CELEX: C1999/366/30
Language: en
Date: 1999-12-18 00:00:00
Title: Case C-377/99: Action brought on 7 October 1999 by the Federal Republic of Germany against the Commission of the European Communities

18.12.1999              EN                   Official Journal of the European Communities                                      C 366/19
     under tariff headings 2 1 1 1, 2 1 1 2 and 2 1 1 3. Since          Pleas in law and main arguments
     the expenditure declared by Spain under tariff heading
     2 1 1 3 was negative, it was considered that the Com-
     mission would not take account of that line for the                The action is directed against the fact that the contested
     purposes of the calculation of the total amount of the             decision charged to the Federal Republic of Germany, with
     financial adjustment. However, the adjustment in respect           respect to Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, instead of a financial
     of heading 2 1 1 3 made by the Commission corresponds              correction of 2 % a correction of 5 %, and hence an amount in
     solely to the item relating to purchases and not to the total      excess of DEM 12 157 646,13, namely DEM 18 236 469,20,
     amount of expenditure declared by Spain under the tariff           for 1995 for the arable crops sector.
     heading during the financial year, which significantly
     increases the proposed adjustment, thus departing from
     the letter of the official communication.                          The Commission was not able, in the annex to the Summary
                                                                        Report, to produce any comprehensible and substantiated
                                                                        reasons to show that the entire ‘on-the-spot control’ measure
(C) The differences found during the prior inspection referred
                                                                        in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern was defective and that all the
     to in the summary report are similar to those detected in
                                                                        defects taken together led to a substantial risk of loss for the
     other Member States, where the percentage applied in the
                                                                        EAGGF, justifying a correction of 5 %. In particular, it was
     financial adjustment has been only 2 % as opposed to the
                                                                        unable, on the basis of its inspection visit to Mecklenburg-
     5 % applied to Spain.
                                                                        Vorpommern in 1998, to adduce any new facts capable of
                                                                        justifying that assessment.
(1) OJ L 182 of 16 July 1994, p. 45.
                                                                        The increase of the financial correction from 2 % to 5 % by
                                                                        the Commission is unlawful because the Commission complied
                                                                        neither with the principle that the administrative authorities
                                                                        are bound by the reservation they formulated nor with the
                                                                        necessary procedural rules with respect to the procedure
                                                                        for closure of the accounts, in particular arbitration. The
                                                                        Commission further incorrectly exercised its discretion with
                                                                        respect to assessment of the defects actually found.
Action brought on 7 October 1999 by the Federal Repub-                  Altogether, the Commission has not shown conclusively why
lic of Germany against the Commission of the European                   in its definitive fixing of the financial correction it departed
                            Communities                                 both from its originally intended rate of correction and from
                                                                        the rate proposed by the arbitration body of not more than
                                                                        2 %.
                          (Case C-377/99)
                          (1999/C 366/30)
An action against the Commission of the European Communi-
ties was brought before the Court of Justice of the European
Communities on 7 October 1999 by the Federal Republic of
Germany, represented by Wolf-Dieter Plessing, Ministerialrat,
and Claus-Dieter Quassowski, Regierungsdirektor, of the Feder-          Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Bundesarbeits-
al Ministry of Financial Affairs, 108 Graurheindorfer Strasse,          gericht by order of that court of 23 March 1999 in the
D-53117 Bonn.                                                           case of Pensionskasse für die Angestellten der Barmer
                                                                                     Ersatzkasse VVAG v Hans Menauer
The applicant claims that the Court should:
                                                                                                (Case C-379/99)
— Annul Commission Decision COM(1999) 2476 fin. of
     28 July 1999 amending Decision 1999/187/EC on the
     clearance of the accounts presented by the Member States                                   (1999/C 366/31)
     in respect of the expenditure for 1995 of the Guarantee
     Section of the European Agricultural Guidance and
                                                                        Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the
     Guarantee Fund (EAGGF) in so far as under Article 2 the
                                                                        European Communities by order of the Bundesarbeitsgericht
     sum of DEM 18 236 469,20 is not accepted by the EAGGF
                                                                        (Federal Labour Court) of 23 March 1999, received at the
     but charged to the Federal Republic of Germany;
                                                                        Court Registry on 7 October 1999, for a preliminary ruling in
                                                                        the case of Pensionskasse für die Angestellten der Barmer
— Order the defendant to pay the costs.                                 Ersatzkasse VVAG v Hans Menauer on the following question: