25.1.93 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities NoC19/71
itswidestwhentheCommitteeproposesthatlocal
taxesbeincorporatedintoacorporationtaxrate'so
thatthecombinedrateoftaxfallswithintherangeof
30to40%prescribedbytheCommittee'.
10.DespitethesefewcriticismsoftheRudingCom­
mittee'sreporttheESChasmuchesteemforthequality
ofastudywhichwillremainareferencedocumentfor
researchers .
11.AsthecommentsontheCommission 'srec­
ommendations totheCouncilshow,theESCispleased
thattheCommissionhasgenerallytakenuppositions
whicharelesscategoricalandmoremeasuredthan
thoseintheRudingCommittee'sreport.
12.Taxationundoubtedlyposesthemostdifficult
problemsfortheachievementofeconomicandmonet­aryunion.TheruleofunanimityinCouncildecisions
actsasacurbtothedevelopmentofCommunitylegis­
lation—albeitessentialinfuture—butalsopreventsan
undueproliferationofrules,whichallMemberStates
arenotyetpreparedtoaccept.
TheESCwouldliketoseethehealthyprinciplesof
subsidiaritysafeguardedinthisareaandthenecessary
prudenceshownineverythingtodowiththeburden
borne,attheendoftheday,byalltaxpayers.
Itfeelsitshouldpointoutthattheunificationofcorpor­
ationtaxsystemsandtheharmonisation ofratesand
taxbasesshouldnotbeconsideredinisolationfrom
theeffectofsuchmeasuresonMemberStates'relations
withnon-ECcountries;thebilateralcontextofthe
renegotiationofagreementsconcludedwithcountries
wouldnotnecessarilybeadaptedtotheexistenceofa
harmonisedcorporationtax.
DoneatBrussels,24November1992.
TheChairman
oftheEconomicandSocialCommittee
SusanneTIEMANN
OpinionontheamendmenttotheproposalforaCouncilDirectiveonthechargingof
infrastructure coststoheavygoodsvehicles
(93/C19/22
On11November1992theCouncildecided,inaccordancewithArticle198oftheEEC
Treaty,toasktheEconomicandSocialCommitteeforaOpinionontheamendmenttothe
proposalforaCouncilDirectiveonthechargingofinfrastructure coststoheavygoods
vehicles.
Atits301stPlenarySession(meetingof25November1992)theEconomicandSocial
CommitteeappointedMrMorelandasRapporteur-General andadoptedthefollowing
Opinionbyalargemajority,with5votesagainstand2abstentions .
1.Introduction
1.1.In1986theCommissionputforwardadocu­
ment[COM(86)750final],concerningtheelimination
ofdistortionsincompetitioningoodstransport :survey
ofvehicletaxes,fueltaxesandroadtolls.TheEconomic
andSocialCommittee(*)agreedinprincipletotheobjectivesoftheCommissionwithregardtothefuture
taxationofgoodsvehiclessuchas:
—eliminationofdistortionsincompetitionwithinand
amongmodesoftransport,
—chargingoftheoveralleconomicinfrastructure
coststotheuser,
—sufficienttaxyieldforMemberStates,
—freeflowofgoodsandpassengerswithintheCom­
munity, (')OJNoC232,2.7.1987,p.87.

NoC19/72 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities 25.1.93
1.4.TheCommissionhasnowmodifieditsproposal
again[COM(92)405final]inthelight,interalia,of
discussionsintheCouncilandtheCourtofJustice's
judgementof19MayinCaseC-195/90(Commission
versusGermany).Whilemaintainingtheprincipleof
territorialitytheminimumratesofvehicletaxratesare
nowsetatalowerlevel(PortugalandGreecewillhave
only50%ofthisrate).Theserateswillbereviewed
everytwoyears.Thestructureofthevehicletaxpre­
viouslyproposedbytheCommission ,hasnowbeen
madeoptionalandafar-reachingharmonization isto
beconsideredatalaterstage.
1.4.1.Theamendedproposalalsocontainsanew
provisionauthorizingeachMemberStatetolevya
motorwayuserchargeongoodsvehiclesof12tonnes
ormorefromMemberStates.—acceptabletransitagreementswithnon-Member
States.
Initsreport,unanimously passed,theCommittee
emphasizedinteraliathat:
—distortionsincompetitionmustbeeliminatedby
1992,
—inthiscontextanagreementontaxstructuresmust
bereached,coveringatleastthemarginalcosts,
—thelevyoftaxesaccordingtotheprincipleofterri­
torialitywouldbeareasonablesolution,thelong­
termedoptionbutsawpracticalproblems;
—roadtollsexceptforbridges,ferriesandtunnels
shouldbeabolishedattheendofcontractualagree­
ments,
—thechosensolutionshouldnotentailacomplicated
taxpracticeandavoidanyadministrative over­
burden.2.Generalcomments
2.1.TheCommitteehasrepeatedlyemphasizedthe
importanceofagreementonthissubjectinthecontext
oftheremovalsofdistortionsofcompetitioninthe
internalmarket.ItisconcernedthattheCouncilhasso
farfailedtocometoanagreementanditappearsthat
thedeadlineof1January1993willnotbeachieved
(1January1994isnowproposed).
2.2.HowevertheCommitteenotesthatitviewsthat
asimpler,step-by-stepapproachhasbeenaccepted(if
notacknowledged )bytheCommissionandbelieves
thisshouldmakeCouncilagreementeasier.Itagrees
withtheCommissionthatthisrequiresapoliticalsol­
utionandbelieves,asamatterofurgency,the'Presi­
dency'shouldtakealead.1.2.Next,theCommissionpresentedin1987afirst
proposalforaDirectiveonthechargingoftransport
infrastructure coststoheavyvehicles[COM(87)716
final].TheCommittee (!)gaveitsOpiniontothisand
statedinitsreport,carriedbyamajorityofvotes:
—thatinthelongrunaregulationmustmakeallow­
ancesfortheeconomicandsocialcostsofeach
modeoftransport,
—thattheintroductionoftheprincipleofterritoriality
couldleadtotheharmonization ofcompetingcon­
ditionsaswellastothechargingofinfrastructure
coststotheactua)userandthatthesameprinciple
shouldobviouslybeinforceforroadtransport,
railwaysandinlandshipping,
—thattheCommitteesupportedtheprincipleofterri­
torialityalthoughitrecognizedpracticalproblems
infollowingfullythisprinciple.
1.3.In1991theCommissionmodifieditspro­
posal(2).TheCommitteebelieved(3)asimplerandstep­
by-stepsolutionbased'largelyonensuringthatrelated
infrastructure costsarecovered'wouldbeareasonable
solutiontomeetthe1992deadline.Itrepeateditssup­
portforterritorialityasa'fairbasisfortaxation'asan
'ultimateobjective'.Itexpressedconcernthatsmall
goodsvehiclesshouldnotbeundulypenalizedvis-a-vis
largervehiclesandalsothattheproposalcouldactas
anincentivetoproducemoretollroads.2.3.However,theprovisionslaiddowninthepro­
posalareonlyasteptowardthetaxharmonization
neededtoremovedistortionsofcompetition .Authoriz­
ingindividualMemberStatestotaketheirowninitiat­
ivesonthetaxationofCommunityvehicleswouldnot
speeduptheintroductionofaCommunitysystemfor
thechargingofinfrastructure costs.
2.4.TheCommitteewouldrepeatitsviewexpressed
inits1991Opinionontollroads.
2.5.GiventhebackgroundoftheCourtCaseC-195/
90,andthepossibleimplicationsofdiscrimination (e.g.
asregardstollsandusercharges)carefullegalexamin­
ationshouldbemadetoensurethatthetermsofArticle
75arefullymetandthatnoconflictariseswithArticle
76oftheEECTreatywhichbansMemberStatesfrom
imposingnewtaxmeasuresonnon-residentcarriers
pendingimplementation oftheCommonTransport
PolicyunderArticle75(l)(c)oftheEECTreaty.(')OJNoC208,8.8.1988,p.29.
(2)OJNoC75,20.3.1991,p.1.
(J)OJNoC159,17.6.1991,p.18.

25.1.93 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities NoC19/73
3.8.Article4 3.Specificcomments
3.1.New7thPreamble
3.1.1.TheCommitteewelcomestheagreementof
theCommissionwiththepreviouslyexpressedviewof
theCommitteethatexcisedutyonfuelsis'particularly
wellsuitedtoimplementing theprincipleofterri­
toriality'.3.8.1.TheCommitteeisconcernedatthescopeof
thisArticle,e.g.itisunclearastothepositioninthe
directiveofthegivinguseof'roadpricing'andalso
chargesrelatingto'pollution'(asstatedinitsprevious
Opinion).
3.8.2.TheCommitteewelcomestheCommission's
acceptanceofitsproposaltoseparatetollsetc.from
parkingfees.
3.9.Article5.1b3.2.New8thPreamble
3.2.1.TheCommitteewelcomestherecognitionof
environmental costs.
3.9.1.AsstatedinbothitspreviousOpinions,the
Committeestillthinksthisistooimprecise.
3.10.NewArticle5.Id
3.10.1.Thisseemstooprescriptive .3.3.New13thPreamble
3.3.1.TheCommitteewelcomesthismodification
butsuggeststhattheidealofacommonmodelfor
infrastructure costsandexternalcostsisadistancein
timeaway.
3.4.Old8thPreamble
3.4.1.TheCommitteeassumesthatthisarticleis
deletedbecausetheCouncilwillnotreadilyacceptthe
negotiatingroleoftheCommission .Neverthelessthe
Committeedoesnotbelievetheimpactofvehicletax­
ationinthirdcountriescanbeignored.3.11.NewArticle5.2
3.11.1.Iftollsaretobeacceptable
istoolimitedMemberStatesshould
scopetointroducetollsonbridgesor,
thecontextofroadpricingschemes.thensurelythis
beallowedthe
forexample,in
3.12.NewArticle8.3
3.12.1.Twoyearsmaybetooshort.Inanyevent
thereportshouldalsobesenttotheEuropeanParlia­
mentandtheEconomicandSocialCommitteewho
shouldbeconsultedonanyproposaltoaltertherates.3.5.Article2
3.5.1.Motorway—presumablyallthreecriteriahave
tobemet?
Tolls:foradministrative simplicitytollsneednotbe
preciselybasedondistancetravelled.
3.5.2.Usercharges:itwouldhavebeenhelpfulifthe
Commissionhadindicatedexamplesofwhatithadin
mind.3.13.NewArticle9
3.13.1.TheCommittee welcomesthisrevised
Article.Thereportandproposalsshouldbesentto
theEuropeanParliamentandtheEconomicandSocial
Committee .3.6.Article2.2
3.6.1.ThisArticleshouldnotbeusedtogivebenefits
topublicsectorownedvehiclesagainstcompetitorsin
theprivatesectors.Itshouldnotbediscriminatory
againstlocalservicescontractedouttotheprivate
sector.3.14.NewArticle11(OldArticle10)
3.14.1.Thissuperficiallyappearsattractiveinthe
contextofsubsidiarity .HowevertheCommitteemain­
tainstheviewthatitexpressedin1991.
3.14.2.Logicallytomeettherequirementsofterri­
torialitythereshouldbenodiscrimination betweenthe
practicesofMemberStatesandeitherallMemberStates
shouldgiverebatesornone.3.7.Article3.2
3.7.1.TheCommitteewelcomestheCommission 's
acceptanceofitsamendment .

NoC19/74 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities 25.1.93
4.Furtherconsideration portcostsespeciallyfortheweakerandsmallerfirms
ofperipheralcountriesislikelytoadverselyaffecttheir
competitiveness '.
4.2.Thisishardlyintheinterestof'cohesion'and
seriousattentionshouldbegivenbytheCommission
andCounciltomeasurestohelptheperipheralregions
offsettheseeffects.4.1.TheCommitteefindsitalarmingthattheCom­
missionstatesinits'ImpactAssessmentForm'that'the
applicationofthisdirectiveislikelytoleadtoan
increaseofthetransportcostsespeciallyfortheperiph­
eralcountriesoftheCommunity'and'Increasedtrans­
DoneatBrussels,24November1992.
TheChairman
oftheEconomicandSocialCommittee
SusanneTIEMANN
OpiniononECRelationswiththeCountriesofCentralandEasternEurope
BulgariaandRomania
(93/C19/23)
On30June1992theEconomicandSocialCommittee,actingunderthethirdparagraphof
Article20oftheRulesofProcedure,decidedtodrawupaOpiniononECRelationswith
theCountriesofCentralandEasternEurope.
TheSectionforExternalRelations,TradeandDevelopment Policy,whichwasaskedto
preparetheCommittee'sworkonthesubject,adopteditsOpinionon5November1992.
TheRapporteurwasMrPetersen.
Atits301stPlenarySession(meetingof25November1992)theEconomicandSocial
CommitteeadoptedthefollowingOpinionbyalargemajoritywithtwovotesagainst.
Summary
TheblueprintforAssociationAgreementspresentedby
theECCommissionatthebeginningof1990embraces
notonlythestep-by-stepcreationofafreetradearea,
thefreemovementofworkers,theliberalization of
services,theapproximation oflegislationandtheinten­
sificationofeconomic,socialandfinancialcooperation ,
butalsotheinstitutionalization ofpoliticaldialogue
andculturalcooperation (point1.8).
Thesepreferentialagreements,termedEuropeAgree­
mentsbecauseoftheinclusionofpoliticaldialogue,
mayinprinciplebeconcludedwithallcountriesof
EasternEuropeforanindefiniteperiodoftime.Inthe
caseoftheCommonwealth ofIndependentStates(CIS)andGeorgia,however,aseparateapproachneedstobe
adoptedonthebasisoftheEuropeanCommunity's
blueprintforpartnershipandcooperationagreements .
ThecrucialpreconditionfortheconclusionofEurope
Agreementsisthat(a)realprogressisbeingmadein
thepolitical,socialandeconomictransformations now
underwaythere,andthat(b)thepointofnoreturn
fordemocracyandthemarketeconomyhasalready
beenreached.TheCommitteehasappealedtotheEC
Commissiononseveraloccasionstomonitorpolitical
andeconomicreformsineachcasebeforelaunching
intospecificassociationdiscussions (point1.9).
InitsOpinionontheEuropeAgreementsconcluded
withtheVisegradcountries (Poland,Hungaryandthe
CSFR)theEconomicandSocialCommitteemadean
in-depthanalysisoftheEuropeanCommunity'sassoci­
ationblueprintandfounditcouldofferitssupport.