EN Official Journal of the European Union C 339/1

Commission communication concerning the amendment and prolongation of the application of the Community guidelines for State aid in the agriculture and forestry sector 2007 to 2013

2013/C 339/01

1. PROLONGATION

Pursuant to point 199 of the Community guidelines for State aid in the agriculture and forestry sector 2007 to 2013 (1) (hereafter ‘the guidelines’), these guidelines shall apply until 31 December 2013.

The instrument that should replace these guidelines, i.e. the new Community guidelines for State aid in the agriculture and forestry sector for the period from 2014 to 2020, will to a large extent depend on the future rules applicable to rural development (2) and the Commission's State aid reform programme (3).

In order not to pre-empt the results of the revision of the rural development rules and the horizontal discussions on State aid modernisation, it is appropriate to extend the validity of the guidelines until 30 June 2014. Where the guidelines refer to the criteria of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 (4), those criteria should continue to be applicable for the assessment of State aid under the guidelines during their extended period of application even after the entry into force of a new rural development Regulation.

2. ALIGNMENT OF POINT 189 OF THE GUIDELINES CONCERNING THE DURATION OF SCHEMES

It is important to ensure continuity in implementing the rural development policy and a smooth transition from one programming period to the following (2007-2013 and 2014-2020). A period of overlapping application of rural development programmes and the corresponding legal provisions of the 2007-2013 programming period and those of the programming period following it is inevitable. In this context, the Member States may, under certain conditions, continue to make commitments under Council Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005, including its implementing acts (5), after the end of the programming period 2007-2013.

During the extended period of application of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005, and even after the entry into force of a new rural development regulation, point 189 should therefore also cover new commitments after 2013, subject to the conditions in force for new commitments governed by the rules which are or will be adopted to guarantee a smooth transition from one programming period to the following (2007-2013 and 2014-2020).

3. AMENDMENTS

Point 199 of the guidelines explicitly foresees that the Commission may, under certain conditions, amend them before they come to an end on 31 December 2013. To ensure coherence with the rural development legislation (6), points 189 and 199 of these guidelines should therefore be amended accordingly.

3.1. Point 189 of the guidelines shall be replaced by the following

‘Therefore, the Commission will, in the future, only authorise schemes of limited duration. Schemes covering State aid for measures that can also benefit from co-financing under Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 should be limited to the duration of the programming period 2007-2013. Where Union law so allows, and in accordance with the conditions set out therein, Member States may continue to make commitments for rural development on the basis of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 and its implementing rules. The Commission will, therefore, apply these guidelines also to such new commitments. Other aid schemes should not apply for more than seven years.’

3.2. The first sentence of point 199 of the guidelines is replaced by the following

‘The guidelines shall apply until 30 June 2014.’

(1) OJ C 319, 27.12.2006, p. 1.

(2) Proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on support for rural development by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD), COM(2011) 627 final/3.

(3) Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on EU State aid modernisation (SAM), COM(2012) 209 final.

(4) Council Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 of 20 September 2005 on support for rural development by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) (OJ L 277, 21.10.2005, p. 1).

(5) Commission Regulation (EC) No 1974/2006 of 15 December 2006 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 on support for rural development by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) (OJ L 368, 23.12.2006, p. 15).

(6) Point 26 of the Community guidelines for State aid in the agriculture and forestry sector 2007 to 2013.