1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 1
This document is meant purely as a documentation tool and the institutions do not assume any liability for its contents
►B COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 1260/1999
of 21 June 1999
laying down general provisions on the Structural Funds
(OJ L 161, 26.6.1999, p. 1)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
►M1 Council Regulation (EC) No 1447/2001 of 28 June 2001 L 198 1 21.7.2001
►M2 Council Regulation (EC) No 1105/2003 of 26 May 2003 L 158 3 27.6.2003
Amended by:
►A1 Act concerning the conditions of accession of the Czech Republic, the
Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia,the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic ofMalta, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak
Republic and the adjustments to the Treaties on which the European
Union is foundedL 236 33 23.9.2003
▼B
COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 1260/1999
of 21 June 1999
laying down general provisions on the Structural Funds
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and
in particular Article 161 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1),
Having regard to the assent of the European Parliament (2),
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social
Committee (3),
Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions (4),
(1) Whereas Article 158 of the Treaty states that, in order to
strenghten its economic and social cohesion, the Community
shall aim at reducing disparities between the levels of develop-
ment of the various regions and the backwardness of the least-favoured regions or islands, including rural areas; whereasArticle 159 provides for that action to be supported through theStructural Funds, the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the
other existing financial instruments;
(2) Whereas Article 19 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2052/88 of
24 June 1988 on the tasks of the Structural Funds and their
effectiveness and on coordination of their activities between
themselves and with the operations of the European InvestmentBank and the other existing financial instruments (
5), requires
the Council to re-examine that Regulation on the basis of aCommission proposal before 31 December 1999; whereas, in
order to improve the transparency of Community legislation, it
is desirable to bring together all the provisions concerning theStructural Funds into a single Regulation and to repeal Regula-tion (EEC) No 2052/88 and Council Regulation (EEC) No 4253/88 of 19 December 1988 laying down provisions for imple-menting Regulation (EEC) No 2052/88 as regards the
coordination of the activities of the different Structural Funds,
on the one hand, between themselves and with the operations ofthe European Investment Bank and the other existing financialinstruments, on the other hand (
6);
(3) Whereas, by virtue of Article 5 of Protocol 6 on special provi-sions for Objective 6 in the framework of the Structural Fundsin Finland and Sweden, attached to the Act of Accession ofAustria, Finland and Sweden, the provisions of that Protocol
should be re-examined before the end of 1999, simultaneously
with Regulation (EEC) No 2052/88;
(4) Whereas in order to increase the concentration and simplify theoperation of the Structural Funds the number of priority objec-tives should be reduced as compared with Regulation (EEC)No 2052/88; whereas those objectives should be redefined aspromoting the development and structural adjustment of regionswhose development is lagging behind, economic and social
conversion of areas facing structural difficulties and adapting
and modernising policies and systems of education, training andemployment;1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 2
(1) OJ C 176, 9.6.1998, p. 1.
(2) Assent delivered on 6 May 1999 (not yet published in the Official Journal).
(3) OJ C 407, 28.12.1998, p. 74.
(4) OJ C 373, 2.12.1998, p. 1.
(5) OJ L 185, 15.7.1988, p. 9. Regulation as last amended by Regulation (EC)
No 3193/94 (OJ L 337, 24.12.1994, p. 11).
(6) OJ L 374, 31.12.1988, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation (EC)
No 3193/94.
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(5) Whereas in its efforts to strengthen economic and social cohe-
sion the Community also seeks to promote the harmonious,
balanced and sustainable development of economic activities, ahigh level of employment, equality between men and womenand a high level of protection and improvement of the environ-ment; whereas those efforts should in particular integrate therequirements of environmental protection into the design and
implementation of the operations of the Structural Funds and
help to eliminate inequalities and promote equality betweenmen and women; whereas the Funds' operations may also makeit possible to combat any discrimination on the grounds of race,ethnic origin, disability or age by means in particular of an
evaluation of needs, financial incentives and an enlarged partner-
ship;
(6) Whereas cultural development, the quality of the natural and theman-made environment, the qualitative and cultural dimensionof life and the development of tourism contribute to makingregions economically and socially more attractive in so far asthey encourage the creation of sustainable employment;
(7) Whereas the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) isthe primary contributor to attaining the objective of promotingthe development and structural adjustment of the regions whosedevelopment is lagging behind and economic and social conver-sion of areas facing structural difficulties;
(8) Whereas the tasks of the European Social Fund (ESF) should beadjusted in order to take account of and to implement the
European employment strategy;
(9) Whereas the structural aspects of the common fisheries policy
have been integrated as a full structural policy under the rulesgoverning the Structural Funds since 1993; whereas implementa-tion should continue under the Structural Funds through theFinancial Instrument for Fisheries Guidance (FIFG); whereas
assistance from FIFG in Objective 1 shall form part of the
programming of this Objective and the assistance outsideObjective 1 shall be subject to a single programme in eachMember State concerned;
(10) Whereas the Community has undertaken a reform of thecommon agricultural policy which includes structural and
accompanying measures for promoting rural development;
whereas in this context the Guidance Section of the EuropeanAgricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF) shouldcontinue to contribute to attaining the priority objective of thedevelopment and structural adjustment of the regions whosedevelopment is lagging behind, by improving the efficiency of
the structures of production, processing and marketing of agri-
cultural and forest products and developing local potential inrural areas; whereas the EAGGF Guarantee Section contributesto attaining the priority objective of economic and social conver-sion of areas facing structural difficulties, in accordance with
Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/1999 of 17 May 1999 on
support for rural development from the European AgriculturalGuidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF) and amending andrepealing certain Regulations (
1);
(11) Whereas the specific rules applicable to each Fund are to be setout in the implementing Decisions adopted pursuant to
Articles 37, 148 and 162 of the Treaty;
(12) Whereas the criteria for designating eligible regions and areas
should be specified; whereas, to this end, it is appropriate thatthe identification of the priority regions and areas at Communitylevel should be based on the common system of classification ofthe regions, referred to as the ‘Nomenclature of TerritorialStatistical Units (NUTS)’ established by the Statistical Office of1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 3
(1) OJ L 160, 26.6.1999, p. 80.
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the European Communities in cooperation with the national
institutes for statistics;
(13) Whereas regions whose development is lagging behind should bedefined as those whose per capita GDP is less than 75 % of the
Community average; whereas, in order to ensure an effective
concentration of assistance, the Commission should apply thiscriterion strictly, using objective statistical data; whereas theoutermost regions and areas with a very low population densitycovered by Objective 6 as set out in Protocol 6 attached to the
Act of Accession of Austria, Finland and Sweden for the period
1995 to 1999 should also be covered by Objective 1 under thisRegulation;
(14) Whereas the areas undergoing economic and social conversionshould be defined as those which include areas undergoingsocio-economic change in the industrial and service sectors,declining rural areas, urban areas in difficulty and depressed
areas dependent on fisheries; whereas this assistance should be
properly concentrated on the most seriously affected parts ofthe Community; whereas these areas should be designated bythe Commission acting on a proposal from the Member Statesand in close concertation with them;
(15) Whereas, to ensure the Community nature of the operations ofthe Funds, the areas undergoing socio-economic change in the
industrial sector and the declining rural areas should, as far as
possible, be designated on the basis of objective indicatorsdefined at Community level; whereas, furthermore, the popula-tion covered by this priority objective taken over theCommunity as a whole, for guidance, should constitute about10 % of the population of the Community in the case of the
industrial areas, 5 % in the case of the rural areas, 2 % in the
case of the urban areas and 1 % in the case of the fisheries areas;whereas, in order to ensure that each Member State makes a faircontribution to the overall effort towards concentration, themaximum possible reduction in population covered by
Obejctive 2 in 2006, set out in this Regulation, must not exceed
one third compared to the coverage under Objectives 2 and 5b in1999, set out in Regulation (EEC) No 2052/88;
(16) Whereas, in the interests of efficient programming, the regionswhose development is lagging behind where per capita GDP isless than 75 % of the Community average should be the sameas the areas assisted by the Member States pursuant to
Article 87(3)(a) of the Treaty and, taking account of any specific
measures adopted pursuant to Article 299(2) of that Treaty infavour of the outermost regions (the French overseas depart-ments, the Azores, Madeira and the Canary Islands); whereas,similarly, the areas undergoing economic and social changeshould correspond to a large extent to the areas assisted by the
Member States pursuant to Article 87(3)(c) of the Treaty;
whereas the objective of the Community should be to increaseconsistency at the end of the period 2000 to 2006 by an appro-priate effort by Member States with regard to their currentsituation;
(17) Whereas the objective of adapting and modernising policies and
systems of education, training and employment is to provide
financial assistance in the regions and areas not covered byObjective 1; whereas Objective 3 should also provide a frameof reference to ensure consistency with all operations for humanresources in a given Member State;
(18) Whereas the ESF assistance within Objective 2 should be theregional and local actions which respond to the specific situation
in an Objective 2 area and which are coordinated with the inter-
ventions of the other Structural Funds; whereas any ESFcontribution to an Objective 2 single programming documentmust be of sufficient size to justify its separate management,and should therefore not amount to less than 5 % of the totalStructural Funds contribution;1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 4
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(19) Whereas the regions covered by a priority objective in 1999
which no longer satisfy the eligibility criteria should receive a
gradually declining level of transitional support; whereas thissupport should be lower in 2000 than in 1999;
(20) Whereas there should be provision for allocating shares of theavailable resources; whereas these resources should be allocatedannually, being significantly concentrated on regions whosedevelopment is lagging behind, including those receiving transi-tional support;
(21) Whereas total annual receipts in any Member State from Struc-tural Funds under this Regulation — in combination with
assistance provided under the Cohesion Fund — should be
limited under this general capping dependent on the nationalabsorption capacity;
(22) Whereas the Commission should work out indicative allocationsof the available commitment appropriations under each of thepriority objectives, basing itself on appropriate objective criteria;whereas 4 % of appropriations allocated in this way to the
Member States should be allocated by the Commission at the
mid-term point; whereas, in recognition of the special effortsfor the peace process in Northern Ireland, the PEACEprogramme should continue up to 2004; whereas a specialprogramme of assistance for the period 2000 to 2006 shall beestablished for the Swedish NUTS-II regions which are not
covered by the list referred to in Article 3(2) and which meet
the criteria laid down in Article 2 of Protocol 6 to the Act ofAccession for Austria, Sweden and Finland;
(23) Whereas 5,35 % of the total commitment appropriations avail-able should be devoted to the Community initatives and 0,65 %to innovative schemes and to technical assistance;
(24) Whereas the appropriations available to the Structural Fundsshould be indexed on a flat-rate basis for programming purposesand, if necessary, a technical adjustment to that indexationshould be made before 31 December 2003;
(25) Whereas the main principles of the 1988 reform of the StructuralFunds should continue to govern the Funds until 2006; whereas,
however, experience to date has demonstrated the need for
improvements to make these principles simpler and more trans-parent; whereas effectiveness should in particular be regarded asa fundamental principle;
(26) Whereas, if the operations of the Structural Funds are to beeffective and transparent, the responsibilities of the MemberStates and of the Community should be precisely defined;
whereas those responsibilities should be specified for each stage
of programming, monitoring, evaluation and supervision;whereas, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, andwithout prejudice to the powers vested in the Commission,implementing and monitoring assistance should be primarily theresponsibility of the Member States;
(27) Whereas the action of the Community should be complementaryto, or intended to contribute to, the action of Member States;
whereas, in order to ensure significant added value, partnership
should be strengthened; whereas this concerns the regional andlocal authorities, the other competent authorities, including thoseresponsible for the environment and for the promotion ofequality between men and women, the economic and social part-
ners and other competent bodies; whereas the relevant partners
shall be associated in the preparation, monitoring and evaluationof assistance;
(28) Whereas the programming process should be laid down fromoriginal conception to final beneficiary, and should be facilitatedin the Member States by broad indicative guidelines drawn upby the Commission on relevant and agreed Community policiesin relation to the Structural Funds;1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 5
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(29) Whereas programming should ensure the coordination of the
Structural Funds with one another and with the other existing
financial instruments and the EIB; whereas that coordinationextends to combining grants and loans;
(30) Whereas the activities of the Funds and the operations whichthey help to finance must be compatible with other Communitypolicies and comply with Community legislation, and specificprovisions should be laid down; whereas in this field operationsto disseminate and exploit the results of research and technolo-
gical development conducted in the context of the Structural
Funds must ensure the protection of rights relating to theobtaining and exploitation of knowledge and be carried out inaccordance with Community rules on competition;
(31) Whereas simpler criteria and detailed rules for the verificationand implementation of the principle of additionality should belaid down;
(32) Whereas the system of programming should be simplified byfixing a uniform lifetime for programming of seven years;
whereas to that end the forms and number of assistance schemes
should be limited and should normally consist of a single inte-grated assistance for each region, by making singleprogramming documents the norm for the priority objectivesand by including major projects and global grants in the otherforms of assistance;
(33) Whereas, in order to reinforce the integrated approach to devel-opment, steps should be taken — with due regard to the specific
features of the regions concerned — to ensure consistency
between the operations of the various Funds and the Communitypolicies, the strategy for employment, the economic and socialpolicies of the Member States and the regional policies of theMember States;
(34) Whereas, in order to speed up and simplify programming proce-dures, the responsibilities of the Commission should bedistinguished from those of the Member States; whereas, there-
fore, provisions should be made for the Commission, acting on
a proposal from the Member States, to adopt the strategies anddevelopment priorities that are to govern the programming aswell as the size of the financial contribution from the Commu-nity, and the implementing arrangements linked to them, while
the Member States are to decide on their application; whereas
the content of the various forms of assistance should also bespecified;
(35) Whereas such decentralised implementation of the operations ofthe Structural Funds by the Member States should provide suffi-cient guarantees as to the details and quality of implementation,the results of operations and their evaluation and sound financialmanagement and its supervision;
(36) Whereas the Commission, in association with the EIB whereappropriate, should approve major investment projects whose
financial volume exceeds a specified sum with a view to evalu-
ating their impact and the proposed use of Community resources;
(37) Whereas there should be provision for operations of Communityinterest carried out at the initiative of the Commission to supple-ment those implemented under the priority objectives;
(38) Whereas these Community initiatives should concentrate onpromoting cross-border, transnational and inter-regional coopera-tion (Interreg), economic and social regeneration of cities andurban neighbourhoods in crisis (URBAN), both to be financed
by the ERDF, rural development (Leader), to be financed by
the EAGGF Guidance Section, and the development of humanresources in the context of equal opportunities (EQUAL), to befinanced by the ESF; whereas the promotion of cross-bordercooperation — in particular in the perspective of enlargement,transnational and inter-regional cooperation — takes on parti-1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 6
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cular significance in this context; whereas due attention should
be given to cooperation with the outermost regions; whereas itis necessary to reinforce the coordination of cross-border, trans-
national and inter-regional cooperation with the measures
enacted in the context of Council Regulation (EEC) No 3906/89 (
1), Council Regulation (Euratom, EC) No 1279/96 (2) and
Council Regulation (EC) No 1488/96 (3), especially in view of
the enlargement of the European Union and taking account of
the Europe-Mediterranean partnership; whereas due account
should be taken of the social and vocational integration ofasylum seekers in the framework of EQUAL;
(39) Whereas the Structural Funds should provide support for studies,pilot projects and exchanges of experience in order to promoteinnovative approaches and practices through simple and trans-parent implementation;
(40) Whereas, in order to strengthen the leverage effect of Commu-
nity resources by favouring as far as possible recourse to
private sources of financing and to take better account of theprofitability of the projects, the forms of assistance availablefrom the Structural Funds should be diversified and the rates ofassistance differentiated with a view to promoting the Commu-nity interest, encouraging the use of a wide range of financial
resources and limiting the contribution of the Funds by encoura-
ging the use of appropriate forms of assistance; whereas, to thatend, reduced rates of intervention should be established in thecase of investments in forms and infrastructure projects whichgenerate substantial revenue; whereas for the purpose of this
Regulation, substantial net revenue should be tentatively defined
as revenue higher than at least 25 % of the total cost of theinvestment concerned;
(41) Whereas, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, therules on eligible expenditure should be the relevant nationalrules where there are no Community rules, although they maybe laid down by the Commission where they are clearly needed
for the uniform and equitable implementation of the Structural
Funds across the Community; whereas, however, the startingand closing dates for the eligibility of expenditure should bedefined and it should be stipulated that investment projects maynot undergo major modification; whereas consequently, in orderto ensure the efficiency and durable impact of the Funds' assis-
tance, all or part of the assistance from a Fund should remain
attached to an operation only where its nature or its implementa-tion conditions do not undergo a substantial modification whichwould result in diverting the assisted operation from its originalobjectives;
(42) Whereas the rules and procedures for making commitments and
payments should be simplified; whereas to that end budget
commitments should be made once a year in accordance withthe multiannual financial perspective and with the financingplan for assistance, whilst payments should be made in theform of an advance followed by the reimbursement of actualexpenditure incurred; whereas, in accordance with established
case law, any interest earned on the advance payment should be
regarded as resources for the Member State concerned, and inorder to strengthen the impact of the Funds, it should be allo-cated to the same purpose as the advance payment itself;
(43) Whereas sound financial management should be assured byproviding that expenditure is to be duly justified and certified,and by linking payments to compliance with essential responsi-1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 7
(1) OJ L 375, 23.12.1989, p. 11 (PHARE). Regulation as last amended by
Council Regulation (EC) No 753/96 (OJ L 103, 26.4.1996, p. 5).
(2) OJ L 165, 4.7.1996, p. 1 (TACIS).
(3) OJ L 189, 30.7.1996, p. 1 (MEDA). Regulation as last amended by Council
Regulation (EC) No 780/98 (OJ L 113, 15.4.1998, p. 2).
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bilities as to the monitoring of programming, financial controls
and the application of Community law;
(44) Whereas, to ensure sound management of Community resources,
improvements should be made to the forecasting and imple-
menting of expenditure; whereas to that end the Member Statesshould regularly send the Commission their forecasts of the useof Community resources, and any delays in financial implemen-tation should give rise to repayment of advances and to
automatic decommitments;
(45) Whereas, throughout the transitional period from 1 January 1999
to 31 December 2001, all references to the euro should normallybe read as references to the euro as a monetary unit as referredto in the second sentence of Article 2 of Council Regulation(EC) No 974/98 of 3 May 1998 on the introduction of
the euro (
1);
(46) Whereas one way of ensuring that the operations of the Struc-
tural Funds are effective is efficient monitoring; whereasmonitoring should be improved and responsibilities in this fieldbetter defined; whereas, in particular, management functionsshould be distinguished from monitoring functions;
(47) Whereas there should be a single managing authority for eachassistance, with defined responsibilities; whereas these responsi-bilities should primarily include collecting data on outcomes andreporting this data to the Commission, ensuring sound financialimplementation, organising evaluations and complying with obli-
gations relating to publicity and Community law; whereas
accordingly there should be provision for regular meetingsbetween the Commission and the managing authority to monitorthe assistance;
(48) Whereas it should be stipulated that the Monitoring Committeesare bodies appointed by the Member State supervising assis-
tance, checking on how it is being managed by the managing
authority, ensuring compliance with its own guidelines andimplementing rules and reviewing evaluations;
(49) Whereas indicators and annual reports on implementation areessential for monitoring and should be better defined so as toreflect reliably the progress of assistance schemes and the
quality of programming;
(50) Whereas, in order to guarantee efficient and correct implementa-
tion, the obligations of the Member States should be laid downwith regard to management and supervision systems, the certifi-cation of expenditure and the prevention, detection andcorrection of irregularities and of infringements of Community
law;
(51) Whereas, without prejudice to the Commission's responsibilities
for financial control, cooperation between the Member Statesand the Commission in this regard should be improved, in parti-cular through provision for regular consultations between the
Member States and the Commission to consider the measures
taken by the Member States and to permit the Commission torequest corrective measures where necessary;
(52) Whereas the responsibility of the Member States for the pursuitand correction of irregularities and infringements, and that of theCommission where the Member States do not comply with their
obligations, should be specified;
(53) Whereas the effectiveness and impact of the operations of the
Structural Funds also depend on improved and more thoroughevaluation; whereas the responsibilities of the Member Statesand the Commission in this regard and arrangements to ensurethe reliability of evaluation should be laid down;1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 8
(1) OJ L 139, 11.5.1998, p. 1.
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(54) Whereas assistance schemes should be evaluated with a view to
their preparation, mid-term review and assessment of their
impact, and the evaluation process should be incorporated intothe monitoring of assistance; whereas to that end the aims andcontent of each stage of evaluation should be defined, and theevaluation of the situation as regards the social and economicsituation, the environment and equality between men and women
should be improved;
(55) Whereas the mid-term evaluation and the withholding of part of
the original appropriations as a reserve enable supplementaryfunding to be allocated within each Member State on a perfor-
mance-related basis; whereas such allocations should be based
on objective, simple and transparent criteria which reflect effi-ciency and the quality of management and financial execution;
(56) Whereas a report is to be presented every three years on the
progress made towards economic and social cohesion, which
should include an analysis of the situation of the regions of theCommunity and their economic and social development;
(57) Whereas, in the interests of a good working partnership and the
proper promotion of Community assistance, the broadest
possible information and publicity about it should be provided;whereas the authorities responsible for managing assistanceshould be responsible for this aspect and for keeping theCommission informed of measures taken;
(58) Whereas rules should be laid down for the operation of thecommittees called upon to assist the Commission in imple-menting this Regulation;
(59) Whereas detailed transitional provisions should be laid down toallow preparation of new programming immediately on entryinto force of this Regulation and to ensure that assistance toMember States is not interrupted pending the production ofregional development plans and assistance schemes in accor-
dance with the new system,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
TITLE I
GENERAL PRINCIPLES
CHAPTER I
OBJECTIVES AND TASKS
Article 1
Objectives
Community action through the Structural Funds, the Cohesion Fund,
the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF),
Guarantee Section, the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the otherexisting financial instruments shall support the achievement of thegeneral objectives set out in Articles 158 and 160 of the Treaty. TheStructural Funds, the EIB and the other existing financial instrumentsshall each contribute in appropriate fashion to the attainment of the
following three priority objectives:
1. promoting the development and structural adjustment of regions
whose development is lagging behind, hereinafter referred to as‘Objective 1’;
2. supporting the economic and social conversion of areas facing struc-
tural difficulties, hereinafter referred to as ‘Objective 2’;
3. supporting the adaptation and modernisation of policies and systems
of education, training and employment, hereinafter referred to as‘Objective 3’. This objective shall provide financial assistanceoutside the regions covered by Objective 1 and provide a policy1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 9
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frame of reference for all measures to promote human resources in a
national territory without prejudice to the specific features of eachregion.
In pursuing these objectives, the Community shall contribute to the
harmonious, balanced and sustainable development of economic activ-ities, the development of employment and human resources, theprotection and improvement of the environment, and the eliminationof inequalities, and the promotion of equality between men and
women.
Article 2
Means and tasks
1. For the purposes of this Regulation, ‘Structural Funds’ shall mean
the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the EuropeanSocial Fund (ESF), the European Agricultural Guidance and GuaranteeFund (EAGGF), Guidance Section, and the Financial Instrument forFisheries Guidance (FIFG), hereinafter referred to as ‘the Funds’.
2. In accordance with Articles 33, 146 and 160 of the Treaty, the
Funds shall contribute, each according to the specific provisionsgoverning its operations, to the attainment of Objectives 1, 2 and 3, asfollows:
(a) Objective 1: ERDF, ESF, EAGGF Guidance Section and FIFG;
(b) Objective 2: ERDF and ESF;
(c) Objective 3: ESF.
3. The FIFG shall contribute to structural actions in the fisheries
sector outside Objective 1 regions in accordance with Council Regula-
tion (EC) No 1263/1999 of 21 June 1999 on the financial instrumentfor fisheries guidance (
1).
The EAGGF Guarantee Section shall contribute to the attainment of
Objective 2 in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1257/1999.
4. The Funds shall contribute to financing Community initiatives
and to supporting innovative measures and technical assistance.
Technical assistance measures shall be carried out within the frame-
work of the programming defined in Articles 13 to 27 or at theinitiative of the Commission under Article 23.
5. The other resources of the Community budget which may be used
to attain the Objectives referred to in Article 1 are in particular those
allocated to other structural measures and to the Cohesion Fund.
The Commission and the Member States shall ensure that the opera-
tions of the Funds are consistent with other Community policies andoperations, in particular in the areas of employment, equality betweenmen and women, social policy and vocational training, the common
agricultural policy, the common fisheries policy, transport, energy and
the trans-European networks and the incorporation of the requirementsof environmental protection into the definition and implementation ofthe operations of the Funds.
6. The EIB shall cooperate in attaining the objectives set out in
Article 1, in accordance with the procedures laid down in its Statute.
The other existing financial instruments which may contribute, each
according to the specific provisions governing its operations, to
attaining the Objectives referred to in Article 1 include the EuropeanInvestment Fund and the European Atomic Energy Community(Euratom) (loans, guarantees), hereinafter ‘the other financial instru-ments’.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 10
(1) See page 54 of this Official Journal.
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CHAPTER II
GEOGRAPHICAL ELIGIBILITY FOR THE PRIORITY OBJEC-
TIVES
Article 3
Objective 1
1. The regions covered by Objective 1 shall be regions corre-
sponding to level II of the Nomenclature of Territorial StatisticalUnits (NUTS level II) whose per capita GDP, measured in purchasing
power parities and calculated on the basis of Community figures for the
last three years available on 26 March 1999, is less than 75 % of theCommunity average.
For the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary,
Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia, the regions covered by Objective1 shall be regions corresponding to NUTS level II whose per capita
GDP, measured in purchasing power parities and calculated on the
basis of Community figures for the years 1997-1998-1999, is less than75 % of the Community average at the time of conclusion of the acces-sion negotiations.
The outermost regions (the French overseas departments, the Azores,
the Canary Islands and Madeira), which are all below the 75 %
threshold, and the areas eligible under Objective 6 for the period 1995
to 1999 pursuant to Protocol 6 to the Act of Accession of Austria,Finland and Sweden shall also be covered by this Objective.
2. The Commission shall draw up the list of regions covered by
Objective 1 strictly in accordance with the first and second subpara-graphs of paragraph 1, without prejudice to Article 6(1) and Article
7(4), second subparagraph.
This list shall be valid for seven years from 1 January 2000. For the
Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta,Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia this list shall be valid from the date of
accession until 31 December 2006.
Article 4
Objective 2
1. The regions covered by Objective 2 shall be those with structural
problems whose socio-economic conversion is to be supported inaccordance with Article 1(2) and whose population or area is suffi-ciently substantial. They shall include in particular areas undergoingsocio-economic change in the industrial and service sectors, decliningrural areas, urban areas in difficulty and depressed areas dependent on
fisheries.
2. The Commission and the Member States shall seek to ensure that
assistance is genuinely concentrated on the areas most seriouslyaffected and at the most appropriate geographical level. The population
of the areas referred to in paragraph 1 shall not exceed 18 % of the
total population of the Community. Accordingly, the Commission shalllay down a population ceiling for each Member State on the basis ofthe following factors:
(a) the total population in the NUTS III areas of each Member State
which meet the criteria referred to in paragraphs 5 and 6;
(b) the severity of the structural problems at national level in each
Member State as compared with the other Member Statesconcerned. Such severity shall be assessed on the basis of totalunemployment and long-term unemployment outside the regionseligible under Objective 1;1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 11
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(c) the need to ensure that each Member State makes a fair contribu-
tion to the overall concentration effort as defined in thissubparagraph; the maximum reduction in the population covered
by Objective 2 shall not exceed one third compared to the popula-
tion covered by Objectives 2 and 5b as set out in Regulation (EEC)No 2052/88, in 1999. ►
A1 For the Czech Republic, Estonia,
Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia andSlovakia, the population ceiling for Objective 2 support shall be
31 % of the population of all NUTS II regions covered by Objec-
tive 2 in each of these countries. ◄
The Commission shall provide the Member States with all the informa-
tion it has available about the criteria set out in paragraphs 5 and 6.
3. Subject to the ceilings referred to in paragraph 2, the Member
States shall propose to the Commission a list of significant areas repre-senting:
(a) the NUTS level III regions, or the most seriously affected areas
within those regions, which satisfy either the criteria set out inparagraph 5 or those set out in paragraph 6;
(b) the areas satisfying the criteria referred to in paragraph 7 or
paragraph 8 or Member States' specific criteria referred to inparagraph 9.
The Member States shall provide the statistics and other information, at
the most appropriate geographical level, which the Commissionrequires to evaluate these proposals.
4. On the basis of the information referred to in paragraph 3, the
Commission, in close concertation with the Member State concerned,shall draw up the list of areas eligible under Objective 2 with dueregard to national priorities, without prejudice to Article 6(2).
The areas meeting the criteria in paragraphs 5 and 6 must contain at
least 50 % of the population covered by Objective 2 in each MemberState, except where duly justified by objective circumstances.
5. The areas undergoing socio-economic change referred to in
paragraph 1 shall represent or belong to a NUTS level III territorial
unit which satisfies the following criteria:
(a) an average rate of unemployment over the last three years above
the Community average;
(b) a percentage share of industrial employment in total employment
equal to or greater than the Community average in any reference
year from 1985 onwards;
(c) an observable fall in industrial employment compared with the
reference year chosen in accordance with (b).
6. The rural areas referred to in paragraph 1 must represent or
belong to a NUTS level III territorial unit which satisfies the followingcriteria:
(a) either a population density of less than 100 people per km
2,o ra
percentage share of agricultural employment in total employmentwhich is equal to, or higher than, twice the Community average inany reference year from 1985;
(b) either an average unemployment rate over the last three years
above the Community average, or a decline in population since
1985.
7. The urban areas referred to in paragraph 1 shall mean densely
populated areas which also meet at least one of the following criteria:
(a) a rate of long-term unemployment higher than the Community
average;
(b) a high level of poverty, including precarious housing conditions;
(c) a particularly damaged environment;
(d) a high crime and delinquency rate;1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 12
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(e) a low level of education among the population.
8. The areas dependent on fisheries referred to in paragraph 1 shall
mean coastal areas in which the number of jobs in the fisheries
industry as a percentage of total employment is significant and whichare facing structural socio-economic problems relating to the restruc-turing of the fisheries sector which result in a significant reduction inthe number of jobs in that sector.
9. Community assistance may extend to areas whose population or
area is significant which fall into one of the following categories:
(a) areas meeting the criteria set out in paragraph 5 which are adjacent
to an industrial area, areas meeting the criteria set out in
paragraph 6 which are adjacent to a rural area, areas which meet
either the criteria set out in paragraph 5 or those set out inparagraph 6 which are adjacent to a region covered by Objective 1;
(b) rural areas with socio-economic problems arising either from the
ageing or decline of the agricultural working population;
(c) areas facing or threatened by serious structural problems on
account of relevant, verifiable characteristics, or a high level ofunemployment arising from an ongoing or planned restructuring ofone or more activities in the agricultural, industrial or servicesector.
10. Any one area may be eligible for assistance under only one of
Objectives 1 or 2.
11. The list of areas shall be valid for seven years from 1 January
2000.
Where there is a serious crisis in a region, the Commission, acting on a
proposal from a Member State, may amend the list of areas during2003 in accordance with paragraphs 1 to 10 without increasing theproportion of the population within each region referred to in
Article 13(2).
For the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary,
Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia the list of areas shall be valid
from the date of accession until 31 December 2006.
Article 5
Objective 3
The areas eligible for financing under Objective 3 shall be those not
covered by Objective 1.
Article 6
Transitional support
1. Notwithstanding Article 3, the regions covered by Objective 1 in
1999 pursuant to Regulation (EEC) No 2052/88 which are not referred
to in the second subparagraph of Article 3(1) and (2) of this Regulationshall continue to receive support from the Funds under Objective 1 ona transitional basis from 1 January 2000 to 31 December 2005.
At the time of adoption of the list referred to in Article 3(2), the
Commission shall draw up in accordance with Article 4(5) and (6) the
list of the NUTS level III areas belonging to those regions which are toreceive support from the Funds under Objective 1 on a transitionalbasis in 2006.
However, within the limit of the population of the areas referred to in
the second subparagraph and in conformity with the provisions ofArticle 4(4), second subparagraph, the Commission may on a proposalfrom a Member State, substitute these areas by areas at or smaller thanNUTS level III belonging to those regions which satisfy the criteria ofArticle 4(5) to (9).1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 13
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The areas of the regions not on the list referred to in the second and
third subparagraphs shall continue to receive support in 2006 from theESF, FIFG and the EAGGF Guidance Section only, within the same
form of assistance.
2. Notwithstanding Article 4, the regions covered by Objectives 2
and 5(b) in 1999 pursuant to Regulation (EEC) No 2052/88 which arenot on the list referred to in Article 4(4) of this Regulation shall receivesupport from the ERDF, from 1 January 2000 to 31 December 2005,
under Objective 2 pursuant to this Regulation, on a transitional basis.
Such areas shall receive support from 1 January 2000 to 31 December
2006 from the ESF under Objective 3 on the same basis as Objective 3areas, the EAGGF Guarantee Section under its support to rural devel-opment and from the FIFG under its structural measures in the fisheriessector outside of Objective 1.
CHAPTER III
FINANCIAL PROVISIONS
Article 7
Resources and concentration
1. The resources available for commitment from the Funds for
Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Spain, France, Ireland, Italy,Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Finland, Sweden and
the United Kingdom for the period 2000 to 2006 shall be EUR 195
billion at 1999 prices.
The annual breakdown of those resources is shown in Annex I.For the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary,
Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia the resources available forcommitment from the Funds for the period from the date of accession
to 2006 shall be EUR 14,1559 billion at 1999 prices.
The annual breakdown of those resources is shown in Annex II.
2. The breakdown of budgetary resources between objectives shall
be such as to achieve a significant concentration on Objective 1regions.
69,7 % of the Structural Funds will be allocated to Objective 1,
including 4,3 % for transitional support (i.e. a total of EUR 135,9billion).
11,5 % of the Structural Funds will be allocated to Objective 2,
including 1,4 % for transitional support (i.e. a total of EUR 22,5billion).
12,3 % of the Structural Funds will be allocated to Objective 3 (i.e. a
total of EUR 24,05 billion).
By way of derogation from the second, third and fourth subparagraphs,
for the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary,
Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia the breakdown of budgetary
resources between objectives shall be as follows:
— 93,49 % of the Structural Funds will be allocated to Objective 1
(i.e. a total of EUR 13,2343 billion);
— 0,86 % of the Structural Funds will be allocated to Objective 2 (i.e.
a total of EUR 0,1212 billion);
— 0,79 % of the Structural Funds will be allocated to Objective 3 (i.e.
a total of EUR 0,1116 billion).
The figures stated for Objectives 1, 2 and 3 do not include the financial
resources referred to in paragraph 6 nor the financing for FIFG outsideObjective 1.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 14
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3. Using transparent procedures, the Commission shall make indica-
tive breakdowns by Member State of the commitment appropriationsavailable for the programming referred to in Articles 13 to 19, taking
full account, for Objectives 1 and 2, of one or more objective criteria
similar to those covered by Regulation (EEC) No 2052/88, namely:eligible population, regional prosperity, national prosperity and therelative severity of the structural problems, especially the level ofunemployment.
For Objective 3, the breakdown by Member State shall be based prin-
cipally on the eligible population, the employment situation and theseverity of the problems, such as social exclusion (insofar as data are
available for the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania,
Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia), education and traininglevels, and participation of women in the labour market.
For Objectives 1 and 2, these breakdowns shall distinguish allocations
of appropriations to regions and areas benefiting from transitionalsupport. These allocations shall be determined in accordance with thecriteria referred to in the first subparagraph. The annual breakdown ofthese appropriations shall be degressive from 1 January 2000 and shall
be lower in 2000 than in 1999. The profile of transitional support may
be tailored to the specific needs of individual regions, in agreementwith the Commission, provided the financial allocation for each regionis respected.
Using transparent procedures, the Commission shall also make indica-
tive breakdowns by Member State of the commitment appropriations
available for the structural actions in the fisheries sector outside
Objective 1 regions, as referred to in Article 2(3), first subparagraph.
4. Under Objective 1, a PEACE programme in support of the peace
process in Northern Ireland shall be established for the years 2000 to2004 for the benefit of Northern Ireland and the border areas of
Ireland.
Under Objective 1, a special programme of assistance for the period
2000 to 2006 shall be established for the Swedish NUTS-II regionswhich are not covered by the list referred to in Article 3(2) and whichmeet the criteria laid down in Article 2 of Protocol 6 to the Act of
Accession for Austria, Sweden and Finland.
5. 4 % of commitment appropriations under each national indicative
breakdown referred to in paragraph 3 shall be allocated in accordancewith Article 44.
6. For the period referred to in paragraph 1, first subparagraph,
5,35 % of the commitment appropriations for the Structural Fundsreferred to in paragraph 1, first and second subparagraphs, shall bedevoted to funding the Community initiatives.
0,65 % of the commitment appropriations referred to in paragraph 1,
first and second subparagraphs, shall be devoted to funding innovativemeasures and technical assistance as defined in Articles 22 and 23.
For the period referred to in paragraph 1, third subparagraph, 4,58 % of
the commitment appropriations for the Structural Funds referred to in
paragraph 1, third and fourth subparagraphs, shall be devoted to
funding the Community initiatives Interreg and EQUAL. The Commu-nity initiatives Leader+ and URBAN shall not be implemented in theCzech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta,Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia during this period.
0,27 % of the commitment appropriations referred to in paragraph 1,
third and fourth subparagraphs, shall be devoted to funding technicalassistance as defined in Article 23. Innovative actions, as defined inArticle 22, shall not be implemented in the Czech Republic, Estonia,Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia andSlovakia during this period.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 15
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7. For the purpose of their programming and subsequent inclusion in
the general budget of the European Communities, the sums referred toin paragraph 1 shall be indexed as from 1 January 2000 at 2 % per
year.
Indexation of the allocations for 2004 to 2006 shall be reviewed, if
necessary, by 31 December 2003 at the latest for technical adjustmentby the Commission on the basis of the latest economic information
available. The difference relative to the initial programming shall be
reallocated for inclusion in the sum referred to in paragraph 5.
8. Total annual receipts in any Member State from the Structural
Funds pursuant to this Regulation — in combination with assistance
provided under the Cohesion Fund — should not exceed 4 % of
national GDP.
CHAPTER IV
ORGANISATION
Article 8
Complementarity and partnership
1. Community actions shall complement or contribute to corre-
sponding national operations. They shall be drawn up in closeconsultation, hereinafter referred to as the ‘partnership’, between theCommission and the Member State, together with the authorities andbodies designated by the Member State within the framework of itsnational rules and current practices, namely:
— the regional and local authorities and other competent public autho-
rities,
— the economic and social partners,
— any other relevant competent bodies within this framework.
The partnership shall be conducted in full compliance with the respec-
tive institutional, legal and financial powers of each of the partners as
defined in the first subparagraph.
In designating the most representative partnership at national, regional,
local or other level, the Member State shall create a wide and effectiveassociation of all the relevant bodies, according to national rules and
practice, taking account of the need to promote equality between men
and women and sustainable development through the integration ofenvironmental protection and improvement requirements.
All the designated parties, hereinafter referred to as the ‘partners’, shall
be partners pursuing a common goal.
2. Partnership shall cover the preparation, financing, monitoring and
evaluation of assistance. Member States shall ensure the association ofthe relevant partners at the different stages of programming, taking
account of the time limit for each stage.
3. In application of the principle of subsidiarity, the implementation
of assistance shall be the responsibility of the Member States, at theappropriate territorial level according to the arrangements specific to
each Member State, and without prejudice to the powers vested in the
Commission, notably for implementing the general budget of theEuropean Communities.
4. Member States shall cooperate with the Commission to ensure
that Community Funds are used in accordance with the principles of
sound financial management.
5. Each year, the Commission shall consult the European-level orga-
nisations representing the social partners about the structural policy ofthe Community.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 16
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Article 9
Definitions
For the purposes of this Regulation:
(a) programming: means the organising, decision-making and finan-
cing process carried out in a number of stages to implement on a
multiannual basis the joint action of the Community and theMember States to attain the Objectives referred to in Article 1;
(b) development plan (hereinafter referred to as ‘the plan’: means the
analysis of the situation prepared by a Member State in the light ofthe objectives referred to in Article 1 and the priority needs forattaining those objectives, together with the strategy, the plannedaction priorities, their specific goals and the related indicative
financial resources;
(c) Objective 3 policy frame of reference: means a document which
sets the context for assistance concerning employment and
human-resource development throughout the territory of eachMember State, and which identifies the relationship with the prio-rities set out in the National Action Plan for Employment;
(d) Community support framework: means the document approved by
the Commission, in agreement with the Member State concerned,following appraisal of the plan submitted by a Member State andcontaining the strategy and priorities for action of the Funds and
the Member State, their specific objectives, the contribution of
the Funds and the other financial resources. This document shallbe divided into priorities and implemented by means of one ormore operational programmes;
(e) assistance: means the forms of assistance provided by the Funds,
i.e.:
(i) operational programmes or single programming documents;
(ii) Community initiative programmes;
(iii) support for technical assistance and innovative measures;
(f) operational programme: means the document approved by the
Commission to implement a Community support framework andcomprising a consistent set of priorities comprising multiannual
measures and which may be implemented through recourse to
one or more Funds, to one or more of the other existing financialinstruments and to the EIB. An integrated operational programmemeans an operational programme financed by more than one Fund;
(g) single programming document: means a single document approved
by the Commission and containing the same information to befound in a Community support framework and operationalprogramme;
(h) priority: means one of the priorities of the strategy adopted in a
Community support framework or assistance; to it is assigned a
contribution from the Funds and other financial instruments and
the relevant financial resources of the Member State and a set ofspecified targets;
(i)global grant: means that part of assistance the implementation and
management of which may be entrusted to one or more approvedintermediaries in accordance with Article 27(1), including localauthorities, regional development bodies or non-governmentalorganisations, used preferably to assist local development initia-
tives. The decision to employ a global grant shall be taken in
agreement with the Commission by the Member State or, in agree-ment with the Member State, by the managing authority.
In the case of Community initiative programmes and innovative
measures, the Commission may decide to employ a global grantfor all or part of the assistance. In the case of Community initia-tives, this decision may only be taken with the prior agreement of
the Member States concerned.
(j)measure: means the means by which a priority is implemented
over several years which enable operations to be financed. Any1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 17
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aid scheme pursuant to Article 87 of the Treaty or any aid granted
by bodies designated by the Member States, or any group of aidschemes or aid grants of this type or any combination thereof
which have the same purpose and are defined as a measure;
(k) operation: means any project or action carried out by the final
beneficiaries of assistance;
(l)final beneficiaries: means the bodies and public or private firms
responsible for commissioning operations. In the case of aidschemes pursuant to Article 87 of the Treaty and in the case ofaid granted by bodies designated by the Member States, the final
beneficiaries are the bodies which grant the aid;
(m) programme complement: means the document implementing the
assistance strategy and priorities and containing detailed elementsat measure level, as set out in Article 18(3), drawn up by theMember State or managing authority and revised as necessary inaccordance with Article 34(3). It is sent to the Commission forinformation;
(n) managing authority: means any public or private authority or body
at national, regional or local level designated by the Member State,
or the Member State when it is itself carrying out this function, tomanage assistance for the purposes of this Regulation. If theMember State designates a managing authority other than itself, itshall determine all the modalities of its relationship with the mana-
ging authority and of the latter's relationship with the Commission.
If the Member State so decides, the managing authority may bethe same body as the paying authority for the assistanceconcerned;
o)paying authority: means one or more national, regional or local
authorities or bodies designated by the Member States for thepurposes of drawing up and submitting payment applications and
receiving payments from the Commission. The Member State shall
determine all the modalities of its relationship with the payingauthority and of the latter's relationship with the Commission.
Article 10
Coordination
1. Coordination between the various Funds shall be carried out in
particular through:
(a) the plans, the Community support frameworks, the operational
programmes and the single programming documents (as defined in
Article 9) including the frame of reference where relevant in accor-dance with Article 9(1)(c);
(b) the monitoring and evaluation of assistance under an Objective;
(c) the guidelines referred to in paragraph 3.
2. The Commission and Member State shall, in a manner consistent
with the principle of partnership, ensure coordination of assistancefrom the different Funds between the Funds and with assistance fromthe EIB and other existing financial instruments.
In order to maximise the stimulus provided by the budget resources
deployed, making use of appropriate financial instruments, the Commu-nity assistance provided in the form of grants may be combined in anappropriate way with loans and guarantees. This combination may bedetermined in conjunction with the EIB when the Community support
framework or single programming document is being drawn up. It may
take account of the balance in the proposed financing plan, the contri-bution from the Funds and the development goals pursued.
3. No later than one month from the entry into force of this Regula-
tion and subsequently before the mid-term review referred to inArticle 42, and on each occasion after consulting all Member States,the Commission shall publish broad, indicative guidelines on relevantand agreed Community policies in relation to the objectives referredto in Article 1, to help the competent national and regional authorities1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 18
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to draw up development plans and to carry out any revision of the
assistance. This guidance shall be published in the Official Journal of
the European Communities .
Article 11
Additionality
1. In order to achieve a genuine economic impact, the appropriations
of the Funds may not replace public or other equivalent structuralexpenditure by the Member State.
2. For this purpose, the Commission and the Member State
concerned shall determine the level of public or equivalent structural
expenditure that the Member State is to maintain in the sum of its
regions covered by Objective 1 during the programming period.
For Objectives 2 and 3 taken together, the Commission and the
Member State concerned shall determine the level of expenditure onthe active labour-market policy and, where justified, other actionsdesigned to make it possible to achieve the goals of those two Objec-tives which the Member State is to maintain at national level during the
programming period.
Such expenditure shall be determined by the Member State and the
Commission, taking account of the provisions of the fourth subpara-graph, in advance of the Commission decision approving anyCommunity support framework or single programming documentsrelating to the Member State concerned and shall be integrated intothose documents.
As a general rule, the level of expenditure referred to in the first and
second subparagraphs shall be at least equal to the amount of average
annual expenditure in real terms achieved in the previous programmingperiod and shall be determined in the light of the general macroeco-nomic circumstances in which the funding takes place, althoughaccount should be taken of certain specific economic situations, namelyprivatisations, an exceptional level of public structural effort or equiva-
lent effort on the part of the Member State during the previous
programming period and national economic trends.
For the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary,
Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia, as a general rule, the level ofexpenditure referred to in the first and second subparagraphs shall beat least equal to the amount of average annual expenditure in real terms
achieved in the reference period established in close cooperation with
the Commission and shall be determined in the light of the generalmacroeconomic circumstances in which the funding takes place,although account should be taken of certain specific economic situa-tions, namely privatisations, an exceptional level of public structuraleffort or equivalent effort on the part of the Member State during the
previous period and national economic trends.
Account shall also be taken of any reduction in Structural Fund expen-
diture when compared to the period 1994 to 1999.
3. Additionality shall be verified at the territorial level set out in
paragraph 2 at three points during the programming period:
(a) an ex-ante verification as described in the third subparagraph of
paragraph 2, to provide a frame of reference for the wholeprogramming period;
(b) a mid-term verification no later than three years after approval of
the Community support framework or the single programming
documents and as a general rule no later than 31 December 2003,following which the Commission and the Member State may agreeto revise the level of structural expenditure to be attained if theeconomic situation has resulted in developments in public revenueor employment in the Member State concerned significantly1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 19
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different from those expected at the time of the ex-ante verifica-
tion;
(c) a verification by 31 December 2005.
To that end, the Member State shall provide the Commission with
appropriate information at the time when the plans are submitted and
when the mid-term verification and the verification before 31 December2005 are made. Where necessary, methods of statistical estimation shallbe used.
Independently of these verifications, the Member State shall inform the
Commission at any point during the programming period of develop-ments likely to call into question its ability to maintain the level of
expenditure referred to in paragraph 2.
Article 12
Compatibility
Operations financed by the Funds or receiving assistance from the EIB
or from another financial instrument shall be in conformity with theprovisions of the Treaty, with instruments adopted under it and withCommunity policies and actions, including the rules on competition,
on the award of public contracts, on environmental protection and
improvement and on the elimination of inequalities and the promotionof equality between men and women.
TITLE II
PROGRAMMING
CHAPTER I
GENERAL PROVISIONS CONCERNING OBJECTIVES 1, 2
AND 3
Article 13
Geographical coverage
1. Plans submitted under Objective 1 shall be drawn up at the
geographical level deemed by the Member State concerned to be mostappropriate but shall, as a general rule, cover a single region at NUTSlevel II. However, Member States may submit a general development
plan covering some or all of their regions included in the list referred
to in Article 3(2), Article 6(1) and Article 7(4), provided that such plancontains the features listed in Article 16.
2. Plans submitted under Objective 2 shall be drawn up at the
geographical level deemed by the Member State concerned to be mostappropriate, but shall as a general rule comprise all the areas coveredby a single NUTS level II region, included in the list referred to in
Article 4(4) and Article 6(2). However, the Member States may submit
a plan covering certain or all of their regions included in the listreferred to in Article 4(4) and in Article 6(2), provided that such plancontains the features listed in Article 16. Where plans cover regionsother than those eligible under Objective 2, they shall distinguishbetween operations in regions or areas covered by Objective 2 and
operations elsewhere.
3. Plans submitted under Objective 3 shall cover the territory of a
Member State in respect of assistance outside the regions covered byObjective 1 and, taking into account the general needs of areas facingstructural problems of socio-economic conversion, shall provide, forthe whole of the national territory, a framework of reference for devel-oping human resources.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 20
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Article 14
Duration and revision
1. Each plan, Community support framework, operational
programme and single programming document shall cover a period of
seven years, without prejudice to Article 6 and Article 7(4), first
subparagraph.
The programming period shall begin on 1 January 2000. ►A1 For the
Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta,Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia, the programming period shall begin onthe date of accession and shall cover the period from the date of acces-
sion until 31 December 2006. ◄
2. Community support frameworks, operational programmes and
single programming documents shall be re-examined and, if necessary,adapted at the initiative of the Member State or the Commission inagreement with the Member State, in accordance with this Titlefollowing the mid-term evaluation referred to in Article 42 and the
allocation of the performance reserve referred to in Article 44.
They may also be revised in the event of significant changes in the
socio-economic situation and the labour market.
Article 15
Preparation and approval
1. In respect of Objectives 1, 2 and 3, Member States shall submit a
plan to the Commission. That plan shall be drawn up by the competentauthorities designated by the Member State at national, regional andother level. In cases where assistance is to take the form of a single
programming document, the plan shall be dealt with as a draft single
programming document.
In respect of Objective 1, Community support frameworks shall be
employed for all regions covered by Objective 1; however, where theCommunity allocation is less than or does not substantiallyexceed EUR 1 000 million, the Member States shall, as a general rule,submit a draft single programming document.
In respect of Objectives 2 and 3, single programming documents shall
as a general rule be employed; however, Member States may elect tohave a Community support framework drawn up.
2. The plans shall be submitted by the Member State to the
Commission after consultation with the partners, who shall expresstheir views within a period of time consistent with the deadline set inthe second subparagraph.
Unless otherwise agreed with the Member State concerned, plans shall
be submitted not later than four months after the list of eligible regionsreferred to in Article 3(2) and Article 4(4) have been drawn up.
3. The Commission shall appraise these plans to determine whether
they are consistent with the aims of this Regulation, taking account ofthe framework of reference referred to in Article 9(1)(c), other
Community policies and Article 41(2).
The Commission shall also appraise each Objective 3 plan proposed in
the light of the consistency of the measures envisaged with the nationalplan for implementing the European employment strategy in accor-dance with Article 16(1)(b) and having regard to the manner in whichand the degree to which the general needs of areas facing structuralproblems of socio-economic conversion are taken into account.
4. Where applicable as provided in paragraph 1, the Commission
shall draw up the Community support frameworks in agreement withthe Member State concerned and following the procedures laid downin Articles 48 to 51. The EIB may be involved in the preparation ofthe Community support frameworks. The Commission shall take adecision on the contribution from the Funds not later than five months1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 21
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after receiving the relevant plan or plans provided they contain all the
features listed in Article 16.
The Commission shall appraise the proposed operational programmes
submitted by the Member State to determine whether they are consis-tent with the aims of the corresponding Community support frameworkand compatible with other Community policies. It shall adopt a deci-sion on the contribution of the Funds in accordance with Article 28(1)
and in agreement with the Member State concerned, provided that the
proposals contain all the features listed in Article 18(2).
In order to expedite the examination of applications and the implemen-
tation of programmes, the Member States may submit, at the same timeas their plans, draft operational programmes. When adopting its deci-
sion on a Community support framework, the Commission shall also
approve, in accordance with Article 28(1), the operational programmessubmitted at the same time as the plans provided they include all thefeatures listed in Article 18(2).
5. Where applicable as provided in paragraph 1 on the basis of the
plans, the Commission shall take a decision on the single programmingdocuments in agreement with the Member State concerned, followingthe procedures laid down in Articles 48 to 51. The EIB may beinvolved in the preparation of the single programming documents. TheCommission shall take a single decision on the single programming
document and the contribution of the Funds pursuant to Article 28(1)
not later than five months after having received the relevant plan,provided that it contains all the features listed in Article 19(3).
6. The Member State or the managing authority shall adopt the
programme complement defined in Article 9(m) after the agreement
of the Monitoring Committee if the programme complement is drawn
up after the Commission decision on the contribution of the Funds, orafter consulting the relevant partners if it is drawn up before the deci-sion on the contribution of the Funds. In the latter case, the MonitoringCommittee shall either confirm the programme complement or request
an adjustment in accordance with Article 34(3).
Within three months of the Commission decision approving an opera-
tional programme or single programming document, the Member Stateshall send the programme complement to the Commission in a singledocument for information.
7. The Commission decisions on a Community support framework
or single programming document shall be published in the Official
Journal of the European Communities . At the request of the European
Parliament, the Commission shall transmit to it, for information, these
decisions and the Community support framework and single program-
ming documents it has approved.
CHAPTER II
CONTENT OF THE PROGRAMMING FOR OBJECTIVES 1, 2
AND 3
Article 16
Plans
1. The plans submitted under Objectives 1, 2 and 3 shall be based
on appropriate national and regional priorities and shall take account
of the indicative guidance referred to in Article 10(3) and shall include:
(a) a description, quantified where it lends itself to quantification, of
the current situation either with regard to disparities, gaps andpotential for development in the regions covered by Objective 1,
or in terms of conversion in the areas covered by Objective 2, or
in terms of developing human resources and employment policyin the Member State and the areas covered by Objective 3; also, adescription of the financial resources deployed and the main resultsof operations undertaken in the previous programming period withregard to the evaluation results available;1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 22
▼B
(b) a description of an appropriate strategy to attain the objectives
referred to in Article 1 and the priorities selected for the sustain-able development and conversion of regions and areas, including
rural areas, and the related development of human resources and
the adaptation and modernisation of policies and systems foreducation, training and employment.
In addition to the other items listed in this point, Member States
shall demonstrate in each Objective 3 plan that the prioritiesplanned are consistent with the prevailing national employmentplan, by reference to a description of the main aims of the strategy
and the main means of attaining them.
Similarly, Member States shall demonstrate that the activities
provided for in each Objective 2 plan on human resources and
employment to be assisted by the ESF are integrated into the
conversion strategy, coordinated with the other Funds and consis-tent with the ex-ante evaluation relating to human resources and
employment as referred to in Article 41(2). If these needs do notamount to a significant sum, they shall be covered by Objective 3;
(c) an indication of the planned use and form of the financial contribu-
tion from the Funds and, where appropriate, the EIB and the otherfinancial instruments including, for information, the total amount
from the EAGGF Guarantee Section for the measures referred to
in Article 33 of Regulation (EC) No 1257/1999; the expectedrequirement for technical assistance; an indication as regards addi-tionality in accordance with Article 11(2), whereby for Objective 1this should take the form of an indicative overall financing table
summarising the public or equivalent and, where appropriate, esti-
mated private resources and the Community structural resourcesallocated corresponding to each priority proposed in the plan.
In any case, the plans shall distinguish between the financial envel-
opes allocated to areas receiving transitional support and thoseallocated to other areas covered by Objective 1 or 2.
In the case of ESF assistance under Objective 2 or 3, the percen-
tage contribution may be higher in Objective 2 areas than in others.
In the case of Objective 3, this financing plan shows the concentra-
tion of appropriations planned for the areas facing structuralproblems of economic and social conversion;
(d) an account of arrangements made to consult partners.
2. For regions covered by Objective 1, the plans shall include all
relevant measures for economic and social conversion, the development
of human resources, having regard to the frame of reference referred to
in Article 9(1)(c), and rural development and fisheries structures.
Where a Member State is covered in its entirety by Objective 1, the
plan shall cover the points in the second subparagraph of
paragraph (1)(b).
3. Member States shall indicate the particulars relating to each Fund,
including the amount of the financial contribution requested and anoutline of the operational programmes planned with particular regardto their specific aims and the main types of actions planned.
Article 17
Community support frameworks
1. The Community support framework shall provide coordination of
all Community structural assistance in the regions concerned,
including, in accordance with Article 1(3), assistance for the develop-ment of human resources.
2. Each Community support framework shall include:
(a) a statement of the strategy and priorities for joint Community and
national action; their specific objectives, quantified where they lendthemselves to quantification; evaluation of the expected impact inaccordance with Article 41(2); an indication of how this strategyand these priorities have taken account of the indicative guidance1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 23
▼B
referred to in Article 10(3), the economic policies, the strategy for
developing employment through improving the adaptability andskills of people and, where appropriate, the regional policies of
the Member State concerned;
(b) an indication of the nature and the duration of the operational
programmes not decided at the same time as the Communitysupport framework, including their specific aims and the prioritiesselected;
(c) an indicative financing plan specifying, in accordance with
Articles 28 and 29, for each priority and each year, the financialallocation envisaged for the contribution of each Fund, whereappropriate the EIB, the other financial instruments — including,for information, the total amount from the EAGGF Guarantee
Section for the measures referred to in Article 33 of Regulation
(EC) No 1257/1999 — where they contribute directly to the finan-cing plan concerned and the total amount of eligible public andestimated private funding relating to the contribution of each Fund.
In the case of Objective 3, that financing plan shall show the
concentration of appropriations planned for the areas facing struc-
tural problems of economic and social conversion.
This financing plan shall distinguish the funding planned for the
regions receiving transitional support.
The total contribution of the Funds planned for each year for each
Community support framework shall be compatible with the rele-
vant financial perspective, taking account of the degressivityreferred to in the third subparagraph of Article 7(3);
(d) the provisions for implementing a Community support framework
including:
— designation by the Member State of a managing authority
within the meaning of Article 9(n) responsible for managing
the Community support framework in accordance withArticle 34,
— arrangements for involving the partners in the Monitoring
Committees described in Article 35;
(e) where appropriate, information on the appropriations required for
preparing, monitoring and evaluating assistance.
In accordance with Article 11, the Community support frameworks
shall include the ex-ante verification of additionality and the appro-
priate information concerning the transparency of financial flows, in
particular from the Member State concerned to the beneficiary regions.
Article 18
Operational programmes
1. Assistance covered by a Community support framework shall as a
general rule be provided in the form of an integrated operationalprogramme by region, as defined in Article 9.
2. Each operational programme shall contain:
(a) the priorities of the programme, their consistency with the relevant
Community support framework, their specific targets, quantifiedwhere they lend themselves to quantification, and an evaluation of
the impact expected, in accordance with Article 41(2);
(b) a summary description of the measures planned to implement the
priorities, including the information needed to check compliancewith aid schemes pursuant to Article 87 of the Treaty; whereappropriate, the nature of the measures required to prepare, monitorand evaluate the operational programme;
(c) an indicative financing plan specifying for each priority and each
year, in accordance with Articles 28 and 29, the financial allocationenvisaged for the contribution of each Fund, the EIB where appro-priate, and the other financial instruments — including, forinformation, the total amount from the EAGGF Guarantee Section1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 24
▼B
for the measures referred to in Article 33 of Regulation (EC)
No 1257/1999 — in so far as they contribute directly to the finan-cing plan, as well as the total amount of eligible public and
estimated private funding relating to the contribution of each Fund.
This financing plan shall distinguish in the total contribution of the
various Funds the funding planned for the regions receiving transi-tional support.
The total contribution of the Funds planned for each year shall be
compatible with the relevant financial perspective, taking accountof the degressivity referred to in the third subparagraph ofArticle 7(3);
(d) the provisions for implementing an operational programme shall
include:
(i) designation by the Member State of a managing authority
within the meaning of Article 9(n) responsible for managingthe operational programme in accordance with Article 34;
(ii) a description of the arrangements for managing the operational
programme;
(iii) a description of the systems for monitoring and evaluation,
including the role of the Monitoring Committee;
(iv) a definition of the procedures concerning the mobilisation and
circulation of financial flows to ensure their transparency;
(v) a description of the specific arrangements and procedures for
checking on the operational programme.
3. The programme complement shall contain:
(a) the measures implementing the corresponding priorities in the
operational programme; ex-ante evaluation, in accordance with
Article 41(3), of quantified measures, where they lend themselves
to quantification; the relevant monitoring indicators in accordancewith Article 36;
(b) the definition of the types of final beneficiary of measures;
(c) the financing plan specifying for each measure, in accordance with
Articles 28 and 29, the financial allocation envisaged for the contri-bution of the Fund concerned, the EIB where appropriate, and theother existing financial instruments and the amount of eligible
public or equivalent funding and estimated private funding relating
to the contribution of the Funds; the percentage contribution of aFund to a measure shall be determined in accordance withArticle 29 and the total amount of Community funds allocated tothe priority concerned.
This financing plan shall distinguish the funding planned for the
regions receiving transitional support.
The financing plan shall be accompanied by a description of the
arrangements for providing the co-financing for measures, taking
account of the institutional, legal and financial systems of theMember State concerned;
(d) measures intended to publicise the operational programme in accor-
dance with Article 46;
(e) a description of arrangements agreed between the Commission and
the Member State concerned for the computerised exchange, wherepossible, of the data required to fulfil the management, monitoring
and evaluation requirements of this Regulation.
Article 19
Single programming documents
1. Assistance under Objectives 2 and 3, and under Objective 1 as
specified in Article 15(1), shall, as a general rule, take the form ofsingle programming documents. In the case of Objectives 2 and 3,
Article 15(1)(c) shall apply.
2. An Objective 1 single programming document shall include all
relevant measures for economic and social conversion, the development1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 25
▼B
of employment through improving adaptability and skills of people,
having regard to the frame of reference referred to in Article 9(1)(c)and rural development and fisheries structures.
An Objective 2 single programming document shall provide coordina-
tion of all Community structural assistance including, in accordancewith Article 41(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1257/1999, the coordination
of rural development measures pursuant to Article 33 of that Regula-
tion, but excluding assistance for developing human resources grantedunder Objective 3, in all the areas covered by Objective 2.
An Objective 3 single programming document shall provide coordina-
tion of all Community structural assistance for the development of
human resources in the areas referred to in Article 5, excluding aid inthis area granted under Objective 2.
3. Each single programming document shall contain the following
elements:
(a) a statement of the strategy and priorities for joint Community and
national action; their specific objectives, quantified where they lend
themselves to quantification; an evaluation of the expected impact,
including on the environmental situation, in accordance withArticle 41(2); an indication of how this strategy and these prioritieshave taken account of the indicative guidelines referred to inArticle 10(3), the economic policies, the strategy for developing
employment through improving the adaptability and skills of
people and, where appropriate, the regional policies of the MemberState concerned;
(b) a summary description of the measures planned to implement the
priorities, including the information needed to check the compli-ance with aid schemes pursuant to Article 87 of the Treaty; whereappropriate, the nature of the measures required to prepare, monitor
and evaluate the single programming document;
(c) an indicative financing plan specifying for each priority and each
year, in accordance with Articles 28 and 29, the financial allocationenvisaged for the contribution of each Fund, the EIB where appro-priate, and the other financial instruments — including, forinformation, the total amount from the EAGGF Guarantee Sectionfor the measures referred to in Article 33 of Regulation (EC)
No 1257/1999 — in so far as they contribute directly to the finan-
cing plan, as well as the total amount of eligible public orequivalent and estimated private funding relating to the contribu-tion of each Fund.
This financing plan shall distinguish the funding planned for the
regions receiving transitional support.
The total contribution of the Funds planned for each year shall be
compatible with the relevant financial perspective, taking account
of the degressivity referred to in the third subparagraph of
Article 7(3).
In the case of Objective 3, the financing plan shall indicate the
concentration of appropriations planned for the areas facing struc-tural, economic and social reconversion problems;
(d) the provisions for implementing a single programming document
shall include:
(i) the designation by the Member State of a managing authority
within the meaning of Article 9 responsible for managing thesingle programming document in accordance with Article 34;
(ii) a description of the arrangements for managing the single
programming document;
(iii) a description of the systems for monitoring and evaluation,
including the role of the Monitoring Committee;
(iv) a definition of the procedures concerning the mobilisation and
circulation of funding to ensure that flows are transparent;
(v) a description of the specific arrangements and procedures for
checking on the single programming document;1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 26
▼B
(e) where appropriate, information on the resources required for
preparing, monitoring and evaluating assistance.
In accordance with Article 11, the single programming document shall
include the ex-ante verification of additionality for the relevant objec-
tive or objectives agreed between the Member State and theCommission and appropriate information concerning the transparencyof financial flows, in particular from the Member State concerned to
the beneficiary regions.
4. Each single programming document shall be supplemented by a
programme complement as defined in Article 9(m) and described inArticle 18(3).
CHAPTER III
COMMUNITY INITIATIVES
Article 20
Content
1.►
A1 Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 7(6), the
Community initiatives shall cover the following fields: ◄
(a) cross-border, transnational and interregional cooperation intended
to encourage the harmonious, balanced and sustainable develop-
ment of the whole of the Community area (‘Interreg’);
(b) economic and social regeneration of cities and of urban neighbour-
hoods in crisis with a view to promoting a sustainable urban
development (‘URBAN’);
(c) rural development (‘Leader’);
(d) transnational cooperation to promote new means of combating all
forms of discrimination and inequalities in connection with thelabour market (‘EQUAL’).
2. At least 2,5 % of the Structural Funds commitment appropriations
referred to in Article 7(1) shall be allocated to Interreg, under whichdue attention should be given to cross-border activities, in particularin the perspective of enlargement, and for Member States which haveextensive frontiers with the applicant countries, as well as to improved
coordination with the PHARE, TACIS and MEDA programmes. Due
attention shall also be given to cooperation with the outermost regions.
Due account shall be taken of the social and vocational integration of
asylum seekers in the framework of EQUAL.
3. Programmes approved within the framework of the Community
initiatives may cover areas other than those referred to in Articles 3and 4.
Article 21
Preparation, approval and implementation
1. In accordance with the procedures referred to in Articles 48 to 51
and after notifying them for information to the European Parliament,the Commission shall lay down guidelines describing, for each initia-tive, the aims, scope and the appropriate method of implementation.
Those guidelines shall be published in the Official Journal of the
European Communities .
2. Each area referred to in Article 20(1) shall be financed by a
single Fund: the area referred to in paragraph 1(a) and (b) from the
ERDF, the area referred to in paragraph 1(c) from the EAGGF
Guidance Section and the area referred to in paragraph 1(d) from theESF. The decision on the contribution of a Fund may amplify the scopeof each Fund as defined in the Regulations specific to each Fund, butwithout broadening it, to include all measures required to implementthe Community initiative programme concerned.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 27
▼B
3. On the basis of proposals drawn up in accordance with the guide-
lines referred to in paragraph 1 and with Article 41(2) and submittedby the Member State(s), the Commission shall decide on Community
initiative programmes in accordance with Article 28.
4. The Community initiative programmes shall be re-examined
following the mid-term evaluation referred to in Article 42 and
amended where required on application by the Member State(s)concerned or by the Commission by agreement with the MemberState(s).
5. The Community initiative programmes shall cover a period of
seven years, beginning on 1 January 2000.
CHAPTER IV
INNOVATIVE ACTIONS AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
Article 22
Innovative actions
1.►
A1 Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 7(6), at the
initiative of the Commission and following consultation of the commit-tees referred to in Articles 48 to 51 on the guidelines for the varioustypes of innovative actions, subject to a ceiling of 0,40 % of theirrespective annual funding, the Funds may finance innovative actionsat Community level. These shall include studies, pilot projects and
exchanges of experience. ◄
Such innovative actions shall contribute to the preparation of innova-
tive methods and practices designed to improve the quality of
assistance under Objectives 1, 2 and 3. They shall be implemented ina simple, transparent fashion and in accordance with the principles ofsound financial management.
2. Each field of action for pilot projects shall be financed by one
fund only. The decision on the contribution of a fund may amplify thescope of each fund as defined in the Regulations specific to each fund,but without broadening it, to include all measures required to imple-
ment the pilot project concerned.
Article 23
Technical assistance
At the initiative or on behalf of the Commission and following consul-
tation of the committees referred to in Articles 48 to 51 on the differenttypes of measures, subject to a ceiling of 0,25 % of their respectiveannual allocation, the Funds may finance the preparatory, monitoring,evaluation and checking measures necessary for implementing this
Regulation. ►
A1 For the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia,
Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia, the ceilingfor such measures is fixed at 0,27 % of the respective annual allocationof each Fund allocated to these ten Member States. ◄These shall
include:
(a) studies, including studies of a general nature, concerning the opera-
tions of the Funds;
(b) measures of technical assistance, the exchange of experience and
information aimed at the partners, the final beneficiaries of assis-
tance from the Funds and the general public;
(c) the installation, operation and interconnection of computerised
systems for management, monitoring and evaluation;
(d) improvements in evaluation methods and exchange of information
on practices in this field.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 28
▼B
Article 24
Approval of innovative actions and technical assistance
1. Making use of information on innovative actions from the
Member States concerned, the Commission shall appraise applications
for a contribution from the Funds pursuant to Articles 22 and 23 on the
basis of the following details:
(a) a description of the proposed assistance, its scope, including
geographical coverage, and specific aims;
(b) the bodies to be responsible for implementing the assistance and
the beneficiaries;
(c) the timetable and financing plan, including contributions from any
other source of Community finance;
(d) provisions to ensure efficient and correct implementation;
(e) any other information necessary to verify compatibility with
Community policies and with the guidelines referred to inArticle 10(3).
The Commission shall approve the contribution of the Funds when this
information enables it to appraise the application.
2. The Member States concerned shall be immediately notified by
the Commission following approval of an application.
3. The financial liability of the Member States within the meaning
of this Regulation shall not be engaged for the innovative actions
referred to in Article 22 or the technical assistance measures referredto in Article 23, without prejudice to their obligations arising out ofthe institutional arrangements specific to each Member State.
CHAPTER V
MAJOR PROJECTS
Article 25
Definition
As part of any assistance, the Funds may finance expenditure in respect
of major projects, i.e. those:
(a) which comprise an economically indivisible series of works
fulfilling a precise technical function and which have clearly iden-
tified aims; and
(b) whose total cost taken into account in determining the contribution
of the Funds exceeds EUR 50 million.
Article 26
Approval and implementation
1. During the implementation of assistance, where a Member State
or managing authority envisages the Funds contributing to a majorproject, it shall inform the Commission in advance and provide thefollowing information:
(a) the body to be responsible for implementation;
(b) the nature of the investment and a description of it, its financial
volume and location;
(c) the timetable for implementing the project;
(d) a cost-benefit analysis, including financial costs and benefits, a risk
assessment and information on the economic viability of theproject;
(e) plus:
— in the case of investment in infrastructure: the analysis of the
costs and the socio-economic benefits of the project, includingan indication of the anticipated rate of use, the foreseeable1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 29
▼B
impact on the development or conversion of the region
concerned, and the application of Community rules on publiccontracting,
— in the case of investment in production facilities: the analysis of
the market prospects in the sector concerned and the anticipatedreturn on the project,
(f) the direct and indirect effects on the employment situation, as far
as possible in the Community;
(g) information allowing an evaluation to be made of the environ-
mental impact and the implementation of the precautionaryprinciple and the principles that preventive action should be taken,that environmental damage should as a priority be rectified at
source and that the polluter should pay and compliance with the
Community rules on the environment;
(h) information needed to assess compliance with competition rules,
inter alia rules on State aids;
(i) an indication of the influence of the contribution of the Funds on
whether the project will be implemented;
(j) the financing plan and the total financial resources expected from
the contribution of the Funds and any other source of Communityfinance.
2. The Commission shall appraise the project, consulting the EIB if
necessary, in the light of the following factors:
(a) the type of investment planned and, where applicable, the revenue
expected;
(b) the results of the cost-benefit analysis;
(c) the result of the evaluation of the impact on the environment;
(d) consistency with the priorities in the corresponding assistance;
(e) compliance with other Community policies;
(f) the expected economic and social benefits, particularly in terms of
employment, having regard to the financial resources deployed;
(g) the coordination of the financial instruments and the combination
of assistance and loans referred to in Article 10(2).
3. Within two months of receipt of the information referred to in
paragraph 1 or three months where consultation of the EIB provesnecessary, the Commission shall decide to confirm or amend the levelof Community assistance. If it considers that the project appears not to
justify either part or all of the contribution from the Funds, it may
decide to withhold part or all of that contribution, stating the reasonsfor so doing.
CHAPTER VI
GLOBAL GRANTS
Article 27
Global grants
1. Where implementation or management of part of assistance has
been entrusted to intermediaries in accordance with Article 9(i), suchintermediaries must provide guarantees of their solvency and provencompetence and experience in administrative and financial manage-
ment. They must normally be established or represented in the region
or regions concerned but may, in limited and justified circumstances,be established outside. They must have several years' experience inthe relevant field, operate in the public interest and adequately involvethe socio-economic interests directly affected by the implementation ofthe planned measures.
2. The choice of a global grant shall appear in the corresponding
decision on the contribution of the Funds as a special implementingprovision as defined in Article 18(2)(d) and Article 19(3)(d). Theprocedures for the use of global grants shall be the subject of an agree-1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 30
▼B
ment between the Member State or managing authority and the inter-
mediary body concerned.
In the case of Community initiative programmes and innovative
measures, the procedures for the use of global grants shall be the
subject of an agreement between the Commission and the intermediarybody concerned. In the case of Community initiative programmes,these procedures must also be agreed with the Member Statesconcerned. The programme complement referred to in Article 18 shallnot relate to that part of the assistance bearing on the global grant.
3. The procedures for the use of the global grant shall detail in parti-
cular:
(a) the measures to be implemented;
(b) the criteria for choosing beneficiaries;
(c) the conditions and rates of assistance from the Funds, including the
use of any interest accruing;
(d) the arrangements for monitoring, evaluating and ensuring the finan-
cial control of the global grant;
(e) where applicable, any use of a bank guarantee, in which case the
Commission must be informed.
TITLE III
CONTRIBUTIONS AND FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT BY THE
FUNDS
CHAPTER I
FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTIONS BY THE FUNDS
Article 28
Decision on the contributions from the Funds
1. Provided that all the requirements of this Regulation are fulfilled,
the Commission shall adopt in a single decision the contributions of all
the Funds within five months of receipt of the application for assis-tance. The decision shall distinguish clearly the regions and areasreceiving transitional support, where applicable.
A maximum contribution from the Funds shall be set for each priority
in the assistance.
For a given period, a measure may not receive a financial contribution
from more than one fund at a time.
A measure or operation may benefit from a contribution from a Struc-
tural Fund under only one of the objectives referred to in Article 1 at atime.
No operation may benefit simultaneously from a contribution from a
Fund under Objective 1, 2 or 3 and under a Community initiative.
No operation may benefit simultaneously from a contribution from a
Fund under Objective 1, 2 or 3 and under the EAGGF Guarantee
Section.
No operation may benefit simultaneously from a contribution from a
Fund under a Community initiative and under the EAGGF GuaranteeSection.
2. The contribution of the Funds to operational programmes under-
taken in implementing a Community support framework shall beconsistent with the financing plan laid down in the corresponding
Community support framework, as set out in Article 17(2)(c).
3. In implementing measures, the contribution of the Funds shall
principally take the form of non-repayable direct assistance (hereinafterreferred to as ‘direct assistance’), as well as other forms, such as repay-able assistance, an interest-rate subsidy, a guarantee, an equity holding,a venture-capital holding or another form of finance.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 31
▼B
Assistance repaid to the managing authority or to another public
authority shall be reallocated to the same purpose.
Article 29
Differentiation of the rates of contribution
1. The contribution of the Funds shall be differentiated in the light
of the following:
(a) the gravity of the specific problems, in particular of a regional or
social nature, to be tackled by the assistance;
(b) the financial capacity of the Member State concerned, taking into
account in particular its relative prosperity and the need to avoidexcessive increases in budget expenditure;
(c) within the framework of the objectives of the Funds set out in
Article 1, the importance attaching to the assistance and the priori-
ties from the Community viewpoint, where appropriate, for theelimination of inequalities and the promotion of equality betweenmen and women and for the protection and improvement of theenvironment, principally through the application of the precau-tionary principle, of the principle of preventive action, and the
polluter-pays principle;
(d) the importance attaching to the assistance and priorities from the
regional and national viewpoint;
(e) the particular characteristics of the type of assistance and priority
concerned, to take account of the needs identified by the ex-ante
evaluation, in particular with regard to human resources and
employment;
(f) the optimum utilisation of financial resources in the financing
plans, including the combination of public and private resources,the use made of appropriate financial instruments in accordancewith Article 10(2), and the choice of forms of financing as set out
in Article 28(3).
Where the contribution of the ESF is differentiated in accordance with
Article 16(1), this shall be done taking account of the needs identified
by the ex-ante evaluation, notably in the field of human resources and
employment.
2. The contribution from the Funds shall be calculated in relation to
either the total eligible cost, or the total public or similar eligibleexpenditure (national, regional or local, and Community) under eachassistance.
3. The contribution of the Funds shall be subject to the following
ceilings:
(a) a maximum of 75 % of the total eligible cost and, as a general rule,
at least 50 % of eligible public expenditure in the case of measurescarried out in the regions covered by Objective 1. Where the
regions are located in a Member State covered by the Cohesion
Fund, the Community contribution may rise, in exceptional andduly justified cases, to a maximum of 80 % of the total eligiblecost and to a maximum of 85 % of the total eligible cost for theoutlying Greek islands which are under a handicap due to theirdistant location. The Community contribution for all the outermost
regions may rise, in exceptional and duly justified cases, to a
maximum of 85 % of the total eligible cost;
(b) a maximum of 50 % of the total eligible cost and, as a general rule,
at least 25 % of eligible public expenditure in the case of measurescarried out in areas covered by Objective 2 or 3.
In the case of investment in firms, the contribution of the Funds shall
comply with the ceilings on the rate of aid and on combinations of aidset in the field of State aids.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 32
▼M1
▼B
▼B
4. Where the assistance concerned entails the financing of revenue-
generating investments, the contribution from the Funds to these invest-ments shall be determined in the light of their intrinsic characteristics,
including the size of the gross self-financing margin which would
normally be expected for the class of investments concerned in thelight of the macro-economic circumstances in which the investmentsare to be implemented, and without there being any increase in thenational budget effort as a result of the contribution by the Funds.
In any event, the contribution of the Funds shall be subject to the
following ceilings:
(a) in the case of investment in infrastructure generating substantial net
revenue, the contribution may not exceed:
(i) 40 % of the total eligible cost in the regions covered by
Objective 1, which may be increased by not more than an
extra 10 % in the Member States covered by the Cohesion
Fund;
(ii) 25 % of the total eligible cost in the areas covered by
Objective 2;
(iii) these rates may be increased by an amount for forms of
finance other than direct assistance, provided that this increasedoes not exceed 10 % of the total eligible cost;
(b) in the case of investments in firms, the contribution may not
exceed:
(i) 35 % of the total eligible cost in the regions covered by
Objective 1;
(ii) 50 % of the total eligible cost in the outermost regions and,
exceptionally, also in the smaller Aegean islands in the caseof investments in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1257/
1999, in the case of investments in small and medium-sized
firms;
►
M1 (iii)◄ 15 % of the total eligible cost in the areas covered
by Objective 2;
►M1 (iv)◄in the case of investments in small and medium-
sized undertakings, these rates may be increased by an amountfor forms of finance other than direct assistance, provided thatthis increase does not exceed 10 % of the total eligible cost.
5. References in paragraphs 3 and 4 to the regions and areas covered
by Objectives 1 and 2 shall also be construed as references to regionsor areas receiving on the one hand transitional support pursuant toArticle 6(1) and support pursuant to Article 7(4) and on the other
hand pursuant to Article 6(2) respectively.
6. The measures carried out on the Commission's initiative referred
to in Articles 22 and 23 may be financed at a rate of 100 % of the total
cost. The measures carried out on behalf of the Commission referred to
in Article 23 shall be financed at a rate of 100 % of the total cost.
7. The rates in this Article shall apply to technical assistance
measures within the framework of programming and to the Community
initiatives.
Article 30
Eligibility
1. Expenditure in respect of operations shall be eligible for a contri-
bution from the Funds only if these operations form part of theassistance concerned.
2. Expenditure may not be considered eligible for a contribution
from the Funds if it has actually been paid by the final beneficiarybefore the date on which the application for assistance reaches theCommission. That date shall constitute the starting point for the elig-ibility of expenditure.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 33
▼M1
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The final date for the eligibility of expenditure shall be laid down in
the decision to grant a contribution from the Funds. It shall relate topayments made by the final beneficiaries. It may be extended by the
Commission at the duly justified request of the Member State in accor-
dance with Articles 14 and 15.
3. The relevant national rules shall apply to eligible expenditure
except where, as necessary, the Commission lays down common ruleson the eligibility of expenditure in accordance with the procedurereferred to in Article 53(2).
4. The Member States shall ensure that an operation retains the
contribution from the Funds only if that operation does not, within
five years of the date of the decision of the competent national autho-rities or the managing authority on the contribution of the Funds,undergo a substantial modification:
(a) affecting its nature or its implementation conditions or giving to a
firm or a public body an undue advantage; and
(b) resulting either from a change in the nature of ownership in an item
of infrastructure or a cessation or change of location in a produc-tive activity.
The Member States shall inform the Commission of any such modifica-
tion. Where such a modification occurs, Article 39 shall apply.
CHAPTER II
FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
Article 31
Budget commitments
1. Community budget commitments shall be made on the basis of
the decision to grant a contribution from the Funds.
2. Commitments in respect of assistance to be carried out over a
period of two or more years shall be as a general rule effectedannually. The first commitment shall be made when the Commissionlays down its decision approving the assistance. Subsequent commit-ments shall be effected as a general rule by 30 April each year.
The Commission shall automatically decommit any part of a commit-
ment which has not been settled by the payment on account or for
which it has not received an acceptable payment application, as definedin Article 32(3), by the end of the second year following the year ofcommitment or, where appropriate and for the amounts concerned,following the date of a subsequent Commission decision necessary inorder to authorise a measure or an operation or by the end of the dead-
line for the transmission of the final report referred to in Article 37(1);
the contribution from the Funds to that assistance shall be reduced bythat amount.
The period for automatic decommitment referred to in the second
subparagraph shall cease to run for the part of the commitment corre-sponding to operations which, at the specified date of decommitment,
are the subject of a judicial procedure, or an administrative appeal
having suspensory effects, subject to the Commission receiving priorinformation giving reasons from the Member State concerned and toinformation being issued by the Commission.
In any case, the Commission shall in good time inform the Member
State and the paying authority whenever there is a risk of applicationof the automatic decommitment provided for in the second subpara-
graph.
If this Regulation enters into force after 1 January 2000, the period for
automatic decommitment referred to in the second subparagraph shallbe extended for the first commitment by the number of monthsbetween 1 January 2000 and the date of the decision on the contribu-tions from the Funds referred to in Article 28.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 34
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3. For assistance to be carried out over a period of less than two
years the total amount of the contribution from the Funds shall becommitted when the Commission adopts its decsion granting a contri-
bution from the Funds.
Article 32
Payments
1. Payment by the Commission of the contribution from the Funds
shall be made, in accordance with the corresponding budget commit-
ments, to the paying authority as defined in Article 9(o).
Payments shall be posted to the earliest open commitment made
pursuant to Article 31.
Payments may take the form of payments on account, interim payments
or payments of the final balance. Interim payments and payments ofthe balance shall relate to expenditure actually paid out, which mustcorrespond to payments effected by the final beneficiaries, supportedby receipted invoices or accounting documents of equivalent probative
value.
Subject to available funding, the Commission shall make interim
payments within no more than two months of receipt of an acceptablepayment application, as described in paragraph 3.
The paying authority shall ensure that final beneficiaries receive
payment of their contribution from the Funds as quickly as possibleand in full. No deduction, retention or further specific charge whichwould reduce these amounts shall be made.
2. When the first commitment is made, the Commission shall make
a payment on account to the paying authority. This payment on account
shall be 7 % of the contribution from the Funds to the assistance inquestion. In principle, it may be subdivided over two budget years atmost depending on the availability of budget funds.
For the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary,
Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia, this payment on account shallbe 16 % of the contribution from the Funds to the assistance in ques-
tion. It will be subdivided over two budget years: 10 % in the first
year, 6 % in the following year.
Throughout the lifetime of assistance, the paying authority shall use the
payment on account to pay the Community contribution to expenditurerelating to this assistance.
All or part of a payment on account, depending on progress towards
implementation of the assistance, shall be repaid to the Commission
by the paying authority if no payment application is sent to the
Commission within 18 months of its decision to grant a contributionfrom the Funds. If any interest is earned on the payment on account itshall be allocated by the paying authority to the form of assistanceconcerned.
3. Interim payments shall be made by the Commission to reimburse
expenditure actually paid under the Funds as certified by the paying
authority. Such payments shall be made at the level of each assistance
and calculated at the level of measures contained in the financing planof the programme complement. They shall be subject to the followingconditions:
(a) the programme complement containing the information specified in
Article 18(3) has been presented to the Commission;
(b) the latest annual implementation report due, containing the infor-
mation specified in Article 37 has been forwarded to theCommission;
(c) the mid-term evaluation of the assistance referred to in Article 42,
when due, has been forwarded to the Commission;1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 35
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(d) decisions taken by the managing authority and the Monitoring
Committee are consistent with the total amount of the contributionfrom the Funds granted to the priorities concerned;
(e) any recommendations as referred to in Article 34(2) have been
acted upon within the specified period, or reasons have beencommunicated by the Member State to explain why no measure
has been taken, where those recommendations are intended to
remedy serious shortcomings in the monitoring or managementsystem which undermine proper financial management of the assis-tance; any requests for corrective measures as referred to inArticle 38(4) have been acted upon, if the application relates tothe measure or measures concerned;
(f) no suspension of payments under the first subparagraph of
Article 39(2) has been decided, and no decision has been taken bythe Commission to embark on an infringement procedure withinthe meaning of Article 226 of the Treaty concerning the measure(s)
that is or are the subject of the application in question.
The Member State and the paying authority shall be informed immedi-
ately by the Commission if one of these conditions is not fulfilled andthe payment application is therefore not acceptable and they shall takethe necessary steps to remedy the situation.
Member States shall ensure that, as far as possible, applications for
interim payments are presented to the Commission in batches three
times a year, the last application being presented no later than31 October.
Applications for interim payments shall distinguish, for each priority,
the expenditure incurred in regions and areas receiving transitionalsupport.
The combined total of the payments referred to in paragraph 2 and in
this paragraph which are made in respect of an assistance shall not
exceed 95 % of the contribution from the Funds to that assistance.
4. The final balance of the assistance shall be paid if:
(a) the paying authority submits to the Commission within six months
of the deadline for payment laid down in the decision granting acontribution from the Funds, a certified statement of expenditureactually paid;
(b) the final report on implementation has been submitted to and
approved by the Commission;
(c) the Member State has sent the Commission the statement referred
to in Article 38(1)(f).
5. The final payment of the balance may no longer be corrected at
the request of the Member State if the paying authority has not sent anapplication to the Commission within nine months from the date oftransfer of the final balance.
6. The Member States shall designate the authorities empowered to
issue the certificates and declarations referred to in paragraphs 3 and 4.
7. No later than 30 April of each year, the Member States shall send
the Commission their updated forecasts of applications for payment forthe current year and the forecast for the following year.
8. The Commission shall lay down appropriate payment procedures,
consistent with the objectives of these provisions, for the innovative
measures referred to in Article 22 and the measures referred to in
Article 23 and inform the committees referred to in Articles 48 to 51.
Article 33
Use of the euro
Commission decisions, commitments and payments shall be denomi-
nated and carried out in euro in accordance with the arrangements tobe drawn up by the Commission under the procedure referred to inArticle 53(2).1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 36
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TITLE IV
EFFECTIVENESS OF ASSISTANCE FROM THE FUNDS
CHAPTER I
MONITORING
Article 34
Management by the managing authority
1. Without prejudice to Article 8(3), the managing authority as
defined in Article 9(n) shall be responsible for the efficiency andcorrectness of management and implementation, and in particular for:
(a) setting up a system to gather reliable financial and statistical infor-
mation on implementation, for the monitoring indicators referred to
in Article 36, and for evaluation in compliance with Articles 42
and 43; and for forwarding this data in accordance with arrange-ments agreed between the Member State and the Commission,using where possible computer systems permitting the exchange ofdata with the Commission, as defined in Article 18(3)(e);
(b) adjustment in accordance with paragraph 3 and the implementation
of the programme complement within the meaning of Article 18(3),without prejudice to Article 35;
(c) drawing up and, after obtaining the approval of the Monitoring
Committee, submitting to the Commission the annual implementa-tion report;
(d) organising, in cooperation with the Commission and the Member
State, the mid-term evaluation referred to in Article 42;
(e) ensuring that those bodies taking part in the management and
implementation of the assistance maintain either a separate
accounting system or an adequate accounting code for all transac-tions relating to the assistance;
(f) ensuring the correctness of operations financed under the assis-
tance, particularly by implementing internal controls in keeping
with the principles of sound financial management and acting inresponse to any observations or requests for corrective measuresadopted pursuant to Article 38(4), first subparagraph, or recommen-dations for adjustment made under paragraph 2 of this Article inaccordance with the provisions of those Articles;
(g) ensuring compliance with Community policies as stipulated in
Article 12; in the context of the application of Community ruleson the award of public contracts, notices sent for publication in
the Official Journal of the European Communities shall specify
those projects in respect of which a contribution from the Fundshas been applied for or granted;
(h) compliance with the obligations concerning information and publi-
city referred to in Article 46.
Without prejudice to the provisions of this Regulation, in carrying out
its tasks the managing authority shall act in full compliance with theinstitutional, legal and financial systems of the Member Stateconcerned.
2. Every year, when the annual implementation report referred to in
Article 37 is submitted, the Commission and the managing authority
shall review the main outcomes of the previous year, in accordancewith arrangements to be defined by agreement with the Member Stateand the managing authority concerned.
After this review, the Commission may make comments to the Member
State and the managing authority. The Member State shall inform the
Commission of the action taken on these comments. Where in dulysubstantiated cases the Commission considers that the measures takenare inadequate, it may make recommendations to the Member Stateand the managing authority for adjustments aimed at improving theeffectiveness of the monitoring or management arrangements for the1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 37
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assistance, together with the reasons for any such recommendations. If
it receives any such recommendations, the managing authority shallsubsequently demonstrate the steps taken to improve the monitoring
or management arrangements or it shall explain why it has not taken
any.
3. The managing authority shall, at the request of the Monitoring
Committee or on its own initiative, adjust the programme complement,without changing the total amount of the contribution from the Funds
granted to the priority concerned nor its specific targets. After approval
by the Monitoring Committee, it shall inform the Commission of theadjustment within one month.
Any amendments to the elements contained in the decision on the
contribution of the Funds shall be decided by the Commission, inagreement with the Member State concerned, within four months of
delivery of the Monitoring Committee's approval.
Article 35
Monitoring Committees
1. Each Community support framework or single programming
document and each operational programme shall be supervised by aMonitoring Committee.
Monitoring Committees shall be set up by the Member State, in agree-
ment with the managing authority after consultation with the partners.
The partners shall promote the balanced participation of women and
men.
The Monitoring Committees shall be set up no more than three months
after the decision on the contribution of the Funds. The MonitoringCommittees shall act under the authority and within the legal jurisdic-tion of the Member State.
2. A representative of the Commission and, where appropriate, of
the EIB, shall participate in the work of the Monitoring Committee in
an advisory capacity.
The Monitoring Committee shall draw up its own rules of procedure
within the institutional, legal and financial framework of the MemberState concerned and agree them with the managing authority.
In principle, the Monitoring Committee shall be chaired by a represen-
tative of the Member State or the managing authority.
3. The Monitoring Committee shall satisfy itself as to the effective-
ness and quality of the implementation of assistance. To that end:
(a) pursuant to Article 15, it shall confirm or adjust the programme
complement, including the physical and financial indicators to beused to monitor the assistance. Its approval must be obtained before
any further adjustment is made;
(b) it shall consider and approve the criteria for selecting the opera-
tions financed under each measure within six months of approvalof the assistance;
(c) it shall periodically review progress made towards achieving the
specific objectives of the assistance;
(d) it shall examine the results of implementation, particularly achieve-
ment of the targets set for the different measures and the mid-termevaluation referred to in Article 42;
(e) it shall consider and approve the annual and final implementation
reports before they are sent to the Commission;
(f) it shall consider and approve any proposal to amend the contents of
the Commission decision on the contribution of the Funds;
(g) it may in any event propose to the managing authority any adjust-
ment or review of the assistance likely to make possible theattainment of the objectives referred to in Article 1 or to improvethe management of assistance, including in respect of financial1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 38
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management. Any adjustment to the assistance shall be made in
accordance with Article 34(3).
Article 36
Monitoring indicators
1. The managing authority and the Monitoring Committee shall
carry out the monitoring by reference to physical and financial indica-tors specified in the operational programme, single programmingdocument, or programme complement. In drawing up their indicators,
they should take into account the indicative methodology and list of
examples of indicators published by the Commission, as well as a cate-gorisation of fields of intervention to be proposed by the Commissionupon entry into force of this Regulation. The indicators shall relate tothe specific character of the assistance concerned, its objectives and the
socio-economic, structural and environmental situation of the Member
State concerned and its regions, as appropriate, and shall take account,where appropriate, of the existence of regions or areas receiving transi-tional support. These indicators shall include, in particular, those usedfor allocating the reserve referred to in Article 44.
2. These indicators shall show, for the assistance in question:
(a) the specific targets, quantified where they lend themselves to quan-
tification, for the measures and priorities, and their mutual
consistency;
(b) the stage reached in the assistance in terms of physical implemen-
tation, results and, as soon as practicable, its impact at theappropriate level (priority or measure);
(c) the progress of the financing plan.
Where the nature of the assistance permits, the statistics shall be
broken down by sex and by the size of the recipient undertakings.
3. The financial and progress indicators shall be such that the infor-
mation set out in paragraph 2(a), (b) and (c) can be identifiedseparately for major projects.
Article 37
Annual and final implementation reports
1. For multiannual assistance, the managing authority shall, within
six months of the end of each full calendar year of implementation,submit to the Commission an annual implementation report as providedfor in Article 34(1)(c). A final report shall be submitted to theCommission at the latest six months after the final date of eligibilityof the expenditure.
For all assistance to be implemented over a period of less than two
years, the managing authority shall submit only a final report to the
Commission. This shall be submitted within six months of the lastpayment made by the paying authority.
The report shall be examined and approved by the Monitoring
Committee before it is sent to the Commission.
Once the Commission has received an annual implementation report, it
shall indicate within a period of two months if the report is consideredunsatisfactory, giving its reasons; otherwise, the report shall be deemedto be accepted. In the case of a final report the Commission shall
respond within a period of five months from its receipt of the report.
2. All annual and final implementation reports shall include the
following information:
(a) any change in general conditions which is of relevance to the
implementation of the assistance, in particular the main socio-economic trends, changes in national, regional or sectoral policiesor in the frame of reference referred to in Article 9(c) and, whereapplicable, their implications for the mutual consistency of assis-1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 39
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tance from the different Funds and consistency between Fund assis-
tance and that from other financial instruments;
(b) the progress in the implementation of priorities and measures for
each of the Funds in relation to their specific targets, with a quan-
tification, wherever and whenever they lend themselves to
quantification, of the physical indicators and indicators of resultsand of impact referred to in Article 36 at the appropriate level(priority or measure);
(c) the financial implementation of the assistance, summarising for
each measure the total expenditure actually paid out by the paying
authority and a record of the total payments received from the
Commission and quantifying the financial indicators referred to inArticle 36(2)(c); financial implementation in the areas receivingtransitional support shall be presented separately in respect ofeach priority; financial implementation of the EAGGF GuaranteeSection for the measures referred to in Article 33 of Regulation
(EC) No 1257/1999 shall be presented at the level of the total
amount of the financial implementation;
(d) the steps taken by the managing authority and the Monitoring
Committee to ensure the quality and effectiveness of implementa-tion, in particular:
(i) monitoring, financial control and evaluation measures,
including data collection arrangements;
(ii) a summary of any significant problems encountered in mana-
ging the assistance and any measures taken, including actionon recommendations for adjustments made pursuant toArticle 34(2) or requests for corrective measures pursuant toArticle 38(4);
(iii) the use made of technical assistance;
(iv) the measures taken to ensure publicity for the assistance in
accordance with Article 46;
(e) the steps taken to ensure compatibility with Community policies as
stipulated in Article 12 and to ensure coordination of all the
Community structural assistance referred to in Article 17(1) andthe second subparagraph of Article 19(2);
(f) a separate section, where appropriate, on the progress and financing
of major projects and global grants.
CHAPTER II
FINANCIAL CONTROL
Article 38
General provisions
1. Without prejudice to the Commission's responsibility for imple-
menting the general budget of the European Communities, MemberStates shall take responsibility in the first instance for the financialcontrol of assistance. To that end, the measures they take shall include:
(a) verifying that management and control arrangements have been set
up and are being implemented in such a way as to ensure thatCommunity funds are being used efficiently and correctly;
(b) providing the Commission with a description of these arrange-
ments;
(c) ensuring that assistance is managed in accordance with all the
applicable Community rules and that the funds placed at their
disposal are used in accordance with the principles of sound finan-cial management;
(d) certifying that the declarations of expenditure presented to the
Commission are accurate and ensuring that they result fromaccounting systems based on verifiable supporting documents;
(e) preventing, detecting and correcting irregularities, notifying these
to the Commission, in accordance with the rules, and keeping the1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 40
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Commission informed of the progress of administrative and legal
proceedings;
(f) presenting to the Commission, when each assistance is wound up, a
declaration drawn up by a person or department having a function
independent of the designated managing authority. This declarationshall summarise the conclusions of the checks carried out duringprevious years and shall assess the validity of the application forpayment of the final balance and the legality and regularity of thetransactions covered by the final certificate of expenditure. The
Member States may attach their own opinion to this certificate if
they consider it necessary;
(g) cooperating with the Commission to ensure that Community funds
are used in accordance with the principles of sound financialmanagement;
(h) recovering any amounts lost as a result of an irregularity detected
and, where appropriate, charging interest on late payments.
2. The Commission in its responsibility for the implementation of
the general budget of the European Communities shall ensure that
Member States have smoothly functioning management and control
systems so that Community funds are efficiently and correctly used.
To that end, without prejudice to checks carried out by the Member
States in accordance with national laws, regulations and administrative
provisions, Commission officials or servants may, in accordance witharrangements agreed with the Member State in the framework of coop-eration described in paragraph 3, carry out on-the-spot checks,including sample checks, on the operations financed by the Funds andon management and control systems with a minimum of one working
day's notice. The Commission shall give notice to the Member State
concerned with a view to obtaining all the assistance necessary. Offi-cials or servants of the Member State concerned may take part insuch checks.
The Commission may require the Member State concerned to carry out
an on-the-spot check to verify the correctness of one or more transac-tions. Commission officials or servants may take part in such checks.
3. The Commission and the Member States shall on the basis of
bilateral administrative arrangements cooperate to coordinate plans,methods and implementation of checks so as to maximise the useful-ness of those carried out. They shall immediately exchange the results
of the checks carried out.
At least once a year and, in any event, before the annual review
provided for in Article 34(2) the following shall be examined and eval-
uated:
(a) the results of the checks carried out by the Member State and the
Commission;
(b) any comments made by other national or Community control
bodies or institutions;
(c) the financial impact of the irregularities noted, the steps already
taken or still required to correct them and, where necessary, adjust-ments to the management and control systems.
4. Following this examination and evaluation and without prejudice
to the measures to be taken immediately by the Member State underthis Article and Article 39, the Commission may make observations,particularly regarding the financial impact of any irregularities
detected. These observations shall be addressed to the Member State
and the managing authority of the assistance concerned. The observa-tions shall be accompanied, where necessary, by requests forcorrective measures to remedy the management shortcomings foundand correct those irregularities detected which have not already beencorrected. The Member State shall have the opportunity to comment
on these observations.
Where, following or in the absence of comments from the Member
State, the Commission adopts conclusions, the Member State shall1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 41
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take the necessary steps within the deadline set to comply with the
Commission's requests and inform the Commission of its actions.
5. Without prejudice to this Article, the Commission, after due veri-
fication, may suspend all or part of an interim payment if it finds that
the expenditure concerned is linked to a serious irregularity which hasnot been corrected and that immediate action is needed. The Commis-sion shall inform the Member State concerned of the action taken andthe reasons for it. If, after five months, the reasons for the suspensionremain or the Member State concerned has not notified the Commis-
sion of the measures taken to correct the serious irregularity, the
provisions laid down under Article 39 shall apply.
6. For a period of three years, unless otherwise decided in the bilat-
eral administrative arrangements, following the payment by theCommission of the final balance in respect of any assistance, theresponsible authorities shall keep available for the Commission all the
supporting documents (either the originals or versions certified to be in
conformity with the originals on commonly accepted data carriers)regarding expenditure and checks on the assistance concerned. Thisperiod shall be interrupted either in the case of legal proceedings or atthe duly motivated request of the Commission.
Article 39
Financial corrections
1. The Member States shall, in the first instance, bear the responsi-
bility for investigating irregularities, acting upon evidence of any major
change affecting the nature or conditions for the implementation or
supervision of assistance and making the financial corrections required.
The Member State shall make the financial corrections required in
connection with the individual or systemic irregularity. The correctionsmade by the Member State shall consist in cancelling all or part of theCommunity contribution. The Community funds released in this way
may be re-used by the Member State for the assistance concerned, in
compliance with the arrangements to be defined pursuant toArticle 53(2).
2. If, after completing the necessary verifications, the Commission
concludes that:
(a) a Member State has not complied with its obligations under
paragraph 1; or
(b) all or part of an operation justifies neither part nor the whole of the
contribution from the Funds; or
(c) there are serious failings in the management or control systems
which could lead to systemic irregularities;
the Commission shall suspend the interim payments in question and,
stating its reasons, request that the Member State submit its commentsand, where appropriate, carry out any corrections, within a specifiedperiod of time.
If the Member State objects to the observations made by the Commis-
sion, the Member State shall be invited to a hearing by the
Commission, in which both sides in cooperation based on the partner-
ship make efforts to reach an agreement about the observations and theconclusions to be drawn from them.
3. At the end of the period set by the Commission, the Commission
may, if no agreement has been reached and the Member State has notmade the corrections and taking account of any comments made by the
Member State, decide within three months to:
(a) reduce the payment on account referred to in Article 32(2); or
(b) make the financial corrections required by cancelling all or part of
the contribution of the Funds to the assistance concerned.
The Commission shall when deciding the amount of a correction take
account, in compliance with the principle of proportionality, of the type1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 42
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of irregularity or change and the extent and financial implications of
the shortcomings found in the management or control systems of theMember States.
In the absence of a decision to do either (a) or (b) the interim payments
shall immediately cease to be suspended.
4. Any sum received unduly and to be recovered shall be repaid to
the Commission, together with interest on account of late payment.
5. This Article shall apply without prejudice to Article 32.
CHAPTER III
EVALUATION
Article 40
General provisions
1. In order to gauge its effectiveness, Community structural assis-
tance shall be the subject of ex-ante , mid-term and ex-post evaluation
designed to appraise its impact with respect to the objectives set out inArticle 1 and to analyse its effects on specific structural problems.
2. The effectiveness of the operations of the Funds shall be
measured by the following criteria:
(a) their overall impact on the goals set out in Article 158 of the
Treaty, and in particular the strengthening of the economic andsocial cohesion of the Community;
(b) the impact of the priorities proposed in the development plans and
of the priorities incorporated in each Community support frame-work and in each case of assistance.
3. The competent authorities of the Member States and the Commis-
sion shall assemble the appropriate resources and collect the datarequired to ensure that this evaluation can be carried out in the mosteffective manner. In this connection, evaluation shall make use of thevarious particulars that the monitoring arrangements may yield, supple-
mented where necessary by the gathering of information to improve its
relevance.
On the initiative of the Member States or the Commission, after
informing the Member State concerned, supplementary evaluations, ifappropriate on a specific topic, may be launched with a view to identi-fying transferable experience.
4. The results of the evaluation shall be made available to the
public, on request. As regards the results of the evaluation providedfor in Article 42, the Monitoring Committee's agreement shall be
required according to the institutional arrangements of each Member
State.
5. The evaluation procedures shall be laid down in the Community
support frameworks and forms of assistance.
Article 41
Ex-ante evaluation
1. The purpose of ex-ante evaluation shall be to provide a basis for
preparing the development plans, assistance and programme comple-
ment of which it shall form part.
Ex-ante evaluation shall be the responsibility of the authorities respon-
sible for preparing the plans, assistance and programme complement.
2. For the preparation of plans and assistance ex-ante evaluation
shall involve an analysis of the strengths, weaknesses and potential ofthe Member State, region or sector concerned. In the light of thecriteria listed in Article 40(2)(a) it shall assess the consistency of thestrategy and targets selected with the specific features of the regionsor areas concerned, including demographic trends, and the expected1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 43
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impact of the planned priorities for action, quantifying their specific
targets in relation to the starting situation, where they lend themselvesthereto.
The ex-ante evaluation shall take into account, amongst other things,
the situation in terms of competitiveness and innovation, small andmedium-sized enterprises, employment and the labour market havingregard to the European employment strategy, the environment andequality between men and women, and it shall include in particular:
(a) an ex-ante evaluation of the social and economic situation, mainly
trends in the national labour market, including regions encounteringparticular employment problems and of the overall strategy in thefield of human resource development and the way in which thisstrategy is linked to the national employment strategy as set out inthe national action plans;
(b) an ex-ante evaluation of the environmental situation of the region
concerned, in particular of those environmental sectors which willpresumably be considerably affected by the assistance; the arrange-
ments to integrate the environmental dimension into the assistance
and how far they fit in with existing short- and long-term national,regional and local objectives (e.g. environmental managementplans); the arrangements for ensuring compliance with the Commu-nity rules on the environment. The ex-ante evaluation shall give a
description, quantified as far as possible, of the existing environ-
mental situation and an estimate of the expected impact of the
strategy and assistance on the environmental situation;
(c) an ex-ante evaluation of the situation in terms of equality between
men and women with regard to labour market opportunities and
treatment at work, including the specific constraints on each group;an estimate of the expected impact of the strategy and assistance,particularly on the integration of women and men into the labourmarket, on education and vocational training, on the establishmentof women in business and on the reconciliation of family and
working life.
The ex-ante evaluation shall verify the relevance of the proposed
implementing and monitoring arrangements, consistency with Commu-nity policies and how far the indicative guidance referred to inArticle 10(3) has been taken into account.
It shall take account of results from evaluations of earlier programming
periods.
3. evaluation of the measures in the programme complement shall
demonstrate consistency with the aims of the corresponding priorities,quantify their specific targets where the priorities lend themselvesthereto, and subsequently verify the relevance of the selection criteria,
as provided for pursuant to Article 35(3)(b).
Article 42
Mid-term evaluation
1. Mid-term evaluation shall examine, in the light of the ex-ante
evaluation, the initial results of the asssistance, their relevance and theextent to which the targets have been attained. It shall also assess theuse made of financial resources and the operation of monitoring and
implementation.
2. Mid-term evaluation shall be carried out under the responsibility
of the managing authority, in cooperation with the Commission and theMember State. It shall cover each Community support framework andeach assistance. It shall be carried out by an independent assessor, be
submitted to the Monitoring Committee for the Community support
framework or assistance concerned in accordance with Article 35(3),and then sent to the Commission, as a general rule three years afteradoption of the Community support framework or assistance, and nolater than 31 December 2003, with a view to the revision referred toin Article 14(2).1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 44
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3. The Commission shall examine the relevance and quality of the
evaluation on the basis of criteria defined beforehand by the Commis-sion and the Member State in partnership, with a view to reviewing the
assistance and allocating the reserve referred to in Article 44.
4. As a continuation of mid-term evaluation, it shall be updated for
each Community support framework and assistance and completed no
later than 31 December 2005 in order to prepare for subsequent assis-tance operations.
Article 43
Ex-post evaluation
1. On the basis of the evaluation results already available, ex-post
evaluation shall cover the utilisation of resources and the effectivenessand efficiency of the assistance and its impact and shall draw conclu-
sions regarding policy on economic and social cohesion. It shall cover
the factors contributing to the success or failure of implementation andthe achievements and results, including their sustainability.
2. Ex-post evaluation shall be the responsibility of the Commission,
in collaboration with the Member State and the managing authority. Itshall cover the assistance and be carried out by independent assessors.It shall be completed not later than three years after the end of theprogramming period.
CHAPTER IV
PERFORMANCE RESERVE
Article 44
Allocation of the performance reserve
1. Each Member State, in close consultation with the Commission,
shall assess under each objective and not later than 31 December2003 the performance of each of their operational programmes or
single programming documents on the basis of a limited number of
monitoring indicators reflecting effectiveness, management and finan-cial implementation and measuring the mid-term results in relation totheir specific initial targets.
These indicators shall be decided by the Member State in close consul-
tation with the Commission taking account of all or part of anindicative list of indicators proposed by the Commission and shall bequantified in the existing different annual implementation reports as
well as the mid-term evaluation report. The Member States shall be
responsible for their application.
2. At mid-term and not later than 31 March 2004, the Commission
shall allocate, in close consultation with the Member States concerned,under each objective, on the basis of proposals from each MemberState, taking account of its specific institutional features and theircorresponding programming, the commitment appropriations referredto in Article 7(5) to the operational programmes or single programming
documents or their priorities which are considered to be successful. The
operational programmes or single programming documents shall beadapted in accordance with Articles 14 and 15.
TITLE V
REPORTS AND PUBLICITY
Article 45
Reports
1. Pursuant to Article 159 of the Treaty, the Commission shall
submit a report at three-yearly intervals to the European Parliament,the Council, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committeeof the Regions on the progress made towards economic and socialcohesion and the contribution made to this by the Funds, the Cohesion1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 45
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Fund, the EIB and other financial instruments. This report shall review
in particular:
(a) progress in achieving economic and social cohesion, including the
socio-economic situation of the regions and any changes observed,and an analysis of direct investment flows and their impact on theCommunity employment situation;
(b) the role of the Funds, the Cohesion Fund, the EIB and other finan-
cial instruments as well as the impact of other Community andnational policies in accomplishing this process;
(c) any proposals concerning Community measures and policies which
may need to be adopted in order to strengthen economic and socialcohesion.
2. Before 1 November of each year, the Commission shall forward
to the European Parliament, the Council, the Economic and SocialCommittee and the Committee of the Regions a report on the imple-mentation of this Regulation during the preceding year. This report
shall review in particular:
(a) the activities of each fund, the utilisation of their budget resources
and the concentration of assistance, the deployment of the other
financial instruments for which the Commission has responsibility
and the concentration of their resources; this review shall include:
— an annual breakdown by Member State of appropriations
committed and paid in respect of each fund, including Commu-nity initiatives;
— an annual evaluation of innovative actions and technical assis-
tance;
(b) the coordination of assistance from the Funds among themselves
and with the assistance granted by the EIB and the other existingfinancial instruments;
(c) as soon as they are available, the results of the evaluations referred
to in Article 42 — indicating any adjustments to the assistance —
and in Article 43, and an evaluation of the consistency of measures
taken by the Funds with the Community policies referred to inArticle 12;
(d) a list of the major projects to which the Funds have contributed;
(e) the results of checks carried out by the Commission in accordance
with Article 38(2) and the lessons to be drawn from them,including an indication of the number of recorded irregularities,
the amounts in question and the financial corrections made in
respect of Article 39(2);
(f) information on the opinions of committees delivered in accordance
with Articles 48 to 51.
Article 46
Information and publicity
1. For the purposes of consultation as referred to in Article 15(1),
Member States shall ensure that publicity is given to developmentplans.
2. Without prejudice to Article 23(1), the managing authority shall
be responsible for ensuring that publicity is given to the package andparticularly for informing:
(a) potential final beneficiaries, trade and professional bodies, the
economic and social partners, bodies promoting equality betweenmen and women and the relevant non-governmental organisationsabout the opportunities afforded by the assistance;
(b) the general public about the role played by the Community in the
assistance concerned and its results.
3. The Member States shall consult the Commission and in accor-
dance with Article 37(2) inform it each year of the initiatives takenfor the purposes set out in paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 46
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TITLE VI
COMMITTEES
Article 47
General provisions
1. In implementing this Regulation, the Commission shall be
assisted by four committees:
(a) the Committee on the Development and Conversion of Regions;
(b) the Committee pursuant to Article 147 of the Treaty;
(c) the Committee on Agricultural Structures and Rural Development;
(d) the Committee on Structures for Fisheries and Aquaculture.
2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 3 and 7 of
Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply.
3. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 4 and 7 of
Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply.
The period laid down in Article 4(3) of Decision 1999/468/EC shall be
set at one month.
3a. The committees shall adopt their rules of procedure.
4. The Commission shall refer the reports referred to in Article 45 to
the committees. It may seek the opinion of a Committee on any matter
concerning assistance under the Funds, other than assistance provided
for in this Title. This includes matters primarily dealt with by othercommittees.
5. Each committee's opinions shall be brought to the attention of the
other committees referred to in this Title.
6. Each committee shall draw up its rules of procedure.7. The European Parliament shall be regularly informed of the work
of the committees.
Article 48
Committee on the Development and Conversion of Regions
1. A Committee on the Development and Conversion of Regions,
made up of Member States' representatives and chaired by a Commis-sion representative, is hereby set up under the auspices of theCommission. The EIB shall appoint a non-voting representative.
2. The committee shall act as a Management Committee according
to the procedure laid down in Article 47(3) when it deals with:
(a) the implementing rules referred to in Article 53(2).
Other committees shall be consulted under their consultative
competence on the abovementioned implementing rules, in so far
as they are concerned;
(b) the implementing rules referred to in Article 5 of Regulation (EC)
No 1261/1999 of the European Parliament and of the Council of
21 June 1999 on the European Regional Development Fund
(ERDF) (
1);
(c) the guidelines relating to the Community initiatives referred to in
Article 20(1)(a) (‘Interreg’) and 20(1)(b) (‘Urban’);
(d) the guidelines for the different types of innovative measures
provided for in application of Article 22, in the case of supportfrom the ERDF.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 47
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3. The committee acts as a consultative committee according to the
procedure laid down in Article 47(2) when it discusses the followingmatters:
(a) establishment and revision of the list of areas eligible under
Objective 2;
(b) the Community support frameworks and the corresponding infor-
mation contained in the single programming documents, underObjectives 1 and 2;
(c) the types of technical-assistance measure in accordance with
Article 23 in the case of support from the ERDF;
(d) any other questions concerning Articles 20 to 22.
Article 49
Committee pursuant to Article 147 of the Treaty
1. The committee set up pursuant to Article 147 of the Treaty shall
be composed of two government representatives, two representatives ofthe workers' organisations and two representatives of the employers'
organisations from each Member State. The Member of the Commis-
sion responsible for chairing the committee may delegate thatresponsibility to a senior Commission official.
For each Member State, an alternate shall be appointed for each cate-
gory of representative mentioned in the first paragraph. In the absence
of one or both members, the alternate shall be automatically entitled to
take part in the proceedings.
The members and alternates shall be appointed by the Council, acting
on a proposal from the Commission, for a period of three years. Theymay be reappointed. The Council shall, as regards the composition ofthe committee, endeavour to ensure fair representation of the different
groups concerned. For the items on the agenda affecting it, the EIB
shall appoint a non-voting representative.
2. The committee shall:
(a) deliver opinions on the draft Commission decisions relating to
single programming documents and to Community support frame-
works under Objective 3 as well as on the Community supportframeworks and corresponding information contained in the singleprogramming documents, under Objectives 1 and 2, in the case ofsupport from the ESF;
(b) deliver its opinion on the implementing rules provided for in
Article 53(2);
(c) be consulted on the implementing rules referred to in Article 8 of
Regulation (EC) No 1262/1999 of the European Parliament and ofthe Council of 21 June 1999 on the European Social Fund(ESF) (
1);
(d) deliver opinions on draft Commission guidelines relating to the
Community initiative referred to in Article 20(1)(d) (‘EQUAL’)and for the various types of innovative measure in the context ofArticle 22 in the case of support from the ESF. The Commission
may also refer further questions to it within the meaning of
Articles 20 to 22;
(e) be consulted on the types of technical-assistance measure in accor-
dance with Article 23 in the case of support from the ESF.
3. For their adoption, the opinions of the committee shall require an
absolut majority of the votes validly cast. The Commission shallinform the committee of the manner in which it has taken account ofits opinions.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 48
(1) See page 48 of this Official Journal.
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Article 50
Committee on Agricultural Structures and Rural Development
1. A Committee on Agricultural Structures and Rural Development,
made up of Member States' representatives and chaired by a Commis-
sion representative, is hereby set up under the auspices of the
Commission. The EIB shall appoint a non-voting representative.
2. The Committee acts as a Management Committee according to
the procedure laid down in Article 47(3) when it deals with:
(a) the implementing rules and transitional rules referred to in
Articles 34, 50 and 53 of Regulation (EC) No 1257/1999;
(b) the guidelines relating to the Community initiative referred to in
Article 20(1)(c) (‘Leader’).
3. The committee acts as a Consultative Committee according to the
procedure laid down in Article 47(2) when it discusses the followingmatters:
(a) the establishment and revision of the list of areas eligible under
Objective 2;
(b) the parts of the intervention concerning agricultural structures and
rural development included in the draft Commission decisionsrelating to the Community support frameworks and corresponding
information contained in the single programming documents, for
the regions under Objectives 1 and 2;
(c) the implementing rules referred to in Article 53(2);
(d) the types of technical-assistance measure in accordance with
Article 23 in the case of support from the EAGGF;
(e) any other questions concerning Articles 20 to 22.
Article 51
Committee on Structures for Fisheries and Aquaculture
1. A Committee on Structures for Fisheries and Aquaculture, made
up of Member States' representatives and chaired by a Commission
representative, is hereby set up under the auspices of the Commission.The EIB shall appoint a non-voting representative.
2. The committee shall act as a Management Committee according
to the procedure laid down in Article 47(3) when it deals with:
(a) the implementing rules referred to in Article 4 of Regulation (EC)
No 1263/1999;
(b) the guidelines for the different types of innovative measures
provided for in application of Article 22, in the case of supportfrom the FIFG.
3. The committee shall act as a Consultative Committee according
to the procedure laid down in Article 47(2) when it discusses the
following matters:
(a) the establishment and revision of the list of areas eligible under
Objective 2;
(b) the parts of the intervention concerning fisheries structures included
in the draft Commission Decision relating to the Community
support frameworks and corresponding information contained inthe single programming documents under Objective 1;
(c) the implementing rules provided for in Article 53(2);
(d) the types of technical-assistance measure in accordance with
Article 23 in the case of support from the FIFG;
(e) any other questions concerning Article 22.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 49
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TITLE VII
FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 52
Transitional provisions
1. This Regulation shall not affect the continuation or modification,
including the total or partial cancellation, of assistance approved by theCouncil or by the Commission on the basis of Council Regulations(EEC) No 2052/88 and (EEC) No 4253/88 or any other legislationwhich applied to that assistance on 31 December 1999.
2. Applications for a contribution from the Funds towards operations
which are submitted pursuant to Regulations (EEC) No 2052/88 and(EEC) No 4253/88 shall be considered and approved by the Commis-sion on the basis of those Regulations no later than 31 December 1999.
3. In drawing up Community support frameworks and assistance, the
Commission shall take account of any measure already approved by theCouncil or by the Commission before the entry into force of this Regu-lation and having financial repercussions during the period covered by
those support frameworks and assistance. These measures shall not be
subject to compliance with Article 30(2).
4. Notwithstanding the date specified in Article 30(2), expenditure
actually paid, in respect of which the Commission has received an
application for assistance between 1 January and 30 April 2000 and
which fulfils all the conditions laid down in this Regulation, may beregarded as eligible for a contribution from the Funds from 1 January2000.
Notwithstanding the date specified in Article 30(2), expenditure actu-
ally paid, in respect of which the Commission has received an
application for assistance from the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus,
Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia or Slovakia beforethe date of accession and which fulfils all the conditions laid down inthis Regulation, may be regarded as eligible for a contribution from theFunds as of 1 January 2004.
5. Partial sums committed for operations or programmes approved
by the Commission before 1 January 1994, but in respect of which no
application for final payment has been received by 31 March 2001,shall be automatically decommitted no later than 30 September 2001,giving rise to the repayment of amounts unduly paid, without prejudiceto operations or programmes which have been suspended on account oflegal proceedings.
Partial sums committed for operations or programmes approved by the
Commission between 1 January 1994 and 31 December 1999, but inrespect of which no application for final payment has been receivedby 31 March 2003, shall be automatically decommitted no later than
30 September 2003, giving rise to the repayment of amounts unduly
paid, without prejudice to operations or programmes which have beensuspended on account of legal proceedings.
Article 53
Implementation
1. The Commission shall be in charge of the implementation of this
Regulation.
2. The Commission shall adopt detailed rules to implement
Articles 30, 33, 38, 39 and 46, in accordance with Article 48(2)(a). Itshall also, in accordance with the same procedure and where it appearsnecessary in unforeseen circumstances, adopt other rules for the imple-mentation of this Regulation.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 50
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Article 54
Repeal
Regulations (EEC) No 2052/88 and (EEC) No 4253/88 are hereby
repealed with effect from 1 January 2000, without prejudice to
Article 52(1).
References to the repealed Regulations shall be construed as references
to this Regulation.
Article 55
Review clause
The Council shall review this Regulation on the basis of a proposal
from the Commission by 31 December 2006 at the latest.
It shall act on the proposal in accordance with the procedure laid down
in Article 161 of the Treaty.
Article 56
Entry into force
This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day following its
publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities .
Articles 28, 31 and 32 shall apply from 1 January 2000.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable
in all Member States.1999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 51
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ANNEX I
STRUCTURAL FUNDS
Annual breakdown of commitment appropriations for 2000 to 2006
(referred to in Article 7(1))
(EUR million — 1999 prices)
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
29 430 28 840 28 250 27 670 27 080 27 080 26 6601999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 52
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ANNEX II
STRUCTURAL FUNDS
Annual breakdown of commitment appropriations for the period from the date
of accession to 2006 for the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania,
Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia (referred to in Article 7(1))
(EUR million - 1999 prices)
2004 2005 2006
3 453,5 4 754,7 5 947,61999R1260 — EN — 01.05.2004 — 003.001 — 53