The Council of Experts on Climate Change has a statutory mandate based on the Federal Climate Change Act, which came into force in December 2019 and was amended in May 2021. The Act serves to gradually reduce Germany’s greenhouse gas emissions and, in its current version, sets a reduction of at least 65 percent by 2030 compared to 1990.

The work of the Council of Experts on Climate Change in the implementation of the Federal Climate Change Act includes the following tasks:

1. The Council of Experts on Climate Change shall review the annual greenhouse gas emissions data produced by the German Environment Agency, which shall be submitted annually in March for the previous year. These data are broken down into seven sectors:

   Energy
   

   Emissions in the energy sector were 205.4 Mt CO2 eq. in 2023, representing 30,5 % of total emissions for the year.

   Industry
   

   Emissions in the industrial sector were 155.0 Mt CO2 eq. in 2023, representing 23 % of total emissions for the year.

   Buildings
   

   Emissions from the buildings sector were 102.2 Mt CO2 eq. in 2023, representing 15,2 % of total emissions for the year.

   Traffic
   

   Emissions from the transport sector were 145.5 Mt CO2 eq. in 2023, representing 21,6 % of total emissions for the year.

   Agriculture
   

   Emissions in the agriculture sector were 60.3 Mt CO2 eq. in 2023, representing 8,9 % of total emissions for the year.

   Waste
   

   Emissions in the Waste Management and Other sector were 5.5 Mt CO2 eq. in 2023, representing 0,8 % of total emissions for the year.

   Land Use
   

   Emissions in the LULUCF sector represent a sink and were 3.6 Mt CO2 eq in 2023.

   The Council of Experts on Climate Change submits an evaluation of the published data to the Federal Government and the German Bundestag.

2. If the permissible annual emission quantity is exceeded, the Federal Government shall deliberate on the measures to be taken in the sector concerned or in other sectors or on cross-sectoral measures and shall adopt them as soon as possible. Prior to preparing the draft resolution on the measures the Council of Experts on Climate Change shall review the greenhouse gas reduction assumptions on which the measures are based. The result of the review shall be annexed to the draft decision.
3. The Federal Government shall seek the opinion of the Council of Climate Experts on the greenhouse gas reduction assumptions on which they are based before initiating the following measures: (1) changes in annual emission levels; (2) updating of the Climate Action Plan; (3) adoption of climate action programmes.
4. For the first time in 2022 and then every two years, it submits an expert report to the German Bundestag and the Federal Government on previous developments in greenhouse gas emissions, trends regarding annual emission levels and the effectiveness of measures with a view to achieving targets under the Federal Climate Change Act.
5. The Bundestag or the Federal Government may commission the Council of Experts on Climate Change with special reports.