COMMISSION REGULATION (EEC) No 3856/91 of 18 December 1991 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 4028/86 as regards measures for the provision of facilities at fishing ports
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 4028/86 of 18 December 1986 on Community measures to improve and adapt structures in the fisheries and aquaculture sector (1), as amended by Regulation (EEC) No 3944/90 (2), and in particular Articles 27 and 28 thereof,
Whereas Article 27 of Regulation (EEC) No 4028/86 provides for the granting of financial aid for projects involving investments in the provision of facilities at fishing ports;
Whereas investments eligible for the grant of Community financial aid towards projects for the provision of facilities at fishing ports pursuant to Regulation (EEC) No 4028/86 should therefore be defined;
Whereas applications for Community assistance must contain information enabling the Commission to take a decision thereon and must be submitted in a standardized form;
Whereas payment applications to the Commission by the Member States concerned must contain certain information permitting verification that the expenditure meets the requirements of Regulation (EEC) No 4028/86;
Whereas applications are to be lodged through the competent authorities of the Member States, which must examine them in order to formulate an opinion for the attention of the Commission;
Whereas the Commission must have access to sufficient information to enable it to take a decision as to the substance;
Whereas, in order that proper checks may be made, Member States must keep at the Commission's disposal, for three years following the final payment, the documents on which the aid calculations were based;
Whereas the measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on the Fishing Industry,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1
1. The investments listed in Annex I shall be eligible for Community financial aid as part of a project for the provision of facilities at fishing ports within the meaning of Title VIII of Regulation (EEC) No 4028/86 provided that they relate to back-up facilities for fishing or for the marketing of fishery products and are to be made in respect of those activities only.
2. The investments listed in Annex II shall not qualify for Community aid pursuant to Title VIII of Regulation (EEC) No 4028/86.
Article 2
1. Projects as referred to in Article 1 (1), submitted to the Commission through the Member States concerned, must contain the particulars specified in Annex III and must be presented in the form shown in that Annex.
2. Part A of Annex III shall be submitted to the Commission in duplicate. Part B of Annex III shall be retained by the competent authorities of the Member State concerned.
3. The Member State concerned shall certify having checked the accuracy of the relevant information set out in Part B of Annex III, and on the basis of that information shall inform the Commission of its opinion under point 1 of Annex III, part A. At the same time, the Member State shall specify the criteria which it applies for the selection of projects and the grant of its financial contribution as provided for in point 14 of Annex III, part A.
4. The projects referred to in paragraph 1 shall be entered in the Commission's records on the day of their receipt by the Commission.
Article 3
1. Applications for payment shall be made to the Commission through the Member States concerned. They must contain the particulars specified in Annex IV and be presented in the form shown in that Annex.
2. The Member State concerned shall certify that the information contained in the applications referred to in paragraph 1 is accurate.
3. Competent authorities shall send to the Commission, within three months of the date of entry into force of this Regulation, a detailed description of the control methods employed to certify the accuracy of the data contained in the payment requests. The competent authorities shall inform the Commission of any subsequent amendments to the control methods.
Article 4
Member States shall keep at the Commission's disposal, for a period of three years following the payment of the balance of the Community aid, all the documents, or certified copies thereof, used for calculation of the aid provided for in Regulation (EEC) No 4028/86 together with the complete files on the applicants.
Article 5
1. Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2321/88 (3) is hereby repealed. References to that Regulation in Community legislation shall be taken to refer to this Regulation.
2. Applications for payment may be made pursuant to Regulation (EEC) No 2321/88 in respect of applications for Community aid submitted prior to the date of entry into force of this Regulation.
Article 6
This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities. This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.
Done at Brussels, 18 December 1991.