2002/701/EC: Commission Decision of 20 December 2000 approving the single programming document for Community structural assistance in certain areas of the region of Åland under Objective 2 in Finland (notified under document number C(2000) 3525)
Date: 2000-12-20
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Finland, Structural Funds, development aid, distribution of aid, financing plan, regional development, Åland

L 241/52

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

9.9.2002

COMMISSION DECISION

of 20 December 2000

approving the single programming document for Community structural assistance in certain areas
of the region of ¯land under Objective 2 in Finland

(notified under document number C(2000) 3525)

(Only the Finnish and Swedish texts are authentic)

(2002/701/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

in particular a description of the priorities selected and
an indication of
the financial contribution from the
European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the
other financial instruments proposed for implementing
the plan.

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999 of
21 June 1999 laying down general provisions on the
Structural Funds (1), and in particular Article 15(5) thereof,

(5)

After consultation of the Committee on the Development and
Conversion of Regions,

Whereas:

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

Article 13 et seq. of Title II of Regulation (EC) No
1260/1999 lay down the procedure for preparing and
implementing single programming documents.

The measures provided for in this Decision are in
accordance with Article 15(1) and (2) of Regulation (EC)
No 1260/1999 which provides that, after consultation
the
with the partners
Regulation,
to the
Commission a development plan which is treated as a
draft
and which
contains the information referred to in Article 16 of the
Regulation.

the Member State may submit

referred to in Article 8 of

single programming

document,

Under Article 15(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999,
the Commission, on the basis of
regional
development plan submitted by the Member State and
within the partnership established in accordance with
Article 8 of the Regulation, is to take a decision on the
single programming document, in agreement with the
Member State concerned and in accordance with the
procedures laid down in Articles 48 to 51.

the

The Finnish Government submitted to the Commission
on 24 February 2000 an acceptable draft
single
programming document
for the region fulfilling the
conditions for Objective 2 pursuant to Article 4(1) of
Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999. The draft contains the
information listed in Article 16 of the Regulation, and

(1) OJ L 161, 26.6.1999, p. 1.

submission of

The date of
the draft which was
considered acceptable by the Commission constitutes
the date from which expenditure under the plan is
eligible. Under Article 52(4) of Regulation (EC) No
1260/1999, as an acceptable plan was
submitted
between 1 January and 30 April 2000, the date from
which expenditure under the plan is eligible is 1 January
2000. Under Article 30 of the Regulation, it is necessary
to lay down the final date for
the eligibility of
expenditure.

The single programming document has been drawn up
in agreement with the Member State concerned and
within the partnership.

The Commission has
programming document
principle of additionality.

satisfied itself

that
the single
in accordance with the

is

Under Article 10 of Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999, the
Commission and the Member State are required to
ensure,
in a manner consistent with the principle of
partnership, coordination between assistance from the
Funds and from the EIB and other existing Financial
Instruments.

in

are

financial

expressed

euro. The
consistent with the

The
contribution from the Community
available over the entire period and its year-by-year
annual
breakdown
breakdown must be
relevant
financial perspective. Under Article 7(7) of Regulation
(EC) No 1260/1999, the Community contribution has
already been indexed at a rate of 2 % per year. Under
Articles 7(7)
the
Community contribution may be reviewed at mid-term,
and not later than 31 December 2004, to take account
of the effective level of inflation and the allocation of
the performance reserve.

the Regulation,

and 44(2) of

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Official Journal of the European Communities

L 241/53

(10)

Provision must be made for adapting the financial
allocations of the priorities of this single programming
document within certain limits to actual requirements
reflected by the pattern of
implementation on the
ground, in agreement with the Member State concerned,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

(d) the provisions for implementing the single programming
document including designation of the managing authority,
a description of the arrangements for managing the single
programming document and the use to be made of global
grants, a description of the systems for monitoring and
evaluation, including the role of the Monitoring Committee
and the arrangements for the participation of the partners,
including partners representing the interests of equality
between men and women, and the environment in that
Committee;

Article 1

(e)

the ex ante verification of compliance with additionality
and information on the transparency of financial flows;

The single programming document for Community structural
assistance in certain areas of
the region of ¯land under
Objective 2 in Finland for the period 1 January 2000 to 31
December 2006 is hereby approved.

(f)

information on the resources
monitoring
and
document.

evaluating

required for preparing,
single programming

the

Article 2

1.
In accordance with Article 19 of Regulation (EC) No
1260/1999, the single programming document includes the
following elements:

(a)

the strategy and priorities for the joint action of
the
Community Structural Funds and the Member State; their
specific quantified targets; the ex ante evaluation of the
expected impact, including on the environmental situation,
and the consistency of the priorities with the economic,
social and regional policies and the employment strategy
of Finland.

The priorities are as follows:

(1) economic development and the environment;

(2) technical assistance;

(b) a summary description of

the measures planned to
implement the priorities, including the information needed
to check compliance with the State aid rules under Article
87 of the Treaty;

(c)

the indicative financing plan specifying for each priority
and each year the financial allocation envisaged for the
contribution from each Fund,
the EIB and the other
Financial Instruments and indicating separately the funding
planned for the regions receiving transitional support in
respect of Objectives 2 and 5b and the total amounts of
eligible public or equivalent expenditure and estimated
private
total
contribution from the Funds planned for each year for the
single programming document
is consistent with the
relevant financial perspective;

the Member

State. The

funding

in

2.
The indicative financing plan puts the total cost of the
priorities selected for the joint action by the Community and
the Member State at EUR 11 360 000 for the whole period
and the financial contribution from the Structural Funds at
EUR 4 560 000.

The resulting requirement
resources of EUR
6 800 000 from the public sector and EUR 10 960 000 from
the private sector can be partly met by Community loans from
the EIB and other lending instruments.

for national

Article 3

1.
The total assistance from the Structural Funds granted
under the single programming document amounts to EUR
4 560 000.

The procedure for granting the financial assistance, including
the financial contribution from the Funds for the various
priorities included in the single programming document, is set
out in the financing plan annexed to this Decision.

2.
The indicative initial estimated breakdown of the total
Community assistance available between the Structural Funds
is as follows:

ERDF

EUR 4 560 000.

3.
During implementation of the financing plan, the total
cost or Community financing of a given priority can be
adjusted in agreement with the Member State by up to 25 % of
the total Community contribution to the single programming
document throughout the programme period or by up to EUR
30 000 000, whichever is the greater, without altering the
total Community contribution referred to in paragraph 1.

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Official Journal of the European Communities

9.9.2002

Article 4

This Decision is without prejudice to the Commission’s
position on aid schemes falling within Article 87(1) of the
Treaty that are included in this assistance and which have not
the
yet been approved by the Commission. Submission of
application for assistance, the programming complement or a
request for payment by the Member State does not replace the
notification required by Article 88(3) of the Treaty.

Community financing of State aid falling within Article 87(1)
of the Treaty, granted under aid schemes or in individual cases,
requires prior approval by the Commission under Article 88 of
the Treaty, except where the aid falls within the de minimis rule
or is exempted under an exemption regulation adopted by the
Commission under Council Regulation (EC) No 994/98 of 7
May 1998 on the application of Articles 92 and 93 [now
Articles 87 and 88] of the Treaty establishing the European
Community to certain categories of horizontal State aid (2). In
the absence of such exemption or approval, aid is illegal and
subject
in the procedural
regulation for State aid, and its part-financing would be treated
as an irregularity within the meaning of Article 38(5) of
Regulation
the
Commission will not accept requests for interim and final
payments under Article 32 of the Regulation for measures
being part-financed with new or altered aid, as defined in the

to the consequences

Consequently,

1260/1999.

set out

(EC)

No

procedural regulation for State aid, granted under aid schemes
or in individual cases, until such aid has been notified to and
formally approved by the Commission.

Article 5

The date from which expenditure shall be eligible is 1 January
2000. The closing date for the eligibility of expenditure shall
be 31 December 2008. This date is extended to 30 April 2009
for expenditure incurred by bodies granting assistance under
Article 9(l) of Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999.

Article 6

This Decision is addressed to the Republic of Finland.

Done at Brussels, 20 December 2000.

For the Commission

Michel BARNIER

Member of the Commission

(2) OJ L 142, 14.5.1998, p. 1.