Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on the Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

(presented by the Commission)

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV) is a further development and improvement of the CPA (Statistical Classification of Products by Activity in the EEC) and NACE Rev. 1 (General Industrial Classification of Economic Activities within the European Communities), aimed at gearing them more closely to the particular features of the public procurement sector.

The CPV consists of a main vocabulary for defining the subject of a contract, and a supplementary vocabulary for adding further qualitative information. The main vocabulary is based on a five-level hierarchical structure, while the supplementary vocabulary has two levels. A wording describing the supplies, works or services in all the official languages is associated with each code.

In 1996, the Commission adopted a recommendation on the use of the CPV for describing the subject of contracts [1]. In this recommendation, contracting authorities or entities were invited to use the CPV to describe the contracts in their contract notices.

[1] OJ L 222, 3.9.1996, p. 10-12.

In the same year, the Commission published its Green Paper entitled "Public procurement in the European Union: exploring the way forward" [2], in which it invited all interested parties to state their views on the appropriateness of making the use of the CPV more widespread. The answers it received showed that the business world, the Member States and the institutions were clearly in favour of using the CPV with a view to simplifying the process of publishing contract notices. The Commission analysed these contributions and presented the action it envisaged in its Communication entitled "Public procurement in the European Union [3]. It particularly intended to encourage contracting authorities to use the CPV and the standard forms when drawing up their notices and to use the possibilities afforded by the new information and communication technologies for transmitting them.

[2] COM(96) 583 final, 27.11.1996.

[3] COM(1998) 143 final, 11.3.1998.

Since 1996, the CPV has been systematically used, by virtue of the directives, in all contract notices published in the Supplement to the Official Journal of the European Communities for identifying the subject of contracts, and for automatic translation into the other official languages of the Community.

The CPV has thus become the central search criterion used by potential tenderers for selecting and identifying possible contracts.

Under the public procurement directives, the classifications are used for three different purposes: for describing the subjects of contracts in notices, for meeting statistical obligations and for defining fields of application. Hitherto, the Directives have referred to four different classifications: CPA, NACE, CPC Prov. (Provisional Central Product Classification) and CN (Combined Nomenclature). The proposed revisions currently being discussed by the Council and the European Parliament - on the coordination of procedures for the award of public supply contracts, public service contracts and public works contracts [4] and the other coordinating the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy and transport sectors [5] - replace these four classifications by the single CPV.

[4] OJ C 29E, 30.1.2001, p. 11.

[5] OJ C 29E, 30.1.2001, p. 112.

Up to now, however, the CPV has had no proper legal basis in the form of a regulation clearly defining the rules to be observed when drafting or updating it. This Regulation aims to fill this gap by adopting the CPV formally as the Community system for classifying public contracts and establishing the procedures for maintaining and revising it.

In accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, a legal basis for the CPV, as the single classification system to be applied to all Community public contracts, may be established only at Community level. As for the principle of proportionality, the Regulation provides for the establishment of a standard system of classification to be applied directly in all the Member States.

In the past, the Office for Official Publications of the European Communities has often had to insert the CPV code corresponding to the description of the subject of the contract into a notice sent by a contracting authority or entity. This has occasionally led to errors in the notices, because of the sometimes highly technical nature of the information. In order to improve the quality of the publications, therefore, we must ensure that the contracting authorities and entities themselves see to it that the descriptions of the subjects of their contracts correspond with the CPV. Since these authorities and entities are the best placed for defining the subject of their contracts, the quality of the notices should improve as a result, and this in turn will help to increase the effectiveness of the publication.

The use of a single multilingual classification system will enable economic operators to identify the contracts they are interested in with greater accuracy, thus giving them easier access to public contracts.

This CPV will enable the summaries of the contract notices to be translated automatically, thus reducing the scope for errors, and hence significantly reducing the processing costs and permitting substantial savings of taxpayers' money. Automatic translation will also help speed up the publication process.

In order to enable users to take full advantage of the possibilities afforded by the CPV and to familiarise themselves with the new system, tables showing the correspondence between the CPV and the classifications mentioned above are included in annex to this Regulation.

The vital role of the CPV in the development of electronic public procurement should also be stressed. The CPV will be a decisive element in the process of meeting the commitments entered into as part of the e-Europe and e-Commission initiatives, since it will permit electronic processing of the published data, which will improve the quality of the information and the speed with which it is disseminated, and hence the efficiency of the publication system established by the directives.

The CPV will also make it easier to keep statistics on public procurement as laid down in the directives by simplifying the tasks of the contracting authorities and entities and, at international level, it will permit greater comparability with data based on the other classifications used by the signatories to the Agreement on Government Procurement.

By its very nature, the CPV will have to be adaptable. If its quality is to be maintained, it will have to be able to keep abreast of market developments and hence to respond to the needs of its users (contracting authorities and potential suppliers) in the most appropriate fashion. A revision procedure has therefore been established as part of the implementation powers assigned to the Commission, assisted by the Advisory Committee on Public Contracts, in accordance with Article 78(1)(f) and (g) of the proposal for a Directive on the coordination of procedures for awarding public contracts for supplies, services and works, and Article 67(1)(c) and (d) of the proposal for a Directive on the coordination of procedures for awarding public contracts in the water, energy and transport sectors. [6]

[6] (since the decision-making procedure has not yet been completed for these legal acts, the numbers of the Articles mentioned may change.)

Finally, the scope of the directives on public procurement will be unchanged. Indeed, use of the CPV will help to clarify it, hence promoting improved application of Community law on public procurement in the Union.

The updating process will be based largely on the suggestions and comments made by the direct users of the CPV, as in the case of the first revision at the end of 1998. This Regulation adopts a new revision, basically consisting of the 1998 version adapted in the light of practice and experience.

This proposal is for a Regulation laying down the CPV as a key element in Community public procurement policy and the rules for revising it. The European Parliament and the Council are asked to adopt this proposal.

2001/0179 (COD)

Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on the Common Procurement Vocabulary

(Text with EEA relevance)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 47(2) and Articles 55 and 95 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal by the Commission [7],

[7] OJ C , , p. .

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee [8],

[8] OJ C , , p. .

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions [9],

[9] OJ C , , p. .

Acting in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 251 of the Treaty [10],

[10] OJ C , , p. .

Whereas:

(1) The use of different classifications is detrimental to the openness and transparency of public procurement in Europe. Its impact on the quality of notices and the time needed to publish them is a de facto restriction on the access of economic operators to public contracts.

(2) In its Recommendation 96/527/EC [11], the Commission invited contracting entities and authorities to use the Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV), developed on the basis of certain existing classifications with a view to gearing them more closely to the particular features of the public procurement sector, when describing the subjects of their contracts.

[11] OJ L 222, 3.9.1996, pp. 10-12.

(3) There is a need to standardise, by means of a single classification system for public procurement, the references used by the contracting authorities and entities to describe the subject of contracts in accordance with European Parliament and Council Directives .../../EC of ... on the coordination of procedures for the award of public supply contracts, public service contracts and public works contracts [12] and .../../EC of ... coordinating the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy and transport sectors [13], and Commission Directive .../.../EC of ... on the use of standard forms in the publication of contract notices [14].

[12] OJ C 29E, 30.1.2001, p. 11.

[13] OJ C 29E, 30.1.2001, p. 112.

[14] OJ L [...], [...], p.[...].

(4) The Member States need to have a single reference system that uses the same description of goods in the official languages of the Community and the same corresponding alphanumeric code, thus making it possible to overcome the language barriers at Community level.

(5) A revised version of the CPV therefore needs to be adopted under this Regulation as the single classification system to be used henceforth in the public procurement sector instead of the classifications used hitherto;

(6) Tables must also be drawn up showing the correspondence between the CPV and the Statistical Classification of Products by Activity in the EEC (CPA), the Provisional Central Product Classification (CPC Prov.) of the United Nations, the General Industrial Classification of Economic Activities within the European Communities (NACE Rev. 1) and the Combined Nomenclature (CN).

(7) The structure and codes of the CPV may need to be adapted or amended, in the light of developments in the markets and users' needs. A suitable revision procedure must therefore be established.

(8) Under Article 2 of Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission [15], the measures needed for implementing this Regulation must be laid down according to the advisory procedure described in Article 3 of that Decision.

[15] OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.

(9) In accordance with the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty, the aim of the activity envisaged, i.e. to draw up a classification system for public contracts, may, because of the Commission's powers as regards the alignment of legislation, be best achieved at Community level. This Regulation is limited to the minimum required to achieve this objective.

(10) A Regulation has been chosen rather than a Directive as the establishment of a classification system for public contracts does not require implementation by the Member States.

HAVE ADOPTED THE FOLLOWING REGULATION:

Article 1

1. For the purpose of applying Directives ... and ..., this Regulation establishes a single classification system applicable to public contracts, known as the "Common Procurement Vocabulary" or "CPV".

2. The CPV is set out in Annex I.

3. The tables showing the correspondence between the CPV and the Statistical Classification of Products by Activity in the EEC (CPA), the Provisional Central Product Classification (CPC Prov.) of the United Nations, the General Industrial Classification of Economic Activities within the European Communities (NACE Rev. 1) and the Combined Nomenclature (CN) are set out in Annexes II, III, IV and V respectively.

Article 2

The provisions governing the revision of the CPV will be adopted by the Commission in accordance with the procedure described in Article 3(2).

Article 3

1. The Commission will be assisted by the Advisory Committee on Public Contracts set up under Article 1 of Council Decision 71/306/EEC. [16]

[16] OJ L 185, 16.8.1971, p. 15, last amended by Council Decision 77/63/EEC of 21 December 1976 (OJ L 13, 15.1.1977, p. 15).

2. If reference is made to this paragraph, the advisory procedure described in Article 3 of Decision 1999/468/EC will apply, without prejudice to Articles 7 and 8 of that Decision.

Article 4

This Regulation will enter into force on the twentieth day following the date on which it is published in the Official Journal of the European Communities.

This Regulation is binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all the Member States.

Done at Brussels, [date]

For the European Parliament For the Council

The President The President

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IMPACT ASSESSMENT FORM THE IMPACT OF THE PROPOSAL ON BUSINESS, WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES (SMES)

Title of the proposal

Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV).

Document reference number

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The proposal

1. Given the principle of subsidiarity, why is Community legislation necessary in this field and what are the main aims-

The draft revision of the public procurement directives currently before the Council and the European Parliament particularly provides for replacing all four classifications hitherto used for describing the subject of contracts in contract notices, meeting statistical obligations and defining the scope by the CPV. The CPV does not have a proper legal base that precisely defines the rules governing its establishment or updating.

This Regulation is designed to fill this gap, by formally adopting the CPV as the Community system for classifying public contracts and laying down the procedures for its maintenance and revision, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity.

The impact on business

2. Who will be affected by the proposal-

- What business sectors-

All economic operators likely to take part in procedures for the awarding of contracts - i.e. entrepreneurs, suppliers and service-providers - will be affected by the proposal, albeit indirectly, in that they will benefit from the greater precision of contract notices published at Community level, which will facilitate the search for and selection and identification of suitable opportunities.

- What sizes of businesses (proportion of SMEs)-

All businesses likely to take part in procedures for the awarding of contracts will be affected by the proposal, regardless of their size. It should be noted, however, that the public procurement directives apply only to contracts of a value above certain thresholds.

- Are these businesses concentrated in any particular geographical areas of the Community-

No, except perhaps in border areas to a certain extent.

3. What will businesses have to do to comply with the proposal-

The proposal does not place businesses under any new obligations, but gives them a new common and multilingual reference tool that will facilitate access to relevant information (i.e. contract notices).

4. What economic implications is the proposal likely to have:

- on employment-

No direct effect.

- for investment and the creation of new businesses-

No direct effect.

- on the competitive position of businesses-

The CPV will enable businesses to identify suitable opportunities more accurately. This may open up new markets and widen the scope for development for businesses that have not hitherto been active in the public procurement sector.

5. Does the proposal contain measures designed to take account of the specific situation of small and medium-sized firms (reduced or different requirements, etc.)-

No.

Consultation

6. List of organisations consulted on the proposal, and summary of their views.

National authorities via the permanent representations, advisory committees (Advisory Committee on Public Contracts, Advisory Committee on the Opening-up of Public Procurement), the competent professional organisations, intermediaries (Euro Info Centres), service providers, general consultation via the SIMAP [public procurement information system] website.

ANNEX I

COMMON PROCUREMENT VOCABULARY (CPV)

Structure of the classification system

1. The CPV consists of a main vocabulary and a supplementary vocabulary.

2. The main vocabulary is based on a tree structure comprising codes of up to nine digits associated with a wording that describes the supplies, works or services forming the subject of the contract.

The numerical code consists of 8 digits, subdivided as follows:

- the first two digits identify the divisions;

- the first three digits identify the groups;

- the first four digits identify the classes;

- the first five digits identify the categories.

Each of the last three digits gives a greater degree of precision within each category.

A ninth digit serves to verify the previous digits.

3. The supplementary vocabulary may be used to expand the description of the subject of a contract. The items are made up of an alphanumeric code with a corresponding wording allowing further details to be added regarding the specific nature or destination of the goods to be purchased.

The alphanumeric code is made up of:

- a first level comprising a letter corresponding to a section;

- a second level comprising four digits, the first three of which denote a subdivision and the last one being for verification purposes.

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1. ANNEX II

2.

3. Correspondence table between CPV and CPA 96

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ANNEX III

Correspondence table between CPV and CPC prov.

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ANNEX IV

4. Correspondence table between CPV and NACE Rev.1

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ANNEX V

5.

Correspondence table between CPV and CN

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