Commission Regulation (EC) No 1648/2000 of 25 July 2000 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2075/92 with regard to the Community Tobacco Fund and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 2427/93
Date: 2000-07-25
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: agricultural guidance, agronomic research, consumer information, fund (EU), tobacco

27.7.2000

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

L 189/9

COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 1648/2000

of 25 July 2000

laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2075/92 with regard
to the Community Tobacco Fund and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 2427/93

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

end, a call for proposals or, as appropriate, a public
invitation to tender seem the most appropriate course.

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2075/92 of 30
June 1992 on the common organisation of the market in raw
tobacco (1), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1336/
2000 (2) and in particular Article 14a thereof,

Whereas:

In accordance with Article 13(1) of Regulation (EEC) No
2075/92, a Community Tobacco Fund is set up. Detailed
rules for the application of that provision should be
adopted, in particular as regards fixing the deduction of
2 % of the premium.

Funding should be provided for measures to discourage
smoking, and in particular for improving public aware-
ness of the dangers of tobacco consumption.

research to steer
Funding should be provided for
tobacco production towards varieties and cultivation
methods that result in the least possible harm to human
health and are better geared to market conditions and
more environment-friendly.

Support should be provided for research to create or
develop alternative uses for raw tobacco.

Action should be taken to finance studies on the possi-
bilities for producers of raw tobacco of switching to
other crops or activities.

Action should be taken also to disseminate the scientific
and practical results to national authorities and to the
sectors concerned.

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

Eligibility criteria should be laid down for natural or
legal persons who may present proposals.

(10)

(11)

(12)

In the interests of sound administration, the research
and information projects approved by the Commission
should be carried out within a specified period. The time
limit originally envisaged may prove difficult to meet in
exceptional cases. Provision should be made, therefore,
for the time limit to be extended under certain condi-
tions.

In order to make the best possible choice and ensure the
proper implementation of the approved projects, provi-
sion should be made for the Commission to be assisted
in the selection of the projects by a scientific and tech-
nical committee. The Commission should have access to
the services of
independent experts in assessing the
projects.

In order to guarantee the proper implementation of each
project accepted for financing by the Fund, it is neces-
sary for details of the conditions of implementation to
be included in the contracts concluded with the
Commission. Where an application is made for an
advance, contractors must lodge a security in favour of
the Commission on the conditions laid down in Title III
of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2220/85 of 22 July
1985 laying down common detailed rules for
the
application of the system of securities for agricultural
products (3), as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No
1932/1999 (4).

(13)

Provision should be made to prevent the unjustified
cumulation of measures for the same project.

(14)

Provision should be made for payments to be recovered
in certain cases, particularly in the event of irregularities.

Commission Regulation (EEC) 2427/93 of 1 September
1993 laying down detailed rules for the application of
Council Regulation (EEC) No 2075/92 with regard to
the Community Fund for tobacco research and informa-
tion (5), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1620/
95 (6), should be repealed as its provisions are replaced
by those of this Regulation. However, it must continue
to apply to projects approved before the entry into force
of this Regulation.

The financial
resources should be allocated to the
various Fund objectives in an appropriate way. However,
if the funds earmarked for one or other objective are not
used up in full, the initial allocation should be adjusted
for the benefit of the other objectives.

(15)

The various proposals presented under the procedures
adopted should be assessed in accordance with criteria
that will ensure the best possible choice. Provision
should be made also for projects to be carried out on
the initiative and on behalf of the Commission. To that

(1) OJ L 215, 30.7.1992, p. 70.
(2) OJ L 154, 27.6.2000, p. 2.

(3) OJ L 205, 3.8.1985, p. 5.
(4) OJ L 240, 10.9.1999, p. 11.
(5) OJ L 223, 2.9.1993, p. 3.
(6) OJ L 154, 5.7.1995, p. 12.

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Official Journal of the European Communities

27.7.2000

(16)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in
accordance with the opinion of
the Management
Committee for Tobacco,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

The Community Tobacco Fund, hereinafter called ‘the
1.
Fund’, shall finance research and information programmes, in
accordance with this Regulation.

research and information
Such programmes may cover
projects, including the dissemination of the results obtained to
national authorities and the sectors concerned, in the following
areas:

(a) improving public awareness of

the harmful effects of
tobacco consumption in any form, in particular by means
of information and education; supporting the collection of
data with a view to determining tobacco consumption
trends and devising epidemiological studies of smoking
across the Community; conducting studies on preventing
smoking;

(b) steering tobacco production towards varieties and cultiva-
tion methods that are less harmful to human health and are
better geared to market conditions and more environment-
friendly, mainly by creating and developing new varieties
and appropriate cultivation and drying methods, examining
the impact of production on the environment and dimin-
ishing its harmful effects; creating and developing altern-
ative uses for raw tobacco; studying the possibilities for
producers of raw tobacco of switching to other crops or
activities.

Projects in this field must include specific measures for the
targeted and widespread dissemination of the results that
will allow know-how to be transferred between production
zones.

2.
Expenditure by the Fund in each of the two areas referred
to in paragraph 1 may amount to 50 % of the total amount of
the Fund.

Article 3

1.
Proposals for research and information projects may be
submitted by any natural or legal person established in the
Community who:

— possesses recognised skills and at least five years' profes-

sional experience in the field in question;

— undertakes to contribute from his own resources at least
25 % of the total financing of the project; however, projects
carried out on the initiative and on behalf of the Commis-
sion shall be financed by the Fund at the rate of up to
100 % of the total cost;

— undertakes to carry out the proposed programme within

the time limit laid down,

— agrees to provide regular reports on the progress of the

work,

— agrees to make his accounts and other supporting docu-
ments on expenditure available for verification by the
Commission,

— agrees to the conditions laid down in Articles 6, 7 and 8.

2.
Research and information projects may be carried out
during a period of one or more years, which may not however
exceed five years from the date on which the contract is signed.

However, the time limit for implementation may be extended if
the interested party requests the Commission to extend it and
provides proof
that, because of exceptional circumstances
beyond his control, he is not able to comply with the time
limit initially laid down.

Article 4

1.
The Commission, with the assistance of a scientific and
technical committee, shall be responsible for the management
of the Fund.

2.
The Scientific and Technical Committee shall be made up
of nine members appointed by the Commission. Producers, on
the one hand, and the public health sector, on the other, shall
each be represented by at least two members. The Committee
shall be chaired by the Commission. The Commission shall see
to it
the Committee are independent as
regards the projects submitted to them.

that members of

However, where the amount available for one of those areas is
not used up in full,
the Commission shall reallocate the
remaining amount to the other, on condition that, in the latter
area, there are eligible projects still outstanding.

3.
Projects submitted in response to a call for proposals
shall be assessed by a group of independent experts selected by
the Commission. The following factors shall be taken into
account in the assessment:

Article 2

Projects shall be the subject, as appropriate, of a call
for
proposals or a public invitation to tender, in accordance with
the relevant provisions, published in the C series of the Official
Journal of the European Communities, within the period set in the
notice.

(a) with regard to the two areas referred to in Article 1(1), the
work must be done in collaboration between natural or
legal persons established in several Member States;

(b) with regard to the area referred to in Article 1(1)(a):

— the projects must pay particular attention to the
cultural and linguistic characteristics of the Member
States, notably in the case of information campaigns
directed at the public at large, and to groups at risk,

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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— the projects must show that they have a methodology
and firm scientific backing. They must be innovative
and take account of work that has been carried out
already and of experience gained under past or present
national or Community programmes, so as to avoid
any likelihood of duplication in the allocation of
Community resources,

— the projects must, depending on the circumstances,
contribute objectively and effectively to improving
public awareness of the harmful effects on health of
using tobacco or to collecting and analysing relevant
epidemiological data, or ensure the rapid implementa-
tion of practical preventive measures,

— the measures must be assessed. Contractors must see to
it that the results of their projects are disseminated in
recognised scientific journals and/or presented at inter-
national conferences.

Priority will be given to projects covering the whole of the
territory of the Community and coming from public health
organisations which are recognised and/or are expressly
supported by national or regional health authorities;

(c) with regard to the area referred to in Article 1(1)(b):

— the scientific and technological excellence and the inno-

vative character of the research,

— the resources, partnership and management

— the Community value added and the potential contribu-

tion to Union policies,

— the contribution to the pursuit of the Community's

social objectives,

— the prospects for the dissemination/exploitation of the

results

as defined in Council Decision 1999/167/EC (1).

Priority will be given to projects geared towards practical
application, likely to have a rapid effect on production, and
those which provide for rapid dissemination among produ-
cers of the knowledge or results obtained.

On the basis of the assessment, the Commission shall
4.
submit a list of the projects considered for financing to the
Scientific and Technical Committee. The Committee shall
deliver an opinion on the list.

5.
As part of the public tendering procedure, projects to be
carried out on the initiative and on behalf of the Commission,
and considered for financing, shall also be submitted by the
Commission to the Scientific and Technical Committee. The
Committee shall deliver an opinion on those projects.

6.
Pursuant to Article 5(4) of Decision 646/96/EC of the
European Parliament and of the Council (2), the Commission
shall
inform the Committee referred to in Article 5 of that
Decision of the projects considered for financing in the area

(1) OJ L 64, 12.3.1999, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 95, 1.4.1996, p. 9.

referred to in Article 1(1)(a) of this Regulation, accompanied by
the opinion of the Scientific and Technical Committee.

the Commission shall

Pursuant to Article 24 of Council Regulation (EEC) No
7.
inform the Management
2075/92,
Committee
considered for
financing in the area referred to in Article 1(1)(b) of this
Regulation, accompanied by the opinion of the Scientific and
Technical Committee.

for Tobacco of

the projects

Article 5

1.
On the basis of the opinions referred to in Article 4(4)
and (5) of this Regulation, the Commission shall make a selec-
tion of the projects and decide on their financing by the Fund.
It may decide not to proceed with any of the projects.

2.
Projects accepted for financing by the Fund shall be the
subject of a contract concluded by the Commission. A list of
the projects financed in this way shall be published in the
Official Journal of the European Communities.

3.
The Commission shall monitor the implementation of
projects accepted for financing by the Fund. It shall inform the
Management Committee for Tobacco regularly of the contracts
concluded and the progress of work.

in
The programme shall be the subject of evaluations,
4.
particular during the third year following the entry into force
of
this Regulation. The reports shall be submitted to the
Management Committee for Tobacco.

Article 6

1.
Contracts shall be based on the appropriate standard
contract drawn up by the Commission and shall reflect, where
necessary, the various activities concerned. They shall specify in
particular:

— the possibility of the payment of an advance by the Fund,
within two months of the signature of the contract,

— the nature of

the project deliverables necessary for
obtaining subsequent payments, which shall be made in
staggered instalments reflecting the progress of the work
and on the basis of invoices and appropriate supporting
documents,

— the deadline for submitting applications for payment of the
balance following completion of the measures provided for
in the contract, together with the nature of the accompa-
nying deliverables, which shall include at least a summary
of work carried out, appropriate supporting documents and
an evaluation of the results obtained and how those results
can be used,

— a maximum period for payments from the Fund of 60 days
from the date of approval by the Commission of
the
project deliverables, which may be suspended by the
Commission in order to carry out additional verifications.

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Official Journal of the European Communities

27.7.2000

The payment of an advance by the Fund shall be subject
2.
to the lodging by the contractor, in favour of the Commission,
of a security of an amount equivalent to 110 % of the advance,
lodged in accordance with the conditions laid down in Title III
of Regulation (EEC) No 2220/85. However, public institutions
may be exempt from this requirement.

The security shall be released subject to payment of the

3.
balance of the contribution for the measures concerned.

4. Where the advance exceeds the amount due, the security
shall be partially forfeit for an amount equal to the amount
wrongly paid.

Article 7

Projects accepted for financing by the Fund may not receive
Community financing from other sources.

Article 8

1. Where financing of a project has been wrongly paid, the
Commission shall recover the amounts paid to the beneficia-
ries, plus interest from the date of payment to the date of
actual recovery. The interest rate to be used shall be that
charged by the European Central Bank on its euro operations
as published in the Official Journal of the European Communities
on the first working day of each month.

2.
The amounts recovered and the interest shall be paid to
the Commission and deducted from expenditure in the tobacco

sector financed by the European Agricultural Guidance and
Guarantee Fund.

Article 9

The amount of the premium to be paid to producers and the
reimbursement
to be made by the Member States to the
processors, in accordance with Articles 18 and 20 respectively
of Commission Regulation (EC) No 2848/98 of 22 December
1998 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council
Regulation (EEC) No 2075/92 as regards the premium scheme,
production quotas and the specific aid to be granted to
producer groups in the raw tobacco sector (1) shall be reduced,
at the time of payment, by the amount withheld referred to in
Article 13(1) of Regulation (EEC) No 2075/92.

The amount thus reduced shall be declared by the Member
States as expenditure of the Guarantee Section of the European
Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund.

Article 10

Regulation (EEC) No 2427/93 is hereby repealed. However, its
provisions shall continue to apply to projects approved before
the entry into force of this Regulation.

Article 11

This Regulation shall enter into force on the seventh day
following its publication in the Official Journal of the European
Communities.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels, 25 July 2000.

For the Commission

Franz FISCHLER

Member of the Commission

(1) OJ L 358, 31.12.1998, p. 17.