Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulation (EC) No 2150/2002 on waste statistics, as regards the implementing powers conferred on the Commission - Adaptation to the regulatory procedure with scrutiny
Date: 2007-12-06
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: European Commission, drafting of EU law, power of implementation, statistics, waste

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 6.12.2007 
COM(2007) 777 final 

2007/0271 (COD) 

Adaptation to the regulatory procedure with scrutiny 

Proposal for a 

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

amending Regulation (EC) No 2150/2002 on waste statistics, as regards the 
implementing powers conferred on the Commission 

(presented by the Commission) 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

1.1 

Reform of comitology procedures 

Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise 
of  implementing  powers  conferred  on  the  Commission1  was  amended  by  Council  Decision 
2006/512/EC of 17 July 20062. 

Article 5a of Decision 1999/468/EC as amended introduces a new regulatory procedure with 
scrutiny for measures of general scope designed to amend non-essential elements of a basic 
instrument adopted in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 251 of the Treaty, 
including  by  deleting  some  of  those  elements  or  by  supplementing  the  instrument  by  the 
addition of new non-essential elements. 

1.2. 

Priority alignment and general alignment 

In a joint Statement3, the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission set out a list 
of basic instruments that should be adjusted as a matter of urgency to the amended Decision 
so  as  to  introduce  the  new  regulatory  procedure  with  scrutiny  (priority  alignment).  For  the 
regulatory  procedure  with  scrutiny  to  be  applicable  to  instruments  adopted  by  codecision 
already  in  force  when  Decision  2006/512/EC  took  effect,  the  Statement  also  calls  for  those 
instruments to be adjusted in accordance with the applicable procedures (general alignment).  

The Commission has undertaken to examine all these instruments with a view to submitting, 
by  the  end  of  2007,  the  legislative  proposals  for  adapting  them,  if  necessary,  to  the  new 
regulatory procedure with scrutiny4. 

1.3.  Method 

As  mentioned  in  the  Commission's  Communication  to  the  European  Parliament  and  the 
Council  of  (…),  the  Commission  has  carefully  examined  all  the  instruments  adopted  by 
codecision  in  order  to  identify  those  which  permit  the  Commission  to  adopt  measures  of 
general scope designed to amend non-essential elements of the basic instrument in question. 
The Commission has identified more than 200 instruments that should be adjusted.  

Some  of  these  instruments  come  under  the  Commission's  codification  programme.  One  of 
these is Regulation (EC) No 2150/2002 on waste statistics5. Adjustment to the new procedure 
should  take  place,  depending  on  how  far  the  codification  process  has  progressed,  either  by 
recasting the codified proposal or, as in the present case, by legislative amendment. 

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OJ  L  184,  17.7.1999,  p.  23.  Decision  as  amended  by  Decision  2006/512/EC  (OJ  L  200,  22.7.2006, 
p. 11). 
OJ L 200, 22.07.2006, p. 11. 
OJ C 255, 21.10.2006, p. 1. 
PE 376.314v01-00 – A6-0236/2006 (Commission declaration annexed to Parliamentary report)  
OJ L 332, 09.12.2002, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1893/2006 (OJ L 393, 
30.12.2006, p. 1). 

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2. 

LEGAL ELEMENTS OF THE PROPOSAL 

The purpose of the adjustment is to introduce the new regulatory procedure with scrutiny, as 
provided  for  in  Article  5a  of  Decision  1999/468/EC  as  amended.  In  this  particular  case, 
Regulation (EC) No 2150/2002 stipulates that the Commission may define the proper quality 
evaluation  criteria  and  the  contents  of  the  quality  reports,  implement  the  results  of  the  pilot 
studies and adapt the contents of the annexes. Since these measures are of general scope and 
seek  to  amend  non-essential  elements  of  Regulation  (EC)  No  2150/2002,  including  by 
supplementing  it  by  the  addition  of  new  non-essential  elements,  they  should  be  adopted  in 
accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny provided for in Article 5a of Decision 
1999/468/EC. 

Since  the  basic  instrument  is  a  Regulation,  it  must  be  adjusted  by  means  of  an  equivalent 
instrument.  

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2007/0271 (COD) 

Adaptation to the regulatory procedure with scrutiny 

Proposal for a 

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

amending Regulation (EC) No 2150/2002 on waste statistics, as regards the 
implementing powers conferred on the Commission 

(Text with EEA relevance) 

THE  EUROPEAN  PARLIAMENT  AND  THE  COUNCIL  OF  THE  EUROPEAN 
UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  establishing  the  European  Community,  and  in  particular 
Article 285 (1) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission6, 

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee7, 

Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251 of the Treaty8, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

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Regulation (EC) No 2150/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 
25 November  2002  on  waste  statistics9  provides  that  certain  measures  shall  be 
adopted  in  accordance  with  Council  Decision  1999/468/EC  of  28 June  1999 
laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on 
the Commission10. 

Decision  1999/468/EC  has  been  amended  by  Decision  2006/512/EC,  which 
introduced  the  regulatory  procedure  with  scrutiny  for  measures  of  general  scope 
intended  to  amend  non-essential  elements  of  a  basic  instrument  adopted  in 
accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 251 of the Treaty, including 
by deleting some of those elements or by supplementing them by the addition of 
new non-essential elements. 

OJ C [...], [...], p. [...]. 
OJ C [...], [...], p. [...]. 
OJ C [...], [...], p. [...]. 
OJ L 332, 09.12.2002, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1893/2006 (OJ L 
393, 30.12.2006, p. 1). 
OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23. Decision as amended by Decision 2006/512/EC (OJ L 200, 22.7.2006, 
p. 11). 

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(3) 

In accordance with the joint declaration of the European Parliament, the Council 
and  the  Commission  on  Decision  2006/512/EC,  for  this  new  procedure  to  be 
applicable to instruments adopted in accordance with the procedure laid down in 
Article  251  of  the  Treaty  which  are  already  in  force,  those  instruments  must  be 
adjusted in accordance with the applicable procedures. 

(4)  With regard to Regulation (EC) No 2150/2002, power should be conferred on the 
Commission to define the proper quality evaluation criteria and the contents of the 
quality reports, implement the results of the pilot studies and adapt the contents of 
the  annexes.  Since  these  measures  are  of  general  scope  and  seek  to  amend  non-
essential elements of Regulation (EC) No 2150/2002, including by supplementing 
it  by  the  addition  of  new  non-essential  elements,  they  should  be  adopted  in 
accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny provided for in Article 5a 
of Decision 1999/468/EC. 

(5) 

Regulation (EC) No 2150/2002 should therefore be amended accordingly, 

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: 

Article 1 

Regulation (EC) No 2150/2002 is amended as follows: 

(1) 

Article 1(5) is replaced by the following: 

"5. The Commission shall establish a table of equivalence between the statistical 
nomenclature  of  Annex  III  and  the  list  of  waste  established  by  Commission 
Decision  2000/532/EC.  These  measures,  designed  to  amend  non-essential 
elements of this Regulation, by supplementing it, shall be adopted in accordance 
with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 7(3)." 

(2) 

Article 3(1) is replaced by the following: 

"1.  Member  States  shall,  whilst  complying  with  conditions  as  to  quality  and 
accuracy  to  be  defined  in  accordance  with  paragraph  2,  acquire  the  data 
necessary for the specification of the characteristics listed in Annexes I and II by 
means either of: 

–  surveys, 

–  administrative  or  other  sources,  such  as  the  reporting  obligations  under 

Community legislation on waste management, 

–  statistical  estimation  procedures  on  the  basis  of  samples  or  waste-related 

estimators, or 

–  a combination of these means. 

The quality and accuracy conditions shall be defined by the Commission. These 
measures,  designed  to  amend  non-essential  elements  of  this  Regulation,  by 

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supplementing it, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure 
with scrutiny referred to in Article 7(3). 

In order to reduce response burdens, the national authorities and the Commission 
shall, subject to the limits and the conditions fixed by each Member State and by 
the  Commission  in  their  respective  fields  of  competence,  have  access  to 
administrative data sources." 

(3) 

Article 5(4) is replaced by the following: 

"4.  On  the  basis  of  the  conclusions  of  the  pilot  studies,  the  Commission  shall 
inform the European Parliament and the Council of the possibilities of compiling 
statistics  for  the  activities  and  characteristics  covered  by  the  pilot  studies  for 
import  and  export  of  waste.  The  Commission  shall  adopt  the  necessary 
implementation  measures.  These  measures,  designed  to  amend  non-essential 
elements of this Regulation, by supplementing it, shall be adopted in accordance 
with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 7(3)." 

(4) 

Article 6 is replaced by the following: 

"Article 6 

Implementation measures 

1.  The  measures  necessary  for  the  implementation  of  this  Regulation  shall  be 
adopted in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 7(2). 

These shall include measures: 

(a)  for  the  production  of  results  in  accordance  with  Article  3(2),  (3)  and  (4), 
taking  into  account  the  economic  structures  and  technical  conditions  in  a 
Member  State;  such  measures  may  allow  an  individual  Member  State  not  to 
report certain items in the breakdown, provided the impact on the quality of the 
statistics  is  proven  to  be  limited.  In  all  cases  where  exemptions  are  given,  the 
total amount of waste for each item listed in sections 2(1) and 8(1) of Annex I 
shall be compiled; 

(b)  for  setting  out  the  appropriate  format  for  the  transmission  of  results  by 
Member  States  within  two  years  from  the  date  of  entry  into  force  of  this 
Regulation; 

2.  Measures  with  a  view  to  amending  or  supplementing  non-essential  elements 
of this Regulation, which are designed in particular for the following purposes, 
shall  be  adopted  in  accordance  with  the  regulatory  procedure  with  scrutiny 
referred to in Article 7(3):  

(a) for adjustment to economic and technical developments in the collection and 
statistical  processing  of  data,  as  well  as  the  processing  and  the  transmission  of 
results; 

(b) for adaptation of the specifications listed in Annexes I, II and III; 

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(c) for the definition of the proper quality evaluation criteria and the contents of 
the quality reports as referred to in Section 7 of Annexes I and II; 

(d) for implementation of the results of the pilot studies, as specified in Article 
4(3) and Article 5(1)." 

(5) 

Article 7 is replaced by the following: 

"Article 7 

Committee procedure 

1.  The  Commission  shall  be  assisted  by  the  Statistical  Programme  Committee 
established by Article 1 of Decision 89/382/EEC, Euratom. 

2.  Where  reference  is  made  to  this  paragraph,  Articles  5  and  7  of  Decision 
1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof. 

The  period  laid  down  in  Article  5(6)  of  Decision  1999/468/EC  shall  be  set  at 
three months. 

3. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5a(1) to (4) and Article 7 
of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 
8 thereof. 

4.  The  Commission  shall  transmit  to  the  Committee  set  up  by  Directive 
2006/12/EC  the  draft  measures  that  it  intends  to  submit  to  the  Statistical 
Programme Committee." 

(6) 

In Article 8, the words "Article 7(2)" are replaced by the words "Article 
7(3)". 

(7) 

Annex I is amended as follows: 

(a) 

The last sentence of Section 2(2) is replaced by the following: 

"On  the  basis  of  the  conclusions  of  these  pilot  studies,  the  Commission  will 
adopt  the  necessary  implementation  measures.  These  measures,  designed  to 
amend  non-essential  elements  of  this  Regulation,  by  supplementing  it,  will  be 
adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in 
Article 7(3)." 

(b) 

Section 7(1) is replaced by the following: 

"1. For each item listed in Section 8 (activities and households), Member States 
will  indicate  the  percentage  to  which  the  compiled  statistics  represent  the 
universe  of  waste  of  the  respective  item.  The  minimum  requirement  for  the 
coverage  will  be  defined  by  the  Commission.  These  measures,  designed  to 
amend  non-essential  elements  of  this  Regulation,  by  supplementing  it,  will  be 
adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in 
Article 7(3)." 

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(8) 

Annex II is amended as follows: 

(a) 

Section 7(1) is replaced by the following: 

"1.  For  the  characteristics  listed  in  Section  3,  and  for  each  item  amongst  the 
types  of  operations  listed  in  Section  8(2),  Member  States  will  indicate  the 
percentage to which the compiled statistics represent the universe of waste of the 
respective item. The minimum requirement for the coverage will be defined by 
the Commission. These measures, designed to amend non-essential elements of 
this  Regulation,  by  supplementing  it,  will  be  adopted  in  accordance  with  the 
regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 7(3).". 

(b) 

The last sentence of Section 8(3) is replaced by the following: 

"On  the  basis  of  the  conclusions  of  these  pilot  studies,  the  Commission  will 
adopt  the  necessary  implementation  measures.  These  measures,  designed  to 
amend  non-essential  elements  of  this  Regulation,  by  supplementing  it,  will  be 
adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in 
Article 7(3)." 

Article 2 

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following 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,  

For the European Parliament 
The President 

For the Council 
The President 

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