Call for proposals IX-2018/02 – ‘Grants to European political foundations’
Date: 2017-06-30
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: EU budget, European party, aid system, distribution of EU funding, foundation, party financing




C_2017206EN.01003701.xml










30.6.2017   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 206/37





Call for proposals IX-2018/02 – ‘Grants to European political foundations’
(2017/C 206/14)
A.   INTRODUCTION AND LEGAL FRAMEWORK









1.


Under Article 10(4) of the Treaty on European Union, ‘political parties at European level contribute to forming European political awareness and to expressing the will of citizens of the Union’.












2.


In accordance with Article 224 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, the European Parliament and the Council lay down the regulations governing political parties at European level and in particular the rules regarding their funding. These rules and regulations are laid down in Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2014 on the statute and funding of European political parties and European political foundations (1).












3.


Pursuant to point (4) of Article 2 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014, a European political foundation is ‘an entity which is formally affiliated with a European political party, which is registered with the Authority in accordance with the conditions and procedures laid down in this Regulation, and which through its activities, within the aims and fundamental values pursued by the Union, underpins and complements the objectives of the European political party’.












4.


The second subparagraph of Article 25(1)of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014 states: ‘The terms and conditions for contributions and grants shall be laid down by the Authorising Officer of the European Parliament in the call for contributions and the call for proposals.’












5.


Hence, the European Parliament is launching this call for proposals with a view to awarding of grants to European political foundations (‘call’).












6.


The basic legal framework is defined in the following legal acts:






a)


Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014;










b)


Decision of the Bureau of the European Parliament of 12 June 2017 laying down the procedures for implementing Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the statute and funding of European political parties and European political foundations (2);










c)


Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union (3) (‘Financial Regulation’);










d)


Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1268/2012 of 29 October 2012 on the rules of application of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 (‘Rules of Application of the Financial Regulation’) (4);










e)


Commission Delegated Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2015/2401 of 2 October 2015 on the content and functioning of the Register of European political parties and foundations (5);










f)


Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/2246 of 3 December 2015 on detailed provisions for the registration number system applicable to the register of European political parties and European political foundations and information provided by standard extracts from the register (6);










g)


European Parliament’s Rules of Procedure (7).








B.   OBJECTIVE OF THE CALL









7.


The objective of this call is to invite registered European political foundations to submit applications for funding from the Union budget (‘funding applications’).




C.   PURPOSE, CATEGORY AND FORM OF FUNDING









8.


The purpose of the funding is to support the European political foundation’s work programme for the financial year from 1 January 2018 to 31 December 2018 under the terms and conditions set out in the grant decision by the responsible authorising officer.












9.


The category of the funding is the grant to European political foundations, pursuant to Title VI of Part I of the Financial Regulation (‘grant’ or ‘funding’). The grant takes the form of a reimbursement of a percentage of eligible costs actually incurred.












10.


The maximum amount paid to the beneficiary by the European Parliament may not exceed 85 % of the eligible costs actually incurred.




D.   BUDGET AVAILABLE









11.


The foreseen funding for the financial year 2018 under Article 403 of Parliament’s budget ‘Funding of European political foundations’ amounts to EUR 19 323 000. The final available appropriations are subject to approval by the budgetary authority.




E.   ADMISSIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR FUNDING APPLICATIONS









12.


Funding applications will be admissible if they






a)


are submitted in writing on the application form as annexed to this call;










b)


contain the commitment that the applicant agrees to the terms and conditions specified in Annex 1b to the Bureau Decision specified in paragraph 6(b) of this call;










c)


contain a letter of a legal representative certifying the authorization to undertake legal obligations on behalf of the applicant;










d)


are forwarded to the President of the European Parliament by 30 September 2017 to the following address:










President of the European Parliament




Attn. Mr Didier Kléthi, Director-General of Finance




SCH 05B031




L-2929 Luxembourg
























13.


For the purpose of assessing the criteria for evaluation of the applications, the applicants must provide:






a)


the funding application form including all supporting documents required therein;










b)


the estimated budget, indicating the expenditure eligible for Union funding;










c)


work programme.
















14.


Applications assessed as incomplete may be rejected.




F.   CRITERIA FOR EVALUATION OF FUNDING APPLICATIONS

F.1   Exclusion criteria









15.


Applicants shall be excluded from funding procedure, if they are:






a)


in one of the situations of exclusion referred to in Article 106(1), 106(2) or 107 of the Financial Regulation.










b)


subject of any of the sanctions provided for in Article 27(1) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014 and in points (v) and (vi) of Article 27(2)(a) of the same Regulation.








F.2   Eligibility criteria









16.


In order to be eligible for Union funding, applicants must satisfy the conditions laid down in Articles 17 and 18 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014, i.e. the applicant






a)


must be registered in accordance with Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014;










b)


must be affiliated to a European political party fulfilling all criteria for being awarded a contribution to European political parties (8);










c)


must comply with the obligations listed in Article 23 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014, i.e. it must have submitted the annual financial statements (9), external audit report and the list of donors, as specified therein.








F.3   Selection criteria









17.


Pursuant to Article 202 of the Rules of Application of the Financial Regulation ‘the applicant must have stable and sufficient sources of funding to maintain his activity throughout (…) the year for which the grant is awarded and to participate in its funding. The applicant must have the professional competencies and qualifications required to complete the proposed action or work programme unless specifically provided otherwise in the basic act’.




F.4   Award criteria and distribution of funding









18.


In accordance with Article 19 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014, the respective available appropriations shall be distributed annually. They shall be distributed among the European political foundations whose applications for funding have been approved in the light of the eligibility and exclusion criteria, on the basis of the following distribution key:






a)


15 % will be distributed in equal shares among the beneficiary European political foundations;










b)


85 % will be distributed in proportion to the share of elected members of the European Parliament among the beneficiary European political parties to which the applicants are affiliated.








G.   SHARED CONTROL BY EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND AUTHORITY









19.


Article 24, paragraphs 1 and 2 (10), of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014 foresee shared control between the European Parliament and the Authority for European political parties and European political foundations (11) (‘Authority’).












20.


Where pursuant to Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014, control is foreseen by the Authority, the European Parliament will forward the funding applications to the Authority. The Authority will communicate to the European Parliament the result of this control.




H.   TERMS AND CONDITIONS









21.


Applicants are obliged to notify the European Parliament of any changes as regards the documents submitted or any information referred to in the application within two weeks of such a change. Failing such notification, the authorising officer may make the decision based on the information available, notwithstanding any information provided at a later stage.












22.


The burden of proof rests with the applicants to prove that they continue to fulfil the necessary criteria.












23.


The terms and conditions as regards Union funding to be awarded under this call are laid down in Annex 1b to the Bureau Decision specified in paragraph 6(b) of this call.












24.


The submission of the funding application implies acceptance of the General Terms and Conditions referred to in paragraph 23 of this call. These General Terms and Conditions bind the beneficiary to whom the funding is awarded and are stipulated in the grant decision.




I.   TIMETABLE









25.


The table below outlines the indicative timetable for awarding of grants to European political foundations:







 


Stages


Date or period




a)


Publication of the call


By 30 June 2017




b)


Deadline for submitting funding applications


30 September 2017




c)


Evaluation period


October to December 2017




d)


Information to applicants


January 2018




e)


Notification of grant decision


January to February 2018




f)


Payment of pre-financing (12)



January to February 2018








J.   DISCLOSURE AND PROCESSING OF PERSONAL DATA









26.


The European Parliament shall publish, including on the internet, any information pursuant to Article 32 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014.












27.


Any personal data collected in the context of the present call shall be processed in accordance with the provisions of Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the Community institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data (13) pursuant to Article 33 of the Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014.












28.


Such data shall be processed for the purpose of evaluating the funding applications and safeguarding the financial interests of the Union. This is without prejudice to the possible transfer of this data to the bodies responsible for carrying out verification and audit tasks in accordance with Union law, such as internal audit services of the European Parliament, the Authority for European political parties and European political foundations, the European Court of Auditors, or the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF).












29.


On the basis of a written request, the beneficiary may obtain access to its personal data and rectify any inaccurate or incomplete data. The beneficiary may submit any request concerning the processing of its personal data to the European Parliament’s Directorate-General for Finance or the European Parliament’s Personal Data Protection Unit. The beneficiary may, at any time, lodge a complaint to the European Data Protection Supervisor concerning the processing of its personal data.












30.


Personal data may be registered in the Early Detection and Exclusion System by the European Parliament, should the beneficiary be in one of the situations mentioned in Article 106(1) and 107 of the Financial Regulation.




K.   CONTACT









31.


Any questions relating to this call should be sent by email, quoting the publication reference, to the following address: fin.part.fond.pol@europarl.europa.eu




L.   ANNEXES









32.


In addition to the basic legislation specified in paragraph 6(b) of this call, the following annexes to this call are available on the European Parliament’s internet site (http://www.europarl.europa.eu/tenders/invitations.htm):






a)


Funding application form, including declaration on acceptance of general terms and conditions (template);










b)


Estimated budget (template).










(1)  OJ L 317, 4.11.2014, p. 1.

(2)  OJ C 205, 29.6.2017, p. 2.

(3)  OJ L 298, 26.10.2012, p. 1.

(4)  OJ L 362, 31.12.2012, p. 1.

(5)  OJ L 333, 19.12.2015, p. 50.

(6)  OJ L 318, 4.12.2015, p. 28.

(7)  European Parliament’s Rules of Procedure of January 2017.

(8)  Pursuant to Title VIII of Part II of Financial Regulation.

(9)  Unless the applicant was not subject to the control under Article 23 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014 (for example: newly created, etc.).

(10)  Article 24(1)-(2) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014 — General rules on control:






‘1.


Control of compliance by European political parties and European political foundations with their obligations under this Regulation shall be exercised, in cooperation, by the Authority, by the Authorising Officer of the European Parliament and by the competent Member States.










2.


The Authority shall control compliance by European political parties and European political foundations with their obligations under this Regulation, in particular in relation to Article 3, points (a), (b), and (d) to (f) of Article 4(1), points (a) to (e) and (g) of Article 5(1), Article 9(5) and (6), and Articles 20, 21 and 22.




The Authorising Officer of the European Parliament shall control compliance by European political parties and European political foundations with the obligations relating to Union funding under this Regulation in accordance with the Financial Regulation. In carrying out such controls, the European Parliament shall take the necessary measures in the fields of the prevention of and the fight against fraud affecting the financial interests of the Union.’

(11)  Established pursuant to Article 6 of the Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014.

(12)  Within 30 days following the date of the notification of the grant decision

(13)  OJ L 8, 12.1.2001, p. 1.


ANNEX a



Text of image

FUNDING APPLICATION FORM
GRANTS (1) TO EUROPEAN POLITICAL FOUNDATIONS
FOR FINANCIAL YEAR [INSERT]
COMPOSITION OF FUNDING APPLICATION
The following table is intended to help you prepare your funding application. It can be used as a checklist to make sure that you have included all the requisite documents.
Document number
DOCUMENTS TO BE SUPPLIED
Documents which must be supplied but are not included in this model of the funding application
1.
Original covering letter indicating the grant amount requested for financial year n signed by the legal representative
☐
2.
Letter of the legal representative certifying the authorisation to undertake legal obligations on behalf of the applicant (1)
☐
3.
Standard extract from the Register of European political parties and European political foundations (2)
☐
4.
Work programme
☐
5.
Interim financial statements as of (not earlier than) June of year n-1, signed off by a certified accountant (3)
☐
Documents which must be supplied and are included in this model of the funding application
6.
Financial identification form
☐
7.
Declaration on general terms and conditions as well as exclusion criteria
☐
(1) With reference to relevant provisions of the statutes of the applicant, where applicable.
(2) As provided for in Annex II of the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/2246 (OJ L 318, 4.12.2015, p. 31).
(3) Unless the applicant proves that this is not applicable (for example newly created, etc.). The accountant must be qualified in the Member State of the seat of the applicant. The proof of the qualification must be annexed to the interim financial statements.
(1) The category of the funding is the operating grant, pursuant to Title VI of Part I of the Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union (OJ L 298, 26.10.2012, p. 1).




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Document no 6
FINANCIAL IDENTIFICATION FORM
LEGAL ENTITY
PRIVATE COMPANY
Title / LEGAL FORM
NAME (S)
ABBREVIATION
ADDRESS
Street
Number
Postcode
Town / City
Country
VAT-Number
PLACE OF REGISTRATION
/
/
PHONE
FAX
E-MAIL
A copy of some official document showing the name of the legal entity, the registration address, the VAT number and the registration number given by the national authorities must be attached.
ACCOUNT NAME
ACCOUNT NAME
(The name under which the account has been opened)
ADDRESS
Street
Number
Postcode
Town / City
Country
BANK
IBAN
(Obligatory, if the IBAN Code exists in the country where your bank is established)
SWIFT CODE (BIC)
CURRENCY
ACCOUNT NUMBER
(National Format)
BANK NAME
ADDRESS
Street
Number
Postcode
Town / City
Country
BANK STAMP + SIGNATURE OF BANK REPRESENTATIVE * :
DATE + SIGNATURE OF ACCOUNT HOLDER
(Obligatory)
* It is preferable to attach a copy of recent bank statement. Please note that the bank statement has to provide all the information listed above under 'ACCOUNT NAME' and 'BANK'. In this case, the stamp of the bank and the signature of the bank's representative are not required. The signature of the account-holder is obligatory in all cases.




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Document no 7
DECLARATION ON GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS AS WELL AS EXCLUSION CRITERIA
I, the undersigned, the legal representative of [insert applicant’s name] certify that:
I have read and agree to the General Terms and Conditions as stipulated in the model grant decision;
the applicant is not in one of the situations referred to in Article 106(1) (*) and 107 (*) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council (‘Financial Regulation’); (1)
the applicant is not subject of any of the sanctions provided for in Article 27(1) (*) of the Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014 and in points (v) and (vi) of Article 27(2)(a) (*) of the same Regulation (2)
the applicant organisation has the financial and organisational capacity to implement the grant decision;
the information supplied in this application and its annexes is accurate and no information has been withheld, either in full or in part, from the European Parliament;
(*) The Articles listed above are referred to below:
Article 106(1) of the Financial Regulation:
Candidates or tenderers shall be excluded from participation in procurement procedures if:
(a) they are bankrupt or being wound up, are having their affairs administered by the courts, have entered into an arrangement with creditors, have suspended business activities, are the subject of proceedings concerning those matters, or are in any analogous situation arising from a similar procedure provided for in national legislation or regulations;
(b) they or persons having powers of representation, decision-making or control over them have been convicted of an offence concerning their professional conduct by a judgment of a competent authority of a Member State which has the force of res judicata;
(c) they have been guilty of grave professional misconduct proven by any means which the contracting authority can justify including by decisions of the EIB and international organisations;
(d) they are not in compliance with their obligations relating to the payment of social security contributions or the payment of taxes in accordance with the legal provisions of the country in which they are established or with those of the country of the contracting authority or those of the country where the contract is to be performed;
(e) they or persons having powers of representation, decision-making or control over them have been the subject of a judgment which has the force of res judicata for fraud, corruption, involvement in a criminal organisation, money laundering or any other illegal activity, where such illegal activity is detrimental to the Union’s financial interests;
(f) they are subject to an administrative penalty referred to in Article 109(1).
Points (a) to (d) of the first subparagraph shall not apply in the case of the purchase of supplies on particularly advantageous terms from a supplier which is definitively winding up its business activities or from the receivers or liquidators of a bankruptcy, through an arrangement with creditors, or through a similar procedure under national law.
Points (b) and (e) of the first subparagraph shall not apply where the candidates or tenderers can demonstrate that adequate measures have been adopted against the persons having powers of representation, decision-making or control over them, who are subject to a judgement as referred to in points (b) or (e) of the first subparagraph.
Article 107(1) of the Financial Regulation:
A contract shall not be awarded to candidates or tenderers who, during the procurement procedure for that contract:
(a) are subject to a conflict of interests;
(b) are guilty of misrepresenting the information required by the contracting authority as a condition in the procurement procedure or fail to supply this information;
(c) find themselves in one of the situations of exclusion, referred to in Article 106(1), for the procurement procedure
In accordance with Article 18(2) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014 the applicant may not be the subject of any of the sanctions provided for in Article 27(1) and in points (a)(v) and (vi) of Article 27(2).
Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014 — Article 27(1):
In accordance with Article 16, the Authority shall decide to remove a European political party or a European political foundation from the Register by way of sanction in any of the following situations:
(a) where the party or foundation in question has been found by a judgment having the force of res judicata to have engaged in illegal activities detrimental to the financial interests of the Union as defined in Article 106(1) of the Financial Regulation;
(b) where it is established, in accordance with the procedures set out in Article 10(2) to (5), that it no longer fulfils one or more of the conditions set out in points (a), (c) and (e) of Article 3(1) or in Article 3(2); or
(c) where a request by a Member State for de-registration on grounds of serious failure to fulfil obligations under national law meets the requirements set out in point (b) of Article 16(3).
Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014 — Article 27(2)(a)(v) and (vi):
The Authority shall impose financial sanctions in the following situations:
(a) non-quantifiable infringements:
(v) where a European political party or a European political foundation has been found by a judgment having the force of res judicata to have engaged in illegal activities detrimental to the financial interests of the Union as defined in Article 106(1) of the Financial Regulation;
(vi) where the European political party or the European political foundation concerned has at any time intentionally omitted to provide information or has intentionally provided incorrect or misleading information, or where the bodies authorised by this Regulation to audit or conduct checks on the beneficiaries of funding from the general budget of the European Union detect inaccuracies in the annual financial statements which are regarded as constituting material omissions or misstatements of items in accordance with the international accounting standards defined in Article 2 of Regulation (EC) No 1606/2002
(1) Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union (OJ L 298, 26.10.2012, p. 1).
(2) Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2014 on the statute and funding of European political parties and European political foundations (‘Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014’ (OJ L 317, 4.11.2014, p. 1).




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Authorised signature:
Title (Mrs, Mr, Prof …), name and forename:
Function in the organisation applying for funding:
Place/Date:
Signature:




ANNEX b

ESTIMATED BUDGET








Costs




Eligible costs


Budget


Actual





A.1: Personnel costs







1.


Salaries










2.


Contributions










3.


Professional training










4.


Staff missions expenses










5.


Other personnel costs






 


 





A.2: Infrastructure and operating costs







1.


Rent, charges and maintenance costs










2.


Costs relating to installation, operation and maintenance of equipment










3.


Depreciation of movable and immovable property










4.


Stationery and office supplies










5.


Postal and telecommunications charges










6.


Printing, translation and reproduction costs










7.


Other infrastructure costs






 


 





A.3: Administrative costs







1.


Documentation costs (newspapers, press agencies, databases)










2.


Costs of studies and research










3.


Legal costs










4.


Accounting and audit costs










5.


Support to third parties










6.


Miscellaneous administrative costs






 


 





A.4: Meetings and representation costs







1.


Costs of meetings










2.


Participation in seminars and conferences










3.


Representation costs










4.


Costs of invitations










5.


Other meeting-related costs






 


 





A.5: Information and publication costs







1.


Publication costs










2.


Creation and operation of internet sites










3.


Publicity costs










4.


Communications equipment (gadgets)










5.


Seminar and exhibitions










6.


Other information-related costs






 


 





A.6: Allocation to ‘Provision to cover eligible costs of the first quarter of year N+1’



 


 




A. TOTAL ELIGIBLE COSTS


 


 





Ineligible costs







1.


Provisions










2.


Exchange losses










3.


Doubtful claims on third parties










4.


Contributions in kind










5.


Others (to be specified)






 


 




B. TOTAL INELIGIBLE COSTS


 


 




C. TOTAL COSTS


 


 














Revenue




 


Budget


Actual




D.1 Dissolution of ‘Provision to cover eligible costs of the first quarter of year N’


n/a


 




D.2 European Parliament funding


 


 




D.3 membership fees


 


 










3.1


from member foundations










3.2


from individual members






 


 




D.4 Donations


 


 




 


 


 




D.5 Other own resources


 


 




(to be listed)


 


 




D.6. Interest from pre-financing


 


 




D.7. Contributions in kind


 


 




D. TOTAL REVENUE


 


 




E. profit/loss (F-C)


 


 














F. Allocation of own resources to the reserve account


 


 




G. Profit/loss for verifying compliance with the no-profit rule (E-F)