The members of the CBCP are convened as a Plenary Assembly on a regular basis only twice a year. When the Plenary Assembly is not in session, it is the Permanent Council
which acts for and in behalf of the entire Conference.The Permanent Council, composed of ten elected members representing the Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao regions, acts in accordance with the Constitution and By-Laws of the
CBCP, and the policies and standing decisions of the Plenary Assembly.
The Council may be convened by the President at any time for the discharge of its regular functions or for special purposes. However, when the Council cannot
have a quorum, the members present, together with other CBCP members available, may also act for and in behalf of the Conference.
The Permanent Council's regular functions include ensuring that the decisions made during the
Plenary Assembly are properly executed and directing the activities of the Office and other agencies of the Conference. It is also tasked to prepare the agenda for the meetings of the Plenary Assembly and examine and approve the
Conference's annual budget, prior to submission and final approval of the Plenary Assembly.
A crucial function of the Permanent Council is to prepare the Joint Statements or Pastoral Letters of the Hierarchy on subject matters
decided on by the Plenary Assembly, and see to it that copies are sent to the members for comment and/or approval before they are officially released.
The Council is likewise mandated to work with the Episcopal Commissions and
assign to them functions of urgent character which may not have been taken up in the Plenary Assembly and which may not be provided for in the Constitution. It also has the power to set up temporary agencies for some particular
inquiry or for some limited sphere of actions.
