Article 14 The residents committee may set up residents groups, the heads of which shall be elected by these groups.
Article 15 Joint1 pledges of the residents shall be drawn2 up by the residents assembly through discussion, reported to the people's government of a city not divided into districts or of a municipal district or to an agency of either of them for the record, and implemented3 under the supervision4 of the residents committee. The residents shall observe the decisions of the residents assembly and the joint pledges of the residents.
The joint pledges of the residents shall not contravene5 the constitution, the laws, the regulations and the state policies.
Article 16 The funds needed by a residents committee for managing public welfare services in the residential6 area, upon decision of the residents assembly through discussion, may be raised from the residents on a voluntary basis, and may also be raised from beneficiary units in the residential area, subject to approval by such units; the accounts of revenues and expenditures7 shall be made public without delay for supervision by the residents.
Article 17 The funds needed for the work of a residents committee and their sources, and the scope, standards and sources of the financial subsidies8 for members of the residents committee shall be specified9 by the people's government of a city not divided into districts or of a municipal district, or by the people's government at a higher level, and the money shall be provided by it. With the approval of the residents assembly, appropriate subsidies may be granted by using some of the residents committee's financial revenues.
The office premises10 for a residents committee shall be made available by the local people's government through overall planning.
Article 18 Persons who have been deprived of political right in accordance with the law shall be included in residents groups. The residents committee shall exercise supervision over them and give them ideological11 education.
Article 19 State organs, public organizations, units of the armed forces, enterprises and institutions shall not join the organizations of the residents committees in their localities, but they shall support the work of these residents committees. When the residents committees in their localities discuss problems related to them and their presence becomes necessary, these units shall send representatives to the meetings. In the meantime, these units shall abide12 by the relevant decisions of the residents committees and the joint pledges of the residents.
The staff and workers of the units specified in the preceding paragraph and their family members, and servicemen and dependents living with them shall joint the residents committees in their residential areas; in areas where such families live in compact communities, dependents committees may be established separately to assume the responsibilities of the residents committees and conduct their work under the guidance of the people's government of cities not divided into districts or of municipal the work of the dependents committees, the financial subsidies for their members and their office premises shall be provided by the units they belong to.
Article 20 If a relevant department under the people's government of a municipality or a municipal district, in its work, needs the cooperation or a residents committee or one of its sub-committees, it shall seek the approval of the people's government of the municipality or of the municipal district or an agency of either of them, which shall make unified13 arrangements. The relevant departments under the people's government of a municipality or a municipal district may give professional guidance to the relevant sub-committees of the residents committees.
Article 21 This Law shall apply to the residents committees established in the localities under the people's governments of townships, nationality townships or towns.
Article 22 Measures for the implementation14 of this law shall be formulated15, in accordance with this Law, by the standing16 committees of the people's congresses of provinces, autonomous17 regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government.
Article 23 This Law shall enter into force on January 1, 1990. The Organic Regulations of the Urban Residents Committees, adopted by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on December 31, 1954, shall be abrogated as of the same date