer than 25 members, including 1 chairperson and no more than 5 vice chairpersons.
No more than 3 members from the same organization may serve on the same Technical Committee. The chairperson and vice chairpersons shall not come from the same organization. The same person shall not concurrently serve as a member of more than 3 Technical Committees.
Article 9 Members of a Technical Committee shall meet the following conditions:
(I) Hold an intermediate or higher professional title or an equivalent position;
(II) Be familiar with the work of the specialized field, with a high theoretical level, solid professional knowledge, and rich practical experience;
(III) Have a basic understanding of standardization, be enthusiastic about standardization, actively participate in standardization activities, and faithfully perform the duties and obligations of a member;
(IV) Be employed by a legal-person organization established within China in accordance with law and recommended with that organization's consent;
(V) Other conditions provided in the charter of the Technical Committee.
Article 10 Chairpersons and vice chairpersons of Technical Committees shall meet the following conditions:
(I) Be a technical expert in the specialized field;
(II) Enjoy a high reputation and influence in the field;
(III) Hold a senior or higher professional title or an equivalent position;
(IV) Be familiar with the management procedures and workflows of Technical Committees;
(V) Be able to perform their duties efficiently and impartially while balancing the interests of all parties.
Article 11 The chairperson is responsible for the overall work of the Technical Committee and shall maintain a fair and impartial position. The chairperson is responsible for signing meeting resolutions, standards approval submissions, and other important documents of the Technical Committee. The chairperson may authorize a vice chairperson to sign standards approval submissions and other important documents.
Article 12 Each Technical Committee shall have a Secretariat responsible for its day-to-day work. The organization hosting the Secretariat shall meet the following conditions:
(I) Be an enterprise, public institution, or social organization established within China in accordance with law and possessing independent legal personality;
(II) Have strong technical capabilities and industry influence;
(III) Have at least three consecutive years of experience in standardization work and have led the drafting of at least three international, national, or industry standards;
(IV) Incorporate the work of the Secretariat into the host organization's work plan and routine work, and provide the necessary funding and office conditions for its work;
(V) Have full-time staff and be able to ensure that the full-time staff of the Secretariat carries out its duties faithfully so that the Secretariat's work is conducted impartially and fairly;
(VI) Other conditions specified by SAC.
The specific duties and working systems of the Secretariat shall be set out in the charter of the Technical Committee and in the Secretariat's working rules.
Where two organizations jointly host the Secretariat, the lead organization and the respective duties shall be specified in the Secretariat's working rules.
Article 13 Each Technical Committee Secretariat shall have one secretary-general and no more than five deputy secretaries-general. The secretary-general and deputy secretaries-general shall be members of the Technical Committee and shall not come from the same organization.
The secretary-general shall be a technical expert from the host organization of the Secretariat, with strong organizational and coordination skills, familiarity with technical developments in the field and with domestic and international standardization, and at least three consecutive years of standardization experience.
Article 14 The secretary-general is responsible for the day-to-day work of the Technical Committee Secretariat, with the deputy secretaries-general assisting. The specific duties of the secretary-general and deputy secretaries-general shall be specified in the charter of the Technical Committee.
Article 15 Members shall actively participate in the activities of the Technical Committee and perform the following duties:
(I) Putting forward proposals on the formulation and revision of standards and other work;
(II) Attending standards technical reviews and reviews on time, and attending annual meetings and other working meetings of the Technical Committee on time;
(III) Performing the duty of voting;
(IV) Supervising the work of the chairperson, vice chairpersons, secretary-general, deputy secretaries-general, and the Secretariat;
(V) Supervising the use of the Technical Committee's funds;
(VI) Providing timely feedback on the implementation of standards under the responsibility of the Technical Committee;
(VII) Participating in international standardization work in the specialized field;
(VIII) Attending training organized by SAC and the Technical Committee;
(IX) Undertaking related work within the duties of the Technical Committee;
(X) Other duties specified in the charter of the Technical Committee.
Members have voting rights and the right to obtain materials and documents of the Technical Committee.
Article 16 As required, a Technical Committee may appoint advisors, with no more than 5 in total. Advisors shall be experts or scholars in the specialized field, appointed by the Technical Committee, and shall not have voting rights.
Article 17 As required, a Technical Committee may appoint observers. Observers may obtain materials and documents of the Technical Committee, attend its meetings, voice opinions, and make suggestions, but do not have voting rights. The conditions for observers shall be specified in the charter of the Technical Committee.
Article 18 Technical Committees with related specialized fields shall establish liaison relationships, exchange liaison representatives, and coordinate on related technical issues. Liaison representatives may obtain materials and documents from the Technical Committee they liaise with, attend related working meetings, voice opinions, and make suggestions, but do not have voting rights. Liaison representatives shall promptly report on liaison work to their own Technical Committees.
Article 19 A Technical Committee shall hold at least one annual meeting each year to review the previous year's work, plan the next year's work, and report on the use of funds. All members shall attend the annual meeting. A Technical Committee may, as required, hold meetings on an ad-hoc basis to discuss and address related work. All members shall be notified in advance of meetings of the Technical Committee.
Article 20 The following matters shall be drafted by the Secretariat as proposals, submitted for review by all members, and recorded in meeting minutes:
(I) The charter of the Technical Committee and the working rules of the Secretariat;
(II) Work plans;
(III) The standards system table for the specialized field;
(IV) Project initiation proposals for the formulation and revision of national standards;
(V) Drafts of national standards submitted for review;
(VI) Proposals for adjustment of Technical Committee members;
(VII) Budgets and final accounts of working funds and their implementation;
(VIII) Establishment, adjustment, dissolution, and de-registration of sub-Technical Committees;
(IX) Resolutions of sub-Technical Committees;
(X) Other matters specified for review in the charter of the Technical Committee.
For matters (I), (IV), (V), (VI), (VII), and (VIII), all members shall be required to vote, and at least three-quarters of all members must take part in the vote. A matter is approved only if at least two-thirds of voting members vote in favour and dissenting votes do not exceed one-quarter of voting members. Voting results shall be recorded as resolutions and archived by the Secretariat.
Article 21 The procedures for Technical Committees in the formulation and revision of national standards and in international standardization work shall follow the relevant regulations.
Article 22 Technical Committees with broad specialized fields may establish sub-Technical Committees. A sub-Technical Committee shall have no fewer than 15 members, including one chairperson and one secretary-general, and no more than three vice chairpersons and three deputy secretaries-general respectively.
Other requirements for sub-Technical Committees shall apply by reference to this Chapter.
Chapter III Establishment, Term Renewal, and Adjustment
Article 23 The establishment of Technical Committees shall follow the principles of development needs, scientific reasonableness, openness and fairness, and international alignment.
Article 24 The establishment of a Technical Committee shall meet the following conditions:
(I) The specialized field involved is an important area of national economic and social development and aligns with national standardization development strategies and plans;
(II) The specialized field generally corresponds to a specialized field in which a Technical Committee has been established by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), or other international organizations;
(III) The scope of work is clearly defined and does not overlap with that of other Technical Committees;
(IV) The framework of the standards system is clear, with substantial demand for the formulation and revision of national standards;
(V) The host organization of the Secretariat has the capacity and conditions to carry out the work.
Where the scope of work can be incorporated into an existing Technical Committee, no new Technical Committee shall be established.
Article 25 The procedures for establishing a Technical Committee include application, public notice, preparation, and establishment.
Article 26 The relevant administrative departments of the State Council, relevant industry associations, and the standardization administrative departments of provincial, autonomous regional, and municipal people's governments (the "preparing organizations") may apply to SAC to prepare for the establishment of a Technical Committee. The application shall set out the necessity, feasibility, scope of work, standards system, situation of related domestic and international technical organizations, and information on the host organization of the Secretariat.
For comprehensive, fundamental, and cross-departmental, cross-disciplinary Technical Committees, SAC shall determine the preparing organization.
Article 27 SAC shall organize experts to review the application materials. Where the application meets the conditions for establishment, SAC shall publicly disclose the proposed name, specialized field, corresponding international organization, preparing organization, professional guidance organization, host organization of the Secretariat, and other information of the Technical Committee, and shall solicit potential members. The public notice period shall be 30 days.
Where requirements are met after the public notice period, preparation shall proceed.
Article 28 The preparing organization shall, within six months of approval to prepare, submit an establishment plan to SAC. The establishment plan shall include:
(I) Basic information form of the Technical Committee;
(II) List and registration forms of Technical Committee members;
(III) Draft charter of the Technical Committee, including working principles, scope, tasks, procedures, duties of the Secretariat, conditions and duties of members, advisors, and observers, and funding management arrangements;
(IV) Draft working rules of the Secretariat, including working principles, conditions and duties of Secretariat staff, meeting arrangements, document arrangements, archives arrangements, and financial arrangements;
(V) Draft framework and table of the standards system;
(VI) Support measures from the host organization of the Secretariat;
(VII) Three-year work programme and draft work plan for the following year;
(VIII) Other content specified by SAC.
Article 29 SAC shall publicly disclose the list of Technical Committee members for a notice period of 30 days.
Where requirements are met after the public notice period, SAC shall publicly establish the Technical Committee.
Article 30 The establishment of a sub-Technical Committee shall meet the following conditions:
(I) The scope of work is clearly defined and falls within the scope of the parent Technical Committee;
(II) The framework of the standards system is clear, and there shall be no fewer than five national standards or planned national standards projects under its responsibility;
(III) Where there is a corresponding international Technical Committee, alignment with the international counterpart shall in principle be maintained.
Article 31 Proposals by a Technical Committee to establish a sub-Technical Committee shall be approved by a vote of all members. Once approved, the Technical Committee shall publicly solicit members and prepare an establishment plan. The plan, after the consent of the professional guidance organization of the Technical Committee, shall be submitted to SAC.
Proposals by the relevant administrative departments of the State Council, relevant industry associations, or the standardization administrative departments of provincial, autonomous regional, and municipal people's governments to establish a sub-Technical Committee shall be approved by a vote of all members of the parent Technical Committee. Once approved, the proposing organization shall publicly solicit members, prepare an establishment plan, and submit it to SAC.
The content of a sub-Technical Committee's establishment plan shall comply with the relevant provisions of Article 28 of these Measures.
SAC shall publicly establish the sub-Technical Committee in accordance with the relevant provisions of Article 29 of these Measures.
Article 32 Where there is a standardization need for new technologies, new industries, or new business formats but the conditions for establishing a Technical Committee or sub-Technical Committee are not yet in place, SAC may set up a standardization working group to undertake related work on national standards formulation and revision. Standardization working groups do not have sub-working groups, are directly administered by SAC, and their establishment procedures and management requirements shall be applied by reference to those for Technical Committees.
Three years after a standardization working group is established, SAC shall organize experts to evaluate it. Where the conditions for establishing a Technical Committee or sub-Technical Committee are met, the relevant Technical Committee or sub-Technical Committee shall be established in accordance with these Measures; if the conditions are still not met, the working group shall be dissolved.
Article 33 Technical Committees, sub-Technical Committees, and standardization working groups shall be assigned sequential numbers by SAC, in the format SAC/TC×××, SAC/TC×××/SC××, and SAC/SWG××× respectively.
Article 34 Each term of a Technical Committee is five years; at the end of the term, term renewal shall take place. Before term renewal, members shall be publicly solicited and the Secretariat of the Technical Committee shall propose a renewal plan to the preparing organization.
The preparing organization shall review the renewal plan and submit it to SAC three months before the end of the term.
SAC shall publicly disclose the plan in accordance with the relevant provisions of Article 29 of these Measures, and where requirements are met after the public notice period, term renewal shall proceed.
The procedures and requirements for term renewal of sub-Technical Committees shall be applied by reference to those for Technical Committees.
Article 35 As required and following a vote of all members, a Technical Committee may propose adjustments to its members and submit them to SAC for adjustment. In principle, no more than one such adjustment shall be made each year, and each adjustment shall not exceed one-fifth of the total number of members.
Adjustments to members of sub-Technical Committees shall be applied by reference to Technical Committees.
Article 36 Preparing organizations may propose adjustments to the scope of work or name of a Technical Committee, the host organization of the Secretariat, or the de-registration of a Technical Committee, and submit such proposals to SAC for adjustment or de-registration.
Sub-Technical Committee preparing organizations and Technical Committees may propose adjustments to the scope of work or name of a sub-Technical Committee, the host organization of its Secretariat, or its de-registration. Such proposals shall be approved by a vote of all members of the parent Technical Committee and submitted by the sub-Technical Committee preparing organization to SAC for adjustment or de-registration.
Article 37 In line with overall planning of Technical Committees and changes in international counterparts, SAC may directly adjust the scope of work, name, host organization of the Secretariat, and other matters of Technical Committees and sub-Technical Committees. Where standardization needs are very limited or related work can be merged into other Technical Committees, SAC shall de-register the Technical Committee or sub-Technical Committee.
Chapter IV Supervision and Administration
Article 38 SAC, the relevant administrative departments of the State Council, relevant industry associations, and the standardization administrative departments of provincial, autonomous regional, and municipal people's governments shall supervise and inspect Technical Committees. The relevant administrative departments of the State Council, relevant industry associations, and the standardization administrative departments of provincial, autonomous regional, and municipal people's governments shall report supervision and inspection results to SAC.
Article 39 SAC shall establish a performance evaluation system, regularly evaluate the work of Technical Committees, and disclose the evaluation results to the public.
Article 40 Technical Committees shall establish internal supervision and inspection arrangements, strengthen self-discipline, and accept public oversight.
Article 41 The host organizations of Technical Committee Secretariats shall, in strict accordance with relevant national financial regulations, incorporate the working funds of the Technical Committee into the unified financial management of the host organization, with separate accounting and dedicated use. The Secretariat shall report annually to all members on the receipt and use of funds.
Technical Committees shall not collect fees for profit. Unreasonable fees collected through apportionment, paid endorsement, or similar means are strictly prohibited.
Article 42 National standards formulation and revision subsidy funds shall be expended in accordance with the relevant regulations of the Ministry of Finance. No unit or individual may withhold or misappropriate such funds. Host organizations of Technical Committee Secretariats shall accept SAC's supervision and inspection of the use of national standards formulation and revision subsidy funds and shall accept audits by audit authorities.
Article 43 The seal of a Technical Committee shall be uniformly issued by SAC, with the Secretariat responsible for its custody. When a Technical Committee is dissolved, de-registered, or has its name changed, the original seal shall be returned to SAC.
The seal of a Technical Committee is a dedicated business seal, used in carrying out standardization work in the specialized field, primarily for the submission of materials, requests for instructions, soliciting opinions, convening meetings, external liaison, and other matters specified by SAC, and shall not be used outside this scope. The use of the seal shall be approved by the chairperson of the Technical Committee or, with the chairperson's authorization, by a vice chairperson.
Article 44 Technical Committees shall submit annual work reports to SAC each year, with copies sent to the professional guidance organization, the preparing organization, and the host organization of the Secretariat. Sub-Technical Committees shall regularly report on their work to the parent Technical Committee.
Article 45 Technical Committees shall manage standards archives in accordance with the requirements of the Measures for the Administration of Standards Archives. Documents and materials related to the day-to-day work of Technical Committees shall be archived in a timely manner and properly preserved for a period of no less than five years.
Article 46 Any unit or individual may report or complain to SAC, the relevant administrative departments of the State Council, relevant industry associations, or the standardization administrative departments of provincial, autonomous regional, and municipal people's governments regarding violations of these Measures by a Technical Committee, member, or Secretariat. The receiving body shall investigate promptly. Where verified, SAC shall make a decision on the matter.
Article 47 Where any of the following circumstances applies, SAC shall order a Technical Committee to rectify the matter within a specified period:
(I) Failure to complete the formulation, revision, or review of national standards as planned, without justifiable reason;
(II) Quality issues in standards;
(III) Two consecutive years without any tasks for national standards formulation, revision, review, or international standardization;
(IV) Failure to perform voting procedures in accordance with the relevant provisions of these Measures;
(V) Failure to use and manage working funds in accordance with regulations;
(VI) Use of the Technical Committee's seal in violation of regulations;
(VII) Insufficient management of sub-Technical Committees;
(VIII) Failure of performance evaluation;
(IX) Other violations.
During the rectification period, SAC shall not assign new tasks to the Technical Committee. If the requirements are still not met after the rectification period, SAC may, as appropriate, adjust the host organization of the Secretariat, re-establish the Technical Committee, or dissolve it.
The work of dissolved Technical Committees shall be merged into Technical Committees designated by SAC.
Article 48 Where any of the following circumstances applies, SAC shall re-establish the Technical Committee:
(I) Excluding relevant parties from participating in the formulation or revision of national standards or seeking improper benefits for a few relevant parties, seriously affecting the impartiality and fairness of national standards formulation and revision;
(II) Engaging in fraud in its work;
(III) Long-term inactivity;
(IV) Other major violations of laws or regulations.
During re-establishment, the Technical Committee shall suspend all activities.
Article 49 Where the host organization of a Technical Committee Secretariat falls into any of the following circumstances, SAC shall adjust the host organization:
(I) Insufficient performance of the Secretariat, resulting in the Technical Committee being unable to operate normally;
(II) Use of the Technical Committee's work to seek improper benefits for the host organization or related parties;
(III) Serious violation of regulations in the use of Technical Committee funds;
(IV) Other major violations.
Article 50 Where any of the following circumstances applies, the Technical Committee shall report to SAC for revocation of membership:
(I) Failure to perform the duties specified in these Measures and the charter of the Technical Committee;
(II) Failure to participate in voting on two consecutive occasions without justifiable reason;
(III) Use of member status to seek improper benefits for oneself or others;
(IV) Engagement in unlawful or undisciplined acts.
Article 51 SAC shall inform the host organization of any directly responsible person of a Technical Committee who has violated these Measures, and the host organization shall, depending on the circumstances, take disciplinary action in accordance with regulations.
Article 52 The supervision and administration of sub-Technical Committees shall be applied by reference to the supervision and administration of Technical Committees.
Chapter V Supplementary Provisions
Article 53 Where the work of a Technical Committee involves national security or state secrets, the relevant national laws and regulations shall be observed.
Article 54 The administration of jointly civil-military Technical Committees shall be applied by reference to these Measures.
The establishment of Technical Committees by other standards-setting bodies may also refer to these Measures.
Article 55 AQSIQ is responsible for the interpretation of these Measures.
Article 56 These Measures shall come into force on 1 January 2018. After these Measures come into force, where regulations and normative documents previously issued by AQSIQ or SAC are inconsistent with these Measures, these Measures shall apply.
