2002/176/EU: Decision of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States meeting within the Council of 21 February 2002 setting up a Fund for the financing of the Convention on the future of the European Union and laying down the financial rules for its management
Date: 2002-02-21
Institutions: Representatives of the Governments of the Member States
Subjects: European Union, European convention, financial management, financing, fund (EU)

L 60/56

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Official Journal of the European Communities

1.3.2002

II

(Acts whose publication is not obligatory)

CONFERENCE OF THE REPRESENTATIVES
OF THE GOVERNMENTS OF THE MEMBER STATES

DECISION OF THE REPRESENTATIVES OF THE GOVERNMENTS OF THE MEMBER STATES
MEETING WITHIN THE COUNCIL

setting up a Fund for the financing of the Convention on the future of the European Union and
laying down the financial rules for its management

of 21 February 2002

(2002/176/EU)

THE REPRESENTATIVES OF THE GOVERNMENTS OF THE
MEMBER STATES MEETING WITHIN THE COUNCIL,

HAVE DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Having regard to Point III of the Laeken Declaration on the
future of the European Union set out in the Annex to the
conclusions of the Presidency of the European Council meeting
in Laeken on 14 and 15 December 2001 on the decision to
convene a Convention on the future of the European Union
(hereinafter referred to as ‘the Convention’),

CHAPTER I

Creation of the Fund

Having regard to the Decision of the Chairman of the Conven-
tion to appoint a Secretary-General of that Convention,

Article 1

Whereas:

(1)

Pursuant to the Laeken Declaration on the future of the
European Union,
the Convention has a Praesidium
assisted by a Secretariat provided by the General Secre-
tariat of the Council.

(2)

A Fund should be set up to finance the Convention.

Financial rules should also be laid down to specify in
particular the detailed arrangements for implementing
the budget intended to cover the expenditure arising out
of the holding of the Convention other than that relating
to the infrastructure needed for its operation, and the
procedure for presenting and auditing the accounts.

(3)

(4)

A Fund is hereby set up for the financing of the Conven-

1.
tion (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Fund’).

In each Member State, the Fund shall have the most
2.
extensive legal capacity accorded to legal persons under its
national laws. It may receive gifts, conclude contracts and be a
party to legal proceedings. To that end, it shall be represented
by the Secretary-General of the Convention.

3.
The Governments of the Member States shall, with refer-
ence to Article 3 of the Protocol on the Privileges and Immuni-
ties of the European Communities of 8 April 1965, whenever
possible take the appropriate measures to remit or refund the
amount of indirect taxes or sales taxes included in the price of
movable property or charges for the provision of services,
where the Fund makes, for its official use, substantial purchases
the price of which includes taxes of this kind. These provisions
shall not be applied, however, so as to have the effect of
distorting competition within the Communities.

On 28 February 2002 the European Parliament, the
Council and the European Commission concluded an
Interinstitutional Agreement concerning the financing of
the Convention on the future of the European Union,

The role of the Fund shall be to collect the revenue and
manage the expenditure of the Convention other than that
relating to the infrastructure needed for its operation.

Article 2

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Article 3

1.
For the purposes of applying this Decision, the budget of
the Fund (hereinafter referred to as ‘the budget’) shall be the act
adopted by the Representatives of the Governments of the
Member States, meeting within the Council, which sets out
forecasts of, and authorises in advance, for each financial year,
the revenue and expenditure of the Fund.

2.
The budget shall be adopted on the proposal of the
Secretary-General of the Convention and with the agreement of
the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission.

Article 4

A special bank account shall be opened in the name of the
Fund. The Secretary-General of the Convention shall be author-
ised to use this bank account in accordance with Article 16 in
order to meet his obligations under this Decision.

Article 5

The revenue and expenditure shown in the budget shall be in
balance.

CHAPTER II

Financial rules

Article 6

second financial year shall run from 1 January 2003 until the
Convention's proceedings end.

3.
The expenditure of a financial year shall be entered in the
accounts for that year on the basis of expenditure for which
the financial controller received authorisation no later than 31
December and for which the corresponding payments were
made by the accounting officer before the following 15
January.

4. Without prejudice to Article 11, the allotted appropria-
tions may be used solely to cover expenditure properly entered
into and paid under the financial year for which they were
granted, and to cover the debts relating to the preceding finan-
cial year for which no appropriation was carried forward.

Article 11

Appropriations not committed at the end of the first
1.
financial year and appropriations in respect of payments still
outstanding by virtue of commitments duly entered into before
the end of the first financial year shall be carried over automati-
cally to the second financial year.

2.
For the purpose of implementing the budget, the utilisa-
tion of appropriations carried forward shall be shown sepa-
rately, for each budget Article, in the accounts for the current
financial year.

CHAPTER III

This Chapter lays down the detailed rules for establishing and
implementing the budget.

Implementation of the budget and accountancy

Article 7

Article 12

1.

The budget shall be subdivided into Titles and Chapters.

Appropriations entered in the budget may not be used

2.
for purposes other than those specified therein.

The budget shall be implemented in accordance with the prin-
ciple that the authorising officer and the accounting officer are
different
authorising officer,
accounting officer and financial controller shall be mutually
incompatible.

individuals. The duties of

Article 8

Budget appropriations shall be used in accordance with the
principles of sound financial management, in particular those
of economy and cost-effectiveness.

Article 9

1.
No revenue shall be collected and no expenditure effected
unless credited to, or charged against, an Article in the budget.

No expenditure may be committed or authorised in

2.
excess of the authorised appropriations.

Article 10

All revenue and expenditure shall be entered in full in the
1.
budget and in the accounts without any adjustment against
each other. Total revenue shall cover total expenditure.

2.
into force of

The first financial year shall run from the day of entry
this Decision until 31 December 2002. The

Article 13

The task of authorising officer for revenue and expendi-
1.
ture shall be carried out by the Secretary-General of
the
Convention. The authorising officer shall implement the budget
within the limits of the appropriations allotted. He may dele-
gate his powers to a member of the Secretariat of the Conven-
tion designated by him.

The authorising officer may decide to make transfers

2.
between Chapters within each Title.

The authorising officer may, with the agreement of the
3.
Representatives of
the Member States
the Governments of
meeting within the Council, decide on transfers between Titles.
He shall communicate his intention to make such transfers to
the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission
before he does so. The institutions shall take a position as soon
as possible, and if one of them refuses the principle of a
transfer within three weeks of the date of the communication,
that transfer may not take place.

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Article 14

Internal financial control of the Fund shall be carried out by
the Financial Controller of
the
Council, subject
the Appointing
Authority.

the General Secretariat of

to the explicit consent of

Article 15

The receipt of revenue and the disbursement of expenditure
shall be carried out by an accounting officer from Directorate-
General A at the General Secretariat of the Council, subject to
the explicit consent of the Appointing Authority.

Article 16

Payments shall be effected through the bank account opened in
accordance with Article 4. Bank transfer orders executed
pursuant to this Decision shall require the joint signature of the
accounting officer and of the assistant to the Secretary-General
of the Convention.

be submitted within four months of the end of the financial
year to the Representatives of the Governments of the Member
States, meeting within the Council, and forwarded to the Euro-
pean Parliament, the Council, the Commission and the Praesi-
dium of the Convention. The Representatives of the Govern-
ments of the Member States meeting within the Council, with
the assent of the European Parliament, the Council and the
Commission, shall give a discharge to the Secretary-General of
the Convention in respect of the implementation of the budget.

Article 21

Once the Convention's proceedings are concluded and the
accounts for the second financial year have been closed, the
budget assets shall be paid into the general budget of the
European Union and shared out between sections in propor-
tion to each Institution's contribution to the Fund.

Article 22

Article 17

The accounts shall be kept by the double-entry method. They
shall show all revenue and expenditure.

The Secretary-General of the Convention shall report monthly
to the Praesidium of the Convention and to the Member States
on the revenue and expenditure of the Fund. The report shall
be forwarded to the European Parliament, the Council and the
Commission.

CHAPTER IV

CHAPTER V

Presenting and auditing the accounts

Article 18

The Secretary-General of the Convention shall, within
1.
two months of the end of the budget implementation period,
draw up a revenue and expenditure account and a balance
sheet.

The revenue and expenditure account shall cover all
2.
revenue and expenditure transactions relating to the preceding
financial year. It shall be submitted in the same form and
following the same subdivisions as the budget.

An appropriation transfer statement shall be attached to

3.
the account.

The balance sheet shall show the budget assets and liabili-

4.
ties as at the end of the preceding financial year.

Article 19

The Court of Auditors of the European Communities shall
carry out the audit in such a way as to ensure that all Fund
revenue has been received and all Fund expenditure incurred in
a regular manner in accordance with the financial rules laid
down in Chapter II of this Decision.

Article 20

The revenue and expenditure account, balance sheet and report
by the Court of Auditors, accompanied where appropriate by
the comments of the Secretary-General of the Convention, shall

Travel expenses of the members of the Convention

Article 23

the
Acting on a proposal
from the Secretary-General of
Convention and on the basis of existing practices at
the
Council, the Praesidium shall adopt a Decision specifying the
conditions and practical arrangements for the reimbursement
of the travel expenses of the members of the Convention,
insofar as these expenses are to be charged to the budget.

CHAPTER VI

Entry into force and publication

Article 24

This Decision shall enter into force on the day of its

1.
adoption. It shall apply until 31 December 2002.

2. When the Interinstitutional Agreement concerning the
financing of the Convention on the future of the European
Union is extended in accordance with paragraph 9 of that
Agreement, this Decision will be extended with effect from 1
January 2003 until the end of the Convention's proceedings by
a decision of the Representatives of the Governments of the
Member States.

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This Decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Communities.

Article 25

Done at Brussels, 21 February 2002.

The President

F. J. CONDE DE SARO