TITLE
II
: LEGISLATIVE, BUDGETARY AND OTHER PROCEDURES
CHAPTER
2
: PROCEDURE IN COMMITTEE
Rule
54
: Procedure with associated committees
Where a question of competence is referred to the Conference of Presidents pursuant to Rules 201(2) or 52, and the Conference of Presidents, on the basis of Annex VI, considers that the matter falls almost equally within the competence of two or more committees, or that different parts of the matter fall within the competence of two or more committees, Rule 53 shall apply with the following additional provisions:
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the timetable shall be jointly agreed by the committees concerned;
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the rapporteurs concerned shall keep each other informed and shall endeavour to agree on the texts they propose to their committees and on their position regarding amendments;
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the Chairs and rapporteurs concerned shall jointly identify areas of the text falling within their exclusive or joint competence and agree on the precise arrangements for their cooperation. In the event of disagreement about the delimitation of competences the matter shall be submitted, at the request of one of the committees involved, to the Conference of Presidents, which may decide on the question of the respective competences or decide that the procedure with joint committee meetings under Rule 55 is to apply; the second subparagraph of Rule 201(2) shall apply
mutatis mutandis;
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the committee responsible shall accept without a vote amendments from an associated committee where they concern matters which fall within the exclusive competence of the associated committee. If amendments on matters which fall within the joint competence of the committee responsible and an associated committee are rejected by the former, the latter may table those amendments directly in plenary;
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in the event of a conciliation procedure taking place on the proposal, Parliament's delegation shall include the rapporteur of any associated committee.
The wording of this Rule does not lay down any limits to its scope. Requests for application of the procedure with associated committees concerning non-legislative reports based on Rules 52(1) and 132(1) and (2) are admissible.
The procedure with associated committees set out in this Rule may not be applied in relation to the recommendation to be adopted by the committee responsible under Rule 99.
The Conference of Presidents' decision to apply the procedure with associated committees applies at all stages of the procedure in question.
The rights attaching to the status of "committee responsible" are exercised by the lead committee. In exercising those rights, the lead committee must take due account of the prerogatives of the associated committee, and in particular must comply with the obligation to observe the principle of sincere cooperation as regards the timetable and respect the right of the associated committee to determine the amendments submitted in plenary which fall within its exclusive competence.
Should the lead committee disregard the prerogatives of the associated committee, decisions taken by the former remain valid but the latter may table amendments directly in plenary, within the limits of its exclusive competence.