The Committees
of the German Bundestag
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Month in and month out,
the German Bundestag adopts
new laws or amends existing
legislation. The Bundestag
sets up permanent committees
in every electoral term to
assist it in accomplishing
this task. In these committees,
the Members concentrate on
a specialised area of policy.
They discuss the items referred to them by the plenary
and draw up recommendations for decisions that serve
as the basis for the plenary’s
decision.
The permanent committees
of the German Bundestag –
at the heart of Parliament’s work
The Bundestag is largely free
to decide how many committees it establishes, a choice
which depends on the priorities it wants to set in its parliamentary work. There are
23 committees in the current
18th electoral term. They
essentially mirror the Federal
Government’s distribution
of ministerial portfolios, corresponding to the fields for
which the ministries are
responsible. This facilitates
parliamentary scrutiny of the
Federal Government’s work,
another of the Bundestag’s
central functions.
That said, in establishing
committees, the Bundestag
also sets political priorities
of its own. For example, the
committees responsible for
sport, tourism, or human
rights and humanitarian aid
do not have direct ministerial
counterparts. A new committee first set up in the 18th
electoral term is the Committee on the Digital Agenda,
which is dedicated to topical
issues in internet policy and
discusses matters relating to
digitalisation and interconnectedness.
With 41 members, the Budget
Committee is one of the larger
committees. Only the Committee on Economic Affairs
and Energy has more members: 46. The Committee
for the Scrutiny of Elections,
Immunity and the Rules of
Procedure is the smallest
committee, with 14 members.
Four committees are stipulated by the Basic Law, the
German constitution, and
must be set up in every
electoral term: the Defence
Committee, the Committee on
Foreign Affairs, the Committee on the Affairs of the European Union and the Petitions
Committee. The Basic Law
also provides for the Joint
Committee, an emergency
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The Bundestag’s
committees meet in the
conference rooms in
the Paul Löbe Building.
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parliament consisting of
48 members of the Bundestag
and Bundesrat which can
take decisions in a state of
defence if insurmountable
obstacles prevent the timely
convening of the Bundestag or
the Bundestag cannot muster
a quorum. The Budget Committee and the Committee for
the Rules of Procedure are
also required by law.
Due to the protracted coalition negotiations at the beginning of the 18th electoral
term, the Bundestag temporarily established a Main Committee in November 2013
for the first time in its history.
The Main Committee ensured
that Parliament was able
to function until the establishment of the permanent committees. It consisted of
47 members and substitute
members drawn from all of
the parliamentary groups, and
was chaired by the President
of the Bundestag.
The composition of each of
the committees reflects the
balance of the parliamentary
groups in the Bundestag as a
whole. In the legislative process, one committee is designated as the lead committee,
meaning that it leads the parliamentary deliberations on
the bill in question and drafts
the recommendation for a
decision to be submitted to
the plenary. Other committees
can participate in the deliberations as committees asked for
an opinion if the bill touches
on the areas for which they
are responsible. The committees also have the right to take
up issues on their own initiative, allowing them to set
priorities of their own in the
parliamentary debate. When
necessary, they draw on external expertise – usually by
holding public hearings. To
prepare its work, each committee can set up subcommittees to discuss specific issues
or specialised areas of policy.
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The committees
prepare Parliament’s
decisions during their
meetings.
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The committee chairpersons
are also appointed in line
with the balance of the parliamentary groups in the
Bundestag as a whole. The
post of chairperson of the
Budget Committee is traditionally reserved for the largest opposition parliamentary
group – reflecting Parliament’s
function of scrutinising the
work of the Federal Government. The chairpersons preside over committee meetings.
They are supported by a
committee secretariat within
the Administration of the
Bundestag which provides
organisational and specialist
support for committee meetings.
The spokespersons of the
parliamentary groups on
the committees also play
an important role in the committees’ work: they assert the
interests of their parliamentary groups in the committee
deliberations and are involved
in planning the committee
meetings. For each item of
business, the parliamentary
groups appoint rapporteurs,
Members who specialise in
and are responsible for various subjects.
This leaflet provides a brief
overview of the Bundestag’s
permanent committees and
other bodies in the current
18th electoral term.
Further information is available from the specified webpages and the leaflets of the
individual committees.
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Plenary
The plenary
refers the bill after
its first reading
The plenary refers the
bill, in whole or in part,
back to the committee
if, for example, extensive changes have been
adopted
The lead committee
submits a recommendation for a
decision for the
second reading in
the plenary
Lead committee
Considers the bill in
detail and draws up a
recommendation for the
plenary which can win
majority support
The subcommittee
prepares a recommendation or decision
The committee
can refer an item
to a subcommittee
Subcommittee
Can be set up for
specific specialised areas
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Opinion
The plenary also refers
the bill to committees asked
for an opinion if it touches
on more than one area
Committee
asked for an
opinion
Draws up an opinion
which the lead committee must take into
consideration
The work of
the Bundestag’s
committees.
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The permanent committees
in the 18th electoral term
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Budget Committee
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a08
Chairwoman:
Dr Gesine Lötzsch, The Left Party
Deputy Chairman:
Bartholomäus Kalb, CDU/CSU
41 members
(20 CDU/CSU, 13 SPD, 4 The Left Party, 4 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Auditing Committee
www.bundestag.de/ausschuesse18/a08/a08_rpa
Chairwoman:
Bettina Hagedorn, SPD
Deputy Chairwoman:
Ekin Deligöz, Alliance 90 / The Greens
17 members
(8 CDU/CSU, 5 SPD, 2 The Left Party, 2 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Subcommittee on European Union Issues
www.bundestag.de/ausschuesse18/a08/a08_eu
Chairman:
Bernhard Schulte-Drüggelte, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairman:
Alois Karl, CDU/CSU
12 members
(6 CDU/CSU, 4 SPD, 1 The Left Party, 1 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Committee on Cultural and Media Affairs
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a22
Chairman:
Siegmund Ehrmann, SPD
Deputy Chairwoman:
Dr Herlind Gundelach, CDU/CSU
18 members
(9 CDU/CSU, 5 SPD, 2 The Left Party, 2 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
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Defence Committee
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a12
Chairman:
Wolfgang Hellmich, SPD
Deputy Chairman:
Dr Karl A. Lamers, CDU/CSU
32 members
(16 CDU/CSU, 10 SPD, 3 The Left Party, 3 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Committee on the Digital Agenda
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a23
Chairman:
Jens Koeppen, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairman:
Gerold Reichenbach, SPD
16 members
(7 CDU/CSU, 5 SPD, 2 The Left Party, 2 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Committee on Economic Cooperation and Development
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a19
Chairwoman:
Dagmar G. Wöhrl, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairman:
Stefan Rebmann, SPD
21 members
(10 CDU/CSU, 7 SPD, 2 The Left Party, 2 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Committee on Economic Affairs and Energy
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a09
Chairman:
Dr Peter Ramsauer, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairman:
Klaus Barthel, SPD
46 members
22 CDU/CSU, 14 SPD, 5 The Left Party, 5 Alliance 90 / The Greens
Subcommittee on Regional Economic Policy and ERP Budgets
www.bundestag.de/ausschuesse18/a09/rwp
Chairwoman:
Astrid Grotelüschen, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairwoman:
Andrea Wicklein, SPD
9 members
(4 CDU/CSU, 3 SPD, 1 The Left Party, 1 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
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Committee on Education,
Research and Technology Assessment
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a18
Chairwoman:
Patricia Lips, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairwoman:
Dr Simone Raatz, SPD
34 members
(17 CDU/CSU, 11 SPD, 3 The Left Party, 3 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Committee on the Environment, Nature Conservation,
Building and Nuclear Safety
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a16
Chairwoman:
Bärbel Höhn, Alliance 90 / The Greens
Deputy Chairman:
Artur Auernhammer, CDU/CSU
36 members
(17 CDU/CSU, 11 SPD, 4 The Left Party, 4 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Committee on the Affairs of the European Union
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a21
Chairman:
Gunther Krichbaum, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairman:
Heinz-Joachim Barchmann, SPD
34 members + 14 Members of the European Parliament
entitled to participate in deliberations
(11 CDU/CSU, 11 SPD, 3 The Left Party, 3 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
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Committee on Family Affairs, Senior Citizens,
Women and Youth
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a13
Chairman:
Paul Lehrieder, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairwoman:
Cornelia Möhring, The Left Party
36 members
(17 CDU/CSU, 11 SPD, 4 The Left Party, 4 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Commission for Children’s Concerns
www.bundestag.de/kiko
Chairwoman:
Susann Rüthrich, SPD
4 members
(1 CDU/CSU, 1 SPD, 1 The Left Party, 1 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Subcommittee on Civic Activities
www.bundestag.de/buergerschaftliches-engagement
Chairman:
Willi Brase, SPD
Deputy Chairwoman:
Ingrid Pahlmann, CDU/CSU
13 members
(7 CDU/CSU, 4 SPD, 1 The Left Party, 1 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Finance Committee
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a07
Chairwoman:
Ingrid Arndt-Brauer, SPD
Deputy Chairman:
Dr Gerhard Schick, Alliance 90 / The Greens
37 members
(18 CDU/CSU, 11 SPD, 4 The Left Party, 4 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Committee on Food and Agriculture
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a10
Chairman:
Alois Gerig, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairman:
Friedrich Ostendorff, Alliance 90 / The Greens
34 members
(17 CDU/CSU, 11 SPD, 3 The Left Party, 3 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
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Committee on Foreign Affairs
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a03
Chairman:
Dr Norbert Röttgen, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairman:
Franz Thönnes, SPD
37 members
(18 CDU/CSU, 11 SPD, 4 The Left Party, 4 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Subcommittee on Civilian Crisis Prevention,
Conflict Management and Integrated Action
www.bundestag.de/ausschuesse18/a03/ua_zks
Chairwoman:
Dr Franziska Brantner, Alliance 90 / The Greens
Deputy Chairman:
Michael Vietz, CDU/CSU
9 members
(4 CDU/CSU, 3 SPD, 1 The Left Party, 1 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Subcommittee on Cultural and Education Policy Abroad
www.bundestag.de/ausschuesse18/a03/ua_kb
Chairman:
Dr Bernd Fabritius, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairman:
Dr Diether Dehm, The Left Party
9 members
(4 CDU/CSU, 3 SPD, 1 The Left Party, 1 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Subcommittee on Disarmament,
Arms Control and Non-Proliferation
www.bundestag.de/ausschuesse18/a03/ua_arn
Chairman:
Robert Hochbaum, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairwoman:
Dr Ute Finckh-Krämer, SPD
9 members
(4 CDU/CSU, 3 SPD, 1 The Left Party, 1 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Subcommittee on the United Nations,
International Organisations and Globalisation
www.bundestag.de/ausschuesse18/a03/ua_vn
Chairwoman:
Heike Hänsel, The Left Party
Deputy Chairman:
Dr Egon Jüttner, CDU/CSU
9 members
(4 CDU/CSU, 3 SPD, 1 The Left Party, 1 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
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Committee on Health
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a14
Chairman:
Dr Edgar Franke, SPD
Deputy Chairman:
Rudolf Henke, CDU/CSU
37 members
(18 CDU/CSU, 11 SPD, 4 The Left Party, 4 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Committee on Human Rights and Humanitarian Aid
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a17
Chairman:
Michael Brand, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairman:
Dr Karamba Diaby, SPD
16 members
(7 CDU/CSU, 5 SPD, 2 The Left Party, 2 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Committee on Internal Affairs
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a04
Chairman:
Wolfgang Bosbach, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairman:
Frank Tempel, The Left Party
37 members
(18 CDU/CSU, 11 SPD, 4 The Left Party, 4 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Subcommittee on Local Government Affairs
www.bundestag.de/ausschuesse18/a04/kommunales
Chairwoman:
Annette Sawade, SPD
Deputy Chairwoman:
Barbara Woltmann, CDU/CSU
13 members
(7 CDU/CSU, 4 SPD, 1 The Left Party, 1 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Committee on Labour and Social Affairs
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a11
Chairwoman:
Kerstin Griese, SPD
Deputy Chairman:
Professor Matthias Zimmer, CDU/CSU
41 members
(20 CDU/CSU, 13 SPD, 4 The Left Party, 4 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
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Committee on Legal Affairs and Consumer Protection
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a06
Chairwoman:
Renate Künast, Alliance 90 / The Greens
Deputy Chairman:
Dr Jan-Marco Luczak, CDU/CSU
39 members
(19 CDU/CSU, 12 SPD, 4 The Left Party, 4 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Subcommittee on European Law
www.bundestag.de/bundestag/ausschuesse18/a06/a06_
europarecht
Chairman:
Professor Patrick Sensburg, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairman:
Dr Johannes Fechner, SPD
10 members
(5 CDU/CSU, 3 SPD, 1 The Left Party, 1 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Petitions Committee
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a02
Chairwoman:
Kersten Steinke, The Left Party
Deputy Chairman:
Gero Storjohann, CDU/CSU
26 members
(12 CDU/CSU, 8 SPD, 3 The Left Party, 3 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Committee for the Scrutiny of Elections, Immunity and the
Rules of Procedure
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a01
Chairman:
Dr Johann Wadephul, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairwoman:
Dr Kristina Schröder, CDU/CSU
14 members
(7 CDU/CSU, 5 SPD, 1 The Left Party, 1 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
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Sports Committee
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a05
Chairwoman:
Dagmar Freitag, SPD
Deputy Chairman:
Reinhard Grindel, CDU/CSU
18 members
(9 CDU/CSU, 5 SPD, 2 The Left Party, 2 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Committee on Tourism
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a20
Chairwoman:
Heike Brehmer, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairman:
Klaus Brähmig, CDU/CSU
18 members
(9 CDU/CSU, 5 SPD, 2 The Left Party, 2 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Committee on Transport and Digital Infrastructure
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/a15
Chairman:
Martin Burkert, SPD
Deputy Chairman:
Reinhold Sendker, CDU/CSU
41 members
(20 CDU/CSU, 13 SPD, 4 The Left Party, 4 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
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In addition to the permanent
committees, the Bundestag
can set up special bodies.
These include study commissions, where parliamentarians
and external experts jointly
consider important issues
for the future, and committees
of inquiry. The Bundestag
has established a Parliamentary Advisory Council on
Sustainable Development
to support and scrutinise
the Federal Government’s
National Sustainable Development Strategy and provide
its own input.
Information about the work
of these bodies is available
from the specified webpages.
Other bodies in the
18th electoral term
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Parliamentary Advisory Council on Sustainable Development
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/bodies/sustainability
Chairman:
Andreas Jung, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairman:
Professor Lars Castellucci, SPD
17 members
(8 CDU/CSU, 5 SPD, 2 The Left Party, 2 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Mediation Committee
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees/mediation
16 Members of the Bundestag + 16 members of the Bundesrat
(7 CDU/CSU, 5 SPD, 2 The Left Party, 2 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
Committee for the Scrutiny of Elections
www.bundestag.de/bundestag/ausschuesse18/a01_wpa
Chairman:
Dr Johann Wadephul, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairwoman:
Dr Kristina Schröder, CDU/CSU
9 members
(4 CDU/CSU, 3 SPD, 1 The Left Party, 1 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
1st Committee of Inquiry (NSA Affair)
www.bundestag.de/bundestag/ausschuesse18/ua/
1untersuchungsausschuss
Chairman:
Professor Patrick Sensburg, CDU/CSU
Deputy Chairwoman:
Susanne Mittag, SPD
8 members
(4 CDU/CSU, 2 SPD, 1 The Left Party, 1 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
2nd Committee of Inquiry
www.bundestag.de/bundestag/ausschuesse18/ua/
2untersuchungsausschuss
Chairwoman:
Dr Eva Högl, SPD
Deputy Chairman:
Michael Frieser, CDU/CSU
8 members
(4 CDU/CSU, 2 SPD, 1 The Left Party, 1 Alliance 90 / The Greens)
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G 10 Commission (privacy of correspondence, posts and telecommunications)
www.bundestag.de/bundestag/gremien18/g10
Committee for the Scrutiny of Acoustic Surveillance of the
Private Home
www.bundestag.de/bundestag/gremien18/artikel13
Parliamentary Oversight Panel
(oversight of the intelligence services)
www.bundestag.de/bundestag/gremien18/pkgr
Panel set up under the Customs Investigation Service Act
(war weapons control, foreign trade and investment)
www.bundestag.de/bundestag/gremien18/zfdg
Panel established under Section 3 (3) of the Stabilisation
Mechanism Act (Stabilisation Panel)
www.bundestag.de/bundestag/ausschuesse18/a08/a08_sta
Parliamentary Panel on Financial-Market Stabilisation
(Financial-Market Stabilisation Fund)
www.bundestag.de/bundestag/ausschuesse18/a08/a08_finanzfonds
Committee for the Election of the Judges of the Federal
Constitutional Court to be appointed by the Bundestag
www.bundestag.de/richterwahl
Commission on the Review and Safeguarding of Parliamentary Rights regarding Mandates for Bundeswehr Missions
Abroad
www.bundestag.de/bundestag/gremien18/auslandseinsaetze
Expert Commission on the Future of the Agency of the Federal
Commissioner for the Files of the State Security Service of the
former German Democratic Republic
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Published by: German Bundestag, Public Relations Division
Edited by: Georgia Rauer
Translated by: Language Service of the German Bundestag,
in cooperation with Emma Hardie
Design: Regelindis Westphal Grafik-Design,
edited by Marc Mendelson
Bundestag eagle: Created by Professor Ludwig Gies,
revised in 2008 by büro uebele
Photos: pp. 2–3 Deutscher Bundestag (DBT) / Ute Grabowsky / photothek.net;
p. 6 DBT / Marc-Steffen Unger; p. 8 DBT / Thomas Imo / photothek.net;
p. 12, p. 27 DBT / Linus Lintner; p. 22 DBT / Marco Urban
Printed by: Druckhaus Waiblingen, Remstal Bote GmbH
As at: August 2015
© Deutscher Bundestag, Berlin
All rights reserved.
This publication is produced by the German Bundestag in the framework
of parliamentary public relations work. It is not intended for resale. It may
not be used by parties, parliamentary groups, Members of the Bundestag or
candidates in their public relations activities – particularly for campaign
purposes.
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The German Bundestag takes decisions on what are at
times highly complex and controversial bills and parliamentary initiatives relating to the entire spectrum of
policy fields. The committees play a central role in parliamentary deliberations. They are the forum where the
Members thrash out compromises and draw on expert
advice before submitting their reports and recommendations for decisions to be voted on by the Bundestag as a
whole.
www.bundestag.de/htdocs_e/bundestag/committees