Proposal for a Council Regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 2965/94 as regards the budgetary and financial rules applicable to the Translation Centre for the Bodies of the European Union and access to the Centre's documents
Date: 2002-07-17
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Translation Centre for the Bodies of the European Union, access to information, administrative transparency, appointment of staff, approximation of laws, financial regulation, general budget (EU)

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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Proposal for a Council Regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 2965/94 as regards the budgetary
and financial rules applicable to the Translation Centre for the Bodies of the European Union and
access to the Centre's documents

(2002/C 331 E/06)

COM(2002) 406 final — 2002/0167(CNS)

(Submitted by the Commission on 17 July 2002

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

1. General

The new Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the EC will enter into force on 1 January
2003. It presents a new approach concerning the budgetary and financial status of the decentralised
Community Agencies.

The most important novelties concerning Community Agencies are as follows:

— Article 185:

— The Commission adopts a framework Financial Regulation applicable to the bodies set up by the
Communities, having legal personality and which actually receive grants from the general budget.
The financial rules of
from the framework Regulation unless
these bodies may not depart
specifically required for their operation and with the Commission's prior consent.

— Discharge for the implementation of the budgets of the bodies referred to in paragraph 1 is to be

given by the European Parliament, acting on a recommendation by the Council.

— The Commission's internal auditor exercises

the same powers over

these bodies as over

Commission departments.

— The above-mentioned bodies must apply the accounting rules established by the Commission's
accounting officer so that their accounts can be consolidated with the Commission's accounts.

— Article 46(3)(d):

— The establishment plans of the bodies defined in Article 185(1) are to be decided by the general

budgetary authority.

These novelties require corresponding amendments to the legal acts establishing the Agencies concerned.
While the full details of the financial and budgetary regime applicable to a given Agency are contained in
the respective Financial Regulation, the legal act establishing the Agency (typically a Council Regulation)
also contains provisions concerning financial and budgetary issues (e.g. the establishment and implemen-
tation of the budget, arrangements for budget control, the presentation of accounts, discharge and the
procedure for adopting the Agency's Financial Regulation).

It is therefore necessary to make changes to the various legal acts establishing the Agencies in order to
implement the new system. These changes are the subject of the present proposals.

Concerning those decentralised bodies which do not fall within the definition of Article 185(1), one
change in their regulatory framework seems unavoidable in the light of one fundamental aspect of the
new Financial Regulation, i.e. the dropping of all centralised ex ante financial control.

In these proposals the Commission also tackles two further questions concerning the decentralised
Community bodies.

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The first is connected with the current general reform process, viz. the question of transparency and public
access to documents. During the recasting process the institutions agreed to include in the new Financial
Regulation a provision that the public should have access to information relating to the decentralised
bodies to the extent laid down by the EC regulatory framework. Furthermore, when adopting European
Parliament and Council Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 on public access to Parliament, Council and
Commission documents,
the Community
Agencies should apply the same rules as regards access to documents. To put this agreement into
effect, the Commission is proposing to amend the basic acts setting up the 15 decentralised bodies.

the three institutions agreed in a joint declaration that

The second question concerns the procedure for appointing the Directors of the Community bodies. When
the constituent acts were adopted, it was the Council's intention to allow for the possibility of renewing
the terms of office of these Directors, but the Commission considers that the way most of them are
worded at the moment does not properly reflect this aim. The provision for renewing a term of office
suggests only that the present holder of the post may apply for a further term of office. However, this does
not exempt the Community bodies from applying the procedure laid down in the constituent acts. This
interpretation is derived from the parallel wording used in Article 214(1) of the EC Treaty on the
appointment of Commission Members, and in Articles 223 and 225 on the appointment of judges to
the Court of Justice. The special position of Directors of Community bodies warrants retaining this parallel
approach and so departing from the interpretation of Article 8 of the Conditions of Employment of Other
Servants of the European Communities, which allows a contract to be extended without a new selection
procedure.

In order to make it clear that a new selection procedure is not necessary at the end of each Director's term
of office, the Commission therefore proposes to clarify the existing texts.

On a proposal from the relevant management organ, it will be possible to extend the contract without
engaging a new selection procedure. This possibility would make for a balance between the need for
continuity in the management of Community bodies and the advantage of opening up the body to new
ideas and new policies. The restriction to a single extension would not stop the person concerned applying
for the same post at the end of the second term of office and taking part in a new selection procedure. A
person could then have more than two terms of office after successfully passing a new selection procedure.

2. Scope of the proposals:

Taking into account the above-mentioned development of the general recasting process, it is assumed that
the new arrangements (Articles 185 and 46(3)(d)) will apply to the thirteen existing Community Agencies,
namely

— the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (Thessaloniki) (1);

— the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Dublin) (2);

— the European Environment Agency (Copenhagen) (3);

— the European Training Foundation (Turin) (4);

— the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (Lisbon) (5);

— the European Agency for the Evaluation of Medicinal Products (London) (6);

— the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (Bilbao) (7);

— the Translation Centre for the Bodies of the EU (Luxembourg) (8);

(1) Regulation (EC) No 337/75 of 10 February 1975.
(2) Regulation (EC) No 1365/75 of 26 May 1975.
(3) Regulation (EC) No 1210/90 of 7 May 1990.
(4) Regulation (EC) No 1360/90 of 7 May 1990.
(5) Regulation (EC) No 302/93 of 8 February 1993.
(6) Regulation (EC) No 2309/93 of 22 July 1993.
(7) Regulation (EC) No 2062/94 of 18 July 1994.
(8) Regulation (EC) No 2965/94 of 28 November 1994.

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— the European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia (Vienna) (1);

— the European Agency for Reconstruction (Thessaloniki) (2);

— the European Food Safety Authority (3);

— the European Aviation Safety Agency (4);

— the European Maritime Safety Agency (5);

as well as to one body established under the Third Pillar, but treated as a traditional Community body in
budgetary and financial terms, Eurojust (6).

There are two decentralised Community bodies which do not receive grants from the general budget,
namely

— the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Alicante) (7)

and

— the Community Plant Variety Office (Angers) (8).

They therefore do not fall within the definition of Article 185. However, they are affected by the proposals
to bring their internal control mechanisms into line with the new Financial Regulation.

Finally, it was also intended to cover the European Railway Agency (COM(2002) 23 final). However, since
the legislative procedure to set up this new agency is at an early stage, it has been decided not to include it
in the present proposal.

As regards transparency,
the amendments to include provisions regarding access to documents will
concern the fifteen existing Community Agencies (irrespective of the applicability of Article 185), but
not Eurojust (9).

Clarification of the provisions covering the procedure for appointing the Directors of the agencies is
proposed for these thirteen Community bodies. This is not necessary in the case of Regulation
1360/90 as amended by Regulation 1572/98, which is used as the model for the proposed wording,
or for Eurojust. In the case of Eurojust, the Administrative Director is not the head of the agency but
comes under the authority of the College and its President (Article 29(4) of Decision 2002/187/JHA). In
this case, therefore, the Administrative Director's position is not commensurable with that of Members of
the Commission or of the Court of Justice. Regulation 2667/2000 establishing the European Agency for
Reconstruction makes no provision for renewing the term of office of its Director. There is therefore no
proposal to amend that Regulation in that particular respect.

3. The substance of the present proposals

3.1. Concerning the fourteen bodies receiving grants from the general budget and therefore covered by
Article 185 of the new Financial Regulation, the main elements of the proposals are as follows:

(1) Regulation (EC) No 1035/97 of 2 June 1997.
(2) Regulation (EC) No 2667/2000 of 5 December 2000.
(3) Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 of 28 January 2002.
(4) COM(2000) 595 final, 4.12.2000. Regulation (EC) No . . ./2002 of . . . June 2002.
(5) COM(2002) 802 final, 8.12.2000. Regulation (EC) No . . . /2002 of . . . June 2002.
(6) Council Decision 2002/187/JHA of 28 February 2002.
(7) Regulation (EC) No 40/94 of 20 December 1993.
(8) Regulation (EC) No 2100/94 of 27 July 1994.
(9) Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 is not directly applicable to the Third Pillar.

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— as a result of Article 185 itself:

— the European Parliament, acting on a recommendation from the Council, becomes the

discharge authority;

— the powers of the Commission's Internal Auditor are spelled out and centralised ex ante control

is dropped;

— provisions are laid down on the presentation of accounts that are in line with the recasting;

— in line with a declaration made by the Commission on Article 185:

— The Commission has committed itself to consulting Parliament, the Council and the Court of
Auditors on the framework Financial Regulation to be adopted under Article 185(1). For this
reason, there will be no further need to maintain in the legal acts establishing the various
decentralised bodies a formal requirement to consult the Court on each individual Financial
Regulation;

— as a result of Article 46(3)(d):

— a rule provides that the establishment plan is adopted by the general budget authority;

— in order to provide a degree of technical harmonisation:

— the responsibility for implementing the budget will lie with the Director (which is currently
not the case for the two ‘first-generation’ Agencies, CEDEFOP Thessaloniki and the Dublin
Foundation);

— competence for the adoption of each Agency's individual Financial Regulation will rest with
(after the Commission has been
the respective body's management board or equivalent
consulted). This will harmonise the individual procedures considerably. Currently, responsi-
bility for adopting each body's Financial Regulation rests either with the Council or with the
management board or equivalent, with or without the involvement of the Commission and the
Court of Auditors in the process. These disparities are simply historical accidents in the
development of the agencies, and are not objectively justified;

— the terminology used in the field of budgetary procedure is harmonised to some extent with

the terminology of the new general Financial Regulation;

— the present Financial Regulations (1) of the two ‘first-generation’ agencies are repealed:

— hitherto, the Financial Regulations of CEDEFOP Thessaloniki and the Dublin Foundation have
been Council Regulations. As already mentioned, there is no justification for maintaining these
exceptions to the general rule. In the present circumstances, such a procedure no longer seems
appropriate for this kind of instrument.

3.2. As regards the two Community agencies not covered by Article 185, it must be borne in mind that
the new Financial Regulation implies a fundamental change concerning the audit and control mech-
anisms. Thus, it seems logical that in the Regulations setting up these agencies, at least the control
provisions should be modernised (in particular as one of them — CPVO Angers — still relies upon
the Commission's Financial Controller, a function which is to be abolished with the entry into force
of the new general Financial Regulation).

3.3. It will be recalled that the Commission in 1997 had already presented proposals for amending the
Regulations setting up nine of the aforementioned decentralised bodies (2). Taking into account that
these proposals have in part become obsolete and are in part covered by the present proposals as
well, the Commission takes the opportunity formally to withdraw them.

(1) Regulations (EC) No 1416/76 and No 1417/76 of 1 June 1976.
(2) COM(1997) 489 final, 6.10.1997, amended by COM(1998) 289 final, 4.5.1998.

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3.4. As regards the question of transparency in the fifteen existing agencies, it is proposed to introduce a

clause to the following effect:

— Regulation No 1049/2001 applies to documents of the agencies;

— the management boards will adopt the necessary implementing rules;

— the Court of Justice is competent to decide on appeals against decisions made by the agencies on

access to documents.

3.5. As for the procedure for appointing the Directors of the Community bodies, it is proposed to align
the constituent acts on Article 7(1) of Regulation

the wording of
No 1360/90 of 7 May 1990 (1) as amended by Regulation No 1572/98 of 17 July 1998 (2).

the relevant provisions of

4. Procedural issues

4.1. The following procedures apply to the 18 basic acts directly affected by the present document:

— Article 308 (Council unanimity after consulting Parliament): Regulations (EC) Nos 337/75,
1365/75, 1360/90, 302/93, 2309/93, 2062/94, 2100/94, 40/94, 2965/94, 1035/97 (with
Article 213) and 2667/2000;

— Article 175 (Article 251 procedure, plus consultation of the Economic and Social Committee and

the Committee of the Regions): Regulation (EC) No 1210/90;

— Article 251 (codecision): Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 (with Articles 37, 95, 133 and 152(4)(b);
i.e. also with the consultation of the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the
Regions), COM(2000) 595 final (with Article 80(2)), COM(2000) 802 final (with Article 80(2));

— Article 279 (Council unanimity, after consulting Parliament and the Court of Auditors): Regu-

lations (EC) Nos 1416/76 and 1417/76;

— Article 34(2)(c)
2002/187/JHA.

(with Article 31 of

the EU Treaty (Council unanimity): Council Decision

4.2. As regards the European Agency for the Evaluation of Medicinal Products, the constituent act in force
(Regulation No 2309/93) is to be replaced by a new constituent act following the Commission
proposal COM(2001) 404 final.

If Regulation No 2309/93 is replaced by a new constituent act, the proposal for the amendment of that
constituent act should be read as a proposal for the amendment of this new constituent act.

In that event the Commission will provide all the technical expertise necessary to help the legislative
authority to adapt the proposal to the relevant provisions of this new act.

(1) OJ L 131, 23.5.1990, p.1.
(2) OJ L 206, 23.7.1998, p.1.

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5. Need for a fast track procedure

Since the new Financial Regulation must, as already mentioned, enter into force on 1 January 2003, the
present proposals must be adopted, under the appropriate legislative procedure, by the end of 2002.

The Commission invites all institutions concerned by the adoption of these proposals to speed up the
procedure so that the amendments to the legal bases of the bodies concerned may enter into force in
parallel with the new Financial Regulation.

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community, and in particular Article 308 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament,

Whereas:

(1) The provisions of Regulation (EC) No 2965/94 of 28
November 1994 should be harmonised with Council Regu-
lation (EC, Euratom) No . . . of . . . on the Financial Regu-
lation applicable to the general budget of the European
Communities, and in particular Article 185 thereof.

(2) Article 10 of Regulation (EC) No 2965/94 should be
revised to clarify the arrangements for financing the Centre.

(3) The general principles and limits governing right of access
to documents provided for in Article 255 of the EC Treaty
have been laid down by Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of
the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May
2001 regarding public access to European Parliament,
Council and Commission documents (1).

Article 1

Regulation (EEC) No 2965/1994 is amended as follows:

1. Paragraph 3 of Article 8 is replaced by the following:

‘The Management Board shall adopt the annual report on
the Centre's activities and transmit it by 15 June at the latest
to the European Parliament, the Council, the Commission,
the Court of Auditors and the bodies referred to in Article
2.’

2. Article 9(1) is replaced by the following:

‘The Centre shall be under the authority of a Director
appointed by the Management Board, on a proposal from
the Commission, for a period of five years, which, on a
proposal from the Commission, may be extended for one
further period not exceeding five years.’

3. Paragraph 2(b) of Article 10 is replaced by the following:

‘Subject to the provisions set out in subparagraph (c), the
Centre's revenue shall comprise

(4) When Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 was adopted, the
three institutions agreed in a joint declaration that
the
agencies and similar bodies should implement rules in
line with that Regulation.

— payments made by the bodies for which the Centre
works and by the institutions and organs with which
collaboration has been agreed in return for work
performed by it, and

(5) Appropriate provisions should therefore be included in
Regulation (EC) No 2695/94 to make Regulation (EC)
No 1049/2001 applicable to the Translation Centre for
the Bodies of the European Union, as should a clause
guaranteeing a right of appeal against a refusal of access
to documents.

(6) Regulation (EC) No 2965/94 should therefore be amended

accordingly.

(7) It would be useful to clarify the rules for the conditions and
procedures applying to the renewal of the term of office of
the Director and to harmonise the rules
the
Community bodies for which re-appointment is possible,

for all

(1) OJ L 145, 31.5.2001, p. 43.

— a Community subsidy, in particular to finance interinsti-

tutional activities.’

4. Article 13 is replaced by the following:

‘Article 13

1.
Estimates of all the revenue and expenditure of the
Centre shall be prepared for each financial year, corre-
sponding to the calendar year, and shall be shown in the
budget of the Centre, which shall include an establishment
plan.

The revenue and expenditure shown in the budget

2.
shall be in balance.

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Each year the Management Board, on the basis of a
3.
draft drawn up by the Director, shall produce a statement of
estimates of revenue and expenditure for the Centre for the
following financial year. This statement of estimates, which
shall include a draft establishment plan, shall be transmitted
by the Management Board to the Commission by 31 March
at the latest.

The Commission shall take account of the statement of
estimates in drawing up the forecasts of subsidies for the
bodies referred to in Article 2 in the preliminary draft
general budget of the European Communities (hereinafter
“the general budget”).

The statement of estimates shall be transmitted by the
Commission to the European Parliament and the Council
(hereinafter
“budgetary authority”)
together with the preliminary draft general budget.

referred to as

the

The Director shall, by 1 July at the latest following
6.
the final accounts to the
each financial year,
European Parliament,
and the Court of
the Council
Auditors, together with the Management Board's opinion.

transmit

7.

The final accounts shall be published.

8.
The Centre's Director shall send the Court of Auditors
a reply to its observations by 30 September at the latest. He
shall also send this reply to the Management Board.

9.
The European Parliament, on a recommendation from
the Council acting by a qualified majority, shall, before 30
April of year N + 2, give a discharge to the Director of the
Centre in respect of the implementation of the budget for
year N.
___________
(*) OJ L . . .’

The budgetary authority shall adopt the establishment plan
for the Centre.

6. Article 15 is replaced by the following:

The Management Board shall adopt

4.
the Centre's
budget before the beginning of the budget year, adjusting
it as necessary to the Community subsidy referred to in
Article 10(2)(b) in the light of the payments made by the
bodies referred to in Article 2.’

5. Paragraphs 2 and 3 of Article 14 are replaced by the

following:

The Commission's internal auditor shall exercise the
as over Commission

the Centre

‘2.
same powers over
departments.

to the Commission's

By 1 March at the latest following each financial year,
3.
shall communicate the
the Centre's accounting officer
accounting
accounts
provisional
together with a report on the budgetary and
officer
year. The
financial management
that
Commission's accounting officer
the
provisional accounts of the institutions and decentralised
bodies within the meaning of Article 128 of Council Regu-
lation (EC, Euratom) No . . . (*)
(hereinafter “the general
Financial Regulation”).

financial
shall

consolidate

for

4.
By 31 March at the latest following each financial
transmit
year,
the Commission's accounting officer shall
the Centre's provisional accounts to the Court of Auditors,
together with a report on the budgetary and financial
management
financial year. The report on the
budgetary and financial management for the financial year
shall also be transmitted to the European Parliament and the
Council.

for that

5.
On receipt of the Court of Auditors' observations on
the Centre's provisional accounts, pursuant to Article 129 of
the general Financial Regulation, the Director shall draw up
the Centre's final accounts under his own responsibility and
transmit them to the Management Board for an opinion.

‘Article 15

The financial rules applicable to the Centre shall be adopted
by the Management Board after the Commission has been
consulted. They may not depart
from the framework
Financial Regulation adopted by the Commission under
Article 185 of the Financial Regulation applicable to the
general budget of
the European Communities unless
specifically required for the Centre's operation and with
the Commission's prior consent.’

7. A new Article 18a is inserted:

‘Article 18a

Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of the European Parliament
and of the Council (*) shall apply to documents held by the
Centre.

The Management Board shall adopt the arrangements for
implementing Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 within six
months of entry into force of this Regulation.

Decisions taken by the Centre under Article 8 of Regulation
(EC) No 1049/2001 may be appealed by means of a
to the Ombudsman or an action before the
complaint
Court of Justice, under Articles 195 and 230 of the EC
Treaty respectively.
___________
(*) OJ L 145, 31.5.2001, p. 43.’

Article 2

This Regulation shall enter into force on the 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.