Proposal for a Council Decision on the position to be adopted in the EEA Joint Committee concerning an amendment of Protocol 31 to the EEA Agreement, on cooperation in specific fields outside the four freedoms (ISA)
Date: 2010-03-30
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EFTA countries, administrative cooperation, cooperation policy, electronic government, exchange of information, harmonisation of standards, public administration

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 30.3.2010 
COM(2010)122 final 

2010/0068 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on the position to be adopted in the EEA Joint Committee 

concerning an amendment of Protocol 31 to the EEA Agreement,  
on cooperation in specific fields outside the four freedoms (ISA) 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

Protocol  31  to  the  EEA  Agreement  contains  specific  provisions  on  the  cooperation 
between the European Union and the EEA EFTA States outside the four freedoms. 

The  draft  Decision  of  the  EEA  Joint  Committee,  annexed  to  the  proposed  Council 
Decision,  aims  to  modify  Protocol  31  by  extending  the  cooperation  of  the 
Contracting  Parties  to  the  Agreement  to  include  Decision  922/2009/EC  of  the 
European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  16  September  2009  on  interoperability 
solutions  for  European  public  administrations  (ISA)1,  with  effect  from  1  January 
2010. The EFTA States shall participate fully, without the right to vote, in the EEA 
relevant  parts  of  the  Committee  on  interoperability  solutions  for  European  public 
administrations (the ISA Committee), which assists the European Commission in the 
implementation, management and development of that programme, as far as the EEA 
relevant project parts of the programme are concerned. 

Article  1(3)  of  Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  2894/94  concerning  arrangements  for 
implementing the EEA Agreement provides that the Council establishes the position 
to  be  adopted  on  the  Union’s  behalf  on  such  Decisions,  on  a  proposal  from  the 
Commission. 

The  Commission  submits  the  draft  Decision  of  the  EEA  Joint  Committee  for 
adoption by the Council as the Union’s position. The Commission would hope to be 
able to present it in the EEA Joint Committee at the earliest possible opportunity. 

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OJ L 260, 3.10.2009, p. 20. 

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2010/0068 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on the position to be adopted in the EEA Joint Committee 

concerning an amendment of Protocol 31 to the EEA Agreement,  
on cooperation in specific fields outside the four freedoms 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
218(9) thereof, 

Having  regard  to  Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  2894/94  of  28  November  1994  concerning 
arrangements  for  implementing  the  Agreement  on  the  European  Economic  Area2,  and  in 
particular Article 1(3) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

Protocol  31  to  the  EEA  Agreement  contains  specific  provisions  on  the  cooperation 
between the European Union and the EEA EFTA States outside the four freedoms. 

It is appropriate to extend the cooperation of the Contracting Parties to the Agreement 
to include Decision No 922/2009/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 
16 September  2009  on  interoperability solutions for European public administrations 
(ISA)3,  with  effect  from  1  January  2010.  The  EFTA  States  shall  participate  fully, 
without  the  right  to  vote,  in  the  EEA  relevant  parts  of  the  Committee  on 
interoperability  solutions  for  European  public  administrations  (the  ISA  Committee), 
which  assists  the  European  Commission  in  the  implementation,  management  and 
development  of  that  programme,  as  far  as  the  EEA  relevant  project  parts  of  the 
programme are concerned. 

(3) 

It is necessary, therefore, to amend Protocol 31, 

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OJ L 305, 30.11.1994, p. 6.  
OJ L 260, 3.10.2009, p. 20. 

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HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: 

Sole Article 

The  position  to  be  adopted  by  the  EEA  Joint  Committee  on  an  envisaged  amendment  of 
Protocol 31 to the EEA Agreement on cooperation in specific fields outside the four freedoms 
is laid down in the Annex to this Decision. 

Done at Brussels,  

For the Council 
The President 

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ANNEX 

Draft 

DECISION OF THE EEA JOINT COMMITTEE  
No  

of  

amending Protocol 31 to the EEA Agreement, 
on cooperation in specific fields outside the four freedoms 

THE EEA JOINT COMMITTEE, 

Having regard to the Agreement on the European Economic Area, as amended by the Protocol 
adjusting  the  Agreement  on  the  European  Economic  Area,  hereinafter  referred  to  as  ‘the 
Agreement’, and in particular Articles 86 and 98 thereof, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

Protocol 31 to the Agreement was amended by Decision of the EEA Joint Committee 
No …/… of …1. 

It is appropriate to extend the cooperation of the Contracting Parties to the Agreement 
to include Decision No 922/2009/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 
16 September  2009  on  interoperability solutions for European public administrations 
(ISA)2. 

(3) 

Protocol 31 to the Agreement should therefore be amended in order to allow for this 
extended cooperation to take place with effect from 1 January 2010, 

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: 

Protocol 31 to the Agreement shall be amended as specified in the Annex to this Decision. 

Article 1 

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OJ L … 
OJ L 260, 3.10.2009, p. 20. 

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Article 2 

This Decision shall enter into force on the day following the last notification to the EEA Joint 
Committee under Article 103(1) of the Agreement*. 

It shall apply from 1 January 2010. 

Article 3 

This Decision shall be published in the EEA Section of, and in the EEA Supplement to, the 
Official Journal of the European Union. 

Done at Brussels, . 

For the EEA Joint Committee 
The President 

The Secretaries 
to the EEA Joint Committee   

*  

[No constitutional requirements indicated.] [Constitutional requirements indicated.] 

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ANNEX  

to Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No …/… 

Article 17 (Telematic interchange of data) of Protocol 31 to the Agreement shall be amended 
as follows: 

(a) 

In paragraph 1 the words ‘paragraph 5(a)’ and ‘paragraph 5(b)’ shall be replaced by 
‘paragraph 6(a)’ and ‘paragraph 6(b)’. 

(b) 

The following subparagraph shall be inserted in paragraph 1: 

(c) 

(d) 

(e) 

(f) 

(g) 

‘The  EFTA  States  shall,  as  from  1  January  2010,  participate  in  the  projects  and 
activities of the programme of the Union referred to in paragraph 6(c), to the extent 
that  these  projects  and  activities  support  other  cooperation  of  the  Contracting 
Parties.’ 

In paragraph 2 the words ‘paragraph 5’ shall be replaced by ‘paragraph 6’. 

In paragraph 3 the words ‘paragraph 5(a)’ shall be replaced by ‘paragraph 6(a)’. 

In paragraph 4 the words ‘paragraph 5(b)’ shall be replaced by ‘paragraph 6(b)’. 

Paragraph 5 shall be renumbered as paragraph 6. 

The following paragraph shall be inserted after paragraph 4: 

‘5.  The  EFTA  States  shall,  as  from  the  start  of  cooperation  in  the  programme 
referred to in paragraph 6(c), participate fully, without the right to vote, in the 
EEA relevant parts of the Committee on interoperability solutions for European 
public  administrations  (the  ISA  Committee),  which  assists  the  European 
Commission  in  the  implementation,  management  and  development  of  that 
programme,  as  far  as  the  EEA  relevant  project  parts  of  the  programme  are 
concerned.’ 

(h) 

The following shall be added at the end of paragraph 6: 

‘(c)  with a view to participation as from 1 January 2010: 

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32009 D 0922: Decision No. 922/2009/EC of the European Parliament and of 
the  Council  of  16  September  2009  on  interoperability  solutions  for  European 
public administrations (ISA) (OJ L 260, 3.10.2009, p. 20).’ 

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