Regulation (EC) No 1642/2003 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 July 2003 amending Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 laying down the general principles and requirements of food law, establishing the European Food Safety Authority and laying down procedures in matters of food safety
Date: 2003-07-22
Institutions: Council of the European Union, European Parliament
Subjects: European Food Safety Authority, access to EU information, financial regulation

L 245/4

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

29.9.2003

REGULATION (EC) No 1642/2003 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL

of 22 July 2003

amending Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 laying down the general principles and requirements of
food law, establishing the European Food Safety Authority and laying down procedures in
matters of food safety

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF
THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community, and in particular Articles 37, 95 and 133 and
Article 152(4)(b) 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),

(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 178/2002 to make Regulation (EC)
No 1049/2001 applicable to the European Food Safety
Authority, as should a provision on appeals against a
refusal of access to documents.

(5)

Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 should therefore be
amended accordingly,

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

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Whereas:

Article 1

(1)

(2)

Certain provisions of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 of
the European Parliament and of
the Council of 28
January 2002 laying down the general principles and
requirements of
food law, establishing the European
Food Safety Authority and laying down procedures in
matters of food safety (5) should be brought into line
with Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002
of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable
to the general budget of the European Communities (6)
(hereinafter
Financial
Regulation'), and in particular Article 185 thereof.

referred to as

general

‘the

The general principles and limits governing the exercise
of the right of access to documents provided for in
the Treaty have been laid down by
Article 255 of
the European
Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of
Parliament and of
the Council of 30 May 2001
regarding public access to European Parliament, Council
and Commission documents (7).

(1) OJ C 331 E, 31.12.2002, p. 79.
(2) OJ C 285, 21.11.2002, p. 4.
(3) OJ C 85, 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 (not yet published in the Official Journal) and Decision
of the European Parliament of 1 July 2003.

(5) OJ L 31, 1.2.2002, 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.

Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 is hereby amended as follows:

1. Article 25(9) shall be replaced by the following:

by

after

The financial rules applicable to the Authority shall
‘9.
be
the
the Management Board
adopted
Commission has been consulted. They may not depart
from Commission
Euratom) No
Regulation
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 to the general
budget of
such
the Authority's
specifically required for
departure
operation and the Commission has given its prior consent.

the European Communities (*) unless
is

(EC,

(*) OJ L 357, 31.12.2002, p. 72; corrigendum in OJ L 2,

7.1.2003, p. 39.';

2. Article 26 shall be amended as follows:

(a) paragraph 2(f) shall be replaced by the following:

‘(f) the preparation of the Authority's draft statement
of estimates of revenue and expenditure, and the
execution of its budget;'

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Official Journal of the European Union

L 245/5

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

4. Article 43 shall be amended as follows:

Each year, the Executive Director shall submit to

‘3.
the Management Board for approval:

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

following:

(a) a draft general report covering all the activities of

the Authority in the previous year;

(b) draft programmes of work.

The Executive Director shall, following adoption by the
Management Board, forward the programmes of work
to
the
Parliament,
Commission and the Member States, and shall have
them published.

the Council,

European

the

The Executive Director shall, following adoption by the
forward the
Management Board and by 15 June,
Authority's general report to the European Parliament,
the Council, the Commission, the Court of Auditors,
the European Economic and Social Committee and the
Committee of the Regions, and shall have it published.

The Executive Director shall forward annually to the
budgetary authority all
to the
outcome of the evaluation procedures.';

information relevant

(c) paragraph 4 shall be deleted.

3. Article 41 shall be replaced by the following:

‘Article 41

Access to documents

Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of

1.
the European
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
Authority.

for

The Management Board shall adopt

the practical
2.
arrangements
implementing Regulation (EC) No
1049/2001 within six months after the entry into force of
Regulation (EC) No 1642/2003 of the European Parliament
and of the Council of 22 July 2003 amending Regulation
(EC) No 178/2002 laying down the general principles and
requirements of food law, establishing the European Food
Safety Authority and laying down procedures in matters of
food safety (**).

3.
Decisions taken by the Authority pursuant to Article
8 of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 may form the subject
of a complaint to the Ombudsman or of an action before
the Court of Justice, under the conditions laid down in
Articles 195 and 230 of the EC Treaty respectively.

(*) OJ L 145, 31.5.2001, p. 43.
(**) OJ L 245, 29.9.2003, p. 4.';

The Executive Director shall draw up,

‘3.
in good
time before the date referred to in paragraph 5, a draft
statement of estimates of the Authority's revenue and
expenditure for the following financial year and shall
forward it to the Management Board, together with the
establishment plan.

4.

Revenue and expenditure shall be in balance.

revenue

estimates of

statement of

the Authority for

Each year the Management Board, on the basis of
5.
a draft
and
expenditure, shall produce a statement of estimates of
revenue and expenditure of
the
following financial year. This statement of estimates,
which shall include a draft establishment plan together
shall be
with the provisional work programmes,
the
forwarded by 31 March at
Management Board to the Commission and to the
countries with which the Community has concluded
agreements in accordance with Article 49.

latest by

the

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

(b) the following paragraphs shall be added:

‘7.
On the basis of the statement of estimates, the
Commission shall enter 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.

The budgetary authority shall

8.
appropriations for the subsidy to the Authority.

authorise

the

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

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

as

The Management Board shall,

10.
soon as
possible, notify the budgetary authority of its 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
inform the
rental or purchase of buildings.
Commission thereof.

It shall

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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.'

5. Article 44 shall be replaced by the following:

‘Article 44

Implementation of the Authority's budget

The

1.
Authority's budget.

Executive Director

shall

implement

the

By 1 March at the latest following each financial year,
2.
the Authority's accounting officer shall communicate the
provisional accounts
to the Commission's accounting
together with a report on the budgetary and
officer
financial
financial management
year. The
that
shall consolidate the
Commission's accounting officer
provisional accounts of the institutions and decentralised
bodies in accordance with Article 128 of
the general
Financial Regulation.

for

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

On receipt of the Court of Auditors' observations on
4.
the Authority's provisional accounts under Article 129 of
the general Financial Regulation,
the Executive Director
shall draw up the Authority's final accounts under his own

responsibility and submit them to the Management Board
for an opinion.

The Management Board shall deliver an opinion on

5.
the Authority's final accounts.

6.
The Executive Director shall, by 1 July at the latest
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

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

shall

The Executive Director shall submit to the European
9.
Parliament, at the latter's request, all 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.

10.
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
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 Brussels, 22 July 2003.

For the European Parliament

The President

P. COX

For the Council

The President

G. ALEMANNO