ARCHIVESHISTORIQUES
DELACOMMISSION
COLLECTION RELIEEDES
DOCUMENTS "COM"
COM(77)715
Vol.1977/0223

Disclaimer
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concerningtheopeningtothepublicofthehistoricalarchivesoftheEuropeanEconomic
CommunityandtheEuropeanAtomicEnergyCommunity(OJL43,15.2.1983,p.1),as
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COMMISSION OFTHEEUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
*• .••COM(77)715final...:"
■/, -Brussels,13January1978,
'■''<''■'K'r<
■■%. .1
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Proposalfora
•;/I■■COUNCILDIRECTIVE
amendingtheDirectiveof26July1971concerningtheco-ordination of
proceduresfortheawardofpublicworkscontracts
>;ν ,<■>;-,.,.
<
(submitted "bytheCommissiontotheCouncil)
C0MC77)715final.

EXPLANATORY MHiORANDUIJ
AccordingtoArticle7ofCouncilDirective71/305/EECof26July1971
publicworkscontractsofanestimatedvalueoflessthan1miounitsof
account(UA)shallnotbesubjecttotheco-ordination proceduresforthe
awardasdescribedinthatdirective.
ThevalueofthisUAisequaltothatof0.88867088gramsoffiregold,
buttheconversionthereofintothenationalcurrencies oftheMember
StatesoftheCommunityisfixedonthebasisoftheirdeclaredparityin
goldongivendates.Becauseoftheeconomicandmonetaryeventsin
particularofthelastyearstheapplication intheIiemberStatesofthe
thresholdconvertedinaccordancewiththeUAsodefinednowhaswidely
differingeffects.
A"Daropeanunitofaccount"isdefinedbyArticle10ofthefinancialregulation
of........WhichappliestothegeneralbudgetoftheEuropeanCommunities (
asadvenweightedaverageofthecurrentvaluesofthecurrenciesofthe
IlemberStates.Thevalueofthisunitofaccountineachofthecurrencies
oftheMemberStatesisdetermineddaily.Theuseofthisunitofaccount
forthedefinitionofthethresholdinthesaiddirectivewouldproduce
asimilareffectineachMemberStatewhichisnotthecasewiththe
thresholdasatpresentdefined.Annex1showsthedifferencebetween
usingtheold"unitofaccount"andthenew"Europeanunitofaccount"
inthedefinition ofthethreshold.
Article5ofCouncilDirective77/S2/EECof21December1976co-ordinating
proceduresfortheawardofpublicsupplycontractscontainsathreshold
analogoustothatofCouncilDirective73/305/EECbutspecifiesitin
"Europeanunitsofaccount".Tocontinuetousethresholdsspecifiedin
differentunitsofaccountforsuchcloselyrelatedprocedures wouldbe
illogicalandconfusing.
Inconsequence ,theAdvisoryCommitteeforPublicContractshasaskedthe
Commissiontoelaboratethelegalinstruments necessaryfortheadoption
ofthe"Europeanunitofaccount"inbothdirectives.Thiscanonlybe
achievedbyamendingthedirectivethatudestheold"unitofaccount".

A/lopti onofthepending propos a.lforaRegulation applying theEuropean
bulb ofAccount (SUA.)tothegeneral budget oftheEuropean Communities
andto -hhel*gal acts adonted bytheinstitutions does notrender the
present proposal superfluous .Theproposed regulation doesnotmeet the
need that thereference period forthecalculation oftheexchange value
ofthethreshold innational currencies bethesame forboth directives
r>o~or«Un"'.titt£ procedures fortheaward ofpublic contracts ;moreover ,
theneed toinsure that thethreshold inthedirective concerning public
trorks conbracts produces asimilar effect ineach Member State isnow
urgent „
Article 1paragraph 1ofthepresent proposed directive amends Article J
ofCouncil Directive 71/305/EFOsoastospecify thethreshold inwording
identical tothat ofArticle 5ofCouncil Directive 77/62/EECforthe
purpose .ThisDirective notonlyusedthewords "European units ofaccount '
butalsomade itclear that "theestimated value ofthecontract "wasto
be "net ofVAT"•
Article 1paragraph 2ofthepresent proposed directive amends Article 19
ofCouncil Directive 71/305/EECasaconsequence ofthechange to
"European units ofaccount "*Andagain itismade clear thatthe
"value ofthecontract "isnottoinclude value added tax.

-3"
Thethreshold ,ofDirective71/305/EEC(Article7)
iicchaix^evalueinnational
currencies of1miounits
ofaccount(goldparity)Exchangevalueinnational
currenciesof1mioEuropean
unitsofaccountasat
1.7.1977 'Pourcenta.geincreaseordecreasein
thethereshold'svalueusing
Europeanunitsofaccountasat
1.7.1977
(D 2)(2)(1)
(1)
FB50,000,000 •40,842,000 18.3
13Kr7,500.000 6,837,610 -9.0
IM3,cô0,000 2,650,360 -27,6
tyra-.aj.1L3,620,000 2,805.25022.5
5'P5,554,190 5;575,650+0.04
Lit625,000,000 1002,490,000 +6O.4
ε416,667 658.849+58.1
1Irl416.667658,849+58.1

Prnposalfora
COUNCÍLDTRECTIVE
oJ. J.9T®
amendingDirective71/3'-5/EFCconcerningthecoordination of
proceduresfortheawardofpublicworkscontracts
(78//EEC)
THECOrNCIT,OFTHEFJROPEMCOMMUNITIES ,
HavingregardtotheTreatyestablishingtheEuropeanEconomic
Comiia-nity,andinparticularArticles57(2),66and100thereof,
HavingregardtotheproposalfromtheCommission,
HavingregardtotheopinionoftheEuropeanParliament,
Havingregc-rdtotheopinionoftheEconomicandSocialCommittee,
WhereasCouncilDirective71/305/EECof26July1971concerningthe
(1coordination ofprocedures ,fortheawardofapublicworkscontract^
la^sdownathresholdin"unitsofaocount"fordeterminingtheamount
oftheestimatedvalueofpublicworkscontractswitheffectfromwhichthe
Directiveapplies;
Whereaa 9forthepurposeofthesaidDirective,theratesusedfor
convertingunitsofaccountintonationalcurrenciesweredefinedby
referencelothegoldparityunitsofaccount{whereastheconversion
ofthesaidthresholdintonationalcurrencies onthebasisofthis
definitiondoesnotreflectthepresentvaluesofthosecurrenciesand,
therefore,hasledtodifferingeffectsindifferentMemberStates;
WhereasArticle10ofthefinancialregulationof........i?)which
applientothegeneralbudgetoftheEuropeanCommunities(.••••*•)
defines _
aEuropeanunit
ofaccountwhiohrepresentstheaveragevariationinvalueofthecurrencies
ofthe
OJNoL135,16.8.1971,p.5.
20JHoL

-2-
Member States ;whereas thevalue ofthis unit ofaccount ineach ofthe
currencies oftheMember States isdetermined daily *whereas itsusefor
thepurpose oftheDirective requires that areference date befixed ;
VJhereas Council Directive of21December 1976 co-ordinating procedures for
1theaward ofpublic supply contracts expresses thethreshold from which
that Directive shall apply inEuropean units ofaccount ;
HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE :
Article 1
-Gor.nci 1Directive 71/305/T2EGof26July 1971 isamended asfollows :
1.Thefirst paragraphe ofArticle 7shall bedeleted andthefollowing
substituted therefore :
"(a)Theprovisions ofTitles II,IIIandIVandArticle 9shall apply ,
under theconditions laid down inArticle 5»topublio vrorks contracts
whose estimated vr.lue net ofVAT is."not less than 1.000.000 European
units ofaccount .
(b)ThoEuropean unit ofaccount shall bethat defined byArtlole 10oftii6finan
cial regulation of which applies tothegeneral budget oftheEuropean
Communities
(c)Theexchange value innational currencies tobeapplied shall bethe
averr.ge ofthedaily value ofthese currencies over thepreceding 12
months calculated onthelast dayofOctober every tiroyears ,with effect
from thefollovring 1January .This exchange value ,calculated bythe
Co!jMission tshall bepublished intheOfficial Journal oftheEuropean
Communities during thefirst days ofITovember .
(d)Themethod ofcalculation laid down insubparagraph (c)shall be
ezamined ,ontheCommission 'sinitiative ,within theAdvisory Committee
forPublio Contracts twoyears after itsinitial application .
^JNoL33,15.1.1977 page 1
20JUoL185,16.8.1971 pago 5

-■3-
(-.T>'ismethodshallinanyeventbereviewedwhentheCouncilhas
->ctAonthep-o>c.8f\f-?TaRegulation,submittedbytheCommission,
apvl;»iugtheEuropeanunitofaccount(EUA)tothegeneralbudget
oftheEuropeanCcsrounxties andtothelegalactsadoptedbythe
in;,titutions,' "
2.InArticle19,thewords"suchcontractisnotleesthan500.000units
ofaccount"shallread"suchcontractnetofVATisnotlessthan
4
50C.000Europeanunitsofaccount".
Article2
MemberStatesshalladoptthemeasuresnecessarytocomplywiththis
DirectivewithinsixmonthsofItsnotification andshallforthwithinform
theCommissionthereof.
Article3
ThisDirectiveisaddressedtotheMemberStates.