Plenary Assembly
The Plenary Assembly consists of all Deputies. The Plenary Assembly is the supreme organ of the Chamber of Deputies which is empowered to consider and pass laws and consider all matters falling within the jurisdiction of the Chamber of Deputies.
The business of the Plenary Assembly commences at three (3:00) p.m. to close at six (6:00) p.m. during weekdays. In case of urgency, however, the time for commencing the business of the Plenary Assembly may change with the approval of the Bureau of the Chamber of Deputies.
The time for closing business of the Plenary Assembly may change at the request of the Chair of the sitting with the approval of an absolute majority vote of Deputies present.
The Plenary Sitting of the Chamber of Deputies is held in a building reserved for that purpose in the Capital City of the Republic, except in cases of force majeure approved by the Supreme Court at the request of the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies.
In case the Supreme Court is also unable to sit, the President of the Republic determines, by a decree-law, the place for holding the sitting.
If for whatever reason, the adjournment of the sitting is required, the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies notifies all Deputies thereof in writing or via any other communication channel.
The plenary sittings of the Chamber of Deputies are public. By applying the principle of opening to the public of the plenary sittings, there are seats reserved for the general public in the Plenary Hall and in so doing, the Chamber of Deputies makes use of audio or audio-visual devices used to transmit the proceedings of the Plenary Assembly directly to the general public, where applicable. Also, recourse may be had to the social media of the Chamber of Deputies.
However, the Chamber of Deputies may, at the request of the President of the Republic, the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, the Prime Minister or a quarter (1/4) of members of the Chamber of Deputies, resolve to sit behind closed doors by an absolute majority of the votes of Deputies present. Such a resolution must be posted on the doors of the plenary hall of the Chamber of Deputies.
It is prohibited for any person to enter the Plenary Hall with a mobile phone or any other electronic device put on ring mode or anything else likely to disrupt the smooth running of the proceedings of the Plenary Assembly.
During the proceedings of the Plenary Assembly, all persons get seated and remain calm. No one is allowed to wear a hat unless otherwise exempted for professional and religious belonging reasons.