The Law Library of Congress, Global Legal Research Center 

(202) 707-5080 (phone) • (866) 550-0442 (fax) • law@loc.gov • http://www.law.gov

The European Parliament

February 2018
This report is provided for reference purposes only. 

It does not constitute legal advice and does not represent the official 

opinion of the United States Government. The information provided 

reflects research undertaken as of the date of writing. 

It has not been updated.
Contents

I. Background .................................................................................................................................1 

A. General History ....................................................................................................................1 

B. Physical Location of the Parliament .....................................................................................4 

II. Constitutional Status and Role ..................................................................................................4 

III. Structure and Composition .......................................................................................................6 

A. Members...............................................................................................................................6 

B. Political Groups ....................................................................................................................7 

C. Committees...........................................................................................................................7 

D. Delegations...........................................................................................................................8 

E. President of the European Parliament ..................................................................................8 

F. The Conference of Presidents ...............................................................................................8 

IV. Elections ..................................................................................................................................9 

V. Legislative Process ..................................................................................................................10 

A. Definition of EU Law .......................................................................................................10 

B. Legislative Initiative .........................................................................................................11 

C. Types of EU Legislative Procedures ................................................................................12 

D. Signature and Entry into Force .........................................................................................15 
The Law Library of Congress 1

The European Parliament 

Jenny Gesley 

Foreign Law Specialist

SUMMARY The European Parliament is one of the main institutions of the European Union (EU) and is 

its only directly elected body. It has 751 members that belong to eight political groups. 

Members are grouped together according to political affiliation and not by nationality. 

Elections to the European Parliament take place every five years in all twenty-eight EU 

Member States. National election rules may vary, however. A reform of the electoral rules 

is currently underway to increase transparency, democratic legitimacy, and eliminate 

differences between national rules. 

The role and powers of the European Parliament have changed and been expanded over 

time. Originally, it had mainly a consultative function and its members were appointed by 

the Member States. Direct elections were held for the first time in 1979. In 1992, the 

Maastricht Treaty created the “co-decision procedure” for some policy areas, which allowed 

the European Parliament to adopt legislative acts in conjunction with the Council. 

Subsequent treaties gave additional powers to the European Parliament, with the latest 

amendment, the Treaty of Lisbon in 2009, strengthening its financial, legislative, and 

supervisory powers. The co-decision procedure became the standard procedure for passing 

legislation at the EU level, with the European Parliament acting as a co-legislator on an 

equal footing with the Council. 

I. Background

A. General History

In the aftermath of the Second World War, the governments of France, Germany, Italy, Belgium, 

Netherlands, and Luxembourg were looking for ways to rebuild the European economy and to 

further European integration in order to ensure lasting peace on the continent. In 1952, on the basis 

of the Schuman Declaration,1 they created the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC).2 The 

ECSC was set up as a supranational organization, meaning that the national governments 

transferred part of their sovereign powers to it. The ECSC Treaty established a High Authority, a 

Common Assembly, a Special Council of Ministers, and a Court of Justice—the basis for the 

current institutions of the European Union (EU). The Common Assembly, however, had merely a 

consultative role and its members were not elected, but appointed by the respective parliaments of 

the Member States.3

 On July 23, 2002, the ECSC Treaty expired as provided in its article 97. 

1

 Schuman Declaration, May 9, 1950, https://europa.eu/european-union/about-eu/symbols/europe-day/schumandeclaration_en, archived at http://perma.cc/6JUM-85WQ. 

2

 Treaty Establishing the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC Treaty), Apr. 18, 1951, not published in the 

Official Journal [O.J.], http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:11951K:EN:PDF, archived 

at http://perma.cc/Z65Y-8F2T. 

3 Id. arts. 20–25. 
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The common coal and steel market of the ECSC was seen as the first step towards achieving a 

more politically united Europe and ultimately a “European federation.”4 Plans for a European 

Defense Community (EDC)5 and a European Political Community (EPC)6 were soon presented. 

The French National Assembly, however, was opposed to the establishment of an EDC, in 

particular to a German remilitarization, and rejected the treaty in August 1954. The EDC Treaty 

therefore did not enter into force.7 As the EPC was supposed to be the institutional corollary to the 

EDC,8 both plans were abandoned. 

At the Messina Conference that took place in Italy in June 1955, the process of European 

integration was revived. The decision9

 to work together in the economic field and set up a 

“common European market, free from all customs duties and all quantitative restrictions” 

ultimately led to the signing of the “Treaties of Rome” on March 25, 1957. The Treaties of Rome 

consist of two different treaties—the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community 

(EEC Treaty)10 and the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom 

Treaty)11—and established what would later become the EU. The Euratom Treaty is still in force 

today, whereas the EEC Treaty has been renamed and superseded by subsequent treaties. The EEC 

Treaty is now called the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).12

The Euratom Treaty, which is focused on the atomic energy sector, set up a legal framework to 

coordinate Member States’ research programs on the peaceful use of nuclear energy in order to 

 

4

 Schuman Declaration, supra note 1. 

5

 Treaty Constituting the European Defense Community, May 27, 1957, available at http://aei.pitt.edu/5201/1/ 

5201.pdf, archived at http://perma.cc/6J4M-Z5ZU. 

6

 Draft Treaty Embodying the Statute of the European Community, Mar. 10, 1953, doc. 10, p. 52, available at

http://aei.pitt.edu/991/1/political_union_draft_treaty_1.pdf, archived at http://perma.cc/LML4-RBKS. 

7

 GENERAL SECRETARIAT OF THE COUNCIL, A UNION OF LAW: FROM PARIS TO LISBON. TRACING THE TREATIES OF 

THE EUROPEAN UNION 6 (2012), http://www.consilium.europa.eu/media/30388/qc3111407enc.pdf, archived at

http://perma.cc/62AZ-9DSV. 

8

 EDC Treaty art. 38. 

9

 Resolution Adopted by the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Member States of the E.C.S.C. at Their Meeting at 

Messina, June 1 to 3, 1955, available at https://www.cvce.eu/content/publication/1999/1/1/d1086bae-0c13-4a00-

8608-73c75ce54fad/publishable_en.pdf, archived at http://perma.cc/6KWB-FPQ4. 

10 Treaty Establishing the European Economic Community (EEC Treaty), Mar. 25, 1957, not published in O.J., 

http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/FR/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:11957E/TXT&from=EN (in French), archived at 

http://perma.cc/4DSP-NQWL, unofficial English translation available at https://www.ab.gov.tr/files/ardb/evt/ 1 

_avrupa_birligi/1_3_antlasmalar/1_3_1_kurucu_antlasmalar/1957_treaty_establishing_eec.pdf, archived at 

http://perma.cc/A6T3-QHLY.

11 Consolidated Version of the Treaty Establishing the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom Treaty), 

2016 O.J. (C 203) 1, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=OJ:C:2016:203:FULL&from=EN, 

archived at http://perma.cc/HN4M-ATUG. 

12 Consolidated Version of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), 2016 O.J. (C 202) 47, 

http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:9e8d52e1-2c70-11e6-b497-01aa75ed71a1.0006.01/DOC_3& 

format=PDF, archived at http://perma.cc/8TVM-PUJW. 
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develop Europe’s nuclear industries and to ensure the supply of nuclear energy.13 The EEC Treaty 

set up a Common Market in which “the free movement of goods, persons, services and capital is 

ensured”14 and a customs union with a common trade policy among the Member States. 

The institutions that were established to achieve the tasks of the EEC were a Parliamentary 

Assembly (now called the European Parliament), the Council, the Commission, and the Court of 

Justice.15 The Parliamentary Assembly, however, had mainly a consultative function and its 

members were appointed by the Member States.16 Decisions were taken by the Council on a 

proposal from the Commission.17 The Council is made up of government ministers from each EU 

country.18 The Commission is the executive body of the EU and is made up of one commissioner 

from each Member State.19 The EEC Treaty included a provision that called upon the Assembly 

to draw up proposals for elections of the members of the Assembly by direct universal suffrage.20

That provision was not implemented until 1979. 

The role of the European Parliament has been expanded over time in order to address the 

“democratic deficit” of the EU. The term “democratic deficit” is used to describe the perceived 

lack of democratic legitimacy of the EU institutions and its decision-making processes.21 One of 

the most important changes in this regard was implemented by the Treaty on European Union 

(Treaty of Maastricht) in 1992.22 The Maastricht Treaty created the “co-decision procedure,” 

which allows the European Parliament to adopt legislative acts in conjunction with the Council. 

Subsequent treaties gave additional powers to the European Parliament, with the latest amendment, 

the Treaty of Lisbon,23 strengthening its financial, legislative, and supervisory powers. 

 

13 Euratom Treaty art. 2. 

14 Single European Act art. 13, 1987 O.J. (L 169) 1, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:a519205f924a-4978-96a2-b9af8a598b85.0004.02/DOC_1&format=PDF, archived at http://perma.cc/MY95-HRP7. 

15 EEC Treaty art. 4. 

16 Id. arts. 137, 138. 

17 Id. art. 145. 

18 Consolidated Version of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) art. 16, para. 2, 2016 O.J. (C 202) 13, http://eurlex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:9e8d52e1-2c70-11e6-b497-01aa75ed71a1.0006.01/DOC_2&format=PDF, 

archived at http://perma.cc/V92F-NZZG.

19 TEU art. 17, para. 5; European Council Decision of 22 May 2013 Concerning the Number of Members of the 

European Commission art. 1, 2013 O.J. (L 165) 98, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri= 

CELEX:32013D0272&from=EN, archived at http://perma.cc/9JZ9-5AV9. 

20 EEC Treaty art. 138, para. 3. 

21 Glossary of Summaries, Democratic Deficit, EUR-LEX, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/summary/glossary/ 

democratic_deficit.html (last visited Jan. 25, 2018), archived at http://perma.cc/XX64-2SDU. 

22 Treaty on European Union (Treaty of Maastricht), 1992 O.J. (C 191) 1, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legalcontent/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:11992M/TXT&from=EN, archived at http://perma.cc/UD26-HJ4W. 

23 Treaty of Lisbon, 2007 O.J. (C 306) 1, http://publications.europa.eu/resource/cellar/688a7a98-3110-4ffe-a6b3-

8972d8445325.0007.01/DOC_19. 
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B. Physical Location of the Parliament

The European Parliament is located in Brussels, Belgium; Strasbourg, France; and Luxembourg 

City, Luxembourg. The official seat of the Parliament is in Strasbourg where the twelve main 

plenary sessions are held. Additional plenary sessions and committee meetings are held in 

Brussels. The General Secretariat of the European Parliament and its departments are located 

in Luxembourg.24

II. Constitutional Status and Role

The European Union is currently made up of twenty-eight Member States.25 Although the Member 

States remain independent, sovereign states, they have transferred some of their sovereign powers 

to the institutions of the EU. The EU is therefore described as a supranational organization—not a 

fully federal system like the United States, but also not a loose intergovernmental cooperation like 

the United Nations. 

The European Parliament is one of the main institutions of the EU.26 It exercises legislative and 

budgetary functions together with the Council, as well as supervisory and consultative functions.27

Most laws are adopted jointly by the European Parliament and the Council in the ordinary 

legislative procedure.28 The Parliament also shares the power to decide on the entire annual budget 

of the EU with the Council and supervises the implementation of the budget by the Commission.29

In addition to supervising the implementation of the budget by the Commission, the European 

Parliament is also in charge of generally supervising the work of the Commission.30 The 

Commission regularly submits reports to the European Parliament and is required to reply to oral 

and written questions from Members of Parliament.31 The European Parliament can censure the 

Commission and ultimately dismiss it.32

24 Protocol No. 6 on the Location of the Seats of the Institutions and of Certain Bodies, Offices, Agencies and 

Departments of the European Union art. 1(b), 2016 O.J. (C 202) 265, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html? 

uri=cellar:9e8d52e1-2c70-11e6-b497-01aa75ed71a1.0006.01/DOC_4&format=PDF, archived at

http://perma.cc/39U6-93KA. 

25 A list of the Member States is available on the website of the EU. EU Member Countries in Brief, EU, 

https://europa.eu/european-union/about-eu/countries/member-countries_en (last updated Jan. 25, 2018), archived at 

http://perma.cc/VE4P-44TW. 

26 TEU art. 13. 

27 Id. art. 14, para. 1. 

28 More on the ordinary legislative procedure in Part V(C)(1), below. 

29 TFEU arts. 310, 314, 318, 319. 

30 TEU art. 17, para. 8. 

31 TFEU arts. 230, 233. 

32 TEU art. 17, para. 8; TFEU art. 234. 
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Furthermore, it has the right to elect the President of the European Commission.33 The European 

Council34 nominates a person for President of the Commission, taking into account the results of 

the European elections.35 The candidate that receives a qualified majority in the European 

Parliament, meaning at least 376 out of 751 votes, will be elected.36 If no candidate receives the 

required majority, the European Council must propose a new candidate within one month.37

The other members of the Commission are subject as a body to a vote of consent by the European 

Parliament.38 For this purpose, the Commissioners-designate appear before the appropriate 

parliamentary committees according to their prospective fields of responsibility.39 The committees 

draw up letters of evaluation and forward them to the President of the European Parliament.40

The Parliament also elects the European Ombudsman, who investigates complaints from EU 

citizens about maladministration in EU institutions and bodies.41 It must be consulted before the 

President, Vice-President, and Executive Board of the European Central Bank (ECB) are 

appointed by the European Council42 and before the members of the Court of Auditors are 

appointed by the Council.43

The European Parliament may ask the Court of Justice of the EU to review the legality of acts of 

bodies, offices, or agencies of the EU.44

The European Parliament and the Council may also establish specialized courts attached to the 

General Court45 to hear and determine at the first instance certain classes of actions or proceedings 

 

33 TEU art. 14, para. 1. 

34 The European Council consists of the heads of state or government of the EU Member States. It defines the 

general political direction and priorities of the EU. See TEU art. 15, para. 2. 

35 Id. art. 17, para. 7. 

36 Id.

37 Id. 

38 Id.

39 Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament, rule 118, http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do? 

pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+RULES-EP+20170116+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN&language=EN, archived at

http://perma.cc/DS33-M9NW. 

40 Id. annex VI, art. 4. 

41 TFEU art. 228. 

42 Id. art. 283. 

43 Id. art. 286, para. 2. 

44 Id. art. 263. 

45 The General Court is one of the two components of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), the other 

component being the Court of Justice (ECJ). The General Court deals primarily with competition law, state aid, 

trade, agriculture, and trademarks. See Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), EU, 

https://europa.eu/european-union/about-eu/institutions-bodies/court-justice_en (last updated Jan. 25, 2018), archived 

at http://perma.cc/3AE8-7U6G. 
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brought in specific areas.46 As an example, in 2004, the Civil Service Tribunal was established to 

determine disputes between the EU and its staff. However, it ceased operations on September 1, 

2016, after its jurisdiction was transferred to the General Court.47

III. Structure and Composition

A. Members

The number of Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) is capped at 751. The minimum 

number of members per Member State is six, whereas the maximum number is set at ninety-six 

seats. Seats are allocated on the basis of the population of each Member State according to the 

principle of “degressive proportionality.”48 “Degressive proportionality” means that while larger 

Member States receive more total seats, MEPs from larger Member States represent more citizens 

than MEPs from smaller Member States. Larger Member States thereby agree to be 

underrepresented in the interests of solidarity with smaller Member States.49 

The number of MEPs varies with each parliamentary term depending on changes in the number of 

Member States and demographic trends in their population. For the 2014–2019 parliamentary 

term, Malta, Luxembourg, Cyprus, and Estonia each have the minimum number of six seats, 

whereas Germany is the only Member State with the maximum number of ninety-six seats.50 The 

United Kingdom (UK) currently holds seventy-three seats, which will be vacated after the 

impending EU exit (“Brexit”). The European Parliament’s Constitutional Affairs Committee has 

adopted a proposal that would reduce the total number of seats after Brexit to 705, redistribute 

twenty-seven of the UK seats among slightly underrepresented EU countries, and make the other 

forty-six seats available for a pan-European list or for new countries joining the EU.51 In a next 

step, the proposal must be voted on by the full European Parliament and the European Council.52

46 TFEU art. 257. 

47 Civil Service Tribunal: Presentation, CURIA, https://curia.europa.eu/jcms/jcms/T5_5230/en/ (last visited Jan. 31, 

2018), archived at http://perma.cc/9LW8-A6Q9. 

48 TEU art. 14, para. 2. 

49 Composition of the European Parliament. European Parliament Resolution of 11 October 2007 on the 

Composition of the European Parliament (2007/2169(INI)) no. 5, 2008 O.J. (C 227E) 132, http://eurlex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=uriserv:OJ.CE.2008.227.01.0013.01.ENG&toc=OJ:C:2008: 

227E:TOC#CE2008227EN.01013201, archived at http://perma.cc/5W3N-KCQC. 

50 European Council Decision of 28 June 2013 Establishing the Composition of the European Parliament, Decision 

2013/312/EU, 2013 O.J. (L 181) 57, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32013D 

0312&from=EN, archived at http://perma.cc/MB56-BCHN. 

51 Press Release, European Parliament, EU Elections 2019: MEPs Pave Way for Pan-European Constituency Post 

Brexit (Jan. 23, 2018), http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20180123IPR92301, archived at 

http://perma.cc/V98C-N92G. 

52 TEU art. 14, para. 2. 
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B. Political Groups 

Members of Parliament are grouped together by political affiliation and not by Member State.53

They may also be registered as “unattached” (non-inscrit, NI).54 A political group may only be 

formed, if twenty-five members that represent at least one quarter of the Member States 

participate.55 MEPs cannot be member of more than one political group.56 Currently, there are 

eight political groups in the European Parliament: 

 Group of the European People’s Party (Christian Democrats) (EPP) 

 Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the EP (S&D) 

 European Conservatives and Reformists Group (ECR) 

 Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) 

 Confederal Group of the European United Left-United Green Left (GUE/NGL) 

 Group of the Greens-European Free Alliance (Greens/EFA) 

 Europe of Freedom and Direct Democracy Group (EFDD) 

 Europe of Nations and Freedom Group (ENF) 

The EPP holds the largest share of seats with 217 seats (28.9%), the S&D has 189 seats (25.2%), 

the ECR 74 seats (9.9%), ALDE 68 seats (9.1%), the GUE/NGL 52 seats (6.9%), the Greens/EFA 

51 seats (6.8%), the EFDD 45 seats (6%), and the ENF 37 seats (4.9%). Eighteen seats (2.4%) are 

held by unaffiliated MEPs.57 

C. Committees 

The European Parliament has twenty standing committees that specialize in a particular policy 

area.58 The standing committees carry out the main legislative work. If a committee receives a 

legislative proposal, it will allocate it to a political group, which will nominate a rapporteur. The 

rapporteur will draw up the report on behalf of the committee.59

 

53 Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament, supra note 39, rule 32, no. 1. 

54 Id. rule 35. 

55 Id. rule 32, no. 2. 

56 Id. rule 32, no. 4. 

57 MEPs: Seats, EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meps/en/hemicycle.html (last visited Jan. 

31, 2018), archived at http://perma.cc/DMS7-W3WY. 

58 A list of the standing committees is available on the website of the European Parliament. List of Committees, 

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, http://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/parliamentary-committees.html (last visited 

Jan. 25, 2018), archived at http://perma.cc/FU6M-2K39. The responsibilities of the individual standing committees 

are defined in Annex V of the Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament, supra note 39. 

59 Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament, supra note 39, rule 49. 
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Temporary committees on specific issues may be set up at any time.60 These special committees 

have a twelve-month mandate, with the possibility of extension.61 The chairs of the standing and 

special committees meet regularly in the Conference of Committee Chairs to coordinate their 

work, facilitate cooperation, and discuss common problems and best practices.62

D. Delegations 

MEPs may also join delegations that develop relations with the parliaments of non-EU countries, 

regions, or organizations and promote the values of the EU.63 The number of members varies.64

Currently there are forty-four standing delegations.65

E. President of the European Parliament 

The President of the European Parliament is elected for a renewable term of two-and-a-half years.66

He chairs the plenary sittings of Parliament and applies the Rules of Procedure. In addition, he 

represents the European Parliament in all administrative, legal, and financial matters and in its 

international relations.67

F. The Conference of Presidents 

The Conference of Presidents consists of the President of the European Parliament and the Chairs 

of the political groups.68 It is responsible, inter alia, for the organization of the European 

Parliament’s work, legislative planning, relations with the other institutions and bodies of the EU, 

relations with the national parliaments of the Member States, and relations with non-member 

countries and non-EU institutions and organizations.69 

 

60 Id. rule 197, no. 1. 

61 Id. rule 197, no. 2. 

62 Id. rule 29. 

63 Implementing Provisions Governing the Work of Delegations and Missions outside the European Union, 

Conference of Presidents Decision of 29 October 2015, art. 3, http://www.europarl.europa.eu/cmsdata/123721/ 

IMPLEMENTING-PROVISIONS-GOVERNING-WORK-DELEGATIONS-MISSIONS-OUTSIDE-EU.pdf, 

archived at http://perma.cc/3HY6-DZT7. 

64 Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament, supra note 39, rule 212. 

65 The different delegations are listed on the website of the European Parliament. Delegations: Alphabetical List of 

Delegations, EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, http://www.europarl.europa.eu/delegations/en/list/byname (last visited Jan. 

31, 2018), archived at http://perma.cc/CA87-BSV4. The Delegation for Relations with the United States is one such 

delegation. Id.

66 Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament, supra note 39, rule 19. 

67 Id. rule 22. 

68 Id. rule 26. 

69 Id. rule 27. 
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IV. Elections

Since 1979, members of the European Parliament have been elected by direct universal suffrage 

in the Member States.70 The European Parliament is the only directly elected EU institution. 

Elections are held every five years.71 The current legislative term started in 2014 and will end in 

2019. Every citizen of the EU residing in a Member State of which he or she is not a national has 

the right to vote and to stand as a candidate in elections to the European Parliament in the Member 

State in which he/she resides, under the same conditions as nationals of that Member State.72

Elections are governed by national legislation and common rules codified in the 1976 Electoral 

Act, as well as by the provisions on EU citizenship in the Treaties and Council Directive 

93/109/EC.73 A secret ballot74 and proportional representation75 must be guaranteed in every 

Member State, but the countries have leeway with regard to other requirements. Important areas 

in which national rules differ include minimum voting age, age to stand as a candidate, the deadline 

for completion of the electoral lists, thresholds for obtaining seats in the European Parliament, and 

the right to vote abroad.76

In 2015, the European Parliament agreed on a reform of the Electoral Act of 1976 in order to 

increase transparency and democratic legitimation, and eliminate differences between national 

rules.77 Article 223 of the TFEU provides that the European Parliament has the right to initiate the 

70 Act Concerning the Election of the Representatives of the Assembly by Direct Universal Suffrage (1976 Electoral 

Act), 1976 O.J. (L 278) 5, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:41976X1008(01) 

&from=EN, archived at http://perma.cc/8MQ6-TH7V, consolidated version for documentary purposes available at

Act Concerning the Election of the Members of the European Parliament by Direct Universal Suffrage, http://eurlex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:01976X1008(01)-20020923&qid=1516393771995& 

from=en, archived at http://perma.cc/F4FP-EWDT; TEU art. 14, para. 3. 

71 TEU art. 14, para. 3; Act Concerning the Election of the Members of the European Parliament by Direct Universal 

Suffrage art. 5. 

72 TFEU art. 20, para. 2(b). 

73 Act Concerning the Election of the Members of the European Parliament by Direct Universal Suffrage, supra 

note 70; Council Directive 93/109/EC of 6 December 1993 Laying Down Detailed Arrangements for the Exercise of 

the Right to Vote and Stand as a Candidate in Elections to the European Parliament for Citizens of the Union 

Residing in a Member State of Which They Are Not Nationals, 1993 O.J. (L 329) 34, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legalcontent/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:31993L0109&from=EN, archived at http://perma.cc/4UUF-6TBS. 

74 TEU art. 14, para. 3; Act Concerning the Election of the Members of the European Parliament by Direct Universal 

Suffrage art. 1, para. 3. 

75 The requirement that the elections are conducted on the basis of proportional representation was introduced 

through an amendment in 2002. See Act Concerning the Election of the Members of the European Parliament by 

Direct Universal Suffrage art. 1, para. 1. 

76 2014 European Elections: National Rules, EUROPEAN PARLIAMENTARY RESEARCH SERVICE (EPRS) (Apr. 10, 

2014), http://www.europarl.europa.eu/eplibrary/InfoGraphic-2014-European-elections-national-rules.pdf, archived 

at http://perma.cc/FLG8-ATJN. 

77 European Parliament, Resolution of 11 November 2015 on the Reform of the Electoral Law of the European 

Union, 2015/2035(INL), http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+TA+P8-TA2015-0395+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN, archived at http://perma.cc/J8F9-HUD2. 
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reform of its own electoral procedure, with the aim of establishing a uniform procedure in all 

Member States. The proposal suggests the following: 

 Ballot papers used in the European elections should give equal visibility to the names and logos

of national parties and the European political parties to which they are affiliated to create a

clear link

 A twelve-week deadline for the completion of the national electoral lists

 Introduction of a mandatory threshold for obtaining seats in the European Parliament for bigger

EU-countries, ranging between 3% and 5%

 Right to vote abroad for all EU citizens living outside the EU

 Introduction of electronic and internet voting possibilities, as well as postal voting

 Introduction of EU-wide “lead candidates” (Spitzenkandidaten) for the EU Commission

Presidency and a common deadline of twelve weeks for their nomination by the European

political parties

 Creation of a cross-border joint European constituency, in which lists are headed by each

political group’s nominee for the post of president of the Commission78

The reform is currently blocked by the Council, which has expressed criticism with regard to the 

“lead candidate” idea, and by certain national parliaments, which allege that the European 

Parliament has overreached the legal basis on which the act is to be adopted in violation of the 

principle of subsidiarity.79 The principle of subsidiarity states that in policy areas in which the EU 

and the Member States share competences, the EU may only act if an EU objective can be better 

achieved at the EU level than at the national level.80

V. Legislative Process

A. Definition of EU Law

EU law is divided into primary law and secondary law. Primary law is made up of the founding 

treaties, now after several amendments called the TEU and the TFEU,81 the amending EU treaties, 

the protocols annexed to the founding and amending treaties, as well as the accession treaties for 

new EU Member States (collectively, “the Treaties”).82 Legal acts adopted on the basis of the 

78 Id. 

79 Legislative Train Schedule: Reform of the Electoral Law of the EU, EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT,

http://www.europarl.europa.eu/legislative-train/theme-union-of-democratic-change/file-reform-of-the-electoral-lawof-the-eu (last updated Dec. 20, 2017), archived at http://perma.cc/JS5W-D2GW. 

80 TEU art. 5, para. 3. 

81 See TFEU, supra note 12, and TEU, supra note 18. 

82 Primary Law, EUROPEAN UNION, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=LEGISSUM:l14530 (last 

updated Aug. 12, 2010), archived at http://perma.cc/LF39-XXEH. 
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Treaties are known as secondary law.83 According to article 288 of the TFEU, the EU institutions 

may adopt regulations, directives, decisions, recommendations, and opinions to achieve the aims 

set out in the Treaties.84 Regulations, directives, and decisions are binding legislative acts, whereas 

recommendations and opinions are nonbinding, nonlegislative acts.85

Regulations are directly applicable in all EU Member States once they enter into force without any 

national implementing legislation needed.86 

Directives on the other hand must be transposed into national law by the Member States. They are 

only binding with regard to the goal that the EU countries must achieve. The means are up to the 

individual Member States.87 The national method of implementation must be communicated to the 

Commission and must take place within a deadline specified in the directive. If a Member State 

does not transpose the directive by the deadline or transposes it incorrectly, the Commission may 

initiate infringement proceedings against the Member State before the European Court of 

Justice (ECJ).88

A decision is binding in its entirety on the specific addressee, which can be an EU Member State, 

an individual, or a company.89 Decisions enter into force upon notification to the addressee.90

B. Legislative Initiative 

In general, new EU legislation is proposed by the Commission.91 However, the EU Parliament, 

acting by a majority of its MEPs, and the Council, respectively, may request the Commission to 

submit any appropriate legislative proposal. If the Commission refuses to submit the proposal 

requested, it must explain its reasons.92 As an exception, a proposal for a legislative act may be 

submitted on the initiative of a group of Member States, on a recommendation by the European 

Central Bank, or at the request of the ECJ if provided for in the Treaties.93

 

83 Sources of European Union Law, EUROPEAN UNION, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri= 

LEGISSUM%3Al14534 (last updated Aug. 18, 2010), archived at http://perma.cc/9F6A-B7LD. 

84 TFEU art. 288, para. 1. 

85 Id. art. 288, para. 5; art. 289, paras. 1, 3. 

86 Id. art. 288, para. 2. 

87 Id. art. 288, para. 3. 

88 Id. art. 258. 

89 Id. art. 288, para. 4. 

90 Id. art. 288, para. 2. 

91 TEU art. 17, para. 2; TFEU art. 294, para. 2. 

92 TFEU arts. 225, 241. 

93 Id. art. 289, para. 4; art 294, para. 15. 
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The Commission may alter or withdraw its proposals at any time as long as the Council has not 

acted, meaning as long as the Council has not adopted its position after the first reading.94 If the 

Commission decides to withdraw a proposal, it must state to the European Parliament and the 

Council the reasons for it, including, if necessary, supporting evidence.95 The Council may amend 

a Commission proposal by unanimous vote.96

A Commission proposal is also forwarded to the national parliaments97 and, in cases required by 

the Treaties, to the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. National 

parliaments have a right to verify the compatibility of a legislative proposal with the principle of 

subsidiarity and proportionality and may submit a reasoned opinion within eight weeks if they 

consider these principles violated.98 As noted above, the principle of subsidiarity provides that in 

policy areas in which both the EU and the Member States may adopt legislation, the matter will 

be left to the national level unless the objective can be better achieved at the EU level.99 The 

principle of proportionality provides that EU action must be limited to what is necessary to achieve 

the objectives of the Treaties.100 If at least one-third of the national parliaments consider that a 

proposal violates the principle of subsidiarity, the Commission must review it and decide to 

maintain, amend, or withdraw it.101 If, during the ordinary legislative procedure, a simple majority 

of the national parliaments is of the opinion that a proposal does not comply with the principle of 

subsidiarity, the proposal must be reviewed by the Commission and, if maintained, must be 

reviewed by the European Parliament and the Council with regard to its compatibility before 

completion of the first reading.102

C. Types of EU Legislative Procedures 

EU legislative acts may be adopted by using the ordinary legislative procedure or special 

legislative procedures.103 Most EU legislation is adopted jointly by the European Parliament and 

the Council in the “ordinary legislative procedure.” The ordinary legislative procedure applies in 

 

94 Id. art. 293, para. 2; Case C-409/13, Council of the European Union v. European Commission, 

ECLI:EU:C:2015:217, http://curia.europa.eu/juris/celex.jsf?celex=62013CJ0409&lang1=en&type=TXT&ancre, 

archived at http://perma.cc/F8CG-8GXY. 

95 Case C-409/13, para. 76. 

96 TFEU art. 293, para. 1. 

97 TEU art. 12. 

98 Protocol No. 1 on the Role of National Parliaments in the European Union (Protocol No. 1) arts. 3, 4, 2016 O.J. 

(C 202) 203, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:9e8d52e1-2c70-11e6-b497-01aa75ed71a1.0006. 

01/DOC_4&format=PDF, archived at http://perma.cc/39U6-93KA; Protocol No. 2 on the Application of the 

Principles of Subsidiarity and Proportionality (Protocol No. 2) art. 6, 2016 O.J. (C 202) 206, http://eurlex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:9e8d52e1-2c70-11e6-b497-01aa75ed71a1.0006.01/DOC_4&format=PDF, 

archived at http://perma.cc/39U6-93KA. 

99 TEU art. 5, para. 3. 

100 Id. 

101 Protocol No. 2, supra note 98, art. 7, para. 2. 

102 Id. art. 7, para. 3. 

103 TFEU art. 289, paras. 1, 2. 
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eighty-five policy areas including, inter alia, the internal market, transport, environment, justice 

and home affairs, employment, social affairs, agriculture, fisheries, and common 

commercial policy.104

In other cases—special legislative procedures—the European Parliament has a more limited role 

and does not act as a co-legislator on an equal footing with the Council. These cases include 

taxation, internal market exemptions, and competition law. 

1. Ordinary Legislative Procedure (“Co-Decision”) 

The ordinary legislative procedure, formerly called a “co-decision” procedure, is the standard 

procedure used for the adoption of EU legislative acts. It requires the joint adoption by the 

European Parliament and the Council of legislative acts on a proposal by the Commission.105 There 

are up to three readings and the two institutions have to approve an identical text. Within the 

European Parliament, the proposals are examined by the appropriate committee (or several 

committees), which adopts a report and presents it to the plenary session.106 Within the Council, 

the proposals move from the working party (the equivalent of committees in the European 

Parliament), to the Committee of Permanent Representatives of the Governments of the Member 

States (Coreper), to the whole Council.107

a. First Reading 

The Commission submits its proposal to the European Parliament and the Council, and both 

institutions examine the proposal simultaneously. The European Parliament, however, has to adopt 

its position first and communicate it to the Council. The European Parliament, acting by a simple 

majority,108 may accept, reject, or amend the proposal. The position is communicated to the 

Council. If the Council approves the European Parliament’s position, the act will be adopted.109 If 

the Council proposes amendments, a second reading will take place in which the European 

Parliament considers the Council’s position.110 

 

104 EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, HANDBOOK ON THE ORDINARY LEGISLATIVE PROCEDURE 2 (Nov. 2017), 

http://www.epgencms.europarl.europa.eu/cmsdata/upload/10fc26a9-7f3e-4d8a-a46d-51bdadc9661c/handbook-olpen.pdf, archived at http://perma.cc/D6T8-FXPS. 

105 TFEU art. 289, para. 1; art. 294. 

106 Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament, supra note 39, rules 49–55. 

107 Council Decision of 1 December 2009 Adopting the Council’s Rules of Procedure (Rules of Procedure of the 

Council), annex, art. 19, 2009 O.J. (L 325) 35, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX: 

32009D0937&from=EN, archived at http://perma.cc/NX9M-XY3T. 

108 A “simple majority” means the majority of the votes cast. 

109 TFEU art. 294, paras. 3, 4. 

110 Id. art. 294, para. 5. 
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b. Second Reading 

If the European Parliament accepts the Council’s amendments in a second reading, or if it does not 

act within three months of receipt of the communication from the Council, the act is adopted.111 If 

the Parliament rejects the Council’s position by a majority of its component members (qualified 

majority), the act will not be adopted.112 If the European Parliament suggests amendments to the 

Council’s position and the Council agrees to these amendments in its second reading by a qualified 

majority,113 the act will be adopted.114 If however, the Council only agrees to some of the 

amendments, the proposal will be sent to the Conciliation Committee.115 The amendments are also 

forwarded to the Commission, which delivers an opinion on the amendments.116 If the Commission 

delivers a negative opinion on the proposed amendments, the Council can only accept them with 

a unanimous vote.117

c. Conciliation and Third Reading 

The Conciliation Committee is made up of the members of the Council and an equal number of 

MEPs (fifty-six members total). The task of the Conciliation Committee is to come up with a 

compromise text within six weeks. The joint text must be adopted by a qualified majority of the 

members of the Council and by a majority of the members representing the European Parliament 

in the Conciliation Committee.118 The Commission participates in the meetings but cannot vote on 

the joint text.119 If the Conciliation Committee cannot agree on a joint text within six weeks, the 

act will not be adopted.120 If the Conciliation Committee reaches an agreement on a joint text, it 

will be sent to the European Parliament and the Council for a third reading. If the joint text is 

approved after the third reading by a simple majority in the European Parliament and by a qualified 

majority in the Council, the act will be adopted. If the joint text is rejected by either institution or 

if the institutions do not make a decision within six weeks, the act will not be adopted.121

 

111 Id. art. 294, para. 7(a). 

112 Id. art. 294, para. 7(b). 

113 A “qualified majority” in the Council means 55% of the Member States (16 out of 28), representing at least 65% 

of the EU population. See TEU art. 16, para. 4; TFEU art. 238, para. 3. 

114 TFEU art. 294, para. 8(a). 

115 Id. art. 294, para. 8(b). 

116 Id. art. 294, para. 7(c). 

117 Id. art. 294, para. 9. 

118 Id. art. 294, para. 10. 

119 Id. art. 294, para. 11. 

120 Id. art. 294, para. 12. 

121 Id. art. 294, para. 13. 
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2. Special Legislative Procedures 

There are two types of special legislative procedures: consent and consultation. The Treaties do 

not specify how to conduct special legislative procedures and the rules are defined ad hoc on the 

basis of the relevant article that provides for this procedure. 

If the consent of the European Parliament is required, the European Parliament may only accept 

or reject a legislative proposal, but does not have the power to amend it. The Council has no veto 

right if the European Parliament rejects the proposal. The consent procedure is used when a 

proposal is adopted under article 352 of the TFEU, when it concerns the approval of an 

international agreement, in the case of a serious breach of fundamental rights that results in the 

suspension of certain rights of the Member State in question, for the accession of new EU 

members, or in arrangements for the withdrawal of a Member State from the EU, among others.122

In a consultation procedure, legislation is adopted by the Council, taking into account the 

nonbinding position of the European Parliament.123 Until the amendment of the Treaties in 2009, 

the consultation procedure was the most-used legislative procedure.124 The European Parliament 

may accept, reject, or propose amendments to the proposal by a simple majority. Although the 

opinion of the European Parliament is nonbinding, the Council may not take a decision without 

having received it. The consultation procedure is used in policy areas such as competition, 

monetary policy, employment and social policy, and certain measures of a fiscal nature in the areas 

of environment and energy. 

D. Signature and Entry into Force 

If a legislative act is adopted according to the ordinary legislative procedure, it will be signed by 

the President of the European Parliament and the President of the Council. If a legislative act is 

adopted under a special legislative procedure, it will only be signed by the President of the 

institution that adopted it.125 All legislative acts are published in the Official Journal of the 

European Union (O.J.). They enter into force on the date specified in the legislative act, or on the 

twentieth day following publication in the O.J. if no date has been specified.126 

 

122 TEU arts. 7, 49, 50; TFEU art. 218. 

123 TFEU art. 289, para. 2. 

124 EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, ACTIVITY REPORT ON CODECISION AND CONCILIATION. 14 JULY 2009 – 30 JUNE 2014

(7TH PARLIAMENTARY TERM) 3, http://www.europarl.europa.eu/code/information/activity_reports/activity_report_ 

2009_2014_en.pdf, archived at http://perma.cc/2NXX-BDSY. 

125 TFEU art. 297, para. 1. 

126 Id.