1999-468-EC

COUNCILDECISIONof17July2006amendingDecision1999/468/EClayingdowntheproceduresfortheexerciseofimplementingpowersconferredontheCommission(2006/512/EC)THECOUNCILOFTHEEUROPEANUNION,HavingregardtotheTreatyestablishingtheEuropeanCommunity,andinparticularthethirdindentofArticle202thereof,HavingregardtotheproposalfromtheCommission,HavingregardtotheOpinionoftheEuropeanParliament(1),Whereas:(1)TheCounciladoptedDecision1999/468/ECof28June1999layingdowntheproceduresfortheexerciseofimplementingpowersconferredontheCommission(2).ThatDecisionprovidedforalimitednumberofproceduresfortheexerciseofsuchpowers.(2)ThatDecisionshouldbeamendedinordertointroduceanewtypeofprocedurefortheexerciseofimplementingpowers,theregulatoryprocedurewithscrutiny,whichallowsthelegislatortoopposetheadoptionofdraftmeasureswhereitindicatesthatthedraftexceedstheimplementingpowersprovidedforinthebasicinstrument,orthatthedraftisincompatiblewiththeaimorthecontentofthatinstrumentorfailstorespecttheprinciplesofsubsidiarityorproportionality.(3)Itisnecessarytofollowthenewregulatoryprocedurewithscrutinyformeasuresofgeneralscopedesignedtoamendnon-essentialelementsofabasicinstrumentadoptedinaccordancewiththeprocedurereferredtoinArticle251oftheTreaty,includingbydeletingsomeofthoseelementsorbysupplementingtheinstrumentbytheadditionofnewnon-essentialelements.(4)Inthissameframework,itshouldbeensuredthattheEuropeanParliamentreceivesbetterinformationontheworkofcommittees,HASDECIDEDASFOLLOWS:Article1Decision1999/468/ECisherebyamendedasfollows:1.attheendofrecital5,thefollowingshallbeadded:‘withtheexceptionofthosegoverningtheregulatoryprocedurewithscrutiny’;2.afterrecital(7),thefollowingrecitalshallbeinserted:‘(7a)Itisnecessarytofollowtheregulatoryprocedurewithscrutinyasregardsmeasuresofgeneralscopewhichseektoamendnon-essentialelementsofabasicinstrumentadoptedinaccordancewiththeprocedurereferredtoinArticle251oftheTreaty,interaliabydeletingsomeofthoseelementsorbysupplementingtheinstrumentbytheadditionofnewnonessentialelements.Thisprocedureshouldenablethetwoarmsofthelegislativeauthoritytoscrutinisesuchmeasuresbeforetheyareadopted.TheessentialelementsofalegislativeactmayonlybeamendedbythelegislatoronthebasisoftheTreaty;’;3.recital(10)shallbereplacedbythefollowing:‘(10)ThethirdpurposeofthisDecisionistoimproveinformationtotheEuropeanParliamentbyprovidingthattheCommissionshouldinformitonaregularbasisofcommitteeproceedings,thattheCommissionshouldtransmittoitdocumentsrelatedtoactivitiesofcommitteesandinformitwhenevertheCommissiontransmitstotheCouncilmeasuresorproposalsformeasurestobetaken;particularattentionwillbepaidtotheprovisionofinformationtotheEuropeanParliamentontheproceedingsofcommitteesintheframeworkoftheregulatoryprocedurewithscrutiny,soastoensurethattheEuropeanParliamenttakesadecisionwithinthestipulateddeadline.’;4.inArticle1:‘5a’shallbeinsertedbetween‘5’and‘and6’inthelastline;EN22.7.2006OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanUnionL200/11(1)NotyetpublishedintheOfficialJournal.(2)OJL184,17.7.1999,p.23.5.inArticle2:(a)inthefirstparagraphthewords‘1.Withoutprejudicetoparagraph2,’shallbeinsertedatthebeginningofthetext;(b)thefollowingparagraphshallbeadded:‘2.Whereabasicinstrument,adoptedinaccordancewiththeprocedurereferredtoinArticle251oftheTreaty,providesfortheadoptionofmeasuresofgeneralscopedesignedtoamendnon-essentialelementsofthatinstrument,interaliabydeletingsomeofthoseelementsorbysupplementingtheinstrumentbytheadditionofnewnon-essentialelements,thosemeasuresshallbeadoptedinaccordancewiththeregu-latoryprocedurewithscrutiny.’;6.inArticle4(2)andArticle5(2),theterms‘and(4)’shallbeaddedafter‘Article205(2)’;7.afterArticle5,thefollowingArticleshallbeinserted:‘Article5aRegulatoryprocedurewithscrutiny1.TheCommissionshallbeassistedbyaRegulatoryProcedurewithScrutinyCommitteecomposedoftherepre-sentativesoftheMemberStatesandchairedbytherepre-sentativeoftheCommission.2.TherepresentativeoftheCommissionshallsubmittotheCommitteeadraftofthemeasurestobetaken.TheCommitteeshalldeliveritsopiniononthedraftwithinatime-limitwhichthechairmanmaylaydownaccordingtotheurgencyofthematter.TheopinionshallbedeliveredbythemajoritylaiddowninArticle205(2)and(4)oftheTreatyinthecaseofdecisionswhichtheCouncilisrequiredtoadoptonaproposalfromtheCommission.ThevotesoftherepresentativesoftheMemberStateswithintheCommitteeshallbeweightedinthemannersetoutinthatArticle.Thechairmanshallnotvote.3.IfthemeasuresenvisagedbytheCommissionareinaccordancewiththeopinionoftheCommittee,thefollowingprocedureshallapply:(a)theCommissionshallwithoutdelaysubmitthedraftmeasuresforscrutinybytheEuropeanParliamentandtheCouncil;(b)theEuropeanParliament,actingbyamajorityofitscomponentmembers,ortheCouncil,actingbyaqualifiedmajority,mayopposetheadoptionofthesaiddraftbytheCommission,justifyingtheiroppositionbyindicatingthatthedraftmeasuresproposedbytheCommissionexceedtheimplementingpowersprovidedforinthebasicinstrumentorthatthedraftisnotcompatiblewiththeaimorthecontentofthebasicinstrumentordoesnotrespecttheprinciplesofsubsi-diarityorproportionality;(c)