1. History and Development of the Base
The Southeast University Jiangsu Provincial Local Legislation Research Base was established on the foundation of the Southeast University Local Legislation Research Center as a high-level think tank co-built by the Standing Committee of the Jiangsu Provincial People’s Congress and Southeast University. It serves as a research and service platform for conducting local legislative studies and providing intellectual support for local legislation. In 2016, under the leadership of Professor Meng Hongzhi, the Jiangsu Legislative Studies Association was established at SEU Law School under the auspices of the Jiangsu Law Society; in 2017, the team led by Professors Zhou Youyong and Meng Hongzhi received approval to establish the Ministry of Education’s Education Legislation Research Base; in 2019, Professor Meng Hongzhi’s team was recognized as a professional legislative team by the Jiangsu Department of Justice; in 2020, SEU formally approved the establishment of the Local Legislation Research Center; in 2022, with the approval of the Standing Committee of the Jiangsu Provincial People’s Congress, the Southeast University Jiangsu Provincial Local Legislation Research Base (hereinafter referred to as the “Base”) was upgraded from the original Local Legislation Research Center, serving as a high-level platform for local legislative research, policy consultation, and talent cultivation in Jiangsu Province. In 2024, the Base was included in the China Think Tank Index (CTTI) as a source think tank, marking a significant step toward becoming a nationally influential social science academic platform.
2. Organization and Key Tasks of the Base
The Base is hosted by Southeast University and led by Professor Meng Hongzhi as Director, with Professors Liu Qichuan, Yang Dengfeng, and Associate Professor Li Yuxing serving as Deputy Directors. The Base comprises over 40 researchers. Director Professor Meng Hongzhi has long been engaged in legislative studies, administrative law research, and legislative practice. He also holds multiple part-time positions related to legislation, including Executive Council Member and Academic Committee Member of the China Legislative Studies Association, President of the Jiangsu Legislative Studies Association, Legal Advisor to the Jiangsu Provincial People’s Government, Legislative Consultant to the Standing Committee of the Jiangsu Provincial People’s Congress, Decision-making Consultant to the Office of the Jiangsu Provincial Committee for Comprehensive Rule of Law, Member of Jiangsu Judicial Selection Committee, Chief Expert of Jiangsu Department of Justice Legislative Team, Chief Legal Consultant for Jiangsu Province and Nanjing City Law Society, Legal Advisor to Huai’an Municipal People’s Government, and Legislative Consultant to the Standing Committees of Suzhou, Wuxi, and Zhenjiang Municipal People’s Congresses.
The Base’s main tasks include: conducting theoretical and practical research on legislative studies; examining and evaluating assigned draft laws and regulations, providing recommendations and amendments; reviewing the legality of assigned provincial and municipal draft regulations and rules, providing expert opinions; analyzing major issues in the filing review of normative documents, providing expert review comments; sending staff to participate in the research and evaluation of major issues in provincial and municipal draft regulations and filing reviews; organizing research and seminars on local legislative theory and practice; arranging internships for doctoral and master’s students at the Provincial People’s Congress Standing Committee; drafting legislation or conducting preliminary research for legislative projects upon request; performing post-legislative evaluation; conducting specialized studies on significant theoretical and practical issues in local legislation upon request; and providing other legislative consultation, evaluation, and advisory services.
3. Legislative Service Activities of the Base
The Base serves major national and local legislative strategic needs. Since its establishment, it has annually undertaken more than 30 legislative consultation projects for the provincial and municipal People’s Congresses and governments, in addition to drafting legislation and conducting post-legislative evaluations. Many of its recommendations have been adopted by the Legislative Affairs Committee of the Jiangsu Provincial People’s Congress. Notable achievements include: 1) drafting the Jiangsu version of the Regulations on Government Information Disclosure, which received recognition from the Jiangsu Provincial Government Office; 2) Director Professor Meng Hongzhi participated in the 2020 Central Government Rule of Law Inspection, earning high praise from the Office of the Central Committee for Rule of Law; 3) Professor Meng Hongzhi and Lecturer Zhang Yunhao (Director of the Base Office) contributed to the drafting of the Jiangsu Provincial Administrative Procedure Regulations, receiving commendation from the Legislative Affairs Committee of the Jiangsu Provincial People’s Congress; 4) the Base’s participation in drafting the Measures for Handling Proposals by Deputies to the Jiangsu Provincial People’s Congress was approved by the 3rd Session of the 14th Jiangsu Provincial People’s Congress on January 22, 2025; 5) advisory opinions on the Revised Draft of Jiangsu Provincial Occupational Disease Prevention Regulations were adopted by the Legislative Affairs Committee; 6) advisory opinions on the Jiangsu Provincial Road Transport Regulations were adopted by the Legislative Affairs Committee; 7) of the 17 recommendations provided by the Education Legislation Research Base, one of the foundations of the Base, all have been adopted by the Policy and Regulation Department of the Ministry of Education.
The Base attaches great importance to social service. It regularly organizes academic seminars in collaboration with the Jiangsu Legislative Studies Association and SEU Law School, providing a platform for exchanging legislative theory and practice. It has established extensive cooperative mechanisms with courts, procuratorates, and government agencies at all levels to build student internship bases and promote innovative talent cultivation models in legislative research. Members of the Base regularly conduct lectures and training on rule of law governance and local legislation for party and government agencies, enterprises, and social organizations, contributing to the construction of a law-based China.
