*****
COMMISSION DECISION
of 19 June 1987
on the clearance of the accounts presented by the Member States in respect of the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund, Guarantee Section, expenditure for 1983
(87/368/EEC)
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 729/70 of 21 April 1970 on the financing of the common agricultural policy (1), as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 3769/85 (2), and in particular Article 5 (2) thereof,
After consulting the Fund Committee,
Whereas, under Article 5 (2) (b) of Regulation (EEC) No 729/70, the Commission, on the basis of the annual accounts presented by the Member States, clears the accounts of the authorities and bodies referred to in Article 4 of that Regulation;
Whereas the Member States have transmitted to the Commission the documents required to clear the accounts for 1983 and the latter has carried out on-the-spot inspections as provided for in Article 9 (2) of Regulation (EEC) No 729/70;
Whereas Article 8 of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 1723/72 of 26 July 1972 on the clearance of the accounts of the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund, Guarantee Section (3), as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 422/86 (4), provides that the Decision to clear the accounts must include the determination of the amount of expenditure incurred in each Member State during the financial year in question recognized as chargeable to the Fund, Guarantee Section, and also the determination of the amount of the Community's financial resources still available in each Member State; whereas Article 99 of the Financial Regulation of 21 December 1977 (5) stipulates that the differences between the expenditure charged to the accounts for the relevant year under Article 98 of the Financial Regulation and that recognized by the Commission when the accounts are cleared must be charged in respect of the year during which the clearance takes place;
Whereas, under Articles 2 and 3 of Regulation (EEC) No 729/70, only refunds on exports to third countries and intervention to stabilize agricultural markets, respectively granted and undertaken according to Community rules within the framework of the common organization of agricultural markets, may be financed; whereas the inspections carried out show that a part of the expenditure declared by the Member States does not meet these conditions and therefore must be disallowed; whereas the amounts declared by each of the Member States concerned, those recognized as chargeable to the EAGGF, Guarantee Section, and the differences between the two amounts and the differences between the expenditure recognized as chargeable to the EAGGF, Guarantee Section, and that charged in respect of the year are shown in the Annex to this Decision;
Whereas the Member States have been fully informed of the corrections made to their accounts, and have been able to give their views thereon;
Whereas, with regard to France, Italy and the Netherlands, certain amounts shown in the Annex are not covered by this Decision since further verification is required; whereas these amounts must therefore be deducted from the expenditure declared in respect of the present year; whereas they will be cleared with the 1984 expendtiture;
Whereas expenditure disallowed for Italy comprised an amount of Lit 5 761 104 981 concerning consumption aid for olive oil and an amount of Lit 1 439 671 971 concerning export refunds, these amounts must be charged to the Member State under this Decision; whereas the special circumstances of these cases, however, justify reexamination by the Commission of the disallowance during the present clearance on the occasion of the clearance of the accounts for the subsequent year, provided the Member State provides the necessary evidence within two weeks of the date of notification of the present Decision; whereas the present Decision is nonetheless immediately executory;
Whereas, when clearing the accounts for preceding years, the Commission deferred its decision as to the validity or certain expenditure, and stated that it might either
recognize a further part or all of the expenditure disallowed, or reach a definite conclusion on certain expenditure provisionally financed; whereas the present Decision rules as to the further action to be taken with regard to these cases, the details of which have been notified to the Member States;
Whereas, with regard to Greece, Commission Decision 86/441/EEC (1) concerning the clearance of accounts of 1982 had refused Community financing of a certain sum because of the granting of national aids by Greece; whereas the present Decision takes into account that this amount had been refused, in allowing an amount of Dr 4 623 865 968; whereas the first Decision has, however, not been executed for an amount of Dr 4 804 749 681, following the order of the President of the Court of Justice of 24 September 1986; whereas it is consequently appropriate to treat the amount of Dr 4 804 749 681, that was excluded from the executed Decision relating to the clearance of accounts for 1982, as an expense the clearance of which was carried forward to 1983; whereas, consequently, the present Decision charges Greece with the net amount resulting from, on the one hand, the clearance of the 1982 accounts and, on the other hand, the re-examination of these expenses during the present clearance of accounts;
Whereas the Court of Justice, in its judgments in Cases 55/83 and 56/83, has annulled the Decisions relating to the clearance of accounts of Italy for the years 1976 and 1977, in so far as these had excluded from Community financing certain amounts concerning the distillation of table wine under Regulation (EEC) No 567/76 (2) and the distillation of wine made from table grapes under Regulation (EEC) 1944/78 (3); whereas the amount that should be accepted for Community financing in the present clearance Decision, in conformity with Article 176 of the Treaty, is, for the year 1977, Lit 6 507 010 080.
Whereas, in its judgment in Case 129/84, the Court of Justice annulled the clearance of the accounts of Italy for 1978, in so far as this clearance had disallowed the amounts of Lit 305 825 498 and Lit 797 492 672 concerning the dairy products sector; whereas these amounts must be recognized under the present accounts clearance operation, in accordance with Article 176 of the Treaty;
Whereas, in its judgment in Case 133/84, the Court of Jusitce annulled the decisions on the clearance of accounts of the United Kingdom for 1978 and 1979, in so far as these decisions had disallowed the amounts of £ 1 662 for 1978 and £ 71 946,92 and £ 586 571,56 for 1979, all amounts relating to the dairy products sector; whereas these amounts must be recognized under the present clearance of accounts, in accordance with Article 176 of the Treaty.
Whereas, pursuant to Council Regulation (EEC) No 1078/77 of 17 May 1977 introducing a system of premiums for the non-marketing of milk and milk products and for the conversion of dairy herds (4), as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 1300/84 (5), 60 % of the expenditure relating to these schemes is chargeable to the EAGFF Guarantee Section and 40 % is chargeable to the Guidance Section; whereas these schemes rank as intervention within the meaning of Article 3 of Regulation (EEC) No 729/70 and constitute a common measure within the meaning of Article 6 (1) of that Regulation; whereas it is therefore necessary to include Guidance Section expenditure when clearing the accounts in respect of expenditure financed by the EAGGF;
Whereas this Decision is without prejudice to any financial consequences which may be drawn in any subsequent clearance of accounts in respect of national aids or infringements for which the procedures started under Articles 93 and 169 of the Treaty are now being implemented or were terminated after 11 February 1986, or to any consequences relating to infringements committed in 1983 or to national aids incompatible with the Treaty paid in 1983 and liable to affect EAGGF expenditure during a year subsequent to 1983;
Whereas this Decision is without prejudice to any financial consequences resulting, during a subsequent accounts clearance procedure, from current investigations, from irregularities within the meaning of Article 8 of Regulation (EEC) No 729/70, or from judgments of the Court of Justice in cases now pending and relating to matters covered by this Decision,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
Article 1
The Member States' accounts, concerning expenditure financed by the EAGGF, Guarantee Section, in respect of 1983 are hereby cleared as indicated in the Annex to this Decision.
Article 2
The expenditure chargeable to the Member State shown at line 2 (e) of column (c) of the Annex for each of the Member States must be paid to the account referred to in Article 1 (1) of Regulation (EEC) No 3184/83 or to the account of the paying department or agency within one month of the notification of this Decision. Should a Member State be entitled to payment of additional expenditure, it shall draw the amount shown in line 2 (e) of column (c) in the Annex from one of the abovementioned accounts, within the same time limit.
Article 3
This Decision is addressed to the Member States with the exception of Spain and Portugal.
Done at Brussels, 19 June 1987.