The Bundesrat meets in plenary session about 11 times a year. The session always begins at 9:30 a.m. It often has 50 or 60 agenda items, sometimes more than 80. One or two items are debated in full. On average the session ends after three to four hours. Many speeches are not delivered at all but handed in for the record.
The work is done beforehand. Zwei Wochen vor der Plenarsitzung müssen die Ausschüsse ihre Beratungen abgeschlossen haben. The committees must finish their deliberations two weeks before the plenary. Each state must agree its position among its own ministries before the committee meets. Two days before the plenary, the session is reviewed again in the light of the state cabinets’ decisions.