INTERINSTITUTIONAL AGREEMENT of 13 October 1998 on legal bases and implementation of the budget (98/C 344/01)

1. Under the system of the Treaty, implementation of appropriations entered in the budget for any Community action requires the prior adoption of a basic act.

A 'basic act` is an act of secondary legislation which provides a legal basis for the Community action and for the implementation of the corresponding expenditure entered in the budget. Such an act must take the form of a Regulation, a Directive or a Decision (Entscheidung or Beschluß). Recommendations and Opinions do not constitute basic acts, nor do Resolutions or Declarations.

2. However, the following may be implemented without a basic act as long as the actions which they are intended to finance fall within the competence of the Community:

(a) (i) appropriations for pilot schemes of an experimental nature aimed at testing the feasibility of an action and its usefulness. The relevant commitment appropriations may be entered in the budget for only two financial years. Their total amount may not exceed EUR 32 million;

(ii) appropriations relating to preparatory actions intended to prepare proposals with a view to the adoption of future Community actions. The preparatory actions must follow a coherent approach and may take various forms. The relevant commitment appropriations may be entered in the budget for only three financial years at most. The legislative procedure should be concluded before the end of the third financial year. During the course of the legislative procedure, the commitment of appropriations must correspond to the particular features of the preparatory action as regards the activities envisaged, the aims pursued and the persons benefited. Consequently, the means implemented cannot correspond in volume to those envisaged for financing the definitive action itself. The total amount of the new headings concerned may not exceed EUR 30 million per financial year and the total amount of the appropriations actually committed in respect of the preparatory actions may not exceed EUR 75 million.

When the preliminary draft budget (PDB) is presented, the Commission will submit a report on the actions referred to in points (i) and (ii) which will also cover the objective of the action, an assessment of results and the follow-up envisaged;

(b) appropriations concerning actions of a specific, or even indefinite, nature carried out by the Commission by virtue of tasks resulting from its prerogatives at institutional level, other than its right of legislative initiative as referred to in point (a), and specific powers directly conferred upon it by the Treaty. A list is contained in the Annex. The list may be supplemented, in the presentation of the PDB, with an indication of the Articles in question and the amounts concerned;

(c) appropriations intended for the operation of each institution under its administrative autonomy.

3. This interinstitutional agreement shall enter into force on the date when it is signed by the representatives of the three institutions.

It shall apply from that date, for the continuation of the 1999 budget procedure and to the budgets for subsequent financial years, unless one of the three institutions denounces it.

Hecho en Bruselas, el trece de octubre de mil novecientos noventa y ocho.

Udfærdiget i Bruxelles den trettende oktober nitten hundrede og otteoghalvfems.

Geschehen zu Brüssel am dreizehnten Oktober neunzehnhundertachtundneunzig.

¸ãéíå óôéò ÂñõîÝëëåò, óôéò äÝêá ôñåéò Ïêôùâñßïõ ÷ßëéá åííéáêüóéá åíåíÞíôá ïêôþ.

Done at Brussels on the thirteenth day of October in the year one thousand nine hundred and ninety-eight.

Fait à Bruxelles, le treize octobre mil neuf cent quatre-vingt-dix-huit.

Fatto a Bruxelles, addì tredici ottobre millenovecentonovantotto.

Gedaan te Brussel, de dertiende oktober negentienhonderd achtennegentig.

Feito em Bruxelas, em treze de Outubro de mil novecentos e noventa e oito.

Tehty Brysselissä kolmantenatoista päivänä lokakuuta vuonna tuhatyhdeksänsataayhdeksänkymmentäkahdeksan.

Som skedde i Bryssel den trettonde oktober nittonhundranittioåtta.

Por el Parlamento Europeo

For Europa-Parlamentet

Für das Europäische Parlament

Ãéá ôï Åõñùðáúêü Êïéíïâïýëéï

For the European Parliament

Pour le Parlement européen

Per il Parlamento europeo

Voor het Europees Parlement

Pelo Parlamento Europeu

Euroopan parlamentin puolesta

För Europaparlamentet

>REFERENCE TO A FILM>

Por el Consejo de la Unión Europea

For Rådet for Den Europæiske Union

Für den Rat der Europäischen Union

Ãéá ôï Óõìâïýëéï ôçò ÅõñùðáúêÞò ¸íùóçò

For the Council of the European Union

Pour le Conseil de l'Union européenne

Per il Consiglio dell'Unione europea

Voor de Raad van de Europese Unie

Pelo Conselho da União Europeia

Euroopan unionin neuvoston puolesta

För Europeiska unionens råd

>REFERENCE TO A FILM>

Por la Comisión Europea

For Europa-Kommissionen

Für die Europäische Kommission

Ãéá ôçí ÅõñùðáúêÞ ÅðéôñïðÞ

For the European Commission

Pour la Commission européenne

Per la Commissione europea

Voor de Europese Commissie

Pela Comissão Europeia

Euroopan komission puolesta

För Europeiska kommissionen

>REFERENCE TO A FILM>

ANNEX

List of Articles of the EC and EAEC Treaties which directly confer powers on the Commission which are specific and likely to have financial implications in Part B (operating appropriations) of Section III - Commission - of the budget

>TABLE>

>TABLE>

DECLARATION BY THE COMMISSION on point 2(a)(ii)

The Commission declares that it reserves the right to propose that the ceiling of EUR 30 million be exceeded in the event of exceptional external circumstances.