CELEX: C2001/004/03
Language: en
Date: 2001-01-06 00:00:00
Title: Cases C-390/00 and C-391/00: Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Tribunale di Bari, Sezione Distaccata di Rutigliano, by order of that court of 19 September 2000 in the cases of Giovanni Colapietro against Ispettorato Generale Repressione Frodi and Giovanni Colapietro against Ministero per le Politiche Agricole

C 4/2                  EN                    Official Journal of the European Communities                                           6.1.2001
Action brought on 20 October 2000 by the Commission                     Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Tribunale di
of the European Communities against the Federal Repub-                  Bari, Sezione Distaccata di Rutigliano, by order of that
                          lic of Germany                                court of 19 September 2000 in the cases of Giovanni
                                                                        Colapietro against Ispettorato Generale Repressione Frodi
                                                                        and Giovanni Colapietro against Ministero per le Politiche
                         (Case C-389/00)                                                               Agricole
                           (2001/C 4/02)
                                                                                        (Cases C-390/00 and C-391/00)
An action against the Federal Republic of Germany was
brought before the Court of Justice of the European Communi-                                        (2001/C 4/03)
ties on 20 October 2000 by the Commission of the European
Communities, represented by Josef Christian Schieferer, of its
Legal Service, with an address for service in Luxembourg at             Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the
the office of Carlos Gómez de la Cruz, of the same service,            European Communities by order of the Tribunale di Bari,
Wagner Centre, Kirchberg.                                               Sezione Distaccata di Rutigliano (Bari District Court, Rutigliano
                                                                        Division) of 19 September 2000, received at the Court Registry
                                                                        on 24 October 2000, for a preliminary ruling in the cases of
The Commission claims that the Court should:                            Giovanni Colapietro against Ispettorato Generale Repressione
                                                                        Frodi and Giovanni Colapietro against Ministero per le Poli-
                                                                        tiche Agricole on the following questions:
1.    Declare that, by adopting the AbfalIverbringungsgesetz
      (Law on the Transfer of Waste) of 30 September 1994,
      establishing a solidarity fund for the return of waste, the       (1) Is Law No 460 of 1987, Article 4 of which provides for
      Federal Republic of Germany has infringed its obligations               penalties in respect of provisions of Community law laid
      under Articles 23 and 25 EC;                                            down by regulations which have now been repealed, (1)
                                                                              applicable for the purposes of enforcing rules laid down
                                                                              in new regulations?
2.    Order the Federal Republic of Germany to pay the costs.
                                                                        (2) Is the administrative penalty at issue disproportionate in
                                                                              effect to the offence, contrary to the principle of fair
Pleas in law and main arguments                                               punishment?
The Commission considers that the obligation on exporters of            (1) With reference, in particular, to Council Regulation No 822/87 of
waste under the German Abfallverbringungsgesetz to pay                      16 March 1987 (OJ L 84 of 27.3.1987, p. 1).
membership contributions to the solidarity fund is incompat-
ible with Community law in so far as the solidarity fund
assumes the costs of reimporting waste (including its disposal
and recycling) in the cases referred to in Articles 25 and 26 of
Council Regulation 259/93, (1) which are imposed on the
exporting Member State in the event of it being impracticable
to charge the notifier (Article 33(2) of Regulation 259/93). To
that extent, the contribution constitutes a burden imposed
unilaterally on domestic goods on account of their crossing
the frontier. Contrary to the defendant’s view, the relevant part
of the contribution cannot be regarded as appropriate payment           Action brought on 13 November 2000 by the Com-
for a service actually and individually provided by the adminis-        mission of the European Communities against the French
tration to an economic operator. The financing of the second-                                         Republic
ary State liability expressly provided for in Article 33(2) of
Regulation No 259/93 cannot be described as a ‘particular or
individual advantage’.                                                                            (Case C-418/00)
                                                                                                    (2001/C 4/04)
(1) Council Regulation (EEC) No 259/93 of 1 February 1993 on the
    supervision and control of shipments of waste within, into and
    out of the European Community (OJ 1993 L 30, p. 1), amended         An action against the French Republic was brought before the
    by Commission Regulation (EC) No 2408/98 of 6 November              Court of Justice on 13 November 2000 by the Commission of
    1998 (OJ 1998 L 298, p. 19).                                        the European Communities, represented by T. Van Rijn, Legal
                                                                        Adviser, and Bernard Mongin, of its Legal Service, acting as
                                                                        Agents, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the office
                                                                        of C. Gómez de la Cruz, also of its Legal Service, Wagner
                                                                        Centre, Kirchberg.