Council Regulation (EC) No 567/2004 of 22 March 2004 amending Regulation (EC) No 1257/1999 on support for rural development from the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF)
Date: 2004-03-22
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: EAGGF, aid to agriculture, sustainable development

27.3.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 90/1

I

(Acts whose publication is obligatory)

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 567/2004

of 22 March 2004

amending Regulation (EC) No 1257/1999 on support for rural development from the European
Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

(3)

Regulation (EC) No 1257/1999 should therefore be
amended,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

Having regard to the Treaty concerning the accession of the
Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary,
Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia to the European Union (1),
and in particular Article 2(3) thereof,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Having regard to the Act concerning the conditions of acces-
sion of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania,
Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia (2), and in par-
ticular Article 57(2) thereof,

Article 1

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

The following paragraph 2b is hereby inserted in Article 33l of
Regulation (EC) No 1257/1999:

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

Chapter Va of Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/1999
of 17 May 1999 on support for rural development from
the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund
(EAGGF) (3) provides for a support measure to assist
farmers meeting recently introduced binding standards.

As a result of accession, farmers in the Czech Republic,
Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta,
Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia must deal with a large
number of new standards based on Community legisla-
tion which they have to respect from the date of acces-
sion or at the later date. It is essential to provide support
to cover at
investments
the cost of
required to meet
those standards. Therefore, special
derogations should be laid down for implementing the
‘meeting standards’ measure in the new Member States.

least a part of

‘2b.
By way of derogation from Articles 21a, 21b and
21c, costs linked to investments needed to comply with a
standard set by the Community before the date of acces-
sion, and binding for farmers from this date, or a later date,
may be taken into consideration for determining the level
of annual support. This possibility is limited to the first
three years of the period of support, up to an annual
ceiling of EUR 25 000 per farm. During this investment
period, the degressivity provided for in Article 21c shall
not apply. Loss of income and additional costs resulting
from compliance with the standard may not be taken into
consideration until the end of the investment period.

Investments supported under the first subparagraph are not
eligible for the support provided for in Chapter I.’

Article 2

(1) OJ L 236, 23.9.2003, p. 17.
(2) OJ L 236, 23.9.2003, p. 33.
(3) OJ L 160, 26.6.1999, p. 80. Regulation as last amended by the

2003 Act of Accession.

This Regulation shall enter into force on 1 May 2004, subject
to the entry into force of the 2003 Act of Accession (4).

(4) OJ L 236, 23.9.2003, p. 33.

L 90/2

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Official Journal of the European Union

27.3.2004

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

Done at Brussels, 22 March 2004.

For the Council

The President

J. WALSH