2002/557/EC: Commission Decision of 16 March 2001 approving the Single Programming Document for Community structural assistance under Objective 2 in areas of Lower Austria (notified under document number C(2001) 202)
Date: 2001-03-16
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU financial instrument, Lower Austria, Structural Funds, aid system, development aid, development plan, financing plan, regional aid

L 186/10

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

15.7.2002

COMMISSION DECISION

of 16 March 2001

approving the Single Programming Document

for Community structural assistance under

Objective 2 in areas of Lower Austria

(notified under document number C(2001) 202)

(Only the German text is authentic)

(2002/557/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

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,

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

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

Articles 13 et
seq. of Title II of Regulation (EC)
No 1260/1999 lay down the procedure for preparing
and implementing Single Programming Documents.

Article 15(1) and (2) of Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999
that, after consultation with the partners
provides
referred to in Article 8 of the Regulation, the Member
State may submit to the Commission a development
plan which is treated as a draft Single Programming
Document, and which contains the information referred
to in Article 16 of the Regulation.

Under Article 15(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999,
on the basis of the regional development plan submitted
by the Member State and within the partnership
established in accordance with Article 8 of
that
Regulation, the Commission 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.

draft

The Austrian Government submitted to the Commission
Single
on 13 April 2000 an acceptable
Programming Document for the areas of Lower Austria
fulfilling the conditions for Objective 2 pursuant
to
Article 4(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999 and the
areas of Lower Austria qualifying for
transitional
to
support under Objectives 2 and 5(b) pursuant
Article 6(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999. The draft
the
contains the information listed in Article 16 of

(5)

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

the
Regulation, and in particular a description of
priorities selected and an indication of
the financial
contribution from the European Regional Development
Fund (ERDF).

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
the eligibility of
to lay down the final date for
expenditure.

The Single Programming Document has been drawn up
in agreement with the Member State concerned and
within the partnership.

The Commission has satisfied itself
Programming Document
principle of additionality.

is

the Single
in accordance with the

that

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

The
contribution from the Community
available over the entire period and its year-by-year
breakdown
annual
breakdown should be consistent with the 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
Article 7(7) and Article 44(2) of the Regulation, the
Community contribution may be reviewed at mid-term,
and not later than 31 March 2004, to take account of
the effective level of inflation and the allocation of the
performance reserve.

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

(10)

Provision must be made for adapting the financial
allocations of the priorities of this Single Programming

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Official Journal of the European Communities

L 186/11

Document within certain limits to actual requirements
implementation on the
reflected by the pattern of
ground, in agreement with the Member State concerned,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

The Single Programming Document for Community structural
assistance under Objective 2 to the eligible areas of Lower
Austria and to the areas qualifying for transitional support
under Objectives 2 and 5(b) for the period 1 January 2000 to
31 December 2006 is hereby approved.

Article 2

1.
In accordance with Article 19 of Regulation (EC) No
1260/1999, the Single Programming Document includes the
following elements:

(a)

the
the strategy and priorities for the joint action of
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 Austria.

The priorities are as follows:

1. mobilising

endogenous

regional
development, economy-related infrastructure and key
regional projects;

potential

for

including

(d) the provisions for implementing the Single Programming
the managing
designation
Document
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
the
monitoring and evaluation,
Monitoring Committee and the arrangements
the
participation of the partners in that Committee;

including the role of
for

of

(e)

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

(f)

information on the resources
monitoring and evaluating the assistance.

required for preparing,

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 875 777 000 for the whole period
and the financial contribution from the Structural Funds at
EUR 177 167 000.

resulting

requirement

152 942 000

of
for
The
EUR
and
from the
EUR 545 668 000 from the private sector can be partly met
by Community loans from the European Investment Bank and
other lending instruments.

resources
sector

national
public

Article 3

2. developing
technology;

trade

and

industry,

innovation

and

3. developing tourism and the leisure industry;

4.

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,
including, for information,
the total amount from the EAGGF Guarantee Section and
indicating separately the funding planned for the regions
receiving transitional support in respect of Objectives 2
and 5(b) and the total amounts of eligible public or
equivalent expenditure and estimated private funding in
the Member State. The total contribution from the Funds
the Single Programming
planned for
for
Document
financial
relevant
perspective;

consistent with the

each year

is

the

Single

amounts

The total assistance from the Structural Funds granted
1.
to
Programming Document
under
EUR 177 167 000 . 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. Of that amount, EUR 29 042 000 will be suspended
until the Commission adopts the decision to carry over those
appropriations pursuant to the first indent of Article 7(2)(a) of
the Financial Regulation. To the extent to which the amount
to budgetary
whose payment
appropriations which will be available as a result of
the
carryover decision,
the suspension will be lifted when that
decision comes into force.

suspended corresponds

is

All Community assistance available, EUR 177 167 000,

2.
will be provided by the ERDF.

3.
During implementation of the financing plan, the total
cost or Community financing of a given priority may be
adjusted in agreement with the Member State by up to 25 % of
the total Community contribution to the Single Programming

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Official Journal of the European Communities

15.7.2002

Document throughout the programme period, or by up to
EUR 30 million, without altering the total Community
contribution referred to in paragraph 1.

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 it has not
yet approved. Submission of the application for assistance, the
programme 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(3)
of the Treaty, except where the aid falls under 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 to
certain categories of horizontal aid (2). In the absence of such
exemption or approval, aid is illegal and subject
to the
consequences set out in the procedural regulation for State aid,
and its part-financing would be treated as an irregularity
within the meaning of Articles 38 and 39 of Regulation (EC)
No 1260/1999.

the Commission will not accept requests for
Consequently,
interim and final payments under Article 32 of the Regulation

for measures being part-financed with new or altered aid, as
defined in the 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.

By way of derogation from the preceding paragraphs, Articles
51 and 52 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/1999 (3) shall
apply in the context of rural development part financed by the
EAGGF.

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 Austria.

Done at Brussels, 16 March 2001.

For the Commission

Michel BARNIER

Member of the Commission

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

(3) OJ L 160, 26.6.1999, p. 80.