Common Position (EC) No 44/2003 of 3 June 2003 adopted by the Council, acting in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 251 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, with a view to adopting a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulation (EC) No 1592/2002 on common rules in the field of civil aviation and establishing a European Aviation Safety Agency
Date: 2003-06-03
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: EU competence, EU office or agency, administrative transparency, air safety, civil aviation, operation of the Institutions, technical regulations

16.9.2003

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 219 E/9

COMMON POSITION (EC) No 44/2003

adopted by the Council on 3 June 2003

with a view to adopting Regulation (EC) No . . ./2003 of the European Parliament and of the
Council of . . ., amending Regulation (EC) No 1592/2002 on common rules in the field of civil
aviation and establishing a European Aviation Safety Agency

(2003/C 219 E/03)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF
THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community, and in particular Article 80(2) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1),

Having regard to the Opinion of the Court of Auditors (2),

Having regard to the Opinion of the European Economic and
Social Committee (3),

Acting in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article
251 of the Treaty (4),

Whereas:

(1) Certain provisions of Regulation (EC) No 1592/2002 of the
European Parliament and of the Council of 15 July 2002 on
common rules in the field of civil aviation and establishing
a European Aviation Safety Agency (5) should be brought
into
Euratom)
No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regu-
lation applicable to the general budget of the European
Communities (6)
referred to as ‘the general
Financial Regulation’), and in particular Article 185 thereof.

line with Council Regulation

(hereinafter

(EC,

(2) The general principles and limits governing the exercise of
the right of access to documents provided for in Article
255 of
the 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
Commission
documents (7).

Parliament,

Council

and

(1) OJ C 331 E, 31.12.2002, p. 85.
(2) OJ C 285, 21.11.2002, p. 4.
(3) OJ C 285, 8.4.2003, p. 64.
(4) Opinion of the European Parliament of 22 October 2002 (not yet
published in the Official Journal), Council Common Position of 3
June 2003 and Decision of the European Parliament of . . . (not yet
published in the Official Journal).

(5) OJ L 240, 7.9.2002, p. 1.
(6) OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1. Corrigendum in OJ L 25, 30.1.2003,

p. 43.

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

(3) When Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 was adopted, the
three institutions agreed in a joint declaration that
the
agencies and similar bodies
should have rules which
conform to those of that Regulation.

(4) Appropriate provisions should therefore be included in
Regulation (EC) No 1592/2002 to make Regulation (EC)
No 1049/2001 applicable
to the European Aviation
Safety Agency, as should a provision on appeals against a
refusal of access to documents.

(5) Regulation (EC) No 1592/2002 should therefore be

amended accordingly,

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Regulation (EEC) No 1592/2002 is hereby amended as follows:

1. Article 24(2)(b) shall be replaced by the following:

‘(b) The Management Board shall adopt the annual report
on the Agency's activities and forward it by 15 June at
the latest to the European Parliament, the Council, the
Commission, the Court of Auditors and the Member
States.

The Agency shall forward annually to the budgetary
authority any information relevant to the outcome of
the evaluation procedures;’;

2.

in Article 47:

(a) paragraph 1 shall be replaced by the following:

Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of the European
‘1.
Parliament and of
the Council of 30 May 2001
regarding access to European Parliament, Council and
Commission documents (*) shall apply to documents
held by the Agency.

___________
(*) OJ L 145, 31.5.2001, p. 43.’;

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Official Journal of the European Union

16.9.2003

(b) paragraph 3 shall be replaced by the following:

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

for

shall

Board

The Management

adopt
Regulation

the
‘3.
arrangements
(EC)
implementing
No 1049/2001 within six months after the entry into
force of Regulation (EC) No . . ./. . . of the European
Parliament and of
the Council amending Regulation
(EC) No 1592/2002 of 15 July 2002 on common
rules in the field of civil aviation and establishing a
European Aviation Safety Agency (**).
___________
(**) OJ L . . .’;

(c) the following paragraph shall be added:

9.
The budget shall be adopted by the Management
Board. It shall become final following final adoption of
the general budget of
the European Union. Where
appropriate, it shall be adjusted accordingly.

The Management Board shall, as soon as possible,
10.
notify the budgetary authority of
intention to
implement any project which may have significant
financial implications for the funding of the budget, in
particular any projects relating to property such as the
rental or purchase of buildings.
inform the
Commission thereof.

It shall

its

‘5.
Decisions taken by the Agency pursuant to Article
8 of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 may give rise to the
lodging of a complaint to the Ombudsman or form the
subject of an action before the Court of Justice, under
Articles 195 and 230 of the EC Treaty respectively.’;

Where a branch of the budgetary authority has notified
its intention to deliver an opinion, it shall forward its
opinion to the Management Board within a period of six
weeks from the date of notification of the project.’;

3.

in Article 48:

4. Article 49 shall be replaced by the following:

(a) paragraphs 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 shall be replaced by the

following:

‘Article 49

‘3.

Revenue and expenditure shall be in balance.

Implementation and control of the budget

Each year the Management Board, on the basis of
4.
a draft statement of estimates of revenue and expen-
shall produce a statement of estimates of
diture,
revenue
the
following financial year.

and expenditure of

the Agency for

5.
This statement of estimates, which shall include a
draft establishment plan together with the provisional
work programme, shall by 31 March at the latest be
the
the Management
forwarded
Commission and to the States with which the
Community has concluded agreements in accordance
with Article 55.

Board

by

to

6.
The statement of estimates shall be forwarded by
the Commission to the European Parliament and the
Council
“the budgetary
authority”) together with the preliminary draft general
budget of the European Union.

referred to as

(hereinafter

enter

On the basis of the statement of estimates, the
7.
Commission shall
in the preliminary draft
general budget of the European Union the estimates it
deems necessary for the establishment plan and the
amount of the subsidy to be charged to the general
budget, which it
shall place before the budgetary
authority in accordance with Article 272 of the Treaty.’;

(b) the following paragraphs shall be added:

The Executive Director shall implement the budget of

1.
the Agency.

accounts

to the Commission's

2.
By 1 March at the latest following each financial year,
the Agency's accounting officer shall communicate the
provisional
accounting
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 in accordance with Article 128 of
the general
Financial Regulation.

financial
shall

consolidate

for

By 31 March at the latest following each financial
3.
forward
the Commission's accounting officer shall
year,
to the Court of
the Agency's provisional
Auditors,
together with a report on the budgetary and
financial management for that financial year. The report
on the budgetary and financial management
the
financial year shall also be forwarded to the European
Parliament and the Council.

accounts

for

4.
On receipt of the Court of Auditors' observations on
the Agency's provisional accounts, under Article 129 of the
general Financial Regulation, the Executive Director shall
draw up the Agency's final accounts under his own respon-
sibility and submit them to the Management Board for an
opinion.

The budgetary authority shall authorise the appro-

‘8.
priations for the subsidy to the Agency.

The Management Board shall deliver an opinion on

5.
the Agency's final accounts.

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Official Journal of the European Union

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

7.

The final accounts shall be published.

The Executive Director

8.
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.

shall

9.
The Executive Director shall submit to the European
Parliament, at the latter's request, any information necessary
for the smooth application of the discharge procedure for
the financial year in question, as laid down in Article 146(3)
of the general Financial Regulation.

5. Article 52 shall be replaced by the following:

‘Article 52

Financial provisions

The financial
rules applicable to the Agency shall be
adopted by the Management Board after the Commission
has been consulted. They may not depart from Commission
Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2343/2002 of 19 November
2002 on the framework Financial Regulation for the bodies
referred to in Article 185 of Council Regulation (EC,
Euratom) No 1605/2002 on the Financial Regulation
applicable
European
specifically
Communities (*) unless
required for the Agency's operation and the Commission
has given its prior consent.

general budget of
such departure

to the

the
is

___________
(*) OJ L 357, 31.12.2002, p. 72 with corrigendum in OJ L

2, 7.1.2003, p. 39.’.

The European Parliament, on a recommendation
10.
from the Council acting by a qualified majority, shall,
before 30 April of year N+2, give a discharge to the
Executive Director in respect of the implementation of the
budget for year N.’;

Article 2

This Regulation shall enter into force on the first day of the
month following that of its publication in the Official Journal of
the European Union.

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

Done at . . .

For the European Parliament

The President

For the Council

The President

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Official Journal of the European Union

16.9.2003

STATEMENT OF THE COUNCIL'S REASONS

I. INTRODUCTION

On 17 July 2002 the Commission submitted a proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament
and of the Council amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1592/2002 on common rules in the field of
civil aviation and establishing a European Aviation Safety Agency (1).

The proposal is based on Article 80(2) of the EC Treaty.

The European Parliament delivered its opinion on 22 October 2002 (2).

The Court of Auditors delivered its opinion on 26 September 2002 (3).

The Economic and Social Committee delivered its opinion on 11 December 2002 (4).

II. OBJECTIVE

The purpose of the above proposal
is to amend Regulation (EC) No 1592/2002 as regards the
budgetary and financial rules applicable to the Agency, in order to bring it into line with the new
general Financial Regulation that entered into force on 1 January 2003 (5), and also as regards access to
the Agency's documents, with a view to implementing within the Agency Regulation (EC)
No 1049/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2001 regarding access to
European Parliament, Council and Commission documents (6).

III. EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AMENDMENTS

At the trialogue meeting held on 18 March 2003, the European Parliament and the Council agreed that
the text of the Regulation should include four European Parliament amendments relating to:

(a) notification of the budgetary authority regarding evaluation procedures (Article 24(2)(b));

(b) the conditions for final adoption of the Agency's budget (Article 48(9));

(c) notification of the budgetary authority regarding projects (in particular those relating to property)

which might have significant financial implications for the budget (Article 48(10));

(d) the discharge procedure (Article 49(9)).

Those amendments have been incorporated in the common position.

Three other European Parliament amendments were not included in the Regulation, but have been
accepted in substance in the form of statements which appear in Addendum 2 to the common position
(doc. 8241/03) and which are to be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

IV. MAJOR CHANGES MADE BY THE COUNCIL TO THE COMMISSION'S ORIGINAL PROPOSAL

The Council did not adopt the Commission's proposal for the procedure to appoint the Director, as it
was not technically an amendment to the existing rules.

(1) OJ C 331 E, 31.12.2002, p. 87.
(2) Not yet published in the Official Journal.
(3) OJ C 285, 21.11.2002, p. 4.
(4) OJ C 85, 8.4.2003, p. 64.
(5) OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1; corrigendum OJ L 25, 30.1.2003, p. 43.
(6) OJ L 145, 31.5.2001, p. 43.