Dimension: 3.1.2 Transparency of the legislative process

This dimension concerns the transparency of the legislative process, from the introduction of a proposal for a law to its adoption law by parliament. It also relates to how information about legislation is made available to the public, including the scope, channels, forms and timing of such information. 

Show more Show less

Aspiring goal

Based on a global comparative analysis, an aspiring goal for parliaments in the area of “transparency of the legislative process” is as follows:

Parliament makes available to the public all relevant information and documents generated throughout the legislative process. This includes: 

  • the full text and status of proposals for laws and revisions to existing legislation
  • all proposed amendments 
  • the parliamentary agenda and schedule
  • records and minutes of plenary and committee discussions and votes 
  • public and expert opinions submitted to or prepared for parliament
  • other reports and background information that form part of the record on a given piece of legislation. 

Information on draft legislation is made available on the parliamentary website in real time or as soon as it is available internally, and in formats that can easily be searched, downloaded, used and shared.

Assess your parliament against this dimension

Assessment criteria

No 1: Information about proposals for laws

Parliament publishes information about all proposals for laws in a timely manner, including the full text and status of proposals for laws or revisions to existing legislation.

No 2: Information generated during the legislative process

Parliament publishes all information generated during the legislative process in a timely manner. This includes the parliamentary agenda and schedules, the texts of all amendments, records of plenary and committee discussions and votes, and all other reports and background information created for or by parliament that form part of the record on a given piece of legislation, including public and expert opinions submitted to or prepared for parliament.

No 3: Accessibility of information

Information generated during the legislative process is made available on the parliamentary website in real time or as soon as it is available internally, in formats that can be easily accessed and understood by all groups in society.

How to complete this assessment

This dimension is assessed against several criteria, each of which should be evaluated separately. For each criterion, select one of the six descriptive grades (Non-existent, Rudimentary, Basic, Good, Very good and Excellent) that best reflects the situation in your parliament, and provide details of the evidence on which this assessment is based. 

The evidence for assessment of this dimension could include the following:

  • Provisions of parliament’s rules of procedure relating to the transparency of the legislative process
  • Other parliamentary and/or committee rules of procedure establishing obligations relating to legislative information
  • Links to website pages containing information about the legislative process
  • Parliamentary records including data such as the number of visits to legislation-related pages and the number of downloads

Where relevant, provide additional comments or examples that support the assessment.

Download this indicator

Get help with this assessment

The assessment of indicators involves diagnosing and considering strengths and weaknesses, i.e. the things parliament is doing well, and the things it could do better or more effectively, taking into account established good practices that are described in the indicators. 

Read the assessment guidance to find out what to consider when conducting an assessment against the Indicators. Find out how to prepare, how to set the objectives of the assessment, how to organize the process, and more. Contact the project partners for expert advice.

Download assessment guidanceGet expert advice

URL copied to clipboard