Index 
Texts adopted
Tuesday, 12 March 2024 - Strasbourg
Industrial Emissions Directive
 Industrial Emissions Portal
 Definition of criminal offences and penalties for the violation of Union restrictive measures
 Road vehicles: maximum weights and dimensions
 Use of railway infrastructure capacity in the single European railway area, amending Directive 2012/34/EU and repealing Regulation (EU) No 913/2010
 Amending certain financial services and investment support Regulations as regards certain reporting requirements
 Energy performance of buildings (recast)
 Cyber Resilience Act
 Substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims (Green Claims Directive)
 Liability for defective products
 Amending Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 as regards the digital labelling of EU fertilising products
 European Maritime Safety Agency and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002
 Council decision inviting Member States to ratify the Violence and Harassment Convention, 2019 (No 190) of the International Labour Organization
 Extending Rule 168 of Parliament's Rules of Procedure until the end of the 10th parliamentary term

Industrial Emissions Directive
PDF 122kWORD 51k
Resolution
Text
European Parliament legislative resolution of 12 March 2024 on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2010/75/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 on industrial emissions (integrated pollution prevention and control) and Council Directive 1999/31/EC of 26 April 1999 on the landfill of waste (COM(2022)0156 – C9-0144/2022 – 2022/0104(COD))
P9_TA(2024)0123A9-0216/2023
CORRIGENDA

(Ordinary legislative procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2022)0156),

–  having regard to Article 294(2) and Article 192 paragraph 1 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C9‑0144/2022),

–  having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to the reasoned opinion submitted, within the framework of Protocol No 2 on the application of the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality, by the Czech Parliament, asserting that the draft legislative act does not comply with the principle of subsidiarity,

–  having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 14 July 2022(1),

–  having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions of 12 October 2022(2),

–  having regard to the provisional agreement approved by the committee responsible under Rule 74(4) of its Rules of Procedure and the undertaking given by the Council representative by letter of 15 December 2023 to approve Parliament’s position, in accordance with Article 294(4) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to Rule 59 of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the opinions of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy and the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development,

–  having regard to the report of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (A9-0216/2023),

1.  Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out(3);

2.  Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal;

3.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

Position of the European Parliament adopted at first reading on 12 March 2024 with a view to the adoption of Directive (EU) 2024/… of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2010/75/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council on industrial emissions (integrated pollution prevention and control) and Council Directive 1999/31/EC on the landfill of waste

P9_TC1-COD(2022)0104


(As an agreement was reached between Parliament and Council, Parliament's position corresponds to the final legislative act, Directive (EU) 2024/1785.)

(1) OJ C 443, 22.11.2022, p. 130.
(2) OJ C 498, 30.12.2022, p. 154.
(3) This position replaces the amendments adopted on 11 July 2023 (Texts adopted, P9_TA(2023)0259).


Industrial Emissions Portal
PDF 128kWORD 54k
Resolution
Text
European Parliament legislative resolution of 12 March 2024 on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on reporting of environmental data from industrial installations and establishing an Industrial Emissions Portal (COM(2022)0157 – C9-0145/2022 – 2022/0105(COD))
P9_TA(2024)0124A9-0211/2023

(Ordinary legislative procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2022)0157),

–  having regard to Article 294(2) and Article 192 paragraph 1 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C9‑0145/2022),

–  having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 14 July 2022(1),

–  having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions of 12 October 2022(2),

–  having regard to the provisional agreement approved by the committee responsible under Rule 74(4) of its Rules of Procedure and the undertaking given by the Council representative by letter of 15 December 2023 to approve Parliament’s position, in accordance with Article 294(4) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to Rule 59 of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the report of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (A9-0211/2023),

1.  Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out(3);

2.  Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal;

3.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

Position of the European Parliament adopted at first reading on 12 March 2024 with a view to the adoption of Regulation (EU) 2024/… of the European Parliament and of the Council on reporting of environmental data from industrial installations, establishing an Industrial Emissions Portal and repealing Regulation (EC) No 166/2006

P9_TC1-COD(2022)0105


(As an agreement was reached between Parliament and Council, Parliament's position corresponds to the final legislative act, Regulation (EU) 2024/1244.)

(1) OJ C 443, 22.11.2022, p. 130.
(2) OJ C 498, 30.12.2022, p. 154.
(3) This position replaces the amendments adopted on 11 July 2023 (Texts adopted, P9_TA(2023)0260).


Definition of criminal offences and penalties for the violation of Union restrictive measures
PDF 121kWORD 46k
Resolution
Text
European Parliament legislative resolution of 12 March 2024 on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the definition of criminal offences and penalties for the violation of Union restrictive measures (COM(2022)0684 – C9-0401/2022 – 2022/0398(COD))
P9_TA(2024)0125A9-0235/2023

(Ordinary legislative procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2022)0684),

–  having regard to Article 294(2) and Article 83(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C9‑0401/2022),

–  having regard to Council Decision (EU) 2022/2332 of 28 November 2022 on identifying the violation of Union restrictive measures as an area of crime that meets the criteria specified in Article 83(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union(1), and in particular Article 1 thereof,

–  having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 23 March 2023(2),

–  having regard to the provisional agreement approved by the committee responsible under Rule 74(4) of its Rules of Procedure and the undertaking given by the Council representative by letter of 20 December 2023 to approve Parliament’s position, in accordance with Article 294(4) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to Rule 59 of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the opinion of the Committee Budgets,

–  having regard to the report of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (A9-0235/2023),

1.  Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out;

2.  Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal;

3.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

Position of the European Parliament adopted at first reading on 12 March 2024 with a view to the adoption of Directive (EU) 2024/… of the European Parliament and of the Council on the definition of criminal offences and penalties for the violation of Union restrictive measures and amending Directive (EU) 2018/1673

P9_TC1-COD(2022)0398


(As an agreement was reached between Parliament and Council, Parliament's position corresponds to the final legislative act, Directive (EU) 2024/1226.)

(1) OJ L 308, 29.11.2022, p. 18.
(2) OJ C 184, 25.5.2023, p. 59.


Road vehicles: maximum weights and dimensions
PDF 283kWORD 90k
Resolution
Consolidated text
European Parliament legislative resolution of 12 March 2024 on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Directive 96/53/EC laying down for certain road vehicles circulating within the Community the maximum authorised dimensions in national and international traffic and the maximum authorised weights in international traffic (COM(2023)0445 – C9-0306/2023 – 2023/0265(COD))
P9_TA(2024)0126A9-0047/2024

(Ordinary legislative procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2023)0445),

–  having regard to Article 294(2) and Article 91(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C9‑0306/2023),

–  having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 26 October 2023(1),

–  after consulting the Committee of the Regions,

–  having regard to Rule 59 of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the report of the Committee on Transport and Tourism (A9-0047/2024),

1.  Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out;

2.  Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal;

3.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

Position of the European Parliament adopted at first reading on 12 March 2024 with a view to the adoption of Directive (EU) 2024/… of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Directive 96/53/EC laying down for certain road vehicles circulating within the Community the maximum authorised dimensions in national and international traffic and the maximum authorised weights in international traffic

P9_TC1-COD(2023)0265


THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 91 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,

After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee(2),

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions(3),

Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure,

Whereas:

(1)  Council Directive 96/53/EC(4), sets out the maximum permitted weights and dimensions of heavy-duty vehicles that can circulate on the Union’s roads in order to ensure road safety and the smooth functioning of the internal market as well as foster the energy and operational efficiency of transport operations and reducing greenhouse gas emissions from those operations. The evaluation of Directive 96/53/EC has shown that it has only partially been effective in achieving its road safety, internal market and environmental objectives, and there is a need to adapt its provisions to reflect the technological developments and promote innovation, address the changing transport market challenges and contribute to the Union’s policy priorities of decarbonisation of transport.

(2)  The Commission’s Communication on a Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy putting European transport on track for the future(5) makes it clear that in order to contribute to the achievement of the European Green Deal(6) objective of a 90% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from transport by 2050, there is the need to make all transport modes more sustainable, make sustainable alternatives widely available in a multimodal transport system and put in place the right incentives to drive the transition to zero-pollution transportation system in the Union.

(3)  By streamlining and clarifying the rules on weights and dimensions of road transport heavy-duty vehicles, it is necessary to address the energy and operational inefficiencies of cross-border transport operations, provide strong incentives to operators for the uptake of zero-emission technologies while facilitating the use of the existing energy-saving solutions, and further support intermodal freight transport operations. To minimise administrative burdens, prevent distortion of competition and reduce risks to road safety and damage of road infrastructure certain requirements as to the use of heavier and longer vehicles should be harmonised and enforcement of the rules in force should be strengthened.

(4)  To achieve these objectives, the right balance between economic efficiency, environmental sustainability, protection of road infrastructure and road safety aspects should be struck. Furthermore, to ensure legislative coherence and legal certainty, this Directive should be aligned as closely as possible with the CO2 standards for heavy-duty vehicles Regulation and the Combined Transport Directive. [Am. 1]

(5)  The types of heavy-duty vehicles, as well as the weight values of those vehicles, have been defined with reference to the Union’s legislation on the type-approval and market surveillance of vehicles and their trailers, and systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles, in particular Regulation (EU) 2018/858(7)and (EU) 2019/2144(8) of the European Parliament and of the Council. It is therefore desirable to update the references to those relevant legal acts, in order to provide for clarity of the applicable legislative framework.

(6)  The provisions of Directive 96/53/EU complement Council Directive 92/106/EEC(9) as regards promoting and supporting the growth of intermodal transport. The definition of intermodal transport operation should therefore be aligned with the terminology applied in Directive 92/106/EEC, in order to allow lorries, trailers and semi-trailers used in intermodal operations to benefit from the same extra weight allowances as in cases of road vehicles carrying containers or swap bodies and used in containerised intermodal transport. Such weight incentive should encourage road transport operators to engage also in non-containerised intermodal transport.

(6a)   This Directive is intended to improve the competitiveness of the road transport sector by promoting more cost-efficient and sustainable transport operations as well as encouraging intermodality. Although the new provisions will translate into a reduction in the vehicle-kilometres driven, the acute shortage of drivers in the Union is expected to persist. In order to address this shortage, it is fundamental to urgently improve the working conditions for drivers of heavy duty vehicles. The lack of quality truck parking areas in the Union adds to the deterioration of the working conditions of truck drivers, which is especially a problem during long-distance journeys. In order to address this situation and enhance the attractiveness of the sector, the increased dimensions required to install zero-emission technologies in vehicles should not be at the expense of sufficient cabin space and should improve the comfort of drivers. Where possible, concepts enabling additional space in the cabins for the installation of sanitary facilities on-board should be explored and incentivised. [Am. 2]

(7)  To ensure a common understanding and uniform implementation of the provisions of this Directive in national and international traffic, it is necessary to clarify that the nationalthere are currently specific derogations, often on the basis of bilateral understandings between neighbouring Member States, from certain maximum permitted weights and dimensions limits for certain types of vehicles circulating in national traffic do not automatically apply tospecialized vehicles used in cross-borderperforming transport operations., that should be preserved as long as they do not affect international competition. [Am. 3]

(8)  The transport of indivisible loads is an important market segment linked with the strategic areas of renewable energy, civil engineering and infrastructure, oil and gas, heavy industry and power generation sectors. Despite the recognised value of the existing European Best Practice Guidelines for Abnormal Transport, adopted by experts designated by the Member States, very little progress has been made towards the simplification and harmonisation of the rules and procedures to obtain permits for the transport of indivisible loads. Without prejudice to the right of Member States to establish the necessary conditions to ensure the safe transport of indivisible loads in their territories, Member States should cooperate to harmonise, to the extent possible, those requirements to avoid the multiplication of diverging conditions serving the same purpose. Member States should also ensure that national requirements are proportionate and non-discriminatory, refraining from imposing unjustified requirements such as fluency in the national language of the Member State concerned. To reduce administrative burden for operators and to ensure efficient, fair and safe operations, it is crucial to put in place a transparent, harmonised, user-friendly system for obtaining permits, that is available in all EU languages and is easily accessible by electronic communication means. These permits should be issued in an electronic format and be based on the Special European Registration of Trucks and Trailers (SERT) document, which aims to harmonise technical vehicle information such as the registration of trailers or modular trailers. Transport operators should be allowed to carry out transport operations of indivisible loads using this electronic document. [Am. 4]

(9)  European Modular Systems (EMS) have been used and trialled at length and have proven to be an interesting solution to improve the economic and energy efficiency of transport operations, while ensuring road safety and protection of infrastructure, thanks to their confinement to adequate parts of the road networks. Given national specificities, different economic interests, transportation needs and diverse transport infrastructure capacities in Member States, they are best placed to assess and authorise the circulation of EMS on their territories. Before authorising EMS, Member States should carry out a prior assessment for new routes of their possible impact on road safety, infrastructure, modal cooperation, modal shift and the environment. At the same time, to enlarge the positive socio-economic and environmental impacts of the use of EMS, it is crucial to remove unnecessary barriers to their use in cross-border operations between neighbouring Member States that allow such vehicle combinations on their territories, without limitation in the number of borders crossed as long as they comply with the maximum authorised weights and dimensions for EMS established by Member States within their respective territories. This is to ensure that EMS used in cross-border operations comply with the common lowest weight and dimension limit for EMS applicable in those Member States. In the interests of safety of operations, transparency and legal clarity, common conditions should be established for the circulation of EMS in national and international traffic, including providing. Those conditions should inter alia ensure that EMS circulate on roads where the safety of vulnerable road users is guaranteed. Member States should provide clear information on the weights and dimensions limits for EMS and on parts of the road network compatible with specifications of such vehicles, and. Member States should establish a monitoring system to evaluate the impacts of the use of EMS on road safety, on the road infrastructure, on modal cooperation, as well as the environmental impacts of European Modular Systems on the transport system, including the impacts on modal share. The clear definition of EMS in this Directive guarantees that EMS are composed of standard vehicle units to ensure compatibility with other transport modes, notably rail. To effectively drive the transition towards zero-emission mobility, EMS engaged in international traffic should, as soon as technically and operationally feasible, be composed of zero-emissions vehicles or vehicle combinations. [Am. 5]

(9a)   To maximise road safety and proper working conditions, it is important to ensure that drivers of EMS have adequate training and the qualifications required for handling heavier and longer vehicles and vehicle combinations. Member States should have the possibility to establish minimum requirements or a certification scheme for drivers of EMS. In order to ensure a level playing field that provides for equal treatment, and non-discrimination, of drivers and operators of EMS, Member States should guarantee that these certifications are mutually recognised in the concerned Member States. [Am. 6]

(10)  Member States should continue to be allowed to run trials on a temporary basis. Indeed, new technologies allowing for in-motion charging, such as solar panels, pantographs and electric roads, or the progressive introduction of EMS in Member States, may require exceeding the maximum weights and dimensions in a testing environment, including in cross-border sections of the road network. Therefore, Member States should continue to be allowed to conduct such trials and be able to test the compatibility of new technologies and concepts across borders. The temporary and innovative nature of trials needs to be clarified by setting up a maximum period of time to conduct them. At the same time, the number of trials of new technologies and innovative schemes should not be restricted to avoid hampering innovation. Member States should regularly monitor and assess the performance and impacts of testing the new technologies and new concepts on road safety, on the road infrastructure, on modal cooperation, as well as the environmental impacts on the transport system, such as impacts on the modal share.

(10a)   The new harmonised rules for EMS in national and international traffic in Member States which allow their circulation should entail the gathering of data on road safety in those Member States, including the share of fatalities and injuries from collisions. Taking into account that vulnerable road users account for nearly one third of the deaths in collisions involving heavy-duty vehicles, Member States should make sure that EMS do not negatively impact road safety, particularly the safety of vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and cyclists as well as motor-cyclists and persons with disabilities or reduced mobility and orientation. [Am. 7]

(11)  The transport of indivisible loads carried out by vehicles or vehicle combinations exceeding the maximum weights or dimensions and the use of EMS, given their needs for additional safety features and for suitable infrastructure, require that special attention is given to elements such as transparency of relevant information, legal certainty and harmonisation of the permit processes. It is therefore necessary for Member States to establish a single electronic information and communication system containing all the relevant information regarding the operational and administrative conditions for the transport of indivisible loads and for the use of EMS, in a clear and easily accessible manner. This national system should also enable the operators to obtain the information and submit electronically the application, in aan EU standardised format, for special permits for the carriage of indivisible loads in the Member State concerned. In addition, that national system should provide information on the national maximum authorised weights and dimensions of vehicles and vehicle combinations, information on possible restrictions, in particular on height. To ensure that operators and citizens can access all relevant information in one place, a dedicated European web portal connecting the national electronic and communication systems and providing, among others, a clear graphic overview of the roads on which EMS, and, where available, vehicles transporting indivisible loads, are allowed to circulate in the relevant Member States, should be established by the Commission, at the latest by [6 months after the date of transposition of this Directive]. [Am. 8]

(12)  The artificial barriers to the cross-border transport of heavier lorries primarily used in long distance transport (such as vehicle combinations with 5 and 6 axles), should be removed in a harmonised way to take advantage in the short term of the operational, energy and environmental efficiency linked to the greater loading capacity granted by the Member States, including for intermodal transport. To effectively drive the transition towards zero-emission mobility, and maximise the effects of relevant existing environmental law it is necessary to phase out the use of such heavier lorries running on fossil fuels, as of 2035, whento strengthen legal certainty for investments and to further encourage the market penetration of more efficient zero-emission HDVs is projected to increase significantly up to around 50% of new HDV registrations. After the phasing out, heavier lorries should continue to be allowed in national traffic while, in international traffic, they should comply with the maximum authorised weights set up in Annex I to Directive 96/53/EC, which limits the extra weight allowance to zero-emission vehicles and to vehicles involved in an intermodal transport operation. [Am. 9]

(13)  The proof of compliance of vehicles with the values set out in Directive 96/53/EC should contain comprehensive information in accordance with the updated Union’s rules on uniform procedures and technical specifications for the type-approval of vehicles. The references to the applicable Union rules should therefore be updated, in order to include a specific reference to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/535(10). The information that should be included in the proof of compliance should further be aligned with the maximum weights authorised under Directive 96/53/EC. Controlling intermodal nature of a transport operation, as defined in Article 2, can be particularly challenging in non-containerised transport. To ensure that extra weight allowance for heavy-duty vehicles involved in intermodal transport operations is used appropriately it is necessary that operators provide a proof of intermodal nature of the operation. The platforms for digital transport data established pursuant Regulation (EU) 1056/2020 of the European Parliament and of the Council(11) (‘eFTI platforms’) provide a suitable tool as they are built to include the regulatory information requirements, set in Article 3 and 7 of Directive 92/106/ECC. Therefore, the use of an eFTI platform should be made mandatory to record and make available relevant transport information, with regards to transport modes used to carry the cargo.

(14)  Vehicle carriers withtransporters, of which many have open bodies, have very limited potential to reduce their energy consumption via improved aerodynamics. Diverging national rules on the overhanging of loads on vehicle carrierstransporters cause distortions of competition and limit significantly their potential to improve operational efficiency and energy performance in international traffic. Therefore, it is necessary to harmonise rules on the overhanging of loads of vehicle carriers with open bodies,transporters so as to ensure that these objectives are properly met. [Am. 10]

(15)  Heavy-duty vehicles with elongated cabs have started making their entrance on the market, paired with zero-emission propulsion systems. Using zero-emission propulsion systems requires, depending on the technology, extra space which should not be counted at the expense of the effective load of the vehicle, so that the zero-emission road transport sector is not penalised in economic terms. It should thus be clarified that the excess in the maximum lengths provided for the elongated cabs can be such that it provides space needed for accommodating zero-emission technology, such as batteries and hydrogen tanks, provided that the safety, efficiency and comfort features of aerodynamic cabs are not jeopardized, and that the vehicle concerned complies with the “turning circle rule”. [Am. 11]

(16)  Similarly to the need for extra space, current standards are also not suitable to compensate for the extra weight of zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles, in particular in long distance transport. Additional weight and axle weight are necessary for zero-emission vehicle combinations, as well as to the most common passenger vehicles in use in the Union. Lighter technologies and better aerodynamics will render the use of zero-emission propulsion systems more efficient (for example, to allow for longer range travelled and longer battery life) by reducing their energy consumption. To provide additional incentives to the deployment of zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles, to promote technological development, as well as the equipment of vehicles with improved aerodynamics, extra weight allowances should therefore be disconnected from the weight of the zero-emission technology.

(16a)   The multiplicity of different vehicle markings and signalling in Member States can be confusing for road users and detrimental for road safety in the Union. In order to improve road safety, a standardised EU label for the length of motor vehicles or vehicle combinations used in EMS or which deviate from standard dimensions should be established at Union level. That EU label would help road users to identify and familiarise themselves with such vehicles and would reduce any risks arising from visibility restrictions or blind spots, for example when overtaking such long vehicles or vehicle combinations. [Am. 12]

(16b)   Battery electric, fuel-cell and other hydrogen-powered vehicles have a strong potential to decarbonise certain segments of the heavy duty transport sector and their development should be encouraged, while taking into account the fact that no technology goes without an environmental impact. Where electrification is not possible or less efficient and hydrogen fuelled vehicles are not appropriate or cost competitive, the principle of technological neutrality allows for ensuring a level playing field with other technologies that are more mature. [Am. 13]

(17)  Effective, efficient, and consistent enforcement of the rules is of utmost importance to ensure undistorted competition between operators and eliminate risks to road safety and to road infrastructure posed by vehicles unlawfully exceeding the applicable weights or dimensions. To better target roadside controls at overloaded vehicles, and if they choose to use automatic systems on the road infrastructure, Member States should ensure as a minimum the deployment of suchautomatic systems in the trans-European road transport network, including certified ones on the TEN-T core network. Additionally, it should also be possible to use accurate and fully interoperable on-board weighting equipment. Such certified automatic systems should be able to recognise vehicles or vehicle combinations which exceed the maximum authorised weights, but have a derogation for it based on a valid special permit or a similar arrangement. The systems should also be able to detect if the requirements of special permits are being met. This is expected to avoid unjustified penalties and save administrative costs for both operators and Member States. Moreover, for reliability and consistency of the enforcement across the Union, the mandatory minimum level of controls to be performed by Member States should be established in proportion to the level of traffic on their territories by the vehicles within scope of this Directive, including an appropriate number of controls during night hours. [Am. 14]

(18)  To further step up enforcement and monitoring of the circulation of heavy-duty vehicles on the Union’s roads, reduce congestion, enhance road safety, reduce risks of damage to infrastructure and promote sustainable transport operations, Member States should be encouraged to establish Intelligent Access Policy schemes that ensure compliance with rules on the maximum authorised weights and dimensions. When establishing such schemes, Member States should apply minimum common requirements to such schemes in order to guarantee harmonisation and interoperability across de EUthe Union, in particular as regards accessibility and format of relevant data to be exchanged. The relevant data should be accessible in real-time and in the official languages of the Union. The schemes should help to ensure that the right vehicle with the right cargo, operates on the right road, and at the right time to secure minimum impact on environment, infrastructure, human health and safety, and society. The establishment of such schemes should make use of advanced intelligent transport systems, such as vehicle-to-infrastructure communication, vehicle-to-network communication, real-time data sharing and remote monitoring, in order to ensure safe and smooth traffic of heavy-duty vehicles and they should not lead to disproportionate or discriminatory traffic restrictions. [Am. 15]

(18a)   The enforcement of Directive 96/53/EC is an essential part of the well-established monitoring and enforcement systems at Union and national level which contribute to the implementation of the Union’s social, market and technical rules applicable to road transport. When non-compliance with the prescribed weights and dimensions requirements is detected, enforcement actions are to be taken by the competent national authorities. Member States should ensure that the penalties are non-discriminatory both as regards the types of penalty chosen and their levels, and that they are effective, dissuasive and proportionate to the seriousness of the infringement committed. Those infringements should be recorded in the national register of road transport undertakings, exchanged via the European Register of Road Transport Undertakings (ERRU) and reflected in the risk rating score of the undertakings in line with Regulation (EC) No 1071/2009. It is expected that cross-border implementation of sanctions within the scope of Directive 96/53/EC will be facilitated through an amended Directive (EU) 2015/413 on Cross-Border Enforcement. [Am. 16]

(18b)   In order to make progress in the green and digital transitions and to comply with the objectives set in the European Green Deal and the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy, particularly as regards the GHG emission reductions from the transport sector, Member States should be encouraged to use the revenues generated from the penalties applicable to the infringements of this Directive, or the equivalent in financial value of those revenues, to support the uptake of sustainable transport means and hence mitigate the external costs generated by transport operations, encourage intermodality, and increase the sustainability of cross-border transport operations. [Am. 17]

(19)  To promote the growth of multimodal transportation system, containerised transport, including those using 45-foot or 48-foot containers, 45-foot swap bodies or high-cube containers, should be further facilitated by allowing extra height and length to road vehicles to transport high-cubethese containers. [Am. 18]

(19a)   The Commission should review the current type approval legislation in order to strengthen the technical and operational compatibility of new heavy duty vehicles and vehicle combinations, inter alia concerning their weight, shape, size, craneability, and retractability and foldability of protruding devices, with the requirements of combined transport operations, as well as to facilitate the use and uptake of zero-emission trailers and semi-trailers. [Am. 19]

(20)  The European Parliament and the Council should be regularly informed of the results of the checks of compliance carried out by the Member States’ competent authorities, on the deployment and the use of enforcement tools and monitoring systems, in particular in the context of assessing the operational, safety and environmental impacts of the use of heavier and/or longer vehicles, including modular vehicle combinations. This information, provided by the Member States, should enable the Commission to monitor the market developments and compliance with Directive 96/53/EC. To facilitate for Member States the submission of the necessary information to the Commission and to ensure uniformity and comparability of data, enabling to monitor compliance and evaluate the overall performance of Directive 96/53/EC, it is desirable that the Commission establishes a uniform user-friendly reporting format.

(21)  To enable a swift response of the road transport sector to any crisis, such as natural disasters, pandemics, military conflicts or infrastructure failures, there is a need to introduce an emergency clause to Directive 96/53/EC, which enables temporarily the circulation of heavy-duty vehicles exceeding the maximum permitted weights and/or dimensions, in order to ensure a continued supply of necessary goods and services. Such exceptional clause should be applied only where the public interest requires it, and provided that road safety is not thereby jeopardised and its possible renewal should be conditional upon the persistence of the crisis. [Am. 20]

(22)  In order to ensure that the monitoring systems to be set up by the Member States for assessing the impacts of EMS and trials comply with minimum harmonised requirements, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union should be delegated to the Commission to supplement Directive 96/53/EC in respect of determining the minimum sets of data and/or performance indicators to be provided by those monitoring systems. It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement on Better Law-Making of 13 April 2016(12). In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States' experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts.

(23)  In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this Directive, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission to establish aan EU common standard application form and harmonise the rules and procedures for the issuing of national permits or similar arrangements for vehicles or vehicle combinations which exceed the maximum weights and/or dimensions and are intended to carry indivisible loads, to establish a standard reporting format for Member States to comply with their reporting obligations, and to establish temporary exceptions from the application of the weights and dimensions limits used in international traffic between Member States affected by a crisis. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council(13). [Am. 21]

(23a)   In order to assess the effectiveness and efficiency of this Directive and in order to measure progress against its specific objectives, it is important to regularly evaluate its implementation and impact. Therefore, the Commission should present regular assessment reports on the application of this Directive, based on the enabling conditions for the market uptake of zero-emission heavy duty vehicles, such as the availability and capacity of appropriate alternative fuels infrastructure, the impact of the European system on road transport as well as road user charges differentiated by CO2 emissions in Member States. These reports should contain detailed information on these enabling conditions, and on the evolution of national and international road transport, the impact on road safety and road infrastructure, modal shift, the use of smart enforcement systems, and technological advancements on road transport. Additionally, the reports should consider the scalability of measures in alignment with the long-term goals of the Directive. On the basis of the findings in these assessments, the report should, where appropriate, be accompanied by a legislative proposal to amend this Directive and the obligations established therein. [Am. 22]

(24)  Taking into account the many amendments to Annex I to Directive 96/53/EC relating to the need to provide additional incentives to the deployment of zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles, to the need to harmonise the maximum weight of 5-axle motor vehicles and to the need to promote intermodal transport, it is appropriate, for reasons of clarity, to replace it.

(25)  In order to add the information requested under Directive 96/53/EC to the scope of Regulation (EU) 2020/1056 that Regulation needs to be amended.

(26)  Since the objectives of this Directive, namely ensuring road safety, fostering sustainable and efficient transport operations, and promoting the functioning of the internal market, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States, but can rather, by reasons of the cross-border nature of road transport and of the problems this Directive is intended to address, be better achieved at the Union level, the Union may adopt measures in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union. In accordance with the principle of proportionality, as set out in that Article, this Directive does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives.

(27)  In accordance with the Joint Political Declaration of 28 September 2011 of Member States and the Commission on explanatory documents(14), Member States have undertaken to accompany, in justified cases, the notification of their transposition measures with one or more documents explaining the relationship between the components of a directive and the corresponding parts of national transposition instruments. With regard to this Directive, the legislator considers the transmission of such documents to be justified.

(28)  Directive 96/53/EC should therefore be amended accordingly,

HAVE ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:

Article 1

Amendments to Directive 96/53/EC

Directive 96/53/EC is amended as follows:

(1)  Article 1 is amended as follows:

(a)  in paragraph 1, point (a) is replaced by the following:"

‘(a) the dimensions of motor vehicles in categories M2 and M3 and their trailers in category O and motor vehicles in categories N2 and N3 and their trailers in categories O3 and O4, as classified in Article 4 of Regulation (EU) 2018/858 of the European Parliament and of the Council*;;’

"

(b)  paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:"

‘2. All the values of weights indicated in Annex I are valid as circulation standards and thus refer to loading conditions, not production standards, which are laid down in Regulation (EU) 2019/2144 of the European Parliament and of the Council**.’;

_______

* Regulation (EU) 2018/858 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 on the approval and market surveillance of motor vehicles and their trailers, and of systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles, amending Regulations (EC) No 715/2007 and (EC) No 595/2009 and repealing Directive 2007/46/EC (OJ L 151, 14.6.2018, p. 1).

** Regulation (EU) 2019/2144 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019 on type-approval requirements for motor vehicles and their trailers, and systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles, as regards their general safety and the protection of vehicle occupants and vulnerable road users, amending Regulation (EU) 2018/858 of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Regulations (EC) No 78/2009, (EC) No 79/2009 and (EC) No 661/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Commission Regulations (EC) No 631/2009, (EU) No 406/2010, (EU) No 672/2010, (EU) No 1003/2010, (EU) No 1005/2010, (EU) No 1008/2010, (EU) No 1009/2010, (EU) No 19/2011, (EU) No 109/2011, (EU) No 458/2011, (EU) No 65/2012, (EU) No 130/2012, (EU) No 347/2012, (EU) No 351/2012, (EU) No 1230/2012 and (EU) 2015/166 (OJ L 325, 16.12.2019, p. 1).’;’

"

(2)  Article 2 is amended as follows:

(a)  in the second indent, the definition of ‘trailer’ is replaced by the following:"

‘— ‘trailer’ shall mean a vehicle as defined in Article 3(17) of Regulation (EU) 2018/858,;’

"

(b)  in the third indent, the definition of ‘semi-trailer’ is replaced by the following:"

‘— ‘semi-trailer’ shall mean a vehicle as defined in Article 3(33) of Regulation (EU) 2018/858,;’

"

(c)  the following definition is inserted after the definition of ‘vehicle combination’:"

‘— ‘European Modular System’ shall mean a motor vehicle or vehicle combination coupled to one or more trailers or semitrailers where the total combination exceeds the maximum authorised length and may exceed the maximum authorised weights laid down in Annex I and where the individual motor vehicle, trailer(s) and semitrailer(s) do not exceed the weights or dimensions laid down in Annex I,;’

"

(d)  the following definition is inserted after the definition of ‘conditioned vehicle’:"

‘— ‘vehicle transporter’ shall mean a vehicle combination which is constructed or permanently adapted for carrying other vehicle(s),;’

"

(e)  in the fourteenth indent, the definition of ‘alternatively fuelled vehicle’ is replaced by the following:"

‘— ‘alternatively fuelled vehicle’ shall mean a motor vehicle powered wholly or in part by an alternative fuel and which has been approved under the framework of Regulation (EU) 2018/858,;’ [Am. 23]

"

(f)  in the fifteenth indent, the definition of ‘intermodal transport operation’, point (a) is replaced by the following:"

‘(a) the combined transport operations defined in Article 1 of Council Directive 92/106/EEC*; or’;

________

* Council Directive 92/106/EEC of 7 December 1992 on the establishment of common rules for certain types of combined transport of goods between Member States (OJ L 368, 17.12.1992, p. 38).’;’

"

(g)  the following definition is inserted after the definition of ‘shipper’:"

‘— ‘eFTI Platform’ shall mean a freight transport information platform established pursuant Regulation (EU) 2020/1056 of the European Parliament and of the Council*,’;

________

* Regulation (EU) 2020/1056 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 July 2020 on electronic freight transport information (OJ L 249, 31.7.2020, p. 33).’;’

"

(h)  the second subparagraph is replaced by the following:"

‘All maximum authorised dimensions specified in Annex I shall be checked against the corresponding declared values for the specific vehicle in the information document accompanying the EU Whole Vehicle Type Approval, drawn up in accordance with Annex I to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/683*, with no positive tolerances.’;

________

* Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/683 of 15 April 2020 implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/858 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regards to the administrative requirements for the approval and market surveillance of motor vehicles and their trailers, and of systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles (OJ L 163, 26.5.2020, p. 1).’;’

"

(3)  Article 4 is amended as follows:

(a)  in paragraph 1, the following point (c) is added:"

‘(c) of vehicles or vehicle combinations for the international transport of goods or passengers which are not in conformity with the characteristics set out in Annex I.;’

"

(b)  paragraph 3 and 4 are replaced by the following:"

‘3. Vehicles or vehicle combinations which exceed the maximum weights and/or dimensions may only be allowed to circulate on the basis of special permits issued by the competent authorities, or on the basis of similar arrangements agreed on a case-by-case basis with those authorities, where those vehicles or vehicle combinations carry or are intended to carry indivisible loads.

Member States shall ensure that the procedure for obtaining permits or similar arrangements for the transport of indivisible loads is smooth, efficient and non-discriminatory, by providing an EU common standard application form and by minimising administrative burdens and avoiding unnecessary delays.

Member States shall guarantee that the conditions under which the permits or similar arrangements related to the transport of indivisible loads are issued are proportionate and non-discriminatory. In particular, Member States shall issue the permits or similar arrangements in an electronic format and cooperate to further harmonise the permit issuing deadlines. Member States shall also cooperate to avoid the multiplicity of vehicle markings and signalling, and to favour the use of pictograms over text. Furthermore, Member States shall cooperate to harmonise the relevant rules for escorting transport of indivisible loads, such as on the prescribed use, markings and signs for escort vehicles. Member States shall not impose language requirements related to the drivers of transport of indivisible loads.

Member States shall ensure that the vehicles carrying indivisible loads display the EU label set out in Article 10ca. [Am. 24]

4.  Member States may allow vehicles or vehicle combinations used for transport which carry out certain national or international transport operations that do not significantly affect international competition in the transport sector to circulate in their territory with weights or dimensions deviating from those laid down in points 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4 to 1.8, 2, 4.1. 4.2 and 4.4 of Annex I.

Transport operations shall be considered not significantly to affect international competition in the transport sector if one of the following conditions is fulfilled:

   (a) the transport operations are carried out in a Member State's territory by specialized vehicles or specialized vehicle combinations in circumstances in which they are not normally carried out by vehicles from other Member States, e.g. operations linked to logging and the forestry industry;
   (b) the Member State which permits transport operations to be carried out in its territory by vehicles or vehicle combinations with dimensions deviating from those laid down in Annex I also permits the circulation of European Modular Systems pursuant to paragraph 4a, so as to achieve at least the loading length authorised in that Member State, and so that every operator may benefit from equal conditions of competition.’ [Am. 25]

"

(c)  the following paragraph 4a is inserted:"

‘4a. Member States may allow the circulation in their territories in national and international traffic of European Modular Systems subject to all of the following conditions:

   (-a) For new EMS routes, the Member States shall make a prior assessment of the possible impact of European Modular Systems on road safety, on the road infrastructure, on modal cooperation, as well as the environmental impacts of European Modular Systems on the transport system, including the impacts on modal split. The assessment shall be made publicly available. Member States that have already established EMS routes in their territory at the date of the entry into force of this Directive, are not required to make a prior assessment for these already established routes;
   (a) the Member States shall make publicly available, in an accessible and transparent way, the information related to the maximum weights and dimensions applicable to the circulation of European Modular Systems in their territories;
   (b) the Member States shall make publicly available, in an accessible and transparent way, the information related to the part of the road network where European Modular Systems can circulate;
   (c) the Member States shall ensure the connectivity of the part of the network where European Modular Systems can circulate in their territories with the road network of neighbouring Member States that also allow the circulation of European Modular Systems, in order to enable cross-border traffic;
   (d) the Member States shall setestablish a monitoring system and assess theof impact of European Modular Systems on road safety, on the road infrastructure, on modal cooperation, on traffic volumes, as well as the environmental impacts of European Modular Systems on the transport system, including the impacts on modal split., taking into account the prior assessment performed under point (-a);
   (da) the Member States shall ensure that appropriate measures are taken to avoid any possible negative impacts on road safety, including the safety of vulnerable road users, as a result of use of European Modular Systems.

Member States may establish minimum requirements or a certification scheme for the drivers of European Modular Systems, provided that they ensure proportionality and non-discrimination. Member States shall cooperate to mutually recognise each other’s certifications.

Whenever a Member State allows, pursuant to this paragraph, the circulation of European Modular Systems in national traffic, it may not reject or prohibit the circulation in its territory of European Modular Systems in international traffic, provided that such systems do not exceed the maximum weights and dimensions set for European Modular Systems in national traffic.

Member States shall informnotify the Commission in case they allow the circulation in their territories of European Modular Systems and inform it how they fulfil the conditions set out in points (-a) to (da) of this paragraph.; Following such notifications, the Commission shall, where appropriate, issue recommendations to those Member States to ensure the compliance with these conditions. Where the Commission issues recommendations, the Member State concerned shall, within 6 months, inform the Commission of how it intends to implement those recommendations. The Commission recommendations and responses by the Member State shall be made publicly available. [Am. 26]

"

(d)  paragraph 5 is replaced by the following:"

‘5. Member States may allow for a limited period of time trials of vehicles or vehicle combinations incorporating new technologies or new concepts which cannot comply with requirements of this Directive. Such vehicles or vehicle combinations shall be allowed to carry out certain national or international transport operations for the trial period only after demonstrating that the targeted transport activities cannot be conducted by any other form of transport that offers similar or superior safety and environmental benefits. It must be proven that this does not have a significant impact on intermodal competition in the transportation industry as a whole. In particular, trials with European Modular Systems shall be allowed for a maximum of five years and can be renewed once for a maximum of three years. If a Member State decides to renew a trial, it shall provide sufficient justification to the Commission. The number of trials shall not be limited. Member States shall inform the Commission thereof. [Am. 27]

Member States shall set a monitoring system and assess the impact of the trials referred to in the first subparagraph on road safety, on the road infrastructure and on modal cooperation, as well as the environmental impacts on the transport system, including the impacts on modal split.;’

"

(e)  the following paragraph 5a is inserted:"

‘5a. The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 10h to supplement this Directive by determining the minimum sets of data and the performance indicators to be provided by the prior assessments and monitoring systems set up by the Member States as referred to in paragraphs 4a, pointpoints (-a) and (d), and 5 of this Article.;’ [Am. 28]

"

(f)  paragraph 7 is deleted;

(4)  the following Articles 4a and 4b are inserted:"

‘Article 4a

1.  Member States shall establish and manage an electronic information and communications system with at least the following ‘one-stop-shop’ functions:

   (a) a single national entry point through which the applicant shall submit its application for the special permit or similar arrangement as laid down in Article 4(3) in a standardised format;
   (b) a single national access point for the applicants to obtain the information on the requirements for applying for special permits or similar arrangements as laid down in Article 4(3) and to the necessary information to plan their routes in a clear, accessible, and transparent manner;
   (c) a single national access point for the operators of European Modular Systems to the information referred to in Article 4(4a), points (a) and (b), where relevant.
   (ca) a single national access point to obtain information, in a clear, accessible, and transparent manner, regarding national maximum authorised weights and dimensions of vehicles, as well as any restrictions, including on height, in specified areas or on specific roads. [Am. 29]

1a.   By [6 months after the date of transposition of this Directive], the Commission shall establish, and thereafter manage, a dedicated and up-to-date European web portal, available in all official languages of the Union, connecting, in a clear, accessible, and transparent manner, the national electronic and communications systems, referred to in paragraph 1. This European portal shall also make publicly available, in an accessible and transparent way, the parts of the road network where European Modular Systems, and, where available, vehicles transporting indivisible loads, can circulate. [Am. 30]

2.  The Commission mayshall adopt implementing acts establishing aan EU common standard permit application form and harmonising the rules and procedures, including regarding the necessary vehicle registration information, for the issuing, including in digital format, of national permits or similar arrangements referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article and in Article 4(3), as well as harmonising the relevant rules for escorting transport of indivisible loads. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 10i(2). [Am. 31]

Article 4b

1.  Whenever a Member State, pursuant to Article 4(2), point (a), allows the circulation within its territory of vehicle combinations with a maximum weight exceeding the limits set out in points 2.2.1 or 2.2.2 of Annex I, it may not reject or prohibit the use in its territory in international traffic of those vehicle combinations complying with the weight values set for the national transport of goods, provided that such vehicle combinations do not have a maximum authorised weight exceeding 44 tonnes.

2.  By way of derogation from paragraph 1, the 44 tonnes-weight limit set out in paragraph 1 may be exceeded in case the Member State allows higher weight values to those vehicle combinations when involved in an intermodal transport operation.

3.  In view of the expected increase in the uptake of zero-emission vehicles, this Article shall apply until 31 December 2034.’;’

"

(5)  Article 6 is amended as follows:

(a)  paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:"

‘1. Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that the vehicles referred to in Article 1 and complying with this Directive carry one of the following proofs:

   (a) a combination of the following two plates:
   (i) the ‘manufacturer's statutory plate’ established and attached in accordance with Annex II to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/535*,
   (ii) the plate relating to dimensions, in accordance with Annex III to this Directive, established and attached in accordance with Annex II to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/535;
   (b) a single plate established and attached in accordance with Annex II to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/535 and containing the information on the two plates referred to in point (a) of this paragraph;
   (c) a single document issued by the competent authorities of the Member State in which the vehicle is registered or put into circulation. Such document shall bear the same headings and information as the plates referred to in point (a). It shall be kept in a place easily accessible to inspection and shall be adequately protected.’;

________

* Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/535 of 31 March 2021 laying down rules for the application of Regulation (EU) 2019/2144 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards uniform procedures and technical specifications for the type-approval of vehicles, and of systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles, as regards their general construction characteristics and safety (OJ L 117, 6.4.2021, p. 1).’;’

"

(aa)   paragraph 4 is replaced by the following:"

4 Vehicles carrying proof of compliance shall be subject:

   as regards common standards on weights, to random checks,
   as regards common standards on dimensions, to checks where there is a suspicion of non-compliance with this Directive." [Am. 32]

"

(b)  paragraph 5 is replaced by the following:"

‘5. The middle column of the proof of compliance relating to weights shall contain, where appropriate, the Union weight standards applicable to the vehicle in question.;’

"

(c)  the following paragraph 7 is added:"

‘7. For a transport operation to qualify as an intermodal transport operations for the purpose of this directive, the shipper or, if different from the shipper, the undertaking which organises the intermodal transport operation, shall ensure that the documents referred to under Articles 3 and 7 of Directive 92/106/ECC, as appropriate, are recorded and made available on an eFTI platform in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2020/1056. Such information shall be accessible to competent authorities, on the same eFTI platform where the transport information was recorded, in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2020/1056.’

"

(6)  Article 8b is amended as follows:

(a)  paragraphs 1 and 2 are replaced by the following:"

‘1. With the aim of improving their energy efficiency, vehicles or vehicle combinations which are equipped with aerodynamic devices meeting the requirements laid down in paragraphs 2 and 3, and which comply with Regulation (EU) 2018/858, may exceed the maximum lengths provided for in point 1.1 of Annex I to this Directive, to allow the addition of such devices to the rear of vehicles or vehicle combinations. Vehicles or vehicle combinations equipped with such devices shall comply with point 1.5 of Annex I to this Directive, and any exceeding of the maximum lengths shall not result in an increase in the loading length of those vehicles or vehicle combinations.

2.  Before being placed on the market, the aerodynamic devices referred to in paragraph 1 shall be type-approved in accordance with the rules on type-approval within the framework of Regulation (EU) 2018/858 and Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/535.;’

"

(b)  paragraph 5 is deleted;

(7)  the following Article 8c is inserted:"

‘Article 8c

Vehicle transporters with open bodies may exceed the maximum lengths laid down in point 1.1 of Annex I while loaded, up to a total of 20,75 meters, using authorisedload supports, such as extendable rear load supports.

The overhang or load support of vehicle transporters may not protrude in relation to the overhanging load. The load may protrude in front of the towing vehicle up to a maximum of 0,5 meters, provided that all of the axlesthe first axle of the transported vehicle restsrest on the trailervehicle structure. The load may protrude from behind up to a maximum of 1,5 meters, provided that at the most onethe last axle of the transported vehicle rests on the trailer structurerear load support.;’ [Am. 33]

"

(8)  Article 9a is amended as follows:

(a)  paragraph 1 and 2 are replaced by the following:"

‘1. Vehicles or vehicle combinations which comply with Regulation (EU) 2018/858 may exceed the maximum lengths laid down in point 1.1 of Annex I to this Directive provided that their cabs deliver improved aerodynamic performance, energy efficiency and, safety performance and driver comfort. Any excess of the maximum lengths allowed under this Article may also be used to install zero-emission technology. Vehicles or vehicle combinations equipped with such cabs shall comply with point 1.5 of Annex I to this Directive and any exceeding of the maximum lengths shall not result in an increase in the load capacity of those vehicles. [Am. 34]

2.  Before being placed on the market, the vehicles referred to in paragraph 1 shall be approved in accordance with the rules on type-approval within the framework of Regulation (EU) 2018/858 and Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/535.;’

"

(b)  paragraph 3 is deleted;

(9)  Article 10b is replaced by the following:"

‘Article 10b

1.  The maximum authorised weights and axle weights of alternatively fuelled or zero-emission vehicles shall be those set out in points 2.2., 2.3, 2.4, 3.4.2 and 3.4.3 of Annex I.

The additional weight required by alternatively fuelled vehicles other than zero-emission vehicles shall be defined on the basis of the documentation provided by the manufacturer when the vehicle in question is approved. That additional weight shall be indicated in the official proof required in accordance with Article 6.

The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 10h to supplement this Directive by updating the list of alternative fuels referred to in Article 2 that require additional weight. It is of particular importance that the Commission follow its usual practice and carry out consultations with experts, including Member States’ experts, before adopting those delegated acts.’.

2.  The maximum lengths laid down in point 1.1 of Annex I for zero-emission vehicles or vehicle combinations including zero-emission vehicles may be exceeded by the additional length necessary to accommodate the zero-emission technology, with a maximum of 90 cm, to allow the addition of such devices. Such zero-emission vehicles or vehicle combinations shall comply with points 1.5 and 1.5a of Annex I to this Directive, and any exceeding of the maximum lengths shall not result in an increase in the loading length of those vehicles or vehicle combinations, in order to ensure the compatibility of trailers and semi-trailers with the requirements for intermodal transport operations. [Am. 35]

The additional length required by zero-emission vehicles shall be defined on the basis of the documentation provided by the manufacturer when the vehicle in question is approved. That additional length shall be indicated in the official proof required in accordance with Article 6.’.’

"

(10)  Article 10c is replaced by the following"

‘Article 10c

In the case of vehicles or vehicle combinations engaged in an intermodal transport operation, the maximum lengthslength laid down in point 1.1 of Annex I for an articulated vehicle, subject where applicable to Article 9a(1) and 10b(2), shall be of 18,00 m and the maximum distance laid down in point 1.6 of Annex I, may be exceeded by 15 cm for vehicles or vehicle combinations engaged in the transport of 45-foot containers or 45-foot swap bodies, empty or loaded, provided that the road transport of the container or swap body in question is part of an intermodal transport operation. shall be of 13,50 m;’ [Am. 36]

"

(10a)   the following Article 10ca is inserted:"

Article 10ca

1.   In order to increase road safety and to avoid a multiplicity of vehicle markings and signalling, a single EU label for the length of motor vehicles or vehicle combinations in circulation used in EMS operations or with dimensions deviating from those laid down in points 1.1, 1.2, 1.4 to 1.8, 4.2 and 4.4 of Annex I is hereby established.

2.   Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that all motor vehicles or vehicle combinations referred to in paragraph 1 display the EU label clearly and visibly at the rear of their motor vehicle or vehicle combination.

3.   By [1 year after the date of entry into force], the Commission shall adopt a delegated act in accordance with Article 10h to supplement this Directive by setting out the detailed standards, requirements and other provisions, for the labels and their issuing and display, favouring the use of pictograms over text. [Am. 37]

"

(11)  Article 10d is amended as follows:

(a)  paragraphs 1 and 2 are replaced by the following:"

‘1. Member States shall take specific measures to identifydetect vehicles or vehicle combinations in circulation that are likely to have exceededexceed the maximum authorised weight and that should therefore be checked by their competent authorities in order to ensure compliance with the requirements of this Directive, including compliance with the requirements of special permits. Those measures may be taken with the aid ofshall include establishing automatic systems set up on the road infrastructure, or by means of on-board weighing equipment installed in vehicles ensuring as a minimum a deployment in accordance with paragraph 4Regulation (EU) No 1315/2013*. Member States shall establish certified automatic systems along the core network in the trans-European road transport network defined in Regulation (EU) No 1315/2013.

If a Member State chooses to set upIn addition to the use of automatic systems set up on the road infrastructure, it shall ensure as a minimum the deployment of such systems in the trans-European road transport network set out in Regulation (EU) 1315/2013*Member States may identify vehicles or vehicle combinations in circulation that are likely to have exceeded the maximum authorised weights by means of on-board weighing equipment installed in vehicles in accordance with paragraph 4 or by means of road-side checks.

A Member State shall not require on-board weighing equipment to be installed on vehicles or vehicle combinations which are registered in another Member State.

Without prejudice to Union and national law, whereMember States may use the certified automatic systems are used to establishto impose penalties in respect of infringements of this Directive and to impose penalties, such. Certified automatic systems shall be certified. Where automatic systems are used only for identification purposes, they need not be certifiedlinked to the single national entry point for special permits or similar arrangement set out in Article 4a in order to be able to recognise vehicles or vehicle combinations which exceed the maximum authorised weights and are in possession of a special permit, as well as those that exceed the authorised weights permitted under the special permit. [Am. 38]

2.  Each Member State shall carry out each calendar year at least six checks per one million vehicle-kilometres travelled by vehicles or vehicle combinations used for the transport of goods and falling within the scope of this Directive in its territory on the weights of those vehicles or vehicle combinations, irrespective of the country of registration of such vehicles or of the country where such vehicles were put into circulation. The compliance checks shall include an appropriate number of checks performed at night time.’;

________

* Regulation (EU) No 1315/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 on Union guidelines for the development of the trans-European transport network and repealing Decision No 661/2010/EU (OJ L 348, 20.12.2013, p. 1).’

"

(b)  in paragraph 5, the first subparagraph is replaced by the following:"

‘5. The Commission shall adopt implementing acts, laying down detailed provisions ensuring uniform conditions for the implementation of the rules on interoperability and compatibility set out in paragraph 4.’;’

"

(12)  the following Article 10da is inserted:"

‘Article 10da

1.  Member States may implement Intelligent Access Policy (IAP) schemes within their territories to regulate, monitor and ease the access by heavy-duty vehicles to specific roads or areas.

For the purposes of this Article, an ‘intelligent access policy’ shall mean a technical and functional framework to manage heavy-duty vehicle access to the road network, through the use of telematics, to ensure compliance with the applicable rules on weights and dimensions.

2.  When a Member State implements IAP pursuant to paragraph 1, itStates shall ensure that their IAP schemes comply with Directive 2010/40/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council*. In particular, Member States shall ensure that data related to the IAP scheme and falling within the scope of Directive 2010/40/EU, including weight, length, width or height restrictions, are available in digital machine-readable format and made accessible via the National Access Points established under Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/670**. Member States shall also ensure that the IAP scheme is linked to the single national entry point for special permits or similar arrangement set out in Article 4a in order to be able to recognise vehicles or vehicle combinations which exceed the maximum authorised weights and/or dimensions and are in possession of a special permit.

3.  When a Member State implementsimplementing IAP schemes pursuant to paragraph 1, itMember States shall:

   (a) define the criteria for granting access to heavy-duty vehicles, including but not limited to vehicle weight, length, height, technical specifications, and compliance with specific safety standards;
   (b) favour the use of advanced intelligent transport systems to enhance safety and efficiency and reduce congestion in road transport operations affected by the IAP schemes;
   (c) establish a comprehensive information and communication system to inform operators of heavy-duty vehicles about the IAP scheme requirements, application procedures, and any updates or changes to the scheme;
   (ca) refrain from discriminatory or disproportionate restrictions on the free movement of goods and services and from unduly impeding the proper functioning of the internal market.

4.   The establishment of IAP schemes by a Member State shall not give rise to discriminatory or disproportionate restrictions on the free movement of goods and services and shall not unduly impede the smooth functioning of the internal market. [Am. 39]

________

* Directive 2010/40/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 July 2010 on the framework for the deployment of Intelligent Transport Systems in the field of road transport and for interfaces with other modes of transport (OJ L 207, 6.8.2010, p. 1).

** Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/670 of 2 February 2022 supplementing Directive 2010/40/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to the provision of EU-wide real-time traffic information services (OJ L 122, 25.4.2022, p. 1).’

"

(12a)   In Article 10e, the following new paragraph is added:"

Member States shall be encouraged to use the revenues generated from these penalties, or the equivalent in financial value of those revenues, to develop and support the market uptake of sustainable transport means, finance its infrastructure and smart enforcement systems, encourage intermodal transport operations, and increase the sustainability of cross-border transport operations. [Am. 40]

"

(13)  in Article 10f(1), point (a) is replaced by the following:"

‘(a) the shipper to give to the haulier to whom it entrusts the transport of a container or swap body a statement indicating the weight and the height of the container or swap body transported; and;’

"

(14)  Article 10g is replaced by the following:"

‘Article 10g

1.  Every 2 years, and at the latest by 30 September of the year following the end of the 2-year period concerned, Member States shall send to the Commission the necessary information concerning:

   (a) the number of checks carried out in the previous 2 calendar years;
   (b) the number of overloaded vehicles or vehicle combinations detected;
   (c) the number and location of automatic systems set up on the road infrastructure pursuant to Article 10d(1), and whether they are for identification purposes only or certified for direct enforcement; [Am. 41]
   (d) the implementation and effectiveness of IAP schemes set up in accordance with Article 10da,;
   (e) the number of national permits issued for abnormal transport pursuant to Article 4(3) and their duration (one-off permits or long-term permits);
   (f) the results of the assessments carried out pursuant to Article 4(4a), point (d), and Article 4(5).

This information shall be disaggregated per year.

2.  The Commission shall analyse the information received pursuant to paragraph 1, and, on the basis of the information received, issue, where appropriate, recommendations to Member States. Where the Commission issues such recommendations, the Member State concerned shall, within 6 months of their issuance, inform the Commission of how it intends to implement these recommendations. The Commission shall present a report to the European Parliament and the Council on the implementationcompliance with requirements of this Directive, no later than 1312 months after receiving the information from all Member States. Such report shall include information on relevant developments in the fields in question. [Am. 42]

3.  The Commission, by means of implementing acts, shall establish a standard reporting form in electronic format to be used by Member States for submitting to the Commission the information referred to in paragraph 1. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 10i(2).;’

"

(15)  In Article 10h, paragraph 2 isparagraphs 2, 3 and 5 are replaced by the following:"

‘2. The power to adopt delegated acts referred to in Articles 4(5a) and 10b(1)Article 4(5a), Article 10b(1) and Article 10ca shall be conferred on the Commission for a period of 5 years from [PO please insert date of entry into force of this Directive]. The Commission shall draw up a report in respect of the delegation of power not later than 9 months before the end of the 5-year period. The delegation of power shall be tacitly extended for periods of an identical duration, unless the European Parliament or the Council opposes such extension not later than 3 months before the end of each period.; [Am. 43]

3.   The delegation of power referred to in Article 4(5a), Article 10b(1) and Article 10ca may be revoked at any time by the European Parliament or by the Council. A decision to revoke shall put an end to the delegation of the power specified in that decision. It shall take effect the day following the publication of the decision in the Official Journal of the European Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect the validity of any delegated acts already in force. [Am. 44]

5.   A delegated act adopted pursuant to Articles 4(5a), 10b(1) and 10ca shall enter into force only if no objection has been expressed either by the European Parliament or the Council within a period of 2 months of notification of that act to the European Parliament and the Council or if, before the expiry of that period, the European Parliament and the Council have both informed the Commission that they will not object. That period shall be extended by 2 months at the initiative of the European Parliament or of the Council. [Am. 45]

"

(16)  In Article 10i, the following paragraph 4 is inserted:"

‘4. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 8 of Regulation (EU) 182/2011 shall apply.;’

"

(17)  Article 10j is deleted;replaced by the following:"

Article 10j

By 2027, and every 4 years thereafter, the Commission shall present a report to the European Parliament and to the Council, on the application of this Directive. The report shall contain a detailed assessment of the evolution of national and international road transport, including specific characteristics of certain market segments and the impact of that evolution on road safety, the road infrastructure, the functioning of the road transport internal market, the competitiveness of the sector, connectivity, and modal shift. The report may incorporate elements from the report referred to in Article 10g(2). In particular, in this report the Commission shall analyse whether the necessary enabling conditions for the market uptake of zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles in the Union, are satisfactorily met for the date referred to in paragraph 3 of Art 4b. In particular, this report shall assess, among others, the following enabling conditions: the amount of registrations of zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles in Member States, the availability and capacity of appropriate alternative fuels infrastructure and the impact of the European emission trading system on road transport as well as road user charges differentiated by CO2 emissions in Member States. In addition, this analysis shall assess the enabling conditions for the market uptake of zero-emission vehicles or vehicle combinations of European Modular Systems engaged in international traffic in those Member States allowing their circulation in their territories.

In addition, the report shall analyse the use of the Intelligent Access Policy (IAP) schemes in regards to enforcement, taking into account their availability and cost-efficiency. Furthermore, the report shall inform on technological advancements in the area of road transport which are relevant, including with regards to new technologies or new concepts and aerodynamic devices, as well as trailers or semi-trailers with zero-emission technology.

As part of this report, the Commission shall also assess the effectiveness and impact of this Directive, the extent to which the implementation of this Directive has met its objectives and its interaction and compatibility with other relevant Union legislation.

On the basis of the findings in these assessments above, the report shall, where appropriate, be accompanied by a legislative proposal to amend this Directive. [Am. 46]

"

(18)  the following Article 10k is inserted:"

‘Article 10k

In case of a crisis, where the public interest requires it, and provided that road safety is not thereby jeopardised, Members States may grant temporary exceptions from the application of the weights and dimensions limits set out in Annex I for vehicles used in national traffic, for a period not exceeding two months. This period may be renewed only where the crisis persists. [Am. 47]

Any such exception shall be duly reasoned and notified immediately to the Commission. The Commission shall immediately publish the information on the granted exception on its official website and on the dedicated European web portal referred to in Article 4a(1a). [Am. 48]

Where a crisis affects several Member States, the Commission may adopt implementing acts in order to establish temporary exceptions from the application of the weights and dimensions limits set out in Annex I for vehicles used in international traffic between affected Member States. The period of such exception may not exceed six months, and may be renewed only where the crisis persists. Such implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 10i(4).

For the purposes of this Article, a crisis means an exceptional, unexpected and sudden, natural or man-made event of extraordinary nature and scale that takes place inside or outside of the Union, with significant direct or indirect impacts on the area of road transport or the economy or welfare, including safety, of the Union citizens, where the normal functioning of society is significantly disrupted, and where the public interest requires urgent action to be taken.;’ [Am. 49]

"

(19)  Annex I is replaced by the Annex to this Directive;

(20)  in Annex III, the words ‘Directive 76/114/EEC’ are replaced by the words ‘Annex II to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/535’.

Article 2

Amendments to Regulation (EU) 2020/1056

 In Article 2(1), point (a), of Regulation (EU) 2020/1056, the following point (vi) is inserted:"

‘(vi) Article 6(7) of Council Directive 96/53/EC*;’

________

* Council Directive 96/53/EC of 25 July 1996 laying down for certain road vehicles circulating within the Community the maximum authorised dimensions in national and international traffic and the maximum authorised weights in international traffic (OJ L 235, 17.9.1996, p. 59).’

"

Article 3

Transposition

1.  Member States shall adopt and publish, by [date-of-adoption+2 years1 year] at the latest, the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive. They shall forthwith communicate to the Commission the text of those provisions. When Member States adopt those provisions, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or be accompanied by such reference on the occasion of their official publication. Member States shall determine how such reference is to be made. [Am. 50]

2.  Member States shall communicate to the Commission the text of the main provisions of national law which they adopt in the field covered by this Directive.

Article 4

Entry into force

This Directive shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Article 5

Addressees

This Directive is addressed to the Member States.

Done at …,

For the European Parliament For the Council

The President The President

Annex

MAXIMUM WEIGHTS AND DIMENSIONS AND RELATED CHARACTERISTICS OF VEHICLES

1.  Maximum authorised dimensions for the vehicles referred to in Article 1(1), point (a)

1.1  Maximum length

 

—  motor vehicle other than a bus

12,00 m

—  trailer

12,00 m

—  articulated vehicle

16,50 m

—  road train

18,75 m

—  articulated bus with three axles

18,75 m

—  articulated bus with four axles

21,00 m

—  bus with two axles

13,50 m

—  bus with more than two axles

15,00 m

—  bus + trailer

18,75 m

1.2  Maximum width:

 

(a)  all vehicles except vehicles referred to in point (b)

2,55 m

(b)  superstructures of conditioned vehicles or conditioned containers or swap bodies transported by vehicles

2,60 m

1.3  Maximum height

 

—  any vehicle

4,00 m

—  vehicles or vehicle combinations carrying in intermodal transport one or more containers with a standard external height of 9’ 6’’ (high-cube containers)

4,30 m

1.4  Removable superstructures and standardised freight items such as containers are included in the dimensions specified in points 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.6, 1.7, 1.8 and 4.4.

1.4a  If any removable attachments such as ski-boxes are fitted to a bus, its length, including the attachments, must not exceed the maximum length laid down in point 1.1.

1.5  Any motor vehicle or vehicle combination which is in motion must be able to turn within a swept circle having an outer radius of 12,50 m and an inner radius of 5,30 m

1.5a  Additional requirements for buses

 

With the vehicle stationary, a vertical plane tangential to the side of the vehicle and facing outwards from the circle shall be established by marking a line on the ground. In the case of an articulated vehicle, the two rigid portions shall be aligned with the plane.

When the vehicle moves from a straight line approach into the circular area described in point 1.5, no part of it shall move outside of that vertical plane by more than 0,60 m

1.6  Maximum distance between the axis of the fifth-wheel king pin and the rear of a semi-trailer.

12,00 m

1.7  Maximum distance measured parallel to the longitudinal axis of the road train from the foremost external point of the loading area behind the cabin to the rearmost external point of the trailer of the combination, minus the distance between the rear of the drawing vehicle and the front of the trailer.

15,65 m

1.8  Maximum distance measured parallel to the longitudinal axis of the road train from the foremost external point of the loading area behind the cabin to the rearmost external point of the trailer of the combination.

16,40 m

2.  Maximum authorised vehicle weight

2.1  Vehicles forming part of a vehicle combination

 

2.1.1

Two-axle trailer

18 tonnes

2.1.2

Three-axle trailer

24 tonnes

2.2  Vehicle combinations

 

2.2.1

Road trains with five or six axles

(a)  two-axle motor vehicle with three-axle trailer

40 tonnes

(b)  three-axle motor vehicle with two or three-axle trailer

40 tonnes

2.2.2

Articulated vehicles with five or six axles

(a)  

two-axle motor vehicle with three-axle semi-trailer

40 tonnes

(b)  

three-axle motor vehicle with two or three-axle semi-trailer

40 tonnes

(c)  

two-axle motor vehicle with three-axle semi-trailer involved in intermodal transport operations

4244 tonnes

(d)  

three-axle motor vehicle with two- or three-axle semi-trailer involved in intermodal transport operations

44 tonnes

2.2.3

Road trains with four axles consisting of a two-axle motor vehicle and a two-axle trailer

36 tonnes

2.2.4

Articulated vehicles with four axles consisting of a two-axle motor vehicle and a two-axle semi-trailer, if the distance between the axles of the semi-trailer:

2.2.4.1

is 1,3 m or greater but not more than 1,8 m

36 tonnes

2.2.4.2

is greater than 1,8 m

36 tonnes

In case the maximum authorised weight (MAW) of the motor vehicle (18 tonnes) and the MAW of the tandem axle of the semi-trailer (20 tonnes) are respected and the driving axle is fitted with twin tyres and air suspension or suspension recognised as being equivalent within the Union as defined in Annex II the maximum authorised weight provided for in point 2.2.4.2 shall be increased by 2 tonnes.

In the case of vehicle combinations including alternatively fuelled motor vehicles other than zero-emission motor vehicles, the maximum authorised weights provided for in Sub-section 2.2 shall be increased by the additional weight of the alternative fuel technology with a maximum of 1 tonne.

In the case of vehicle combinations including zero-emission motor vehicles the maximum authorised weights provided for in Sub-section 2.2.1 and 2.2.2 shall be increased by 4 tonnes.

In the case of vehicle combinations including zero-emission motor vehicles the maximum authorised weights provided for in in Sub-section 2.2.3 and 2.2.4 shall be increased by 2 tonnes.

 

In the case of vehicle combinations including trailers or semi-trailers with zero-emission technology the maximum authorised weights provided for in Sub-section 2.2.1, 2.2.2, 2.2.3 and 2.2.4 shall be increased by 2 tonnes.

 

When more than one of the increases for vehicle combinations set out above apply to a single vehicle combination, those increases shall apply cumulatively.

2.3  Motor vehicles

 

2.3.1

Two-axle motor vehicles other than buses:

18 tonnes

2.3.2

two-axle buses:

19,5 tonnes

2.3.3

Three-axle motor vehicles:

25 tonnes

2.3.4

Three-axle motor vehicles where the driving axle is fitted with twin tyres and air suspension or suspension recognised as being equivalent within the Union as defined in Annex II, or where each driving axle is fitted with twin tyres and the maximum weight of each axle does not exceed 9,5 tonnes.

26 tonnes

2.3.5

Four-axle motor vehicles with two steering axles where the driving axle is fitted with twin tyres and air suspension or suspension recognized as being equivalent within the Union as defined in Annex II, or where each driving axle is fitted with twin tyres and the maximum weight of each axle does not exceed 9,5 tonnes

32 tonnes

2.3.6

Five-axle motor vehicles with two steering axles where the driving axle is fitted with twin tyres and air suspension or suspension recognized as being equivalent within the Union as defined in Annex II, or where each driving axle is fitted with twin tyres and the maximum weight of each axle does not exceed 9,5 tonnes.

40 tonnes

In the case of alternatively fuelled motor vehicles other than zero-emission motor vehicles, the maximum authorised weights provided for in points 2.3.1, 2.3.3 and 2.3.4 of Sub-section 2.3 shall be increased by the additional weight of the alternative fuel technology with a maximum of 1 tonne.

In the case of zero-emission motor vehicles, the maximum authorised weights provided for in Sub-section 2.3 shall be increased by 2 tonnes.

2.4  Three-axle articulated buses

28 tonnes

2.5  Four-axle articulated buses

32 tonnes

 

In the case of alternatively fuelled motor vehicles other than zero-emission motor vehicles, the maximum authorised weight of 28 tonnesweights provided for in Sub-sectionSub-sections 2.4 isand 2.5 are increased by the additional weight required for the alternative fuel technology with a maximum of 1 tonne.

In the case of zero-emission motor vehicles the maximum authorised weight of 28 tonnesweights provided for in Sub-sectionSub-sections 2.4 isand 2.5 are increased by 2 tonnes

3.  Maximum authorised axle weight of the vehicles referred to in Article 1 (1), point (b)

3.1  Single axles

 

Single non-driving axle

10 tonnes

3.2  Tandem axles of trailers and semi-trailers

 

The sum of the axle weights per tandem axle must not exceed, if the distance (d) between the axles is:

 

3.2.1

less than 1 m (d < 1,0)

11 tonnes

3.2.2

between 1,0 m and less than 1,3 m (1,0 ≤ d < 1,3)

16 tonnes

3.2.3

between 1,3 m and less than 1,8 m (1,3 ≤ d < 1,8)

18 tonnes

3.2.4

1,8 m or more (1,8 ≤ d)

20 tonnes

3.3  Tri-axles of trailers and semi-trailers

 

The sum of the axle weights per tri-axle must not exceed, if the distance (d) between the axles is:

 

3.3.1

1,3 m or less (d ≤ 1,3)

21 tonnes

3.3.2

over 1,3 m and up to 1,4 m (1,3

24 tonnes

3.4  Driving axle

 

3.4.1

Driving axle of the vehicles referred to in points 2.2, 2.3 and 2.4 other than zero-emission vehicles

11,5 tonnes

3.4.2

Driving axle of zero-emission vehicles referred to in points 2.2.1 and 2.2.2

12.5 tonnes

3.4.3

Zero-emission two-axle buses

12.5 tonnes

 

3.4.4

Zero-emission three-axle buses

12.5 tonnes

3.5  Tandem axles of motor vehicles

 

The sum of the axle weights per tandem axle must not exceed, if the distance (d) between the axles is:

 

3.5.1

less than 1 m (d < 1,0)

11,5 tonnes

3.5.2

1,0 m or greater but less than 1,3 m (1,0 ≤ d < 1,3)

16 tonnes

3.5.3

1,3 m or greater but less than 1,8 m (1,3 ≤ d < 1,8)

18 tonnes

Where the driving axle is fitted with twin tyres and air suspension or suspension recognised as being equivalent within the Union as defined in Annex II, or where each driving axle is fitted with twin tyres and where the maximum weight for each axle does not exceed 9,5 tonnes. In case of zero-emission motor vehicles, the maximum sum of the axle weights per tandem axle shall be increased by 1 tonne.

19 tonnes

3.6  Tri-axles of motor vehicles

 

The sum of the axle weights per tri-axles must not exceed, if the distance (d) between the axles is:

 

3.6.1

less than 1,3 m (d < 1,3)

21 tonnes

3.6.2

1,3 m or greater but less than 1,8 m (1,3 ≤ d < 1,8)

24 tonnes

4.  Related characteristics of the vehicles referred to in Article 1(1), point (b)

4.1  All vehicles

 

The weight borne by the driving axle or driving axles of a vehicle or vehicle combination must not be less than 25 % of the total laden weight of the vehicle or vehicle combination, when used in international traffic

4.2  Road trains

 

The distance between the rear axle of a motor vehicle and the front axle of a trailer must not be less than 3,00 m

4.3  Maximum authorised weight depending on the wheelbase

 

The maximum authorised weight in tonnes of a four-axle or five-axle motor vehicle may not exceed five times the distance in metres between the axles of the foremost and rearmost axles of the vehicle

4.4  Semi-trailers

 

The distance measured horizontally between the axis of the fifth-wheel king pin and any point at the front of the semi-trailer must not exceed 2,04 m [Am. 51]

(1) OJ C, C/2024/895, 6.2.2024, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2024/895/oj.
(2)OJ C , , p. .
(3)OJ C , , p. .
(4)OJ L 235, 17.9.1996, p. 59.
(5)COM(2020)789 final.
(6)COM(2019) 640 final.
(7)Regulation (EU) 2018/858 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 on the approval and market surveillance of motor vehicles and their trailers, and of systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles, amending Regulations (EC) No 715/2007 and (EC) No 595/2009 and repealing Directive 2007/46/EC (OJ L 151, 14.6.2018, p. 1) and Regulation (EU) 2019/2144 Regulation (EU) 2019/2144 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019 on type-approval requirements for motor vehicles and their trailers, and systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles, as regards their general safety and the protection of vehicle occupants and vulnerable road users, amending Regulation (EU) 2018/858 of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Regulations (EC) No 78/2009, (EC) No 79/2009 and (EC) No 661/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Commission Regulations (EC) No 631/2009, (EU) No 406/2010, (EU) No 672/2010, (EU) No 1003/2010, (EU) No 1005/2010, (EU) No 1008/2010, (EU) No 1009/2010, (EU) No 19/2011, (EU) No 109/2011, (EU) No 458/2011, (EU) No 65/2012, (EU) No 130/2012, (EU) No 347/2012, (EU) No 351/2012, (EU) No 1230/2012 and (EU) 2015/166 (OJ L 325, 16.12.2019, p. 1).
(8)Regulation (EU) 2019/2144 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019 on type-approval requirements for motor vehicles and their trailers, and systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles, as regards their general safety and the protection of vehicle occupants and vulnerable road users, amending Regulation (EU) 2018/858 of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Regulations (EC) No 78/2009, (EC) No 79/2009 and (EC) No 661/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Commission Regulations (EC) No 631/2009, (EU) No 406/2010, (EU) No 672/2010, (EU) No 1003/2010, (EU) No 1005/2010, (EU) No 1008/2010, (EU) No 1009/2010, (EU) No 19/2011, (EU) No 109/2011, (EU) No 458/2011, (EU) No 65/2012, (EU) No 130/2012, (EU) No 347/2012, (EU) No 351/2012, (EU) No 1230/2012 and (EU) 2015/166 (OJ L 325, 16.12.2019, p. 1).
(9)Council Directive 92/106/EEC of 7 December 1992 on the establishment of common rules for certain types of combined transport of goods between Member States (OJ L 368, 17.12.1992, p. 38).
(10)Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/535 of 31 March 2021 laying down rules for the application of Regulation (EU) 2019/2144 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards uniform procedures and technical specifications for the type-approval of vehicles, and of systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles, as regards their general construction characteristics and safety (OJ L 117, 6.4.2021, p. 1).
(11)Regulation (EU) 1056/2020 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 July 2020 on electronic freight transport information (OJ L 249, 31.7.2020, p. 33).
(12)OJ L 123, 12.5.2016, p. 1.
(13)Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 laying down the rules and general principles concerning mechanisms for control by Member States of the Commission’s exercise of implementing powers (OJ L 55, 28.2.2011, p. 13).
(14)OJ C 369, 17.12.2011, p. 14.


Use of railway infrastructure capacity in the single European railway area, amending Directive 2012/34/EU and repealing Regulation (EU) No 913/2010
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Resolution
Consolidated text
European Parliament legislative resolution of 12 March 2024 on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the use of railway infrastructure capacity in the single European railway area, amending Directive 2012/34/EU and repealing Regulation (EU) No 913/2010 (COM(2023)0443 – C9-0304/2023 – 2023/0271(COD))
P9_TA(2024)0127A9-0069/2024

(Ordinary legislative procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2023)0443),

–  having regard to Article 294(2) and Article 91 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C9‑0304/2023),

–  having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 25 October 2023(1),

–  having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions of 1 February 2024(2),

–  having regard to Rule 59 of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the report of the Committee on Transport and Tourism (A9-0069/2024),

1.  Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out;

2.  Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal;

3.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

Position of the European Parliament adopted at first reading on 12 March 2024 with a view to the adoption of Regulation (EU) 2024/… of the European Parliament and of the Council on the use of railway infrastructure capacity in the single European railway area, amending Directive 2012/34/EU and repealing Regulation (EU) No 913/2010

P9_TC1-COD(2023)0271


(Text with EEA relevance)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 91 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,

After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee(3),

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions(4),

Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure,

Whereas:

(1)  The Commission Communication ‘The European Green Deal’(5) sets a climate neutrality objective to be achieved by the Union by 2050 as well as a clear objective to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030, compared to 1990 levels. It calls for a 90% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from transport, while working towards the zero-pollution ambition(6) to reduce the health impacts of air pollutant emissions by more than 55% and the share of people chronically disturbed by transport noise by 30% by 2030. Transport represents around 25% of the Union’s total greenhouse gas emissions, and these have increased over recent years. The European Green Deal prioritises the shift onto rail and inland waterways of a substantial part of the 75% of inland freight carried today by road. Rail being a largely electrified and energy efficient mode of transport, greater use of rail services should contribute to reducing transport’s emissions and energy consumption.

(2)  The Communication on Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy(7) sets out milestones to show the Union transport system’s path towards achieving the objectives of a sustainable, smart and resilient mobility. It envisages that rail freight traffic should increase by 50% by 2030 and double by 2050; traffic on high-speed rail should double by 2030 and triple by 2050 and scheduled collective travel under 500 km should be carbon-neutral by 2030 within the Union. To achieve these goals, rail transport must become more attractive in terms of affordability, reliability and accessibility, and services must be better adapted to the needs of travellers and freight shippers. [Am. 1]

(2a)   The underlying aim of this Regulation is to increase the utilisation of the rail infrastructure and thereby increase the modal share of rail. However, this Regulation alone cannot address Union's decarbonisation and modal shift targets by. Both Member States and the Commission should continue to work on numerous other elements that can help to further increase both rail infrastructure capacity and transport capacity, such as the bundling of train paths, speed harmonisation, efficient passenger changeover, the use of longer trains with increased axle load, the roll-out of harmonised ERTMS across Europe, as well as automated trains operation. [Am. 2]

(2b)   Tackling the efficiency of rail in order to increase the multi-modal competitive aspect between different transport modes is important to facilitate a substantial modal shift and to reach the targets set in the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy. Therefore, further measures to increase the competitiveness by rail, such as lower track access charges, should also be considered. With an increased demand for rail capacity by both passenger and freight services, investments will also be needed to realise those capacity enhancing measures. [Am. 3]

(2c)   Shift-to-rail objectives on EU level require national targets based on concrete national plans developed by Member States following bottom-up approach. [Am. 4]

(3)  Directive 2012/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council(8) lays down the rules applicable to the management and operation of railway infrastructure and the principles and procedures applicable to the allocation of railway infrastructure capacity for domestic and international rail services.

(4)  Regulation (EU) No 913/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council(9) provides for the establishment of rail freight corridors and one-stop shops to facilitate requests for infrastructure capacities for international rail freight services.

(5)  Rail infrastructure capacity management and rail traffic management are crucial to the well-functioning of the rail sector. The operation of rail transport services needs to be carefully planned and coordinated to allow trains with very different characteristics, such as speed and braking distance, to share safely the same tracks. Optimal management of capacity creates more opportunities for, and increases reliability of, rail services, which is a particularly important requirement for the increasing market of night trains as well as the ambitions to shift goods to rail freight. Regulation should provide infrastructure managers with sufficient flexibility for effective management of capacity while making sure that all railway undertakings are treated without discrimination in their access to the network. [Am. 5]

(6)  Directive 2012/34/EU recognises the right of Member States not to apply the rules on rail infrastructure capacity allocation to certain parts of the rail network or to certain rail services, where such an exclusion from the scope of Union law would not affect the functioning of the single European railway area. These exclusions, while being strictly limited, should continue to apply and Member States should retain the right to request such exclusions in the future also in relation to this Regulation. [Am. 6]

(7)  The rules and procedures on the management of rail infrastructure capacity should reflect betterconsider and satisfy the needs of all rail market segments in a non-discriminatory way. They should in particular take into account the necessity of long-term stability of available capacity for passenger services and of short-term flexibility for freight traffic to respond to market demand. Therefore, the process of managing capacity should no longer have a predominantly annual focus, but be arranged in three subsequent phases of strategic capacity planning; rail service scheduling and capacity allocation; and adaptation and rescheduling of capacity. The introduction of better defined and structured phases that provide for the possibility of long-term planning and short-term adaptation in capacity management, would particularly benefit services that are less easy to plan in advance or are more complex to arrange, such as freight trains and cross-border passenger trains, including night trains. [Am. 7]

(8)  An increasing portion of the Union rail network is either congested or close to congested and cannot accommodate the needs for rail infrastructure capacity of all applicants and support further growth in the volume of rail transport. Infrastructure development and digitalisation, in compliance with the technical specification for interoperability developed under Directive (EU) 2016/797 of the European Parliament and of the Council(10), in particular the European Rail Traffic Management System (‘ERTMS’), is expected to result in an increase of available capacity in the medium to long term. Nevertheless, infrastructure managers will be required to assign priorities for the use of congested sections. Without prejudice to general principles on priority set out by Member States in the framework for the allocation of infrastructure capacity, infrastructure managers should take decisions on priorities using transparent and harmonised methodologies which clarify how social, economic and environmental factors have been taken into account and affect their decision. These socio-economic and environmental criteria should be based on accepted methods and best available knowledge. Therefore, the Commission should be empowered to adopt a delegated act setting out the procedures, criteria and methodologies. When preparing that delegated act, the Commission should cooperate with European Network of Infrastructure Managers (ENIM) and European Union Agency for Railways (ERA) established by Regulation (EU) 2016/796. [Am. 8]

(8a)   Existing rail infrastructure capacity is not sufficient for reaching Union’s 2030 and 2050 shift-to-rail objectives. In fact, between 1990 and 2021 the railway network in the Union shrank by over 12,000 km. Achieving the Union's modal shift objectives primarily hinges on increasing rail efficiency and bolstering rail capacity, the latter necessitating investments for the maintenance, renewal and new construction of rail infrastructure. This includes leveraging national budgets, the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) established by Regulation (EU) 2021/1153 of the European Parliament and of the Council3(11), and private investments to address crucial missing links and alleviate bottlenecks, as well as obtaining appropriate levels of funding for maintenance. In particular, Member States should prevent the degrading of rail infrastructure and should minimise the impact of possible capacity restrictions by ensuring adequate, stable and timely long-term funding via multiannual performance agreements that should be concluded between Member State and the infrastructure manager for the period of at least five years. [Am. 9]

(9)  The strategic planning of capacity should improve the utilisation of rail infrastructure by anticipating demand for rail services and taking into account planned infrastructure development, renewal and maintenance. It should ensure that rail infrastructure capacity is allocated in a way that maximises the value of rail services for society taking into account socio-economic and environmental impacts. Infrastructure managers should ensure that strategic planning provides progressively increasing level of details about available capacity and that it is the basis for the capacity allocation. Applicants, European Railway Platform (ERP), customers of rail transport services and their associations, Union and national public authorities should be consulted during the strategic planning, and they should have an opportunity to provide input on study “the Analysis of expected transport market developments as referred to in Article 15” and to offer independent comments on the findings. [Am. 10]

(10)  To ensure that capacity is available for allocation for different rail market segments and in particular for freight and cross-border rail services, infrastructure managers should be allowed to pre-plan the use of capacity on congested or highly utilised sections of the rail network and to extend such planning to other sections of the network if deemed necessary. This pre-planning of capacity should take into account the different methods for capacity allocation and the characteristics of different rail market segments. It should allow for better utilisation of rail infrastructure by grouping trains with similar performance characteristics in the capacity allocation phase.

(11)  When allocating capacity, infrastructure managers should adhere to the strategic plans for the supply of capacity and at the same time ensure that capacity is allocated in accordance with market demand in a fair and non-discriminatory way. For that purpose, some capacity requests may be offered alternative capacity or, if no other possibility exists, refused and the plan for the supply of capacity must be regularly updated to reflect the actual demand. [Am. 11]

(11a)   In several national rail markets, the infrastructure manager is part of a vertically integrated holding company with one or more passenger and freight transport operators. While allocating capacity to these rail undertakings, it is of the upmost importance for the proper functioning of the market that capacity is allocated in a fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory way. In particular, sensitive information shared with the infrastructure manager as part of the capacity allocation process should be considered as confidential. [Am. 12]

(12)  Different rail market segments have different abilities to anticipate their rail infrastructure capacity needs. Some freight service providers, in particular, may not be able to identify their capacity needs in time to be included in the working timetable, thatwhich is in the annual plan for train and rolling-stock movement, and may not fit in its annual schedule. Therefore, infrastructure managers should be able to offer capacity of sufficient quality and quantity also for rail services that have unstable demand, are organised on relatively short notice, include more than a single train run, and may run repeatedly for a period of time that may not coincide with the duration of the working timetable period. This type of capacity offer could also be offered in a package of minimum pre-calculated unreserved train paths that can then be allocated at short notice. [Am. 13]

(12a)   Different practises for timetable planning are used in Member States and these concepts should be taken into account in the strategic capacity planning. These practises require increased coordination between infrastructure managers across borders, in particular when the infrastructure manager pre-plan capacity by using integrated clock-face timetables. [Am. 14]

(13)  Applicants for rail infrastructure capacity should be able to plan and request rail infrastructure capacity on an annual basis through the working timetable. Applicants should also be able to request rail infrastructure capacity with greater advance for stable, multi-annual rail services through framework agreements. Finally, applicants should be able to request capacity close to the time of operation for individual trains through ad hoc capacity requests or for repeated train services through rolling planning requests.

(14)  A significant share of rail freight transport is long-distance and requires cross-border coordination of infrastructure managers. The policy goal of increasing rail traffic also relies on growing cross-border passenger services. To facilitate and promote an increasing cross-border traffic in the single European railway area, it is necessary to ensure greater consistency and harmonisation of the rules and procedures on the management of rail infrastructure capacity. Accordingly, the role of the European Network of Infrastructure Manager should be strengthened with a view to entrusting it with the development of guidelines for the harmonised implementation of this Regulation on procedures and methodologies for the management of rail infrastructure capacity and with the active coordination of cross-border capacity and traffic. In particular, the European Network of Infrastructure Managers should develop European frameworks for capacity management, for the coordination of cross-border traffic management, disruption management and crisis management, and for performance review. Railway undertakings, applicants and other operational stakeholders should also be consulted in the development of these European frameworks. [Am. 15]

(15)  The European frameworks developed by the European Network of Infrastructure Manager should provide guidelines that infrastructure manager should make the utmost efforts to follow, while retaining responsibility for their operational decisions. Infrastructure managers should motivatejustify any deviation from the frameworks developed by European Network of Infrastructure Manager, which should only be allowed in exceptional cases and be subject to approval by the national rail regulatory body. This approach is considered to strike the balance between the needs of coordination and application of harmonised approaches in the single European railway area, and the need for adapting procedures and methodologies to the specific circumstances of given geographical areas. After five years of application of this Regulation, the Commission should assess whether the state of convergence of procedures and methodologies and the effectiveness of the coordination process between infrastructure managers, as well as the general progress towards the establishment of the single European railway area, warrant the introduction of secondary legislation to replace elements the European frameworks developed by the European Network of Infrastructure ManagerManagers. [Am. 16]

(15a)   To ensure a seamless European rail network and to enhance cross-border and multi-network rail traffic for both freight and passenger transport, new tasks should be assigned to the ERA. ERA should cooperate closely with ENIM and the Network Coordinator in the delivery of its new tasks. [Am. 17]

(15b)   ERA's resources are insufficient given the extent of the proposed increase in the Agency's tasks and the scale of the Union's ambitions within this Regulation. Thus, the amount of the financial resources dedicated to the performance of ERA tasks under this Regulation should be drawn from the unallocated margins under Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) ceilings or mobilised through the non-thematic MFF special instruments. Since the Commission proposal for MFF revision did not reinforce ERA budget, the increase in appropriations for ERA cannot be offset by a compensatory reduction of programmed spending under CEF Transport or lead to a reduction of the funding for any other Union programmes. [Am. 18]

(16)  The rules on management of cross-border rail traffic under normal conditions and in the case of disturbances should promote smooth, resilient and seamless operation of rail transport services. They should provide for a system of structured coordination between infrastructure managers and other stakeholders.

(17)  The operation of railway infrastructure not only requires close cooperation between infrastructure managers, but also a strong interaction with railway undertakings and other stakeholders directly involved in rail and multimodal transport and logistic operations. Therefore, it is necessary to provide for structured coordination between infrastructure managers and other stakeholders. To strengthen the role of Railway Undertakings and applicants, ERP is established as a consultative body to ENIM. Operators of service facilities and terminals, multimodal capacity stakeholder, such as sea and inland waterway ports and owners of other rail-related service facilities, might also be part of ERP. ENIM should consult ERP before preparing adoption of the European frameworks for Capacity Management, Traffic Management and Performance Management. Furthermore, ERP could provide ENIM with a closer view on market developments and it could also issue own initiative opinions on any proposals or decisions by ENIM and ERA. [Am. 19]

(18)  Reliability of rail services is one of the aspects most valued by railway customers, and not least a critical requirement of the re-emerging night train market, where rail customers and applicants need to know well in advance how their services can run. Reliability of schedules is also a critical aspect for the smooth functioning of the rail system, where there are strong interactions between services and network externalities. For that reason, deviations from the schedule should be kept to the minimum. Additionally, a system of adequate incentives should be introduced to promote the fulfilment of commitments by infrastructure managers, railway undertakings, operators of service facilities and other relevant stakeholders. Those incentives should be both of economic and non-economic nature. [Am. 20]

(19)  Continuous monitoring of the quality of rail infrastructure and transport services is a precondition for improving the performance of these services. It is Therefore, infrastructure managers should monitor and benchmark the performance of rail infrastructure services and rail transport services. Infrastructure managers, when setting out their own performance targets in the plan, should consult the national regulators, national ministries and the Commission in order to ensure that those targets are consistent with the Union performance targets. It is also necessary to establish a transparent and objective system of indicators that provides feedback on aspects of performance that are relevant for the different operational stakeholders and for the end customers of rail transport services. The main function of that a system should focus on monitoring the fulfilment of commitments made by the operational stakeholders and progress in performance over time while taking into account different circumstances and characteristics within the rail sector. For the establishment of such a system and the analysis of its output, the Commission and ERA should be able to rely on independent experts with a profound knowledge of the railway sector in the form of a Performance Review Body. This body should be able to provide independent expert advice to the Commission and ERA in all areas that influence the performance of rail services and infrastructure management. [Am. 21]

(20)  To improve the performance of rail infrastructure services in the single European railway area, the infrastructure managers, in close cooperation with the Commission, ERA, the Performance Review Body and relevant stakeholders, should set up and implement a common framework for the review of performance. This framework should ensure that all EU infrastructure managers use common principles and methodologies for measuring performance through agreed indicators. The framework should allow for identifying performance deficiencies on the EU railway network. It should ensure that infrastructure managers set performance objectives in a way that takes into account the specificities of the network they manage, but at the same time ensures coherency in identifying the most relevant performance deficiencies. The framework should allow infrastructure managers to cooperate at EU level, including within ERA in identifying measures to address performance deficiencies and to keep track of their impact. Infrastructure managers, working together with ERA in the European Network for Infrastructure Managers and taking into account the opinion of the Performance Review Body and the Commission, should review this framework regularly to ensure that it is fit for purpose. [Am. 22]

(21)  To ensure an effective EU framework for the coordination of rail infrastructure managers, the European Network of Infrastructure Managers, established by Directive 2012/34/EU, should become more operational. It should include decision-making mechanisms, which allow EU rail infrastructure managers to effectively coordinate on the strategic planning of rail infrastructure capacity.

(22)  The rail regulatory bodies should cooperate at Union level to ensure coherent application of the regulatory framework and consistent treatment of applicants across the single European railway area. They should do so through the European Network of Rail Regulatory Bodies (ENRRB), with a view to develop common practices for making the decisions for which they are empowered under this Regulation. For that purpose, the European Network of Rail Regulatory BodiesENRRB should perform coordination tasks and adopt non-binding recommendations and opinions, which should not affect the competences of the rail regulatory bodies or those of the infrastructure managers. ENRRB should verify the compatibility of the European frameworks, with the regulatory objectives of the Regulation. Regulatory supervision should be designed in such a way so as to prevent national decisions to undermine the harmonised procedures described in the European frameworks, unless otherwise provided for in this Regulation. [Am. 23]

(23)  Efficient management of rail capacity and traffic requires exchange of data and information between infrastructure managers, applicants and other operational stakeholders. This exchange can be considerably more effective and efficient with the support of interoperable digital tools and, where possible, automation. Specifications for interoperability should therefore be implemented as a matter of priority and further developed to keep up with technological developments and the new processes put forward in this Regulation. In order to ensure a swift development and implementation, the Commission should be empowered to adopt a delegated act for the implementation and governance of an integrated digital European rail traffic management. As ERA is the European system authority for telematics applications, it should be closely involved in the development and implementation of the digital tools referred to in Article 62 of this Regulation to ensure that they are compliant with the TSI for telematics applications as defined in Directive (EU)2016/797 and in accordance with Article 23 of Regulation (EU) 2016/796. [Am. 24]

(23a)   Workers are crucial for the efficient functioning of the railway sector. For services to become more efficient and in order to increase their quality, digitalisation is essential. The digitalisation and automatisation of rail capacity and traffic management need to be accompanied by digital skill development for the sector’s employees. Additional training and investment in the extension of digital competencies with respect to new digital requirements is to enable workers to adapt and positively contribute to the well-functioning of the sector through enhanced communication and capacity to deal with unexpected events. [Am. 25]

(24)  Infrastructure managers should ensure alignment, in particular regarding digitalisation, with the work of the Europe’s Rail Joint Undertaking established in Title IV of Council Regulation (EU) 2021/2085, with respect to the Master Plan referred to in Article 86(5) and the System Pillar referred to in Article 85(2)(c), and through the deployment group referred to in Article 97 of Regulation (EU) 2021/2085.

(25)  It is necessary to provide the mechanism to set criteria, principles and procedures related to capacity management, to cooperation between rail stakeholders and to coordination at EU level, for infrastructure managers and in the area of regulatory supervision. This mechanism requires that infrastructure managers and rail regulatory bodies, in cooperation with relevant stakeholders develop and implement European frameworks and guidelines. Following an evaluation of the development and implementation of the European frameworks and where the voluntary application of sector guidelines fails to achieve the necessary level of regulatory coherence, the Commission should have the means to address such regulatory inadequacies through implementing or delegated acts, where appropriate.

(26)  In order to ensure a smooth process of capacity and traffic management for international rail services, minimise cancellations of allocated capacity and interruptions in rail operations due to disruptions on the rail network and in order to take into account developments in the practices of infrastructure managers and the use of new methods of capacity allocation and information and communication technologies, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 of the Treaty should be delegated to the Commission. These powers should concern the deliverables resulting from the strategic planning of infrastructure capacity; the schedule for the strategic capacity planning and the capacity allocation process; the deadlines for changes to allocated capacity and the construction of alternative solutions for applicants; the schedule for coordination, consultation and publication of capacity restrictions resulting from infrastructure works; the definition of highly utilised and congested infrastructure and the procedures and methods to calculate the degree of capacity utilisation; the criteria to identify and declare a network disruptions; the information to be provided to operational stakeholders; and the areas infrastructure managers should coordinate on and the specific arrangements for such coordination. It is of particular importance that the Commission carries out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making(12). In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council should receive all documents at the same time as Member States’ experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts.

(27)  To ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this Regulation, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission to introduce technical and operational requirements to facilitate the smooth functioning of the single European railway area concerning uniform criteria for the requirements set by infrastructure managers with regard to applicants; common procedures, criteria and methodologies for the management of scarce capacity, for contingency planning, and for the allocation of capacity beyond the period covered by the working timetable; common approach to compensations paid for changes to allocated capacity; common criteria and procedures for rescheduling; the definition of the technical elements of a system for monitoring the performance of rail and rail-related services, including methodologies and data requirements and their review. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council(13).

(28)  The rules on capacity allocation set out in Directive 2012/34/EU are replaced by those set out in this Regulation. Therefore, the rules on cooperation between infrastructure managers, the rules on cooperation between rail regulatory bodies, the requirements for the elements of the network statement describing the nature of the rail infrastructure that is available to railway undertakings, the conditions of access to it and the principles and criteria for capacity allocation, should be defined in this Regulation. The rules on cooperation and coordination, as well as the elements of the network statement, which are not related to capacity management, should remain in Directive 2012/34/EU.

(29)  The ex-post evaluation of Regulation (EU) No 913/2010(14) concluded that the Regulation’s impact was too limited to contribute to a modal shift from road to rail. Moreover, the cooperation between Member States and infrastructure managers in the management of the rail infrastructure was still ineffective from a cross-border perspective. The evaluation has also shown that managing separately the capacity on the rail freight corridors and on the rest of the network is not efficient. A single regulatory framework should apply to the operation of rail network capacity, consolidating the related provisions in Directive 2012/34/EU and of Regulation (EU) No 913/2010. Therefore, Regulation (EU) No 913/2010 and the provisions in Directive 2012/34/EU on capacity allocation should be repealed and replaced by this Regulation. Relevant Articles of Regulation (EU) No 1315/2013 on Union Guidelines for the development of the trans-European transport network should be amended accordingly. [Am. 26]

(29a)   Similarly, alignment should be ensured with the following implementing regulations, for the allocation rules in service facilities (implementing regulation (EU) 2017/2177) and for procedures and criteria concerning framework agreements (implementing regulation (EU) 2016/545). [Am. 27]

(30)  The preparation of the working timetable requires preparatory activities to be carried out in the years preceding the entry into force of the said working timetable. Therefore, the transition from the regulatory framework established by Directive 2013/34/EU2012/34/EU and Regulation (EU) No 913/2010 to the one established by this Regulation implies that preparations for working timetables under the new framework should begin in parallel to the application of rules under the current framework. Accordingly, a dual regime must apply in a transition phase whereby necessary preparatory steps for a given timetable should comply with the legal framework applicable to that specific working timetable. Framework agreements concluded under the current framework should have the possibility to continue applying for a transition period under the new regimeuntil the end of their contract. [Am. 28]

(31)  Under the new framework, the preparatory steps for a working timetable should begin with the publication of a capacity strategy five years before the entry into force of a given working timetable. In the interest of an early application of the new regulatory framework and taking into account the preparatory work already undertaken by the sector, the schedule of activities leading to the establishment of the first two working timetables could be shortened to 38 months by abbreviating the phase of the capacity strategy. Accordingly, the first working timetable falling under the new regulatory framework should be the working timetable starting on [9 December 2029]. All stakeholders should start the necessary preparations without delay with a view to comply with the new framework. An earlier application date could be considered by Member States that are able to prove that they have carried out all the necessary steps before the adoption date of the Regulation. [Am. 29]

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

CHAPTER I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1

Subject-matter and scope

1.  This Regulation lays down the principles, rules, and procedures applicable to management of rail infrastructure capacity and coordination with service facilities, traffic management, crisis management and performance management for domestic and international rail services. It also lays down rules on a European Network for Coordination between infrastructure managers and with other relevant stakeholders and on the oversight of capacity and traffic management.

1a.   This Regulation also lays down rules and procedures for the implementation of an integrated digital European rail traffic management system. [Am. 30]

2.  This Regulation applies to the Union rail system defined in Article 2(1) of Directive (EU) 2016/797, the use of railway infrastructure for domestic and international rail services referred to in Article 1(2) of Directive 2012/34/EU, including service facilities as defined in Article 3(11) of that Directive. [Am. 31]

3.  Chapters II to V of this Regulation shall not apply to rail infrastructure or railway services that are excluded from the application of Chapter IV of Directive 2012/34/EU in accordance with Article 2(3), (3a), (4), (8), (8a), (9) and (10) of that Directive during the period of validity of the relevant exclusions. [Am. 32]

4.  This Regulation shall not apply to Cyprus and Malta for as long as no railway system is established within their territory.

Article 2

General responsibilities and principles

1.  Without prejudice to Article 7c of Directive 2012/34/EU, infrastructure managers shall be responsible for the management of rail infrastructure capacity and rail traffic management.

References to an infrastructure manager in all provisions related to rail infrastructure capacity allocation in this Regulation shall be construed as references to the allocation body referred in Article 7a(3) of Directive 2012/34/EU.

2.  With the view to facilitating the provision of efficient and effective rail infrastructure capacity and traffic management within the Union, infrastructure managers shall cooperate within the European Network of Infrastructure Managers (‘ENIM’) referred to in Article 7f of Directive 2012/34/EU and in accordance with the provisions of this Regulation on cooperation.

3.  In fulfilling their responsibilities in accordance with paragraph 1 and 2, infrastructure managers shall:

(a)  make optimum effective use of the available infrastructure capacity as required in Article 26 of Directive 2012/34/EU with the aim of increasing the share of rail transport, both for passenger and freight services in accordance with Union’s climate targets; [Am. 33]

(b)  maximize the value to society of rail transport services enabled by rail infrastructure in social, economic and environmental terms;

(c)  ensure non-discriminatory management of and transparent access to infrastructure capacity, including during works, with a view to supporting fair competition;

(d)  enable seamless and punctual rail traffic across more than one network and across borders by striving to eliminate bottlenecks and operational obstacles; [Am. 34]

(e)  ensure transparency about the state and availability of rail infrastructure capacity;

(f)  review and improve the performance of rail infrastructure and transport services in close cooperation with rail sector operators, including service facilities that are directly involved in a railway service; [Am. 35]

(g)  contribute to the implementation and development of the single European railway area, in particular through common European technical and operational rules and standards, technical equipment requirements and staff certification. [Am. 36]

Article 3

Impartiality of the infrastructure manager in respect of traffic and capacity management, including maintenance planning

1.  Infrastructure managers shall carry out the functions of traffic and capacity management, including maintenance planning in a transparent and non-discriminatory manner and the persons in charge of taking decisions in respect of those functions shall not be affected by any conflict of interest.

2.  As regards traffic management, infrastructure managers shall ensure that railway undertakings, in cases of disruption concerning them, have full and timely access to relevant information. Where the infrastructure manager grants further access to the traffic management process, it shall do so for the railway undertakings concerned in a transparent and non-discriminatory way.

3.  As regards capacity management and the long-term planning of major maintenance, renewal and upgrade of the railway infrastructure, the infrastructure manager shall consult applicants, as defined in Article 3, point 19 of Directive 2012/34/EU, in accordance with this Regulation and, to the best possible extent, take into account the concerns expressed.

Article 4

Definitions

For the purposes of this Regulation, the definitions in Article 3 of Directive 2012/34/EU shall apply.

The following definitions shall also apply:

(1)  ‘force majeure’ means any unforeseeable, unavoidable or exceptional or unusual event or situation beyond the control of the infrastructure manager or, the railway undertaking or the applicant, which cannot be avoided or overcome with reasonable foresight and diligence, cannot be solved by measures which are from a technical, financial or economic point of view reasonably possible for them, which hasincluding re-routing across borders; this event must have actually happened and isneeds to be objectively verifiable, and which makes it impossible for the infrastructure manager to fulfil, temporarily or permanently, its obligations in accordance with this Regulation or Directive 2012/34/EU or for the railway undertaking to meets its contractual obligations towards an infrastructure manager or managers; [Am. 37]

(2)  ‘interoperability’ means interoperability as defined in Article 2(2) of Directive (EU) 2016/797 of the European Parliament and of the Council(15);

(2a)   ‘applicant’ means railway undertaking or an international grouping of railway undertakings or other persons or legal entities, such as competent authorities as defined in Article 2(b) of Regulation (EC) No 1370/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council (16)and shippers, freight forwarders and combined transport operators, with a public-service or commercial interest in procuring infrastructure capacity; [Am. 38]

(3)  ‘operational stakeholder’ means an applicant, railway undertaking association of applicants, infrastructure manager, railoperator of service facility operator, provider of rail-related services and any other entity directly involved in operating a rail transport service; [Am. 39]

(4)  ‘European Coordinator’ means the Coordinator referred to in Article 51 of Regulation [... new TEN-T Regulation];

(5)  ‘framework agreement’ means a legally binding general agreement under public or private law, setting out the rights and obligations of an applicant and the infrastructure manager in relation to the infrastructure capacity to be allocated and the charges to be levied over a period longer than one working timetable period;

(6)  ‘simultaneous capacity allocation’ means a process whereby infrastructure managers allocate rail infrastructure capacity in response to a set of requests for capacity received by a given cut-off date and through coordination of these requests to ensure the best possible utilisation of the infrastructure and the closest possible match with the requests;

(7)  ‘first come, first served’ means a principle for the allocation of rail infrastructure capacity where the priority for the allocation process is given according to the chronological order of the capacity requests;

(8)  ‘train path’ means the infrastructure capacity needed to run a train between two places over a given period, which is described as an exact route with timing for that train, including the origin and destination, an entry time and day and an exit time and day, including any stopping point and related departure times;

(9)  ‘capacity specification’ means a capacity right, which specifies the commercial and operational characteristics of the infrastructure capacity relevant for the applicant concerned and which provides the infrastructure manager with enough information to prepare specific train paths that respect those characteristics;

(10)  ‘multi-network rail service’ means a freight or passenger rail transport service, domestic or international, which is operated on two or more networks managed by different infrastructure managers. The train may be joined and/or split and the different sections may have different origins and destinations, provided that all wagons or carriages cross over into at least one network operated by a different infrastructure manager;

(11)  ‘multi-network capacity right’ means the entirety of capacity rights enabling the provision of a multi-network rail service;

(12)  ‘partitioning of infrastructure capacity’ means assigning shares of the total available capacity of an element of infrastructure to different types of rail transport services and to capacity restrictions resulting from infrastructure work.

(13)  ‘working timetable’ means the continuously updated data defining all planned train and rolling-stock movements which will take place on the relevant infrastructure, as expressed by allocated capacity rights, during a working timetable period;

(14)  ‘working timetable period’ means the period of time during which a given working timetable is valid;

(15)  ‘infrastructure work’ means interventions on the railway infrastructure for the purpose of development, maintenance, renewal and upgrade of the railway infrastructure as defined in Article 3, points (2a), (2c), (2d), and (2e) of Directive 2012/34/EU;

(16)  ‘regulatory body’ means the regulatory body referred to in Article 55 of Directive 2012/34/EU;

(17)  ‘incident’ shall mean any occurrence, or series of occurrences having the same origin, which causes disruption of rail traffic.

(17a)   'systematic train paths’ means train paths that are based on Articles 11 and 20 of this Regulation, pre-planned in a regular schedule for the period of a working time table. [Am. 40]

CHAPTER II

MANAGEMENT OF INFRASTRUCTURE CAPACITY

SECTION 1

General principles for the management of infrastructure capacity

Article 5

Capacity management

1.  Infrastructure managers shall manage rail infrastructure capacity through a planning and allocation process comprising three phases:

(a)  strategic capacity planning as referred to in section 2;

(b)  scheduling and allocation of infrastructure capacity as referred to in section 3;

(c)  adaptation and rescheduling of allocated capacity as referred to in section 4.

2.  In addition to the content laid down in Annex IV to Directive 2012/34/EU, Infrastructure managers shall include in the network statement referred to in Article 27 of that Directive a section on the infrastructure made available to railway undertakings; a section on capacity management; a section on operations, including on traffic management, disruption management and crisis management; and a section on performance management, in accordance with Annex IV.

3.  Decision making concerning capacity management as referred to in paragraph 1, including both the definition and the assessment of availability and the allocation of capacity rights, shall be an essential function of the infrastructure manager within the meaning of Article 3, point (2f) of Directive 2012/34/EU. The provisions on essential functions laid down in that Directive shall apply to it.

Article 6

European framework for capacity management

1.  Infrastructure managers shall strive to follow common principles and procedures for the management of rail infrastructure capacity. For this purpose, ENIM shall develop in consultation with ERP and adopt a ‘European framework for capacity management’ in accordance with the provisions of Chapter II by [12 months offrom the entry into force of this Regulation]. [Am. 41]

2.  The European framework for capacity management shall define common principles and procedures for the management of rail infrastructure capacity and for the coordination between infrastructure managers, railway undertakings and other applicants, rail service facility operators and other operational stakeholders.

3.  The European framework for capacity management shall include at least the elements listed in Annex III and shall be updated when necessary to take into account the experience of infrastructure managers, railway undertakings and other applicants and based on the activities of ENIM.

4.  Infrastructure managers shall take the utmost account of the European framework for capacity management when preparing the network statement referred to in Article 27 of Directive 2012/34/EU, in particular the contents specified in Annex IV of this Regulation. They shall explainjustify in the network statement the reason for any deviation from the common principles and procedures established in the European framework for capacity management. Deviations shall only be allowed in exceptional cases and they shall be subject to approval by the national rail regulatory body. [Am. 42]

4a.   The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to set out the common principles and procedures for the management of rail infrastructure capacity and to amend paragraph 2 of this Article. Those delegated acts shall be adopted by ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation]. [Am. 43]

Article 7

Applicants

1.  Applicants shall make requests for infrastructure capacity. In order to use such infrastructure capacity, applicants, who are not a railway undertaking, shall appoint a railway undertaking to conclude an agreement with the infrastructure manager in accordance with Article 28 of Directive 2012/34/EU. This is without prejudice to the right of applicants to conclude framework agreements with infrastructure managers under Article 31 of this Regulation. [Am. 44]

2.  The infrastructure manager mayshall set requirements with regard to applicants to ensure that its legitimate expectations about future revenues and utilisation of the infrastructure are safeguarded. Such requirements shall be appropriate, transparent and non-discriminatory. They shall be specified in the network statement as referred to in point (1)(b)(2)(c) of Annex IV. They may only include the provision of a financial guarantee that shall not exceed an appropriate level which shall be proportional to the contemplated level of activity of the applicant, and assurance of the capability to prepare compliant bids for infrastructure capacity. [Am. 45]

3.  The Commission mayshall, by [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], adopt implementing acts settingto set out the details of the criteria to be followed for the application of paragraph 2 and to amend paragraph 2. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 72(3). [Am. 46]

Article 8

Management of scarce infrastructure capacity

1.  Infrastructure managers shall ensure that scarce infrastructure capacity is managed in accordance with the principles set out in Article 26 of Directive 2012/34/EU and in Article 2 of this Regulation in all phases of the capacity management process referred to in Article 5.

2.  When taking decisions on scarce capacity, infrastructure managers shall take into account strategic guidance on the utilisation of infrastructure capacity provided by Member States in accordance with Article 11(3).

Without prejudice to State aid rules, Member States mayshall, where appropriate, grant the infrastructure manager compensation corresponding to losses of revenue related exclusively to the need to comply with the strategic guidance regarding the use of rail infrastructure capacity. [Am. 47]

3.  Infrastructure managers shall plan and allocate scarce capacity to the largest extent possible through the consensual conflict resolution mechanism referred to in Article 36 involving the applicants concerned and resulting in consensual solutions to conflicting capacity needs and requests.

4.  If the mechanism referred to in paragraph 3 does not result in a satisfactory resolution of conflicting capacity needs and requests, infrastructure managers shall manage scarce capacity or resolve conflicts through objective, transparent and non-discriminatory procedures.

Those procedures shall assess alternative options for the use of infrastructure capacity, based on the following socioeconomic and environmental criteria, subject to the availability of standardised data made available by the applicants shall make available to the infrastructure managers. The criteria shall include but shall not be limited todata: [Am. 48]

(a)  operating cost for operators of rail transport services and the resulting impact on prices for customers of rail transport services;

(b)  time-related cost for customers of rail transport services;

(c)  connectivity and accessibility, both as a network effect on the overall network and network segments, for people and regions served by the rail transport services; [Am. 49]

(d)  emissions of greenhouse gases, local air pollutants, noise and other external cost of rail transport services and by their likely alternatives;

(e)  safety and public health implications of rail transport services and their likely alternatives.

(ea)   modal shift effects towards rail. [Am. 50]

5.  ENIM shall, in consultation with ERP, prepare and adopt the procedures referred to in paragraph 4 and include them in the EUEuropean framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6. The procedures shall involve the following steps: [Am. 51]

(a)  design alternative scenarios to partition the capacity available for every different typestype of rail transport services that apply for the same capacity, involving, where possible, the provision of alternative capacity on other routes or alternative timing with comparable characteristics both for domestic and cross-border services; [Am. 52]

(aa)   design alternative scenarios to address capacity conflicts between two requests that both are not consistent with the strategic capacity planning; [Am. 53]

(b)  evaluate and rank the scenarios on the basis of objective and transparent methodologies taking into account the socio-economic and environmental criteria set out in paragraph 4;

(c)  select the highest ranked scenario on the basis of the evaluation referred to in point (b) and amend the definition of the capacity model and the capacity supply plan accordingly.

6.  ENIM shall, in consultation with ERP, develop the methodologies referred to in paragraph 5, point b(b), of this Article. The parameters of those methodologies shall make it possible to take into account local or national circumstances based on accepted approaches and empirical evidence. ENIM shall include those methodologies in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6. [Am. 54]

7.  Taking into account experiences with the preparation and implementation of the framework referred to in paragraph 6, the Commission mayshall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to set implementing acts setting out the specific procedures, standardised data reflecting different market segments for the criteria and standardised methodologies to be applied for the management of scarce capacity and to amend paragraph 6 of this Article. Those implementingdelegated acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 72(3)by ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation]. They shall be included in the European framework for capacity management. [Am. 55]

Article 9

Information about infrastructure capacity

1.  Infrastructure managers shall provide interested parties, in particular applicants, potential applicants and regulatory bodies, with accurate and up-to-date information on the availability of infrastructure capacity throughout the entire capacity management process, including in the strategic planning phase referred to in section 2, during the scheduling and allocation processes set out in section 3 and whenever there are changes to allocated capacity as referred to in section 4, depending on the availability of the published capacity strategy, capacity model and capacity supply plan. [Am. 56]

Infrastructure managers shall publish any update to the capacity supply plan referred to in Article 18 and to the working timetable referred to in Article 30 without delay.

2.  Infrastructure managers shall publish the information referred to in paragraph 1 in accordance with Article 62(5) and contribute to the development of relevant specifications in accordance with Article 62(3).

3.  At the request of applicants, infrastructure managers shall provide the information referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article on the basis of concrete specifications of commercial and operational needs (‘feasibility assessments’). For cross-border services, infrastructure managers shall receive and answer to such requests in a single place and single operation or via a single interface established in accordance with Article 27 (4). [Am. 57]

Article 10

Capacity restrictions resulting from infrastructure work and degraded infrastructure

1.  Without prejudice to Articles 7, 7c and 7e of Directive 2012/34/EU, infrastructure managers shall plan infrastructure work in accordance with the business plan and with the investment and financial programmes referred to in Article 8(3) of Directive 2012/34/EU. Where amendments to those programmes after the adoption of the business plan affect or are likely to affect the planning of infrastructure works, the infrastructure manager shall provide an overview of such amendments and their likely impact in the network statement. The Member State shall provide the infrastructure manager with stable and timely multiannual funding for the maintenance, renewal and new construction of rail infrastructure for a rolling period of at least five years via the multiannual performance agreement in order to support infrastructure managers to prevent the degrading of rail infrastructure and to minimise the impact on possible capacity restrictions. The annual budget available to infrastructure managers shall be made transparent to the infrastructure manager and be reliably allocated. [Am. 58]

2.  When planning infrastructure works, the infrastructure manager shall act in accordance with Article 2(3) and Article 3.

In particular, the infrastructure manager shall take into account in a balanced way the impact of infrastructure works on its own asset management and financial situation as well as the operational and financial impact on all applicants concerned.

The funding provided by the Member State to the infrastructure manager shall aim at establishing such balance. The information needed for the infrastructure manager to comply with this provision shall be provided by applicants in a timely manner. [Am. 59 and 60]

3.  The infrastructure managers shall consult applicants on the infrastructure works in the context of the coordination mechanisms referred to in Article 7e of Directive 2012/34/EC2012/34/EU and, as regards cross-border rail services, in accordance with Article 54 of this Regulation. [Am. 61]

4.  Infrastructure manager shall plan, inform and consult applicants on capacity restrictions resulting from infrastructure works sufficiently in advance, taking into account the estimated impact on railway undertakings. For that purpose, infrastructure managers shall respect the schedule set out in section 3 of Annex I.

For capacity restrictions with a major impact on the capacity available to applicants, applicants may request the infrastructure manager to provide alternative planning for the capacity restriction with a view to identify and select an option that takes into account the impacts on applicants and infrastructure managers in a balanced way. The infrastructure manager shall provide those applicants with an indicative planning of alternative capacity available during the capacity restriction.

The indicative planning shall cover both the line affected and alternative lines and shall be reflected in the capacity model referred to in Article 17 and in the capacity supply plan referred to in Article 18.

5.  Infrastructure managers shall take into account and mitigate the impact of infrastructure works on cross-border traffic. Infrastructure managers shall coordinate in accordance with Article 53 all infrastructure works on the lines referred to in Article 53(3) and any other infrastructure work with significant cross-border impact.

Coordination shall address in particular the optimisation of the schedule of infrastructure works and the provision of alternative capacity on the line affected and on alternative routes, taking into account the operational, infrastructure and commercial needs of various applicants. [Am. 62]

The rail freight governance shall submit a recommendation on the coordination of works to its respective infrastructure managers three months prior to the period as defined in paragraph 4. [Am. 63]

6.  Reductions in the capacity or performance of infrastructure below its design values resulting from the degradation of assets, such as reductions in permissible speed or axle load, shall also be considered as capacity restrictions. The information obligations set out in Article 9 shall apply to such restrictions.

7.  Infrastructure managers shall publish information and consult applicants on planned temporary capacity restrictions, their impact on capacity available for commercial purposes and on alternative capacity as early as possible.

8.  The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to amend section 3 of Annex I with a view to reduce the impact of capacity restrictions resulting from infrastructure works on rail traffic while taking into account planning, operational, technical and commercial considerations of the stakeholders concerned.

SECTION 2

STRATEGIC CAPACITY PLANNING

Article 11

Strategic capacity planning

1.  Strategic capacity planning shall include all activities set out in Articles 12 to 25.

2.  Strategic capacity planning shall result in the following sequence of planning documents which provide progressively increasing level of details about available capacity:

(a)  the capacity strategy referred to in Article 16;

(b)  the capacity model referred to in Article 17;

(c)  the capacity supply plan referred to in Article 18.

The contents of and the schedule for preparing those deliverables are set out in sections 1 and 2 of Annex I. All content shall be made available by the infrastructure manager in the official language of the Member State and in English. [Am. 64]

Infrastructure managers shall adopt the planning documents as a basis for the next phase in the planning process.

The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to amend sections 1 and 2 of Annex I, to ensure an efficient strategic planning process and reflect the operational concerns of infrastructure managers and applicants, taking into account a recommendation from ERA and the experience of ENIM, infrastructure managers, applicants and other operational stakeholders, regulatory bodies and the ENRBENRRB in implementing this section. [Am. 65]

3.  Subject to the principle of management independence laid down in Article 4 of Directive 2012/34/EU, Member States may provide the infrastructure manager with strategic guidance based on the indicative rail infrastructure development strategies referred to in Article 8(1) of Directive 2012/34/EU. The guidance shall be provided by Member States in a timely manner to allow infrastructure managers and operational stakeholders to follow the deadlines set out in Annex I of this Regulation. That guidance may cover/contain in particular: [Am. 66]

(a)  general objectives of national rail policy relevant for strategic capacity planning within the scope of this Regulation;

(b)  an outlook on the development of rail infrastructure, taking into account relevant plans, including long-term strategic infrastructure plans and strategies at national or regional level and the work plans of the European Transport Corridors referred to in Article 5354 of Regulation (EU) 2024/... of the European Parliament and of the Council(17) [new TEN-T Regulation]; [Am. 67]

(c)  general requirements and guidelines as regards the use of rail infrastructure capacity, which the infrastructure manager shall take into account in strategic capacity planning, in particular in relation to highly utilised and congested infrastructure referred to in Article 21;

(d)  an outlook on the planned development of rail services operated under public service obligations, taking into account, where necessary, the views of the regional or local authorities involved.

Member States shall coordinate the timely provision of guidance to andto ensure consistency between the respective strategic guidance they provide in accordance with this paragraph with a view to supporting the development of international passenger and freight rail services. With a view to Article 8 of Directive 2012/34/EU, Member States shall ensure advance allocation of financial resources for the infrastructure managers for regular maintenance of infrastructure and financial resources for infrastructure development described in the capacity strategy as referred in Article 16 of this Regulation. The Member States shall coordinate their long-term strategic infrastructure and timetable plans, their infrastructure development based on these plans and coordinate the timelines of their implementation. [Am. 68]

4.  Strategic capacity planning shall not involve the granting of capacity rights to individual applicants in accordance with Article 26.

4a.   Taking into account experiences with the preparation and implementation of the strategic guidance referred to in paragraph 3, the Commission may adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to set out the specific legal status, template, procedures, criteria and methodologies to be applied for adopting national strategic guidance to ensure consistency between those strategic guidances issued by Member State, which are necessary to support the development of international rail freight and passenger services. [Am. 69]

Article 12

General requirements for strategic capacity management

1.  Infrastructure managers shall take into account in a balanced, fair and non-discriminatory manner all types of rail transport services for which they are liable to receive requests for capacity, irrespective of their volume, size of downstream market, stability between consecutive timetables, regularity or frequency within a given working timetable period.

2.  In strategic capacity planning, in particular in the capacity model referred to in Article 17 and in the capacity supply plan referred to in Article 18, infrastructure managers shall differentiate at least between the following types of rail transport services:

(a)  freight transport services;

(b)  inter-urban passenger services (long distance);

(c)  urban and regional passenger services.

If necessary, in the light of experience gained in the implementation of this Regulation, ENIM in cooperation with ERP may define a more detailed list which further differentiates between types of rail transport services. With a view to supporting the cross-border consistency of the strategic planning process, a harmonised list shall be included in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6. [Am. 70]

3.  In strategic capacity planning, in particular in the capacity model referred to in Article 17 and in the capacity supply plan referred to in Article 18, infrastructure managers shall indicate the pre-planned capacity suitable for the provision of multi-network transport services.

4.  Strategic capacity planning shall also take into account:

(a)  the observed structure and developments of demand for infrastructure capacity, as identified through capacity allocation in previous working timetable periods and through the market monitoring referred to in Article 15 of Directive 2012/34/EU;

(b)  the expected development of transport needs and of the resulting demand for rail transport services and infrastructure capacity, as identified through the analysis referred to in Article 15 of this Regulation;

(c)  the capacity needs announced by operational stakeholders and the input from the consultation of current and potential applicants in accordance with Article 13; [Am. 71]

(d)  the expected or planned development of infrastructure capacity, in particular as identified in the indicative rail infrastructure development strategy referred to Article 8(1) of Directive 2012/34/EU and the business plan of the infrastructure manager referred to in Article 8(3) of Directive 2012/34/EU;

(e)  the planned infrastructure works which are expected to affect the network;

(f)  The characteristics of different rail transport markets, as regards in particular:

(i)  speed;

(ii)  frequency;

(iii)  tolerance for deviations from the allocated train path;

(iv)  possibility to re-route, reschedule or replace services by other modes in the event of network disruptions;

(v)  volatility of demand for rail transport and the consequent need to plan rail services on a different time horizon.

(fa)   as far as possible, the socio-economic and environmental impact of the use of infrastructure capacity. [Am. 72]

5.  Strategic capacity planning shall reflect the capacity allocated through framework agreements and rolling planning.

6.  Strategic capacity planning shall cover the lines part of the TEN-T core and extended core network referred to in Article 6 of and Annex I to [new TEN-T Regulation]Single European Railway Area. Infrastructure managers may include other lines and nodes of the network they manage. [Am. 73]

Strategic capacity planning shall be carried out at a level which is sufficiently detailed to allow capacity planning for specific sections of the network. For this purpose, the network shall be represented by nodes and sections that allow to take into account relevant characteristics of capacity demand and supply.

These nodes and sections shall be indicated in the register of infrastructure referred to in Article 49 of Directive (EU) 2016/797.

7.  Strategic capacity planning shall cover a period that is at least five years ahead in time. Infrastructure managers may extend the period to more than five years, in particular to support infrastructure development within the framework of the indicative rail infrastructure development strategy referred to in Article 8(1) of Directive 2012/34/EU.

8.  Infrastructure managers shall regularly review and update the results of the strategic capacity planning taking account, in particular, of the following:

(a)  the development of the railway infrastructure;

(b)  changes in market demand for infrastructure capacity taking into account needs announced by applicants for new or modified services; [Am. 74]

(c)  the results of the allocation processes set out in sections 3 and 4 in previous working timetable periods, including the degree of utilisation of infrastructure capacity by applicants;

(d)  insights from traffic management performed in accordance with Chapter III;

(e)  the result of disruption and crisis management performed in accordance with Chapter III;

(f)  the results of the performance review in accordance with Chapter IV.

9.  By... [12 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], ENIM shall develop guidelines setting out common principles, procedures and methodologies for strategic capacity planning. It shall include those guidelines in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6 of this Regulation. Those guidelines should contain at least the elements listed in Annex III to this Regulation. The infrastructure managers shall take the utmost account of those guidelines in the network statement referred to in Article 27 of Directive 2012/34/EU. They shall explain in the network statement the reason for any deviation from the common principles, procedures and methodologies established in the guidelines. [Am. 75]

9a.   The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to set out common principles, procedures and methodologies for strategic capacity planning and to amend paragraph 9 of this Article. Those delegated acts shall be adopted by ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation]. They shall be included in the European framework for capacity management. [Am. 76]

Article 13

Consultation of stakeholders on strategic capacity planning

1.  Infrastructure managers shall consult all operational stakeholders on strategic capacity planning in accordance with Article 7e of Directive 2012/34/EU.

2.  Infrastructure managers shall consult all operational stakeholders operating multi-network rail services on strategic capacity planning throughout the strategic capacity management phase, and at least in accordance with the milestones set out in Annex I in accordance with Articles 53 and 54. [Am. 77]

2a.   Infrastructure managers shall give applicants the possibility to announce their capacity needs in a structured format throughout the capacity management process, for which ENIM shall specify appropriate timelines. Infrastructure managers shall make the utmost effort to integrate the needs announced by applicants in the strategic capacity planning documents referred to in Article 11(2). If alternatives are not available for all announced capacity needs, infrastructure managers shall make the utmost efforts to resolve the potential conflicts by means of the consensual conflict resolution mechanism referred to in Article 36. [Am. 78]

2b.   The regulatory body shall monitor the activities of the infrastructure manager in strategic capacity planning in accordance with Article 63. [Am. 79]

Article 14

Coordination on strategic capacity planning between infrastructure managers

1.  Infrastructure managers shall coordinate their activities related to strategic capacity planning in accordance with Article 53.

Coordination shall ensure in particular:

(a)  the consistency of strategic planning across the networks concerned, in particular in relation to the capacity strategy, the capacity model and the capacity supply plan, the planning of infrastructure works and contingency planning;

(b)  appropriate consideration of the capacity needs for multi-network rail services in the capacity strategy, capacity model and capacity supply plan;

(c)  a review of the performance of strategic capacity planning and its outcomes in accordance with Chapter IV;

(d)  the involvement of all operational stakeholders and ERP, regulatory bodies and the European Network of Rail Regulatory Bodies (‘the ENRRB’), the European Coordinators and, where necessary, Member State authorities and other stakeholders. [Am. 80]

2.  ENIM shall take into account any relevant complaint by applicants or potential applicants on the planning documents referred to in Article 11(2) and shall request additional information from the entities involved in the coordination in accordance with Article 53 and from operational stakeholders consulted in accordance with Article 54, prior to adopting an opinion or recommendation to improve the consistency of those planning documents. ENIM shall share its opinion on the draft planning documents with the ENRRB or inform the latter of a failure to adopt an opinion. The ENRRB shall act in accordance with Article 65(3).

3.  Infrastructure managers shall take into account any recommendation adopted by ENIM in accordance with paragraph 2. Where infrastructure managers do not follow the recommendation, they shall explain the reasons in the planning documents. The ENRRB shall monitor the coordination process and its implementation. It shall inform the Commission of its views on the need to address any shortcomings of the coordination process.

3a.   The rail freight governance shall submit a recommendation on coordinated capacity strategy to the respective infrastructure managers three months prior to the period as defined in Article 10(4). [Am. 81]

Article 15

Analysis of expected transport market developments

1.  Infrastructure managers and ENIM, in consultation with ENRRB and ERP, shall regularly monitor and analyse transport markets and relevant multimodal aspects for rail in order to inform their overall business strategy, capacity and contingency management and investment decisions. Infrastructure managers shall communicate the results of this analysis to other stakeholders for similar purposes, including the European Coordinators. [Am. 82]

2.  For the purposes of this Regulation, the transport market analysis referred to in paragraph 1 shall in particular provide input to strategic capacity planning as referred to in Article 11, to the partitioning of infrastructure capacity as referred to in Article 25 and to the allocation of capacity on the basis of the formal conflict resolution mechanism referred to in Article 37.

3.  ENIM shall carry out a European transport market study covering passenger and freight transport in multimodal context at the latest by [31 December 2028]. The study shall address in particular:

(a)  projections of the demand for passenger and freight transport for all modes in the Union;

(b)  estimates of the potential to increase the volume rail transport, both passenger and freight, and the conditions necessary to achieve such growth;

(c)  if possible, a geographical breakdown of the projected transport flows as an input to strategic capacity planning.

(ca)   if possible, the impact of projected climate change effects both on infrastructure and services provided. [Am. 83]

4.  ENIM shall consult applicants, ERP, customers of rail transport services and their associations, national and EU public authorities on the terms of reference for the study, in particular as regards the purpose of the study and the process for stakeholder involvement. [Am. 84]

5.  ENIM shall review and update the study as appropriate, and in any case at least every five years.

5a.   All data for the study and the study itself shall be published and freely accessible. The data shall be machine readable. [Am. 85]

Article 16

Capacity strategy

1.  The infrastructure manager shall adopt a capacity strategy setting out its expectations on future developments of demand and supply of rail infrastructure capacity and its vision on how to accommodate those developments.

The capacity strategy shall serve as a tool for communication, consultation and coordination between operational stakeholders.

2.  The capacity strategy shall contain information about the future development of rail infrastructure, an outlook on the development of the demand for different rail transport services and any other relevant information about the availability and utilisation of railway infrastructure.

3.  The capacity strategy shall comprise a strategic route map which defines the following:

(a)  the geographical scope of the capacity strategy referred to in Article 16, of the capacity model referred to in Article 17 and of the capacity supply plan referred to in Article 18;

(b)  the alternative lines considered in the event of capacity restrictions referred to in Article 10 and in the context of contingency planning referred to in Article 19.

The strategic route map shall be included in the register of infrastructure referred to in Article 49 of Directive (EU) 2016/797.

4.  The infrastructure manager shall prepare, publish and, when necessary, regularly update the capacity strategy in accordance with the schedule and the contents set out in section 2 of Annex I. [Am. 86]

5.  Infrastructure managers shall consult applicants and impacted service facilities on the capacity strategy in accordance with Article 13 and coordinate capacities strategies with other concerned infrastructure managers in accordance with Article 14. [Am. 87]

5a.   The infrastructure manager shall submit the capacity strategy to the regulatory body. Within three months after publication, the regulatory body shall, after analysis, have the power to require the infrastructure manager to amend it. [Am. 88]

Article 17

Capacity model

1.  The infrastructure manager shall establish a capacity model that refines the capacity strategy on the basis of the outcome of the consultation and coordination activities referred to in Articles 13 and 14.

The capacity model shall support a balanced consideration of the capacity needs of different segments of rail transport services and of infrastructure managers’ needs to maintain, renew and develop (upgrade of existing and construction of new) the rail infrastructure. It shall serve as an instrument for communication, consultation and coordination of strategic capacity planning between the operational stakeholders.

2.  The capacity model shall at least provide information about the total volume of capacity available by network section, the shares of capacity reserved for different segments of rail transport services and for capacity restrictions resulting from infrastructure works. It shall also contain information on the capacity of the respective service facilities referred to in Article 29 (1). Infrastructure managers shall prepare and publish the capacity model for each working timetable period and regularly update the capacity model when needed in accordance with the contents and schedule set out in sections 1 and 2 of Annex I. [Am. 89]

3.  Infrastructure managers shall document and, where relevant, justify any divergence between the capacity model and the capacity strategy concerning the same working timetable period. Where needed, The capacity strategy shall be revised in the light of developments since the adoption or the latest update ofdoes not have to be updated in case the capacity strategymodel was already published for the same timetable period. [Am. 90]

4.  Infrastructure managers shall consult applicants and the regulatory body on the capacity model in accordance with Article 13 and coordinate capacities strategies with other infrastructure managers concerned in accordance with Article 14. [Am. 91]

4a.   The infrastructure manager shall submit the capacity model to the regulatory body for scrutiny two months before the publication. The regulatory body may take a decision no later than one month before publication, requiring the infrastructure manager to amend the capacity model before publication. With a view to ensure the cross-border consistency of capacity models, the decision of the regulatory body shall take into account, where relevant, any opinion or recommendation by ENIM, ERA or by other regulatory bodies. [Am. 92]

Article 18

Capacity supply plan

1.  The infrastructure manager shall establish a capacity supply plan with a view to providing comprehensive information about:

(a)  infrastructure capacity available for allocation to applicants in the working timetable and safeguarded for later requests according to Article 33, including service facilities; [Am. 93]

(b)  infrastructure capacity not available for allocation.

The capacity supply plan shall provide the basis for capacity allocation.

2.  Infrastructure managers shall publish the capacity supply plan for each working timetable period at the latest by the deadline set out in section 2 of Annex I and shall continuously update it until the end of the working timetable period, to which that plan refers. The capacity supply plan shall be provided for each individual day of the working timetable period concerned.

3.  Infrastructure managers shall prepare the capacity supply plan on the basis of the results of the strategic capacity planning process referred to in Articles 11 to 17 and in sections 1 and 2 of Annex I.

Infrastructure managers shall document and, where relevant, justify any divergence between the capacity supply plan and the capacity model concerning the same working timetable period.

4.  In the capacity supply plan, infrastructure managers may indicate infrastructure capacity and capacity in service facilities as referred to in article 29 (1) as pre-planned. Pre-planned capacity means capacity for which the infrastructure manager defines characteristics and volumes of the capacity available for requests by applicants, sets out rules for the allocation of such capacity and defines the process through which such capacity can be requested, in accordance with Article 20. The specified characteristics, rules and allocation processes shall be taken into account when allocating pre-planned capacity. [Am. 94]

5.  Pre-planned capacity shall be presented in the capacity supply plan in the form of capacity objects as referred to in Article 20, which specify the volume and characteristics of capacity and which are linked to allocation rules and processes through which such capacity is made available.

6.  Subject to paragraph 7, the capacity supply plan shall comprise the following elements:

(a)  capacity available for allocation to applicants for the working timetable period to which the capacity supply plan refers:

(i)  capacity, which has not been pre-planned by the infrastructure manager;

(ii)  capacity, which has been pre-planned by the infrastructure manager.

(b)  capacity which is not available for allocation to applicants:

(i)  capacity reserved for infrastructure works with significant commercial and operational impact on applicants and railway undertakings as referred to in section 3 of Annex I;

(ii)  capacity reserved for regular time windows allowing to schedule infrastructure works with limited impacts at a later stage;

(iii)  capacity already allocated through framework agreements in accordance with Article 31 or through the multi-annual rolling planning process in accordance with Article 33;

(iv)  capacity reserved for purposes other than those set out in points (i), (ii) and (iii), which shall be clearly indicated by the infrastructure manager.

The capacity supply plan shall indicate the restrictions applicable for the use of specialised infrastructure referred to in Article 24.

7.  Infrastructure managers shall include in the capacity supply plan the elements listed in paragraph 6, point (b) of for the rail infrastructure that they manage.

Infrastructure managers shall include in the capacity supply plan all elements listed in paragraph 6 for all lines and nodes included in the TEN-T core and extended core network as defined in [new TEN-T Regulation]and ensure coherence with the capacity strategy. [Am. 95]

Infrastructure managers may include in the capacity supply plan the elements referred to in paragraph 6 for other lines and nodes of the network they manage.

8.  When pre-planning capacity in accordance with paragraph 6, point (a)(ii), infrastructure managers shall follow the principles set out in Article 8(4).

Infrastructure managers shall pre-plan capacity based on the strategic guidance by Member States in accordance with Article 11(3), the results of the consultation of applicants in accordance with Article 13 and the coordination between infrastructure managers in accordance with Article 14.

9.  The infrastructure manager shall submit the draft capacity supply plan to the regulatory body for scrutiny two months before the publication. The regulatory body shall analyse the capacity supplythis plan and may take a decision no later than one month before publication, requiring the infrastructure manager to amend the capacity supply plan. The decision of the regulatory body shall take into account any opinion of or recommendation by ENIM, where such has been provided. [Am. 96]

9a.   With a view to ensuring the cross-border consistency of capacity supply plans, the decision of the regulatory body shall take into account, where relevant, any opinion or recommendation by ENRRB, ERA or by other regulatory bodies. [Am. 97]

10.  By ... [12 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], and in consultation with ERP, ENIM shall adopt guidelines and include them in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6, setting out the following: [Am. 98]

(a)  the means for publication of the capacity supply plan, including digital services, tools, functions and interfaces;

(b)  the process for the consultation of applicants on the capacity supply plan.

10a.   The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to set out common principles, procedures and methodologies for the guidelines referred to in paragraph 10 of this Article and to amend paragraph 10 of this Article. Those delegated acts shall be adopted by ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation]. They shall be included in the European framework for capacity management. [Am. 99]

Article 19

Contingency planning

1.  Infrastructure managers shall put in place and implement a continuous process of contingency planning to prepare for disruptions of network operations and for other crisis situations affecting rail traffic.

Contingency planning shall provide the basis for traffic management, disruption management and crisis management in accordance with Article 42, with a view to enabling a fast reaction in such situations and to minimize their impact on rail traffic.

Infrastructure managers shall document the results of contingency planning in a contingency plan.

2.  Contingency planning shall involve in particular:

(a)  the designation of alternative routes allowing to re-route traffic in the event of non-availability of the lines included in the core and extended core TEN-T network as set out in Article 6 of and Annex I to [new TEN-T Regulation]a line; [Am. 100]

(b)  an indicative planning of the infrastructure capacity available on the alternative routes designated in accordance with point (a) providing transparency about infrastructure capacity available on such lines, which can be utilised in the case of incidents and, in particular, network disruptions in accordance with Article 46;

(c)  the definition of rules and procedures for traffic and crisis management, including on the sharing of information between infrastructure managers, other operational stakeholders and other stakeholders such as public authorities in charge of rail or security and emergency response, as well as criteria for the activation of these procedures;

(d)  the identification and listing of bodies to be informed in the event of serious incidents or serious disruptions to train movements;

(e)  any other preparations necessary to perform disruption management and crisis management in accordance with Article 42 and with the European framework for the cross-border coordination of traffic management, disruption management and crisis management referred to in Article 44.

3.  Infrastructure managers shall ensure the consistency of contingency planning with strategic capacity planning, in particular the capacity strategy, the capacity model, the capacity supply plan and with the planning for infrastructure works as referred to in Article 10.

4.  The results of contingency planning, in particular the designation of alternative lines in accordance with paragraph 2, point (a) and the indicative capacity planning on alternative lines in accordance with paragraph 2, point (b) shall be included in the capacity model and in the capacity supply plan.

5.  The Commission shall be empowered to adopt implementing acts settingdelegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to set out the details of the procedure and criteria to be followed for the application of paragraph 2 of this Article, in particular for situations which have a potential impact on cross-border traffic. Those implementingThese delegated acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 72(3)by ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation]. [Am. 101]

Article 20

Criteria and procedures for the allocation of pre-planned capacity and for the definition of capacity planning objects

1.  Infrastructure managers shall allocate pre-planned capacity included in the capacity supply plan referred to in Article 18 via transparent and non-discriminatory criteria and procedures.

2.  Capacity planning objects shall define the characteristics and properties of different types of pre-planned capacity, including capacity available for requests by applicants, capacity reserved for infrastructure works and capacity already allocated. Those characteristics and properties shall include all aspects relevant for specific types of pre-planned capacity, such as route, timing, guaranteed or required minimum speed, the technical compatibility between rolling stock with infrastructure, parameters and number of slotstrain runs included. [Am. 102]

3.  By .. [12 months from the entry into force of this Regulation] and in consultation with ERP, ENIM shall develop a common framework for the criteria and procedures referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article and include it in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6. That common framework shall balance the benefits of reserving capacity for specific types of rail services or allocation processes with the need to ensuring flexibility to accommodate market needs in capacity allocation. For that purpose, the common framework shall provide for the possibility of taking into account requests for capacity rights not consistent with pre-planned capacity in the context of the consensual conflict resolution mechanism referred to in Article 36. [Am. 103]

4.  ENIM shall develop and adopt formal specifications for capacity planning objects in human-readable and in machine-readable format. ENIM shall include these specifications in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6 of this Regulation. Based on its experience in applying this Article, ENIM, following consultation with ERP shall provide information to the Commission on possible amendments to the technical specifications on interoperability as provided for by Directive (EU) 2016/797 and the implementing acts adopted under that Directive, in accordance with Article 62(3) of this Regulation. [Am. 104]

4a.   The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to set out the details of the procedure and criteria to be followed for the application of paragraph 1 of this Article, in particular for situations which have a potential impact on cross-border traffic, and to amend paragraph 1 of this Article. Those delegated acts shall be adopted by ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation]. [Am. 105]

Article 21

Highly utilised and congested infrastructure

1.  Infrastructure managers shall declare without delay an element of infrastructure either to be highly utilised or to be congested if at least one of the following conditions is met:

(a)  the capacity utilisation has exceeded the threshold values for highly utilised or for congested infrastructure during the reference periods set out in point 1 of Annex II in the previous or the current working timetable period;

(b)  the results of strategic capacity planning carried out in accordance with this section indicate that the capacity needs expressed during the strategic capacity planning phases exceed the capacity available for allocation during a given working timetable period;

(c)  infrastructure works resulting in capacity restrictions scheduled in accordance with Article 10 result in capacity becoming scarce.

2.  The declaration referred to in paragraph 1 shall specify the working timetable period and the element of infrastructure and the specific time periods to which it relates.

3.  Conflicting individual capacity requests submitted for allocation during the working timetable period shall not be a ground for declaring an element of infrastructure to be highly utilised or congested unless the conditions set in paragraph 1 are met. [Am. 106]

4.  Where infrastructure has been declared to be highly utilised or congested, the infrastructure manager shall carry out a capacity analysis in accordance with Article 22, unless a capacity-enhancement plan, as provided for in Article 23, is already being implemented.

5.  For elements of infrastructure declared highly utilised or congested, infrastructure managers shall reserve capacity in the capacity supply plan referred to in Article 18, taking into account the outcome of the capacity analysis referred to in Article 22.

6.  Where charges in accordance with Article 31(4) of Directive 2012/34/EU have not been levied or have not achieved a satisfactory result and the infrastructure has been declared to be congested, the infrastructure manager shall apply a procedure to partition or to allocate scarce infrastructure capacity on the basis of transparent and objective criteria. That procedure shall be implemented in accordance with Article 8 of this Regulation and shall be set out, together with the applicable criteria, in the network statement.

7.  Infrastructure managers shall indicate infrastructure declared highly utilised or congested in the register of infrastructure referred to in Article 49 of Directive (EU) 2016/797.

8.  The procedures to be followed and the criteria to be used where infrastructure is congested shall be set out in the network statement and shall respect any measures and criteria adopted in accordance with paragraph 76. [Am. 107]

9.  The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to amend Annex II, to ensure an efficient management of capacity on highly utilised and congested infrastructure and reflect the operational concerns of infrastructure managers and applicants, taking into account the experience of ENIM, infrastructure managers, applicants and other operational stakeholders, regulatory bodies and the ENRBENRRB in implementing this Article. [Am. 108]

Article 22

Capacity analysis in case of highly utilised or congested infrastructure

1.  The infrastructure manager shall carry out a capacity analysis within six months of the declaration of infrastructure as highly utilised or congested.

The capacity analysis shall determine the constraints on infrastructure capacity which prevent the inclusion of capacity needs expressed by applicants in the capacity model, or in the capacity supply plan, or which prevent requests for infrastructure capacity from being adequately met.

The capacity analysis shall also include a first indicative set of possible measures to be taken in the short, medium and long term to ease the congestion and increase the availability of capacity. The capacity analysis shall differentiate between measures for highly utilised infrastructure and for congested infrastructure. [Am. 109]

2.  The capacity analysis shall consider the characteristics of infrastructure in terms of capacity, capabilities and interoperability, operating procedures, the nature of the different services operating and the effect of all those factors on infrastructure capacity. Measures to be considered shall include in particular rerouting services, including via different networks if applicable, retiming services, speed alterations, harmonisation of operating procedures and infrastructure improvements. [Am. 110]

3.  Infrastructure managers shall consult applicants on the draft capacity analysis in accordance with Article 7e of Directive 2012/34/EU and, if the section of the infrastructure concerned is part of a European Transport Corridor, in accordance with Article 54.

The infrastructure manager shall make public the result of the capacity analysis. ENIM shall ensure that these publications are easily available.

4.  Infrastructure managers shall take into account the results of any capacity analysis carried out, including in other networks concerned, pursuant to this Article in strategic capacity planning, in particular in the capacity strategy, in the capacity model and in the capacity supply plan. [Am. 111]

The results of the capacity analysis shall be submitted to Member States’ authorities in charge of preparing the indicative rail infrastructure development strategy referred to in Article 8(1) of Directive 2012/34/EU and to the European Coordinator in charge of the European Transport Corridor concerned.

Article 23

Capacity-enhancement plan

1.  For infrastructure declared to be congested in accordance with Article 21 and within six months of the completion of a capacity analysis in accordance with Article 22, the infrastructure manager shall establish a capacity-enhancement plan. [Am. 112]

The capacity-enhancement plan shall identify:

(a)  the reasons for the congestion;

(b)  the likely future development of traffic;

(c)  the constraints on infrastructure development;

(d)  the options and costs for capacity enhancement, including measures described in Article 22 (2) and likely changes to access charges. [Am. 113]

On the basis of a cost benefit analysis of the possible measures identified, the capacity-enhancement plan shall also determine the action to be taken to enhance infrastructure capacity, including a timetable for implementing the measures.

2.  The capacity-enhancement plan shall be established after consultation with users of the relevant congested infrastructure in accordance with Article 13.

It may be subject to prior approval by the Member State.

3.  The Member State concerned shall take into account capacity-enhancement plans when renewing the indicative rail infrastructure development strategy referred to in Article 8(1) of Directive 2012/34/EU.

The European Coordinator of the European Transport Corridor concerned shall take into account the capacity-enhancement plan in its work plan referred to in Article 53 of [new TEN-T Regulation].

On the basis of a capacity analysis, the Member State shall construct or upgrade the infrastructure needed. [Am. 114]

4.  Without prejudice to Article 40 of this Regulation, the infrastructure manager shall cease to levy any charges for the relevant infrastructure under Article 31(4) of Directive 2012/34/EU in one of the following cases:

(a)  the infrastructure manager does not produce a capacity-enhancement plan;

(b)  the infrastructure manager does not make progress with the actions identified in the capacity enhancement plan.

5.  Notwithstanding paragraph 4, the infrastructure manager may, subject to the approval of the regulatory body, continue to levy the charges in one of the following cases:

(a)  if the capacity-enhancement plan cannot be realised for reasons beyond its control;

(b)  if the options available are not economically or financially viable.

Article 24

Specialised infrastructure

1.  Without prejudice to paragraph 2, infrastructure capacity shall be considered to be available for the use of all types of traffic compatible with the route intended for operation in accordance with Directive (EU) 2016/797 and the specifications laid down in implementing acts adopted under it.

2.  Where there are suitable alternative routes and where in accordance with the procedure set out in Article 25 it can be demonstrated that it is justified from a social, economic and environmental perspective to do so, the infrastructure manager may, after consultation with interested parties, designate particular infrastructure for use by specified types of traffic. In that case the infrastructure manager shall indicate the designation in the planning documents referred to in Article 11(2) and shall reserve capacity for the specified types of traffic in the capacity supply plan.

Such designation shall not prevent the use of such infrastructure by other types of traffic when capacity is available.

3.  Infrastructure designated pursuant to paragraph 2 shall be indicated in the network statement, in the register of infrastructure referred in Article 49 of the Directive (EU) 2016/797, in the capacity strategy, in the capacity model and in the capacity supply plan.

Article 25

Partitioning of infrastructure capacity on the basis of socio-economic and environmental criteria

1.  Where an element of infrastructure has been declared to be highly utilised or congested in a future working timetable period, the infrastructure manager shall partition capacity on that element of infrastructure in the capacity model referred to in Article 17 and in the capacity supply plan referred to in Article 18 which relate to the working timetable period concerned.

2.  When partitioning infrastructure capacity declared to be congested pursuant to paragraph 1, the infrastructure manager shall act in accordance with Article 8. [Am. 115]

By ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], where partitioning infrastructure capacity was declared to be highly utilised pursuant to paragraph 1 of this Article, the infrastructure manager shall act in accordance with Article 8. [Am. 116]

The infrastructure manager shall take into account the need for capacity for multi-network rail services, especially international rail freight services. [Am. 117]

SECTION 3

Scheduling and capacity allocation

Article 26

Capacity rights

1.  Applicants may apply under public or private law to the infrastructure manager to request an agreement granting rights to use railway infrastructure against a charge as provided for in section 2 of Chapter IV of Directive 2012/34/EU.

Infrastructure managers shall allocate the right to use infrastructure capacity to applicants in the form of one of the following:

(a)  capacity specifications;

(b)  train paths.

ENIM shall define the characteristics of capacity specifications and include those in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6.

2.  Infrastructure managers shall convert the capacity rights allocated in the form of a capacity specification into capacity rights in the form of a train path prior to the actual train run in accordance with the deadlines set out in sections 4, 5 and 6 of Annex I.

3.  Capacity rights in the form of a train path may be granted to applicants for a maximum duration of one working timetable period. Capacity rights in the form of a capacity specification may be allocated for a duration exceeding one working timetable period in accordance with Articles 31 and 33.

4.  Unless otherwise specified in this Regulation, the respective rights and obligations of infrastructure managers and applicants in respect of any allocation of capacity shall be laid down in contracts or in Member States’ legislation.

5.  Where an applicant intends to request infrastructure capacity with a view to operating a passenger service, in a Member State where the right of access to railway infrastructure is limited in accordance with Article 11 of Directive 2012/34/EU, it shall inform the infrastructure managers and the regulatory bodies concerned no less than 18 months before the entry into force of the working timetable to which the request for capacity relates. In order to enable the regulatory bodies concerned to assess the potential economic impact on existing public service contracts, regulatory bodies shall ensure that any competent authority that has awarded a rail passenger service on that route defined in a public service contract, any other interested competent authority with the right to limit access under Article 11 of Directive 2012/34/EU and any railway undertaking performing the public service contract on the route of that passenger service is informed without undue delay and at the latest within 10 days.

6.  Once allocated to an applicant, a capacity right shall not be transferred by the recipient to another undertaking or service.

Any form of transfer shall lead to exclusion from the further allocation of capacity.

The use of capacity by a railway undertaking when carrying out the business of an applicant which is not a railway undertaking shall not be considered as a transfer.

Article 27

Methods of capacity allocation

1.  Infrastructure managers shall grant capacity rights to applicants by means of the allocation processes referred to in Articles 31 to 34.

Any change to allocated capacity shall also be considered capacity allocation.

2.  Applicants shall have the right to request multi-network capacity rights, and toshall receive answers to such requests, in a single place and in a single operation as provided for in paragraph 4 of this Article. Infrastructure managers shall cooperate in the allocation of capacity for multi-network rail services, including in particular international rail freight services and international rail passenger services. [Am. 118]

Infrastructure managers shall allocate and manage multi-network capacity rights in accordance with Article 28.

3.  Infrastructure managers shall respect the commercial confidentiality of information provided to them, especially in the case of vertically integrated railway companies. Information such as the specific line subject to the request, their number, or their frequency shall be considered as confidential. [Am. 119]

4.  Infrastructure managers shall allocate infrastructure capacity via digital tools and digital services in accordance with Article 62.

For multi-network capacity rights, ENIM shall, upon approval of compliance with TSIs by ERA and by ... [12 months from the date of entry into force of this Regulation], establish a one-stop-shop in a single interface or a common system developed in accordance with Article 62, in order. Infrastructure managers shall use that single interface to manage capacity allocation in a single place and operation. Connected or grouped rail services shall have one infrastructure manager as the single point of contact. Such connected or grouped rail services shall be declared in the capacity request. [Am. 120]

5.  When requesting or making changes to allocated capacity, applicants and infrastructure managers shall comply with Article 39.

6.  The infrastructure manager shall cancel a capacity right which, over a period of at least one month, has been used less than a threshold quota, to be laid down in the network statement, unless this was due to non-economic reasons beyond the applicant's control. ENIM shall consult with ERP to define ranges for the threshold quota and include them in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6. [Am. 121]

The regulatory body shall monitor the transparent and non-discriminatory application of this paragraph and investigate any complaints received.

7.  Where the infrastructure manager cancels, in accordance with paragraph 6, multi-network capacity rights, it shall inform the regulatory body responsible for that infrastructure manager. That regulatory body shall inform the relevant regulatory bodies and the ENRRB. [Am. 122]

7a.   The infrastructure manager shall be allowed to use, where relevant, specific timetabling approaches. If the infrastructure manager decides to pre-plan capacity by using systematic train paths with cross-border relevance, the infrastructure manager shall coordinate with neighbouring infrastructure managers and other concerned infrastructure managers concerned to find mutually agreed solutions for cross-border traffic. Regardless of the national choice Member States follow for their timetabling, infrastructure managers shall ensure a balanced, fair and non-discriminatory allocation of train paths. As regards the compensation for changes to capacity rights referred to in Article 40 that also involve systematic train paths, its value shall be set at least 1, 25 times the value defined for non-systematic train paths according to the process laid out in Article 40. [Am. 123]

7b.   Infrastructure managers shall inform the regulatory body of all capacity requests received that did not fit the parameters of the available capacity as defined in the capacity supply plan, regardless of whether they were accepted or refused. On the basis of this information, the regulatory body shall issue an opinion at least every two years, in which it may recommend to the infrastructure manager to amend the capacity model. [Am. 124]

Article 28

Coordination of the allocation of multi-network capacity rights

1.  Where the infrastructure manager receives a request for multi-network capacity rights pursuant to Article 27(2), they shall coordinate with the other infrastructure managers concerned in accordance with Article 53.

2.  In particular, coordination shall ensure:

(a)  the appointment of a single point of contactone-stop shop, as referred to in Article 27(4), in charge of communication with the applicant in relation to theeach request for multi-network capacity right, which shall be notified to the applicant without delay after receipt of the request. This shall also apply in the case of cross-border train pairs which are international train services to and from a destination in another Member State; [Am. 125]

(b)  the compliance of the multi-network capacity right with minimum quality criteria in terms of consistency between networks and as regards aspects such as routing, timing, availability on different running days and status of the allocation;

(c)  the consistent performance of the process of allocating multi-network capacity rights, including in particular of the consensual conflict resolution mechanism referred to in Article 36 and of the formal conflict resolution mechanism referred to in Article 37;

(d)  the coordination of any changes to allocated multi-network capacity rights in accordance with section 4with a view to ensuring the integrity of multi-network capacity rights at all times.

If infrastructure managers fail to appoint a single point of contact, the infrastructure manager on whose network the first place of departure is located shall be responsible to act as the single point of contact for enquiries related to the specific capacity request.

3.  Infrastructure managers shall not provide capacity rights of worse quality in response to requests for multi-network capacity rights compared to requests for capacity concerning a single network.

4.  As regards the compensation for changes to capacity rights referred to in Article 40, a multi-network capacity right shall be considered as a single capacity right. In particular, a cancellation due to force majeure on one network shall be considered as a cancellation due to force majeure for the capacity right along the entire route covered by it.

5.  By ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation] and in consultation with ERP, ENIM shall define the detailed procedures and methods to implement this Article and the minimum quality requirements referred to in paragraph 2(b) and include them in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6. [Am. 126]

5a.   The Commission shall, by ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], adopt implementing acts to set out the detailed procedures and methods to implement this Article and the minimum quality requirements referred to in paragraph 2(b) and to amend paragraph 5 of this Article. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 72(3) They shall be included in the European framework for capacity management. [Am. 127]

Article 29

Cooperation in the allocation of rail infrastructure capacity and service facilities

1.  Operators of service facilities that provide indicative information on available service facility capacity in accordance with Article 6(3) of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/2177(18) shall cooperate with infrastructure managers for the purpose of the latter offering train paths that include railservice facility capacity. Other operators of service facilities may enter into an agreement with infrastructure managers for the joint provision of capacity. [Am. 128]

2.  Infrastructure managers shall provide a list in the network statement of the service facilities referred to in paragraph 1.

3.  Infrastructure managers shall ensure that applicants can request in one place andestablished in accordance with Article 27(4), the operation capacity rights on railway infrastructure and in the service facilities referred to in paragraph 1. [Am. 129]

4.  For the purpose of paragraph 3, infrastructure managers and operators of service facilityfacilities operators shall coordinate the capacity and shall provide capacity rights including capacity in the railservice facility that meets the requirements of the applicant or shall make an effort to provide a viable alternative. [Am. 130]

5.  The operators of impacted service facilities referred to in paragraph 1 shall make available information, upon request or in real time where necessary, about the available capacity to the infrastructure manager in a digital format in accordance with Article 62. [Am. 131]

5a.   When requesting capacity rights to access a service facility, applicants shall document the agreement of the service facility owner to accommodate their vehicles. [Am. 132]

6.  For the purpose of this Article and in accordance with Article 62, ENIM shall, upon approval by ERA and by ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], provide guidelines on the functional and technical requirements for the exchange of information between the operators of railservice facilities and infrastructure managers for the purposes of this Article. Without prejudice to Article 2 of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/2177, operators of service facilities may request to be exempted from the application of this Article. Such requests shall be submitted to the regulatory body and be duly substantiated. Regulatory bodies may decide to extend an exemption in duly justified cases. [Am. 133]

7.  The ENRRB shall monitor the application of paragraph 76 and shall provide recommendations on the criteria to be used in assessing the requests for exemptions. [Am. 134]

7a.   Infrastructure managers shall inform the regulatory body of all capacity requests received that did not fit the parameters of the available capacity as defined in the capacity supply plan, and were therefore refused. On the basis of this information, the regulatory body shall issue an opinion at least every two years, in which it may recommend to the infrastructure manager to amend the capacity model. [Am. 135]

7b.   The Commission shall adopt, by ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], implementing acts to set out details on the functional and technical requirements for the exchange of information between the operators of rail facilities and infrastructure managers for the purposes of this Article and to amend paragraph 6 of this Article. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 72(3). [Am. 136]

Article 30

Working timetable

1.  Infrastructure managers shall establish a new working timetable before the start of each working timetable period. The duration of the working timetable period shall be one year.

Infrastructure managers shall initiate the preparation of the working timetable when allocating capacity through the annual allocation process referred to in Article 32, taking into account capacity rights allocated through framework agreements in accordance with Article 31 and through the rolling planning process referred to in Article 33.

2.  Infrastructure managers shall continuouslyat regular intervals update the working timetable until the end of the working timetable period, taking into account capacity allocated through the rolling planning process referred to in Article 33, capacity allocated through the ad hoc process referred to in Article 34, changes to capacity rights in accordance with Article 39 and rescheduling in the context of disruption management and crisis management in accordance with Article 41. [Am. 137]

Article 31

Capacity allocation through framework agreements

1.  An applicant shall have the right to request infrastructure capacity over a period of time exceeding one working timetable period. Without prejudice to Articles 101, 102 and 106 TFEU, the infrastructure manager shall allocate such capacity through framework agreements concluded with that applicant, subject to paragraph 3 and paragraph 4.

Framework agreements shall specify the capacity rights granted in the form of a capacity specification as referred to in paragraph 1, point (a) of Article 26. They may not include capacity rights in the form of a train path.

Member States may require prior approval of framework agreements by the regulatory body.

Framework agreements shall be notified to the regulatory body and shall be approved by it. In the case of multi-network framework agreements, the approval shall take into account the opinion of the ENRRB. [Am. 138]

2.  An applicant who is a party to a framework agreement shall request the conversion of the capacity specifications included in the framework agreement into a corresponding train path in accordance with that agreement.

3.  Infrastructure managers shall conclude framework agreements only where the capacity right requested is consistent with the planning documents of the strategic capacity planning referred to in Article 11(2). Infrastructure managers, after consultation with the neighbouring networks, shall indicate the capacity that they plan to reserve for allocation through framework agreements in these planning documents. [Am. 139]

4.  Framework agreements shall not be such as to preclude the use of the relevant infrastructure by other applicants or services. For this purpose, infrastructure managers shall, after consultation with the regulatory body, set the maximum shares of total capacity that can be allocated through framework agreements and include these in the network statement. Infrastructure managers of neighbouring countries who have concluded cross-border framework agreements shall align these maximum shares of total capacity and make them as consistent as possible. [Am. 140]

5.  Framework agreements shall allow for the amendment of their terms to enable better use to be made of the railway infrastructure, without prejudice to Article 39 and Article 40.

6.  Changes to capacity rights allocated through framework agreements shall be subject to compensation in accordance with Article 40, except for the situation referred to in paragraph 5.

7.  Framework agreements shall, in principle, cover the period indicated in section 5 of Annex I. The infrastructure manager may agree to a shorter or longer period in specific cases. Any period longer than the period indicated in pointsection 5 of Annex I shall be justified by the requirement of dedicated investments by new entrants or by the substantial novelty of the service. [Am. 141]

8.  For services using specialised infrastructure referred to in Article 24, which requires substantial and long-term investment, duly justified by the applicant, framework agreements may be concluded for a period of 15 years. Any period longer than 15 years may be agreed only in exceptional cases, in particular where there is large-scale and long-term investment and where such investment is covered by contractual commitments including a multiannual amortisation plan.

9.  Infrastructure managers shall include capacity allocated through framework agreements in the capacity model referred to in Article 17 and in the capacity supply plan referred to in Article 18.

10.  While respecting commercial confidentiality, the general nature of each framework agreement shall be made available to any interested party.

11.  Based on the experience of regulatory bodies, competent authorities and railway undertakings and based on the activities of the ENRRB, the Commission mayshall, by... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], adopt an implementing act settingto set out the details of the procedure and criteria to be followed for the uniform application of this Article and of Article 33 and to amend this Article and in Article 33. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 72(3). [Am. 142]

Article 32

Capacity allocation through the annual allocation process

1.  The infrastructure manager shall establish the first operational version of the working timetable for a given working timetable period on the basis of the following:

(a)  requests for capacity rights received in the annual allocation process;

(b)  capacity rights relating to the working timetable period concerned and granted through framework agreements in accordance with Article 31;

(c)  capacity rights relating to the working timetable period concerned and granted through the rolling planning process in accordance with Article 33.

2.  The infrastructure manager shall allocate capacity through simultaneous capacity allocation, with a view to meeting, to the extent possible, all requests for infrastructure capacity referred to in paragraph 1, subject to paragraphs 5 and 6. The infrastructure manager shall take into account, to the extent possible, all constraints on applicants, including the economic effect on their business.

3.  In the event of a conflict between two or more capacity requests, or in the event of capacity requests not consistent with the capacity supply plan, the infrastructure managers shall first attempt to resolve the conflict through the consensual consultationconflict resolution mechanism referred to in Article 36. [Am. 143]

4.  If the consensual dispute resolution mechanism referred to in paragraph 3 has not resolved the capacity conflict, the infrastructure managers shall apply the formal conflict resolution mechanism referred to in Article 37.

5.  In accordance with Article 18 and Article 20, the infrastructure manager shall give priority to requests that are consistent with the pre-planned capacity defined in the capacity supply plan. As a result, the infrastructure manager may either accept or refuse requests that are not consistent with the, provided operational stakeholders had been duly consulted and their announcements of capacity supply planhad been taken into account to the utmost extent. [Am. 144]

When accepting requests not consistent with the capacity supply plan, the infrastructure manager shall aim to maintain the overall balance between the elements of the capacity supply plan listed in Article 18(6) and the request itself. These applications are to be taken into account if there is enough free capacity available without restricting the needs for subsequent applications. [Am. 145]

When refusingprocessing requests not consistent with the capacity supply plan, the infrastructure manager should offer an alternative and, where time-wise possible, preceded by consultation with the applicants concerned. If no alternative offer is possible when refusing a request, the infrastructure manager shall, without delay, inform the applicant concerned of its intention to refuse a request. The latter shall have the right to lodge a complaint with the regulatory body. [Am. 146]

6.  Capacity rights granted through the annual allocation process may comprise:

(a)  train paths;

(b)  capacity specifications.

Infrastructure managers shall convert capacity rights granted in the form of capacity specifications to train paths in accordance with section 4 of Annex I.

7.  The infrastructure manager shall comply with the schedule for the allocation process set out in section 4 of Annex I.

8.  The infrastructure manager shall consider requests submitted after the initial deadline and prior to the final deadline set out in pointsection 4 of Annex I. In such cases, the infrastructure managers shall allocate capacity rights in accordance with section 4, point 2 of Annex I. [Am. 147]

9.  For requests for the working timetable received after the initial deadline, which cannot be accommodated either with residual capacity reserved for the working timetable, or with the available unplanned capacity, the infrastructure manager shall try to offer alternatives via a different itinerary.

10.  The infrastructure manager shall consult interested parties on the draft working timetable. Interested parties shall include all those who have requested infrastructure capacity and other parties who wish to have the opportunity to comment on how the working timetable may affect their ability to procure rail services during the working timetable period.

11.  The infrastructure manager shall take appropriate measures to deal with any concerns that are expressed.

Article 33

Capacity allocation through the rolling planning process

1.  Infrastructure managers shall allocate capacity through the rolling planning process in accordance with the deadlines set out in pointsection 6 of Annex I. Infrastructure managers shall reserve capacity for this purpose in the capacity supply plan referred to in Article 18. [Am. 148]

2.  Capacity rights granted through the rolling planning process may comprise:

(a)  train paths or capacity specifications for all running days during the working timetable period comprising the first running day included in the request;

(b)  capacity specifications for all running days beyond the working timetable period comprising the first day included in the request for a maximum period specified in pointsection 6 of Annex I. [Am. 149]

Infrastructure managers shall convert capacity rights granted in the form of capacity specifications to train paths in accordance with section 6 of Annex I.

3.  Without prejudice to Article 18, infrastructure managers shall allocate capacity reserved for the rolling planning allocation process on the basis of the allocation principle set out in section 56, point 2 of Annex I. [Am. 150]

4.  In accordance with the rules and procedures set out in Article 20, infrastructure managers may refuse to allocateshall try their utmost to offer alternative capacity for rolling planning requests if requests are inconsistent with the capacity supply plan adopted in accordance with Article 18. A refusal shall be communicated to the applicant without delayIf it is not possible to offer an alternative, the infrastructure manager may refuse to allocate capacity to such inconsistent request. The applicant shall have the right to lodge a complaint with the regulatory body. [Am. 151]

5.   Infrastructure managers shall inform the regulatory body of all capacity requests received that did not fit the parameters of the available capacity as defined in the capacity supply plan, regardless of whether they were accepted or refused. On the basis of this information the regulatory body shall issue an opinion at least every two years, which may recommend to the infrastructure manager to amend the capacity model. [Am. 152]

6.  The infrastructure manager, following a notification to the regulatory body, or following a recommendation by the regulatory body, shall refuse rolling planning requests, if they are of repetitive nature and meet the characteristics of capacity that is normally allocated through framework agreements in accordance with Article 31. The regulatory body shall inform the ENRRB of such decisions and recommendations and the former shall ensure a coherent application of this paragraph.

Article 34

Capacity allocation through the ad hoc process

1.  The infrastructure manager shall respond promptly, and in any event within the deadlines set out in section 7 of Annex I, to ad hoc requests for infrastructure capacity submitted at any time during the validity of the working timetable. Information on available spare capacity shall be made available in accordance with Article 9 to all applicants who may wish to use this capacity.

Capacity rights granted through the ad hoc process shall take the form of train paths.

2.  The allocation of infrastructure capacity in response to ad hoc requests shall be based on the first come, first served principle.

Article 35

Scheduling of capacity restrictions resulting from infrastructure works

1.  Infrastructure managers shall schedule capacity restriction resulting from infrastructure works not included in the capacity supply plan referred to in Article 18 as soon as possible.

2.  When scheduling infrastructure works, infrastructure managers shall limit the impact on pre-planned capacity included in the capacity model or in the capacity supply plan to the extent possible.

3.  If the scheduling of a capacity restriction resulting from infrastructure works requires a change to an allocated capacity right within the meaning of Article 39, the applicant or applicants concerned shall be entitled to the compensation referred to in Article 40.

4.  If the scheduling of a capacity restriction resulting from infrastructure works requires a change to an allocated capacity right within the meaning of Article 39, the infrastructure manager shall do its utmost to provide the applicants concerned with alternative capacity.

For that purpose, the infrastructure manager shall inform all applicants concerned about the intended change to the capacity rights concerned. It shall offer to the applicants concerned alternative capacity rights or launch a coordination with the applicants concerned with a view to agreeing on alternative capacity rights.

5.  When scheduling infrastructure works in accordance with this Article, infrastructure managers shall adhere to the schedule set out in section 3 of Annex I.

6.  Infrastructure managers shall include all capacity restrictions resulting from infrastructure works in the capacity model and in the capacity supply plan, irrespective of the moment when they are scheduled.

Article 36

Consensual conflict resolution mechanism and coordination of requests

1.  Where in the context of simultaneous capacity allocation the infrastructure manager encounters conflicts between different requests for infrastructure capacity, it shall attempt to ensure the best possible matching of all requirements, through coordination of the requests.

2.  Where a situation requiring coordination arises, the infrastructure manager shall have the right, within reasonable limits, to propose infrastructure capacity that differs from that which was requested. The infrastructure manager shall define the applicable limits in its network statement. ENIM shall provide guidelines on the definition of such limits and include them in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6.

3.  The infrastructure manager shall attempt, through consultation with the appropriate applicants, to resolve any conflicts. Such consultation shall be based on the disclosure of the following information within a reasonable time, free of charge and in electronic form:

(a)  train paths requested by all other applicants on the same routes;

(b)  train paths allocated on a preliminary basis to all other applicants on the same routes;

(c)  alternative train paths proposed on the relevant routes in accordance with paragraph 2;

(d)  full details of the criteria being used in the capacity-allocation process.

Without prejudice to Article 27(3) and subject to the agreement of all applicants, the infrastructure manager may establish contact between all applicants potentially involved in the resolution of a conflict to facilitate the coordination of requests.

4.  The principles governing the coordination of capacity requests for domestic rail services shall be set out in the network statement.

5.  Where requests for infrastructure capacity cannot be satisfied without coordination, the infrastructure manager shall attempt to accommodate all requests through coordination.

6.  Without prejudice to the existing appeal procedures and to Article 56 of Directive 2012/34/EU, in the event of disputes relating to the allocation of infrastructure capacity, Member States shall ensure that a dispute resolution system is made available in order to resolve such disputes promptly. That system shall be set out in the network statement for capacity requests for domestic rail services. If this system is applied, a decision shall be reached within a time limit of 10 working days.

7.  In case of multi-network capacity requests, the consensual conflict resolution mechanism set out in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 shall be performed in accordance with Article 53 and shall involve the Network Coordinator.

8.  By ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation] and after following consultation with ERP, ENIM shall prepare guidelines for the consensual conflict resolution mechanism for multi-network capacity requests and include them in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6. [Am. 153]

8a.   The Commission shall, by [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], adopt an implementing act to set out the details of the procedure and criteria to be followed for the consensual conflict resolution mechanism for multi-network capacity requests and to amend paragraph 8 of this Article. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 72(3). They shall be included in the European framework for capacity management. [Am. 154]

Article 37

Formal conflict resolution mechanism on the basis of socio-economic and environmental criteria

1.  Where the consensual conflict resolution mechanisms referred to in Article 36 has not resolved the capacity conflict, infrastructure managers shall allocate infrastructure capacity in accordance with Article 8.

2.  In the context of the formal conflict resolution processmechanism, requests for multi-network capacity rights shall be taken into consideration in their entirety. If, in accordance with Article 8(6), different national parameters apply, those parameters shall be used for the respective sections. [Am. 155]

3.  In case of conflicting capacity requests involving rail services with similar characteristics and socio-economic profile, the infrastructure manager shall assign capacity on the basis of an auction or in a way providing access to the largest number of applicants. The latter method shall be applied subject to approval by the regulatory body.

3a.   In this respect, the ENRRB shall compile guidelines to facilitate the harmonised application of Article 3. [Am. 156]

Article 38

Schedule for capacity allocation processes

1.  The infrastructure manager and applicants shall comply with the schedule for capacity allocation processes set out in sections 4, 5, 6, and 7 of Annex I.

2.  Infrastructure managers may decide time periods and deadlines for the schedule for capacity allocation which are different from those referred to in this Regulation and in point 2(b) of Annex VI of Directive 2012/34/EU if the establishment of international train paths in cooperation with infrastructure managers of third countries on a network whose track gauge is different from the main rail network within the Union has a significant impact on the schedule for capacity allocation in general.

3.  The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to amend sections 4, 5, 6, and 7 of Annex I with a view to ensure an efficient allocation process and address planning, operational, technical and commercial interests of the stakeholders concerned relating to scheduling and capacity allocation.

SECTION 4

Adaptation and rescheduling

Article 39

Changes to capacity rights after allocation

1.  Infrastructure managers may change capacity rights allocated to an applicant on their own initiative only in accordance with this Regulation. Applicants may request changes to allocated capacity at all times. A cancellation shall be considered a specific type of change.

In the event of changes to allocated capacity rights, Article 40 shall apply. Infrastructure managers shall, without delay, update the working timetable referred to in Article 30.

2.  Infrastructure managers and applicants shall limit changes to capacity rights after allocation to the largest extent possible, in accordance with the objectives set out in Article 2(3).

3.  Changes to capacity rights shall include cases where the infrastructure manager cannot allow the train to run in accordance with the allocated capacity right and has sufficient time to offer the applicant an alternative capacity right after having informed the applicant of the need for the change.

Infrastructure managers may indicate different deadlines for the allocation of capacity rights on a single network and the allocation of multi-network capacity rights. Infrastructure managers shall provide information on the time necessary to construct a train path in the network statement. This time shall not be longer than the deadlines indicated in section 8 of Annex I.

4.  The rules and procedures to be applied in the event of a change to a capacity right shall take into account the impact of the change to the capacity right on the applicant in operational and commercial terms. For that purpose, changes shall be categorised based on their impact in accordance with paragraph 8 of this Article and shall give rise to different levels of compensation referred to in Article 40.

4a.   In the cases where capacity is reserved but not used, a compensation payment shall apply in accordance to Article 40. [Am. 157]

5.  In the event of a change to a multi-network capacity right, the infrastructure managers concerned shall make all reasonable efforts to ensure the consistency between the capacity rights over the entire train run.

The infrastructure manager making a change to a multi-network capacity right shall be responsible for the process to coordinate the allocation of an alternative multi-network capacity right with the other infrastructure managers concerned and shall inform the applicant and all parties concerned about the outcome of the coordination. That outcome can be either the allocation of an alternative multi-network capacity right or the information that no alternative capacity right is available.

6.  For the purpose of this Regulation, failure to use an allocated capacity right by railway undertakings shall be considered equivalent to a cancellation on the day of the train run concerned.

7.  Where an infrastructure manager changes an allocated capacity right, it shall inform the applicant and the railway undertaking concerned without delay.

The infrastructure manager shall offer alternative capacity rights to the applicant within the deadlines set out in section 8 of Annex I. Where this is not possibleno alternative offer is feasible in accordance with Article 32(5) and Article 33(4), the infrastructure manager(s) shall provide the applicant with relevant information enabling the applicant to place a new request for infrastructure capacity. Where relevant, that information shall make reference to the capacity supply plan referred to in Article 18 and the contingency planning referred to in Article 19. [Am. 158]

8.  By ... [12 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], ENIM shall prepare and adopt harmonised procedures to manage changes to capacity rights after allocation and include them in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6. [Am. 159]

These harmonised procedures shall differentiate between changes, which have a major impact on applicants and railway undertakings in commercial and operational terms and changes with minor impacts. The criteria to be used to categorise a change as major shall take into account, among others, the ability of the railway undertaking to perform the service in accordance with its contractual obligations, delays at departure or changes to the route that result in increase of distance, time of travel, track access charges or other related costs, as well as thresholds for these changes. More stringent criteria shall apply to changes with major impact.

8a.   The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to set out rules and procedures to manage changes to capacity rights after allocation and to amend paragraph 8 of this Article. Those delegated acts shall be adopted by ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation]. They shall be included in the European framework for capacity management. [Am. 160]

9.  The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to amend section 8 of Annex I with a view to ensure efficient adaptation and rescheduling processes taking into account planning, operational, technical and commercial considerations of the stakeholders concerned.

Article 40

Compensation for changes to capacity rights

1.  Where the infrastructure manager or an applicant do not fulfil their commitments with respect to an allocated capacity right and where this results in a change that is categorised as major in accordance with Article 39, the party initiating the change shall pay a compensation to the other party.

2.  The compensation referred to in paragraph 1 shall not be due in cases of force majeure.

3.  Following a consultation of the ENRRB and ERP, ENIM shall, by [12 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], define harmonised conditions giving rise to compensation. Those conditions shall take into account the rules set out in Article 39(4) and (8). ENIM shall include these conditions in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6. The ENRRB shall publish an opinion on the conditions defined by ENIM. [Am. 161]

4.  Following the approval of the regulatory body, the infrastructure managers shall set out in the network statement the levels of compensation to be paid by the applicants.

Following a proposal by the infrastructure manager and after consulting applicants and potential applicants, the regulatory body shall set the levels of compensation to be paid by the infrastructure manager. The infrastructure manager shall publish that information in the network statement.

The levels of compensation shall be such that they provide effective incentives for the infrastructure manager and for applicants to respect the planned use of capacity and minimise disturbances. These levels shall be proportionate and non-discriminatory.

Infrastructure managers and regulatory bodies may set different levels of compensation depending on the impact of the change and whether the capacity can be re-allocated and used by another applicant. Those levels shall, in particular, take into account the rules in Article 39(4) and (8), the time left after the change was requested or took place until the time of the train run and the rate of utilisation of the rail infrastructure included in the capacity right.

5.  In the case of multi-network capacity rights, the obligation to pay the compensation to the applicant shall apply to the infrastructure manager or managers which is or are responsible for the change to the capacity right, taking into account the capacity right in its entirety and, where more than one infrastructure manager is responsible, the ratio of the length of their networks in the capacity right. The compensation for the entirety of the capacity right shall not exceed the compensation due for the capacity right allocated by the infrastructure manager multiplied by three.

6.  Regulatory bodies shall decide on disputes related to the reason for the change to a capacity right or delayeddelays in the payment of the compensation and shall take a decision without delay and within one month of collecting all the necessary information to assess the cause of the change. Regulatory bodies shall inform and may consult the ENRRB on such decisions. The ENRRB shall ensure that such decisions are coherent and based on commonly recognized principles. [Am. 162]

7.  The Commission mayshall be empowered to adopt implementing acts settingdelegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to set out the conditions giving rise to the payment of compensations, the categorisation of changes to capacity rights and the methodologies to set the levels of compensation and to amend paragraph 2 of this Article. Those implementingdelegated acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 72(3)by ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation]. They shall be included in the European framework for capacity management. [Am. 163]

Article 41

Rescheduling in the context of disruption management and crisis management

1.  In the event of a network disruption as referred to in Article 46 or of a crisis situation as referred to in Article 47, the infrastructure manager or managers concerned shall make all possible efforts to reschedule traffic affected by the disruption. For that purpose, infrastructure managers shall allocate rail infrastructure capacity in accordance with the European framework for the cross-border coordination of traffic management, disruption management and crisis management referred to in Article 44, on the basis of the contingency plans prepared in accordance with Article 19 and in close coordination with operational stakeholders and, where relevant, other stakeholders concerned.

2.  By... [12 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], ENIM shall develop and adopt guidelines for managing and allocating infrastructure capacity in the event of a network disruption in a transparent and non-discriminatory way. In particular, ENIM shall provide guidelines on the application of the simultaneous capacity allocation process and the first come, first served principle. [Am. 164]

Where the simultaneous allocation process applies, ENIM shall provide guidelines on the procedures to be applied, involving as appropriate the application of the consensual conflict resolution processmechanism referred to in Article 36 and of the formal conflict resolution processmechanism referred to in Article 37.ENIM shall include those guidelines in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6. [Am. 165]

3.  When rescheduling, infrastructure managers shall not unilaterally change or cancel existing capacity rights for the purpose of managing disruptions. However, based on the experience of regulatory bodies, infrastructure managers and railway undertakings and on the activities of ENIM and the ENRRB, the Commission mayshall be empowered to adopt an implementing act settinga delegated act in accordance with Article 71 to set out the criteria and procedures for rescheduling, including unilateral changes to allocated capacity rights by infrastructure managers for the purpose of managing network disruptions and to amend paragraph 2 of this Article. Those delegated acts. That implementing act shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 72(3)by ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation]. They shall be included in the European framework for capacity management. [Am. 166]

4.  Infrastructure managers and applicants may conclude, on a voluntary basis, agreements providing for a replacement of certain capacity rights in the event of a network disruption. Such agreements shall be mentioned in the contingency plan referred to in Article 19.

5.  In the case of a network disruption affecting traffic on more than one network, the infrastructure managers concerned shall coordinate the allocation of alternative capacity in accordance with Article 53 and with the European framework for the cross-border coordination of traffic management, disruption management and crisis management referred to in Article 44.

CHAPTER III

TRAFFIC, DISRUPTION AND CRISIS MANAGEMENT

Article 42

Traffic management, disruption management and crisis management

1.  Infrastructure managers shall perform traffic management in accordance with this Regulation and Directive (EU) 2016/797 and the specifications laid down in implementing acts adopted under that Directive.

For that purpose, infrastructure managers shall perform:

(a)  traffic management during normal operating conditions involving the management of incidents resulting in limited deviations from the working timetable;

(b)  disruption management to address significant disturbances to network operations requiring concerted action in accordance with Article 46;

(c)  traffic management during crisis situations as set out in Article 47.

2.  In the event of large-scale crisis situations, both within and beyond the transport sector, Member States may implement measures derogating from the rules applicable in normal situations in accordance with Article 47. In such cases and where relevant, infrastructure managers shall adopt and apply special rules and procedures, subject to the conditions specified in Article 47.

2a.   Infrastructure managers shall publish and make freely accessible the special rules and procedures referred to in paragraph 2. They shall notify them to the Commission. [Am. 167]

3.  When managing traffic, infrastructure managers shall adhere to the principles set out in Article 2.

In particular, infrastructure managers shall minimise disturbances and their impact on rail traffic and shall:

(a)  ensure a fast and coordinated reaction to disturbances, in particular in the event of network disruptions and crisis situations;

(b)  stabilise and optimise rail traffic during the entire duration of network disruptions and crises;

(c)  provide relevant, accurate and up-to-date information to operational stakeholders and to other concerned parties, in particular authorities in charge of managing crisis situations outside the rail sector. This information shall be provided by the appropriate means, including those referred to in Article 62.

Article 43

Rules and procedures for traffic management and disruption management

1.  By ... [18 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], infrastructure managers shall put in place rules and procedures to manage deviations of train movements from the working timetable. Those rules and procedures shall be published in the network statement referred to in Article 27 of Directive 2012/34/EU and shall cover traffic management in the situations set out in Article 42(1), points (a), (b) and (c) of this Regulation. [Am. 168]

2.  The rules and procedures referred to in paragraph 1 shall aim at minimising the overall impact of deviations from the timetable on rail traffic, taking into account the needs of all types of transport. The principlesrules and procedures may involve priority rules for the management between the different types of traffic and the specific procedures, criteria and targets to be applied in an optimisation-based approach that relies on the optimisation of a target function, such as the minimization of the delay minutes or of the time to return to normal operations, rather than explicit priority rules. [Am. 169]

3.  In the event of a disruption to train movements caused by technical failure or accident, the infrastructure manager shall, without delay, take all necessary steps to restore the situation to normal. To that end, it shall implement a contingency plan in accordance with Article 19. In the event of a disturbance which has a potential impact on cross-border traffic, the infrastructure managers concerned shall cooperate with each other to restore the cross-border traffic to normal in accordance with the European framework for the coordination of traffic, disruption and crisis management referred to in Article 44. [Am. 170]

4.  When setting out the rules and procedures referred to in paragraph 1, infrastructure managers shall take the utmost account of the European framework for the coordination of traffic, disruption and crisis management referred to in Article 44. They shall explain in the network statement the reason for any deviation from the common rules and procedures established in the European framework for the coordination of traffic, disruption and crisis management.

4a.   Deviations shall only be allowed in duly justified cases and shall be approved by the national regulatory body. [Am. 171]

5.  In cases of force majeure, and, where absolutely necessary, on account of an incident making the infrastructure temporarily unusable, allocated capacity rights may be withdrawn without warning for as long as is necessary to repair the system whilst at the same time making the utmost efforts to provide possible alternatives. [Am. 172]

The infrastructure manager may, if it deems this necessary, require railway undertakings to make available to it the resources which it considers are the most appropriate to restore the situation to normal as soon as possible.

5a.   In the case of a capacity withdrawal, infrastructure managers shall inform railway undertakings timely on their time management, on progress of repairs and on possible alternatives to their allocated capacity. [Am. 173]

6.  Member States may require railway undertakings to be involved in assuring the enforcement and monitoring of their own compliance with the safety standards and rules.

6a.   The Commission shall adopt, by [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], implementing acts to set out rules and procedures to manage deviations of train movements from the working timetable and amend paragraph 1 of this Article. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 72(3). [Am. 174]

Article 44

European framework for the coordination of cross-border traffic management, disruption management and crisis management

1.  ENIM shall develop and adopt a European framework for the coordination of cross border traffic, traffic disruption and crisis management in accordance with Article 42 at the latest by [12 months after the entry into force of this Regulation].

ENIM shall develop the European framework for the coordination of cross-border traffic management, disruption management and crisis management in cooperation with operational stakeholders and interested parties through the consultation process referred to in Article 54, taking into account the work of the Europe’s Rail Joint Undertaking established in Title IV of Regulation (EU) 2021/2085 2012/2085. [Am. 175]

2.  The European framework for the coordination of cross-border traffic management, disruption management and crisis management shall provide guidelines for the coordination between infrastructure managers, railway undertakings and other operational stakeholders, including ENRRB. [Am. 176]

3.  In particular, the European framework for the cross-border coordination of traffic management, disruption management and crisis management shall comprise the elements listed in Annex V.

3a.   Taking into account the framework adopted by ENIM in accordance with paragraph 1, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to set out the details for the coordination of cross-border traffic management, disruption management and crisis management and to amend paragraph 2 of this Article. Those delegated acts shall be adopted by ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation]. [Am. 177]

Article 45

Coordination of traffic management, disruption management and crisis management

Infrastructure managers shall coordinate traffic management in accordance with Article 53 and on the basis of the European framework for the cross-border coordination of traffic management, disruption management and crisis management referred to in Article 44.

Coordination shall ensure in particular:

(a)  that international rail services operate with minimum disruptions both under regular operations and in disturbed situations;

(b)  that the specific challenges related to cross-border sections resulting, inter alia, from limited interoperability in terms of infrastructure, technical equipment and operations, language and training requirements related to staff, administrative or border formalities are properly taken into account;

(c)  an efficient exchange of up-to-date and relevant information between infrastructure managers, applicants, railway undertakings and other operational stakeholders, as well as any EU-level relevant crisis management governance structures as appropriate, including in accordance with Article 62.

Article 46

Network disruptions

1.  Where an incident results or is likely to result in restrictions to network operations, which require concerted action by operational stakeholders to ensure the best possible management of traffic during the restrictions, the affected infrastructure managers shall assess the likely duration and impact of the incident on the basis of all available information and previous experience.

If the estimated duration and impact meet the criteria for the declaration of network disruptions as set out in Annex VI, the infrastructure managers concerned shall declare a network disruption and implement the measures laid down in Article 43.

2.  Where the incident has, or is likely to have, impacts on more than one network, the manager of the infrastructure manager wherein which the incident took place shall declare a multi-network disruption and coordinate actions in accordance with Articles 44, 45 and 53. [Am. 178]

3.  ENIM shall define a harmonised method to estimate the likely duration and impact of network disruptions and include it in the European framework for the coordination of traffic, disruption management and crisis management referred to in Article 44. [Am. 179]

4.  The infrastructure manager shall inform, as soon as possible, interested parties about the unavailability of infrastructure capacity, in particular due to an incident.

The regulatory body may require the infrastructure manager to make such information available to it, if it deems it necessary.

4a.   In the case of a partial or total interruption of services caused by disruption of train operation due to a technical failure, incident or an accident on a cross-border line that lasts longer than 15 days, the impacted infrastructure managers shall, within 30 days of the occurrence, prepare an incident report. The incident report shall include at least:

(a)   information on all operational measures undertaken to ensure alternative routes;

(b)   information on all actions undertaken to restore regular services on the interrupted line.

The report shall be made publicly available and shall be regularly updated until the interruption is lifted.

ERA may issue recommendations on improved measures to address the disruption and the traffic capacity restrictions caused by the accident. [Am. 180]

5.  The Network Coordinator shall collect information on network disruptions, analyse the response, draw conclusions on the effectiveness of the management of such incidents and consult operational stakeholders in accordance with Article 54 and report to ENIM and the Performance Review Body.

6.  The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to amend Annex VI with a view to ensure an effective and efficient management of network disruptions, taking into account planning, operational, technical and commercial considerations of the stakeholders concerned.

Article 47

Crisis situations

1.  In cases of crises related to public safety, health epidemics, natural disasters, environmental, defence and security crises, that have or are expected to have a critical effect on the supply or demand of rail transport services, Member States shall be allowed to apply emergency measures that include, by way of derogation from the rules of this Regulation:

(a)  the cancellation of capacity rights without compensation;

(b)  alternative principles, rules and procedures for capacity management, in particular for the allocation of scarce infrastructure capacity;

(c)  alternative procedures for traffic management;

(d)  the use of alternative routes;

(e)  the amendment of capacity supply plans.

The Member State concerned shall ensure that the emergency measures follow to the extent possible the principles on capacity and traffic management set out in this Regulation and that they make use of existing plans prepared in accordance with Article 19. TheyIt shall coordinate such emergency measures with other Member States. [Am. 181]

2.  The Member State concerned shall inform the Commission and ENIM without delay of its decision to apply emergency measures and shall provide a justification and a description of those measures and the expected duration of their application. If applicable, the Member States shall also notify the Commission and the central liaison offices as foreseen under Article 8 of the [Regulation on a Single Market Emergency Instrument].

3.  The infrastructure manager shall appoint a focal point in the meaning of Article 60, which shall provide information to the Commission, ENIM, other infrastructure managers and other interested parties about the emergency measures and shall help coordinate such measures.

4.  Where emergency measures have a significant impact on cross-border traffic, infrastructure managers shall coordinate between themselves in accordance with Articles 53 and 54. When performing coordination through dedicated coordination structures in accordance with Article 53, paragraph 2, point (a), the Commission and the Member States concerned shall be involved.

5.  At the request of the Commission, regulatory bodies and the ENRRB shall provide their opinion on the emergency measures to the Commission within the deadline set by the latter. The Commission may adopt decisions requiring a Member State to repeal the emergency measures, if they are deemed not to be necessary.

6.  Member States shall provide updated information where necessary or upon the request of the Commission. Member States shall provide all the information required by the Commission about the emergency measures within the deadlines set by the latter.

7.  Public authorities in charge of managing crisis situations, including the military, civil protection agencies, and others, may organise exercises simulating crisis situations falling within the scope of this Article. In such cases, the infrastructure manager shall allocate capacity as needed, including the cancellation of allocated capacity rights if necessary. The public authorities concerned shall compensate the applicants concerned in accordance with Article 40.

Article 48

Exchange of information on traffic management

1.  All operational stakeholders directly involved in the operation of a rail transport service shall have the right of access to the information concerning this rail transport service set out in Annex VIII.

The parties concerned may only use this information for the purposes of this Regulation and for the purposes of Directive (EU) 2016/797 and implementing acts adopted under that Directive, unless specified otherwise in contractual agreements.

2.  The information shall be made accessible in accordance with Article 62.

3.  The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to amend Annex VIII with a view to ensure that it reflects any changes to the technical specifications for interoperability laid down in the relevant implementing acts that are adopted in accordance with Directive (EU) 2016/797 and taking into account planning, operational, technical and commercial considerations of the stakeholders concerned.

CHAPTER IV

PERFORMANCE REVIEW

Article 49

General principles for performance review

1.  The Commission shall adopt the Union performance targets for the performance areas set out in Annex VII. The targets shall be in accordance with modal shift goals and shall be updated regularly. In accordance with Article 7f, point (d) of Directive 2012/34/EU, ENIM, with the support of rail infrastructure managers shall monitor and benchmark performance of rail infrastructure services and rail transport services taking into account the general objectives set out in Article 2 of this Regulation. RailUnion and infrastructure managers performance targets. ENIM shall also monitorperiodically inform the Performance of rail transport servicesReview Body and the Commission. [Am. 182]

2.  For this purpose, infrastructure managers shall set outlay down their own performance targets in the plan referred to in Article 8(3) of Directive 2012/34/EU, taking into account any objectives set out in the contractual agreements referred to in Article 30 of that Directive. The infrastructure managers shall consult with the relevant national and European bodies in order to assure that those targets are consistent with Union performance targets. They shall put in place and perform procedures to monitor and report on progress towards the achievement of the targets, to identify the causes of performance deficiencies with operational stakeholders and to design and implement remedial measures to improve performance. These procedures shall take into account the European framework for performance review referred to in Article 50 of this Regulation. Infrastructure managers shall explain in the network statement the reason for any deviation from the common procedures established in the European framework for performance review. Deviations shall only be allowed in duly justified cases and shall be approved by the regulatory body. [Am. 183]

3.  ENIM shall cooperate with the European Coordinators on performance reviews in accordance with the operational requirements for the European Transport Corridors set out in Article 18 of [new TEN-T Regulation].

Article 50

European framework for performance review

1.  ERA, with the support of ENIM shall set up and implement by [12 months afterfrom the entry into force of this Regulation] a European framework for the review of performance. This framework shall take into account in particular the principles defined in Article 2(3), Article 8(4), Article 42(3) and the operational requirements, the performance objectives and target values set out in [Article 18 of 19 of Regulation (EU) 2024/... [the new TEN-T Regulation]. [Am. 184]

1a.   The ENRRB shall adopt a recommendation on the European framework for the review of performance by [six months from the entry into force of this Regulation]. While setting up and implementing the European framework for the review of performance, ERA shall take into account the recommendation issued by the ENRRB. [Am. 185]

2.  The European framework shall cover the performance areas set out in Annex VII. In particular, it shall include:

(a)  a list of priority performance issues to be addressed in the performance areas set out in Annex VII;

(b)  performance indicators allowing to monitor progress on the performance issues, including methodology and data requirements to calculate such indicators;

(c)  criteria and procedures to define performance objectives at the level of infrastructure managers;

(d)  procedures to monitor and review the elements in points (a) to (c) as well as the implementation of corrective measures and the achievement of the performance objectives referred to in paragraph 4.

3.  On the basis of paragraph 2, point (d), ENIM shall regularly review the European framework for performance review and the results of its implementation and shall propose appropriate changes to the framework.

4.  Infrastructure managers shall take the utmost account of the European framework for performance review when fulfilling their functions. In particular, infrastructure managers shall include the objectives defined in accordance with paragraph 2 point (c) of this Article in the business plan referred to in Article 8(3) of Directive 2012/34/EU. These objectives shall include the target values set out in [Article 18(1), points (a) and (b) of new TEN-T Regulation].

5.  The Commission mayshall, by [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], adopt implementing acts, setting out to set out uniform conditions for the application of the elements referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article by ... [36 months from the entry into force of this Regulation, including detailed rules on the elements in paragraph 2, points (b) to (d), and performance targets. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the advisory procedure referred to in Article 72(2). In doing so, the Commission shall take into account the work done by ENIM in accordance with paragraph 3 and any recommendations ofconsult ENIM, ERP, ENRRB, the Performance Review Body, ERA and the Europe’s Rail Joint Undertaking. [Am. 186]

Article 51

European performance review report

1.  Without prejudice to Article 15 of Directive 2012/34/EU and Article 3 of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/1100(19), ENIM shall prepare and publish by [24 months afterfrom the entry into force of this Regulation] a draft European performance review report on the basis of the European framework for performance review referred to in Article 50 of this Regulation and publishupdate it every year. Based on this report, ERA shall support the Commission in monitoring and reporting progress on the Union’s objectives for rail, including forecasted rail traffic growth foreseen for 2030 and 2050. The draft European performance review report shall be sent to the Performance Review Body. [Am. 187]

2.  The Performance Review Body shall prepare a self-standing section of theelaborate and adopt the European performance review report, providing its assessment of the performance of rail infrastructure services and rail transport services, disagreements raised and recommendations on performance issues to be addressed with priority and recommendations on, including measures to improve performance, shall be included within the next upcoming programme in accordance with Article 55(8). [Am. 188]

3.  The European performance review report shall cover at least the lines included in the Single European Transport Corridors referred to in Regulation [new TEN-T Regulation]Railway Area and shall include the information required by [Article 53(3)(g)] thereof54(3)(g) of Regulation (EU) 2024/...[new TEN-T Regulation]. The information presented shall be sufficiently detailed in terms of geographical scope and should cover a sufficiently long period of time to allow for meaningful interpretations. [Am. 189]

4.  The European performance review report shall include a dedicated section on the performance of coordination between infrastructure managers in accordance with Article 53 and on the consultation mechanism referred to in Article 54 of this Regulation. [Am. 190]

4a.   The European performance review report shall contain a separate section about the implementation of the processes introduced by ENIM. It shall also contain an analysis of the progress in implementation in various Member States, including reports concerning national exemptions and recommendations for further harmonisation. [Am. 191]

Article 52

Performance Review Body

1.  In accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 73(3) By... [six months from the entry into force of this Regulation], the Commission may set up or designate an impartial and competent body to act as a Performance Review Body shall be established as an impartial, competent and self-standing body. Its members shall be appointed on the basis of merit as well as to ensure a mix of skills and experience relevant to the rail capacity management.

The members of the Performance Review Body shall be nominated by the Commission through a call for experts procedure. The Commission shall be empowered to adopt a delegated act in accordance with Article 71 to set out details of the organisation, governance and financing of the Performance Review Body. That delegated act shall be adopted by... [12 months from the entry into force of this Regulation].

When carrying out the tasks conferred upon it by this Regulation, the Performance Review Body shall be independent and shall not seek or follow instructions from any government of a Member State, from the Commission, from ERA or any other public or private entity. [Am. 192]

2.  The Performance Review Body shall provide advice to the Commission, ERA, ENIM and the European Coordinators on matters related to the performance of rail infrastructure services and rail transport services, on request by the Commission, ERA or the European Coordinators. [Am. 193]

3.  The Performance Review Body shall perform the following tasks:

(a)  providing recommendations to the Commission and ENIM as regards the establishment and review of the European framework for performance review referred to in Article 50, including on performance areas, performance issues to be addressed under each of the performance areas, harmonisation of methodologies, processes, criteria and definitions for the collection and analysis of data related to performance and performance indicators; [Am. 194]

(b)  providing recommendations to ENIM, ERA, the ENRRB, infrastructure managers, applicants, regulatory bodies, Member State authorities, and, where relevant, other stakeholders for corrective measures, on capacity management, traffic management, disruption management and crisis management; [Am. 195]

(c)  reviewing the results of the draft European performance review report and, preparing the self-standing sectionreport referred to in Article 51(2); [Am. 196]

(d)  providing opinions and recommendations relating to the performance of rail infrastructure services in relation to the indicative rail infrastructure development strategy referred to in Article 8(1), the business plan referred to in Article 8(3), the contractual agreements referred to in Article 30(2) and the performance scheme referred to in Article 35 of Directive 2012/34/EU.

(e)  providing advice to the European Coordinators on matters related to the performance of rail infrastructure services and rail transport services.

4.  The addressees of opinions and recommendations referred to in paragraph 3 shall provide responses to the Performance Review Body within the deadlines set by the latter.

5.  ENIM, the Network Coordinator, infrastructure managers, regulatory bodies, the ENRRB, ERA and, where relevant, other stakeholders shall cooperate with the performance review body, in particular by providing information related to performance on their own initiative or upon the body’s request and make the utmost effort to take into account its recommendations in their work on rail performance management. [Am. 197]

6.  The performance review body shall respect the confidentiality of business secrets when handling information provided by relevant stakeholders or the Commission.

CHAPTER V

EUROPEAN NETWORK FOR COORDINATION

Article 53

Coordination between infrastructure managers

1.  When reference is made to this Article, infrastructure managers shall coordinate between themselves and with other relevant stakeholders in relation to the responsibilities and tasks entrusted to them in this Regulation.

2.  Infrastructure managers shall coordinate at least on the issues set out in Annex IX and shall comply with the specific coordination requirements set out in the Articles referenced therein.

Infrastructure managers shall in particular:

(a)  establish organisational structures, procedures and tools, as appropriate, including the digital tools referred to in Article 62;

(b)  coordinate at the most appropriate geographical level, involving the entities which are best placed to achieve effective and efficient outcomes, in line with the principle of subsidiarity;

(c)  cooperate with other infrastructure managers through the designated focal points referred to in Article 60;

(d)  involve ENIM or the Network Coordinator, as appropriate, on matters having Union relevance. Coordination between infrastructure managers may be implemented at more than one level, in particular for matters where coordination is required both at Union level and within a more specific geographical scope;

(e)  appoint a leading entity, whenever coordination activities involve multiple actors, which shall report to ENIM and shall be responsible for organising consultation activities in accordance with Article 54;

(f)  refer to ENIM cases where agreed outcomes cannot be reached at first instance;

(g)  review the performance of coordination activities in accordance with Chapter IV.

3.  Coordination shall cover allparticularly be reinforced for those TEN-T lines and nodes which are part of the European Transport Corridors set out in Article 7 of and Annex III to [new TEN-T Regulation]. [Am. 198]

Infrastructure managers may extend coordination to additional lines subject to an agreement between all infrastructure managers concerned.

The Member States and the public service authorities can extend the cover to other lines. [Am. 199]

4.  Coordination between infrastructure managers relating to the allocation of multi-network capacity rights in accordance with Article 29 shall cover the entire networks of the infrastructure managers which are members of ENIM.

5.  The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 71 to amend Annex IX with a view to ensure an efficient coordination between infrastructure managers, taking into account planning, operational and commercial considerations of all stakeholders concerned, and in the light of experience gained in the implementation of this Regulation.

Article 54

Consultation mechanism for European and cross-border matters

1.  ENIM shall, by ... [12 months from the entry into force of this Regulation] prepare, adopt and implement guidelines to ensure appropriate and regular consultation of interested parties , including representatives from ERA and the Member States, as well as the representative bodies referred to in Article 38(4) of Regulation (EU) 2016/796 and include them in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6, the European framework for the cross-border coordination of traffic management, disruption management and crisis management referred to in Article 44 and the European framework for performance review referred to in Article 50. The processmechanism shall be developed and implemented with the support of the Network Coordinator and with the involvement of the designated focal points ofdesignated by infrastructure managers referred to in Article 60. [Am. 200]

2.  Where ENIM adopts an opinion or a recommendation likely to have an impact on railway undertakings, other applicants, other operational stakeholders and interested parties, including representatives from ERA and the Member States, as well as the representative bodies referred to in Article 38 (4) of Regulation (EU) 2016/796, it shall publish a draft for the consultation of concerned parties. The concerned parties shall be given an appropriate amount of time to provide feedback on the draft decision. Member State authorities shall be involved when required. When ENIM takes a decision likely to have an impact on the ERP, ENIM shall consult the respective advisory groups. [Am. 201]

3.  ENIM shall take account of the feedback provided by concerned parties in accordance with paragraph 2 when adopting the final opinion or recommendation. Where ENIM fails to take into account significant elements of the feedback provided, it shall provide the justified reasons for doing so. [Am. 202]

3a.   In the case of diverging views between ENIM and the consultative bodies, the consultative bodies shall inform the ENRRB. The ENRRB shall take account of such divergent views in its European performance review report referred to in Article 51. [Am. 203]

3b.   The Commission shall adopt, by ... [24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], implementing acts to set out uniform conditions to ensure appropriate and regular consultation of interested parties and to amend paragraph 1 of this Article. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 72(3). They shall be included in the European framework for capacity management. [Am. 204]

Article 55

Organisation of the European Network of Infrastructure Managers

1.  For the purposes of this Regulation, the European Network of Infrastructure Managers referred to in Article 7f of Directive 2012/34/EU shall be organised in accordance with this article.

2.  All rail infrastructure managers, which are responsible for lines that form part of the core and extended core TEN-T network, referred to in [Article 6 of and Annex I to new TEN-T Regulation],Single European Rail Area shall be members of ENIM. They shall appoint a representative and an alternate. [Am. 205]

3.  Rail infrastructure managers, which do not meet the criterion defined in paragraph 2 may appoint a non-member representative to participate in the deliberations of ENIM.

4.  Following the consultation of and the approval by the Commission, ENIM shall adopt and publish its rules of procedure. It shall organise its activities in accordance with the rules of procedure.

5.  ENIM shall take its decisions by a simple majority, unless otherwise provided for in the rules of procedure. All members from one Member State shall together have one vote. In the absence of a member, the alternate shall be entitled to exercise the right to vote.

6.  ENIM shall meet at regular intervals. It shall elect a Chair from among its members with a two-thirds majority of its members.

7.  The Commission and ERA shall be a non-voting member of ENIM. ItThey shall support the work of ENIM and facilitate coordination. [Am. 206]

8.  ENIM shall define its work programme. The work programme shall cover at least a period of two years. ENIM shall consult ERP, the advisory groups established in Article 55a, applicants and other operational stakeholders through the consultation mechanism referred to in Article 54 on the draft work programme. In addition, it shall consult the European Commission, the European Union Agency for Railways and the Europe’s Rail Joint Undertaking and, as appropriate, other stakeholders. [Am. 207]

8a.   In the development of the European frameworks for capacity management, traffic management, and performance management, ENIM shall consult with ERP. [Am. 208]

8b.   Rail infrastructure managers and allocation bodies of third countries which are responsible for lines of the trans-European transport network shall be allowed to join ENIM as observers. [Am. 209]

Article 55a

European Railway Platform

1.   The European Railway Platform (ERP) is hereby established as a consultative body to ENIM.

2.   ERP shall be composed of representatives of railway undertakings using European rail infrastructure. ERP may also include, as member, any applicant using European rail infrastructure individually or through associations, operators of service facilities and terminals, multimodal capacity stakeholders, such as sea and inland waterway ports and owners of other rail-related service facilities. Each member shall appoint one representative and one alternate. The Commission and ERA shall also be appointed as observers within ERP. The rail industry may be invited to attend consultative groups and discussions to enable better information and preparedness.

3.   The Commission shall assist the ERP by establishing the modalities of functioning of ERP, including conditions for admission to the platform of representatives of the categories under paragraph 2.

4.   Following the consultation of and the approval by the Commission, ERP shall adopt and publish its rules of procedure. It shall organise its activities in accordance of the rule of procedure. The ERP rules of procedure shall set, inter alia, the frequency of meetings and the organisation of its activities. ERP may organise its activities in subgroups, grouping stakeholder types and regional clusters.

5.   ENIM shall consult ERP before preparing and adopting European frameworks for capacity management, traffic management and performance management. ERP may issue its own opinions, which shall be taken into account by ENIM. ERP may also issue own initiative opinions addressed to ERA and/or to the Commission.

6.   Consultations under this Article shall be without prejudice to the right of applicants to appeal decisions by ENIM.

7.   ERP shall address to ERA and to the Commission an annual report of its activities. This report shall be published. [Am. 210]

Article 56

Responsibilities of ENIM

1.  In addition to the tasks laid down in Article 7f of Directive 2012/34/EU, ENIM shall be responsible for all tasks assigned to it in this Regulation. It shall, in particular:

(a)  adopt the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6;

(b)  adopt the European framework for the coordination of traffic and crisis management referred to in Article 44;

(c)  adopt the European framework for performance review, referred to in Article 50;

(d)  adopt opinions and recommendations to infrastructure managers in accordance with the provisions of this Regulation and on its own initiative;

(e)  adopt opinions and recommendations to infrastructure managers in the cases referred to in Article 53(2)(f);

(f)  organising the coordination between infrastructure managers in accordance with Article 53.

2.  When performing coordination through dedicated coordination groups, infrastructure managers shall appoint the entities participating in this group, including focal points appointed by infrastructure managers in accordance with Article 60, the Network Coordinator or both.

Article 57

Transparency

1.  ENIM shall ensure that its membership, methods of operation and all relevant information about its work are made publicly available on its website. It shall include contact details of dedicated coordination groups, established by the infrastructure managers and references to coordination tools and procedures in accordance with Article 53.

2.  ENIM shall invite the Commission, including the European Coordinators, ERP and, where relevant, representatives of ERA and the Member States, as well as the representative bodies as referred to in Article 38(4) of Regulation (EU) 2016/796 to its meetings with a view to discuss issues related to the development of rail infrastructure and to ensure cooperation with the European Coordinators, as outlined in [new TEN-T Regulation]. ENIM shall provide the information required under [Article 53, third subparagraph of the new TEN-T Regulation]. [Am. 211]

Article 57a

Responsibilities of ERA

1.   In addition to the tasks laid down in Regulation (EU) 2016/796, ERA shall be responsible for all tasks assigned to it in this Regulation. It shall, in particular:

(a)   provide support, upon request from the Commission in preparing the specific implementing and delegated acts foreseen by this Regulation;

(b)   coordinate, as system authority, according to Article 23 of Regulation (EU) 2016/796 the tasks as set out in Article 62 of this Regulation;

(c)   fulfil the tasks as set out in Article 50 of this Regulation;

(d)   provide, on request, support to the regulatory bodies in identifying rules, procedures and tools within the scope of this Regulation;

(e)   identify obstacles for multi-network rail services.

2.   In its work, the Agency shall:

(a)   draw up its recommendations based on the work of ENIM and the network coordinator;

(b)   where appropriate, take account of technical progress and acknowledged research work;

(c)   take account of the estimated costs and benefits of its recommendations and underline the most viable solutions;

(d)   fulfil the criteria of openness, consensus and transparency as defined in Annex II to Regulation (EU) No 1025/2012.

3.   The amount of the financial resources dedicated to the performance of ERA tasks under this regulation shall be drawn from the unallocated margins under MFF ceilings or mobilised through the non-thematic MFF special instruments. [Am. 212]

Article 58

Network Coordinator

1.  The infrastructure managers shall provide ENIM with the necessary resources to perform its tasks. For this purpose, theythe Commission shall, after consultation with Member States and ENIM, appoint by [12six months afterfrom the entry into force of this Regulation] an impartial and competent entity to fulfil the functions referred to in Article 59. Such entity will be designated as a Network Coordinator. ENIM may decide to change the entity appointed as Network Coordinator with consent of the Commission. [Am. 213]

Prior to the appointment of the Network Coordinator, infrastructure managers shall seek the consent of the Commission regarding the designated entity and the following aspects:

(a)  the terms and conditions for the appointment of the Network Coordinator;

(b)  the conditions of withdrawal of the appointment;

(c)  the procedure to regularly monitor its work and to assess whether it has performed its tasks effectively;

(d)  any additional operational duties and tasks of the Network Coordinator.

2.  The Network Coordinator shall execute its tasks in an impartial and cost-effective manner and shall act on behalf of ENIM and the Commission. For this purpose, it shall submit to ENIM and the Commission its annual work programme with respect to the tasks set out in this Regulation as well as an annual report on the implementation of the work programme. [Am. 214]

Article 59

Tasks and responsibilities of the Network Coordinator

The Network Coordinator shall carry out in support of ENIM the following tasks:

(a)  act as secretariat and prepare ENIM’s meetings, documents, decisions and opinions;

(b)  contribute to the preparation of the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6, the European framework for the coordination of cross-border traffic management, disruption management and crisis management referred to in Article 44 and the European framework for performance review referred to in Article 50;

(c)  contribute to the operational coordination between infrastructure managers in accordance with Article 53;

(d)  identify rules, procedures and tools within the scope of this Regulation and adopted at national or infrastructure manager level which create obstacles for multi-network rail services, as set out in this Regulation;

(e)  act as a contact point on behalf of infrastructure managers for enquiries related to capacity planning and allocation, in particular regarding potential requests for capacity, for information or contact points related to rail incidents and temporary capacity restrictions;

(f)  act as a first point of contact for stakeholders outside the rail sector interested in using rail services, providing contacts to relevant actors at infrastructure managers and other operational stakeholders;

(g)  act as a contact point on behalf of ENIM for applicants and other operational stakeholders on issues not explicitly covered by this Regulation, in particular the launch or change of cross-border rail transport services or organising support for ad hoc activities, in particular to address the crisis situations referred to in Article 47.

(ga)   provide existing and new shared B2B-services to Infrastructure Mangers and Railway Undertakings to improve rail services and boost trans-European rail traffic. [Am. 215]

Article 60

Focal points for coordination of infrastructure managers

1.  In order to ensure coordination between infrastructure managers in accordance with Article 53, the infrastructure managers shall designate focal points. The focal point shall act as the central interface between the organisation of the infrastructure manager and the other entities involved in the coordination activities.

2.  Infrastructure managers shall inform without delay ENIM about any changes in focal points for inclusion in the publications referred to in Article 57(1) (Transparency).

Article 61

Common structure, contents and schedule for network statements

1.  ENIM shall, by [12 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], prepare and adopt a common structure for the network statement referred to in Article 27 of Directive 2012/34/EU, which shall take into consideration the information listed in Annex IV to that Directive, Annex IV to this Regulation, and a common schedule for the consultation of interested parties on the draft network statement. Infrastructure managers shall take the utmost account of this structure and schedule when preparing the network statement. [Am. 216]

2.  When preparing the network statement referred to in Article 27 of Directive 2012/34/EU, the infrastructure manager shall the take utmost account of the European framework for capacity management, the European framework for the cross-border coordination of traffic management, disruption management and crisis management and the European framework for performance review, referred to respectively in Articles 6, 44 and 50 of this Regulation.

3.  Where the infrastructure manager does not comply with paragraph 1 or 2, it shall provide a justification in the network statement and inform the competent regulatory body and ENIM.

Article 62

Digitalisation of capacity and traffic management

1.  Infrastructure managers shall ensure that capacity management and traffic management processes within the scope of this Regulation are implemented by means of digital tools and digital services.

2.  The digital tools deployed and the digital services provided shall:

(a)  improve the performance and the quality, including full interoperability, of the services infrastructure managers provide to applicants;

(b)  improve the transparency of rail capacity management and traffic management throughout all their phases, including digital and real time solutions which shall be gradually elaborated with relevant stakeholders; [Am. 217]

(c)  reduce the administrative burden for applicants by requesting each piece of information only once and by providing information or data in a single place, including as regards cross-border services.

Where applicable, the digital tools and the digital services shall comply with TAF/TAP TSI and RINF, referred to in Article 49 of Directive (EU) 2016/797, to ensure interoperability of relevant systems. [Am. 218]

2a.   The infrastructure managers shall ensure that the digital tools and digital services fulfil the requirements of the capacity planning and allocation process set out in Section 3 of this Regulation. In order to achieve the improvements indicated in paragraph 2, point (a), of this Article, the infrastructure managers shall also use a tool for the digitalisation of temporary capacity restrictions and a digital illustration of the trains running on the European rail network. [Am. 219]

3.  Where the digital tools or of the digital services necessary to support capacity management or traffic management processes need to be covered by technical specifications for interoperability, or where existing specifications covering or partially covering those tools, as provided for by Directive (EU) 2016/797 and the implementing acts adopted under that Directive, need to be amended, ENIM and infrastructure managers shall contribute to the development and maintenance of such specifications in cooperation with ERA and the Europe’s Rail Joint Undertaking, and through the process referred to in Article 5 of Directive (EU) 2016/797. [Am. 220]

4.  Infrastructure managers shall contribute the work of the Europe’s Rail Joint Undertaking on issues that fall within the scope of this Regulation. For this purpose, ENIM and the infrastructure managers shall seek for appropriate representation in the System Pillar Steering Group and the Deployment Group referred to respectively in Articles 96 and 97 of Regulation (EU) 2021/2085.

5.  Infrastructure managers, railway undertakings, other applicants and, where relevant, the operators of rail service facilities shall exchange digital information related to capacity management and traffic management by means of digital tools and digital services which are based on a harmonised architecture and which involve standardised interfaces or common systems in accordance with Directive (EU) 2016/797 and the specifications laid down in implemented acts adopted under that Directive.

In the case of multi-network rail services, infrastructure managers shall provide digital services and digital information through a single interface or common systems developed and deployed under coordination of ENIM in accordance with paragraph 3.

5a.   Infrastructure managers shall ensure that the digital tools and digital services referred to in paragraph 1 shall be fully operational in accordance with the timelines set out in this Regulation: The following digital European rail capacity and traffic management systems shall be implemented:

(a)   a European digital system for the capacity management processes set out in Chapter II of this Regulation, consisting of:

(i)   a digital display of capacity models referred to in Article 17 by 1 July 2025 (“European capacity management tool”) to be used from timetable period 2027;

(ii)   a tool to submit multi-network annual capacity requests and receive answers in a single place and operation by 1 January 2026 (= “path coordination system”) to be used from timetable period 2027;

(iii)   a digital display of the capacity supply plan in real time referred to in Articles 9 and 18 by 1 December 2028 (“European Capacity management tool”) to be used from timetable period 2030;

(iv)   a digital display and tool for coordination of temporary capacity restrictions referred to in Article 10 by 1 December 2027 (“temporary capacity restrictions tool”) to be used from timetable period 2029;

(v)   a capacity broker for requesting multi-network capacity according to the processes described in Articles 32 to 34 by 1 January 2029 (“capacity broker”) to be used from timetable period 2030;

(b)   a European digital system as a support of the European traffic management network concept, for the traffic management processes set out in Chapter III of this Regulation (“Train information system”), providing for

(i)   a European-wide overview of multi-network train runs from origin to destination as of the date of application of the Regulation;

(ii)   a regular exchange of information on estimated time of arrival by December 2027;

(iii)   a reporting of incidents to or via this common system by December 2030;

(iv)   a common platform for communication and cooperation of national traffic control centres by December 2030.

ERA in cooperation with ENIM and the network coordinator shall, in accordance with Article 19 of Regulation (EU) 2016/796, provide by ... [12 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], a recommendation to the Commission, setting out tools on the implementation and governance of the digital European rail capacity and traffic management system. The recommendation shall take into account the tools already in operation or under development, as well as investments committed, and the tools and timelines provided in this paragraph. Based on this recommendation, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt a delegated act in accordance with Article 71 to set out these tools on the implementation and governance of the digital European rail capacity and traffic management system and to identify the tasks of the Europe’s Rail Joint Undertaking, ERA, infrastructure managers, ENIM, ENRRB and the Network Coordinator in this process. [Am. 221]

5b.   ERA shall coordinate these tasks.

The central tools of the European digital capacity and traffic management systems shall be operated by the Network Coordinator.

ERA shall ensure compliance of digital systems developed by the sector with the technical standards for interoperability. [Am. 222]

5c.   The Commission and Member States shall support the financing of the activities set out in this Article, including from the CEF, in order to ensure a timely, cross-border harmonised and interoperable implementation of digital tools and services. [Am. 223]

CHAPTER VI

REGULATORY OVERSIGHT OF CAPACITY AND TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT

SECTION 1

Regulatory bodies

Article 63

Responsibilities of regulatory bodies

1.  The functions and the powers laid down in Article 56 of Directive 2012/34/EU shall also be exercised with respect to the matters covered by this Regulation. In particular, the regulatory body shall monitor the activities of infrastructure managers and the European network coordinator, as set out in Chapters II to V of this Regulation and shall verify compliance with this Regulation on its own initiative and with a view to preventing discrimination against applicants. [Am. 224]

1a.   The regulatory body shall participate and supervise the strategic planning of capacity provided in Section II of this Regulation. The regulatory body shall also evaluate proportionality, non-discrimination and transparency. The regulatory body may issue and share opinions with infrastructure managers, ENIM and ERP. The infrastructure managers shall take into account the proposals of regulatory bodies in elaborating the strategic planning of capacity. [Am. 225]

2.  A railway undertaking, another applicant, a potential applicant, a national, regional or local authority responsible for transport shall have the right to appeal to the regulatory body in accordance with article 56 of Directive 2012/34/EU if it believes it has been unfairly treated, discriminated against or in any other way aggrieved by the infrastructure manager when the latter carried out the activities set out in Chapters II, III, IV and V of this Regulation (Management of infrastructure; Traffic and crisis management; Performance review and management; European network for coordination). [Am. 226]

Article 64

Cooperation of regulatory bodies within the European Network of Rail Regulatory Bodies (ENRRB)

1.  For the purpose of fulfilling their responsibilities under this Regulation, the regulatory bodies shall cooperate in the framework of the ENRRB referred to in Article 57(1) of Directive 2012/34/EU, including through joint consultations and investigations, by adopting opinions or recommendations or through other relevant activities. Regulatory bodies shall provide all the required information to the ENRRB and take into account the opinions and recommendations adopted by ENRRB. [Am. 227]

When acting within the scope of this Regulation, the ENRRB shall have the tasks and responsibilities and organise its work as defined in section 2 of this Chapter.

2.  In the case of a complaint or an own-initiative investigation on a matter falling within the scope of this Regulation and affecting the access to or the use of rail networks in more than one Member State, the regulatory body concerned shall inform the ENRRB and the Commission of the complaint or the investigation.

3.  A regulatory body may transmit any relevant matter, complaint or investigation to the ENRRB for an exchange of views or for the adoption of an opinion or recommendation.

4.  When taking decisions on matters affecting more than one Member State, the regulatory bodies concerned shall cooperate in preparing their respective decisions under the coordination of the ENRRB in order to bring about a resolution of the matter. For that purpose, the regulatory bodies concerned shall carry out their functions in accordance with paragraph 1 of this Article and Article 56 of Directive 2012/34/EU. They shall take into account any relevant opinion and recommendation adopted by the ENRRB and shall provide these decisions to the ENRRB.

5.  Where a regulatory body adopts a decision, which departs from any relevant opinion or recommendation of the ENRRB or where it refuses to adopt a decision, it shall provide to the ENRRB an explanation laying out the differences and its reasoning for not following the opinions or recommendations of the ENRRB and include the relevant explanation in its decision. [Am. 228]

6.  The regulatory bodies consulted by the ENRRB shall reply within the deadlines set by the ENRRB and, upon the latter’s request, shall provide all the information that they have the right to request under their national law. This information may only be used for the purpose of the activities carried out by the regulatory bodies in accordance with this Regulation.

7.  Infrastructure managers shall provide, without delay, all the information necessary for the purpose of handling the complaint or investigation referred to in this Article and requested by the regulatory body of the Member State in which the infrastructure manager is located. Regulatory bodies shall have the right to request information from ENIM on investigations within their competence. Regulatory bodies shall be entitled to transfer such information to the ENRRB.

8.  Rail regulatory bodies shall provide the necessary resources for the functioning of the ENRRB.

8a.   ENRRB shall ensure that its structure, methods of operation and all relevant information about its work, including opinions and recommendations are made publicly available on its website. It shall include contact details of working groups. [Am. 229]

SECTION 2

Tasks and responsibilities of the European Network of Rail Regulatory Bodies

Article 65

Tasks and responsibilities

1.  In addition to its tasks under Directive 2012/34/EU, the ENRRB shall also have the tasks and responsibilities laid down in this Regulation.

2.  The ENRRB shall coordinate all cooperation activities of rail regulatory bodies as outlined in Article 64 and promote alignment of decisions of regulatory bodies in relation to international rail services.

2a.   ENRRB shall assess, before adopted, the European frameworks for capacity managements, traffic management and performance review as well as the network statement common structure and issue and share an opinion with national regulatory bodies that may take action in accordance with Article 56 of Directive 2012/34/EU. ENRRB may assess all ENIM decisions and issue and share opinions with ENIM, regulatory bodies, ERP and infrastructure managers. [Am. 230]

3.   Based on requests by applicants, infrastructure managers, and other interested parties, the ENRRB shall provide opinions or recommendations on pending or adopted decisions on complaints submitted to the rail regulatory bodies. [Am. 231]

4.  Interested parties may lodge a complaint with the ENRRB on matters within the scope of this Regulation or affecting the access to or the use of rail infrastructure in more than one Member State. Where the ENRRB receives such a complaint, it shall transfer it to the competent regulatory body or bodies without delay.

In such cases, the ENRRB shall immediately inform the rail regulatory bodies concerned about its intention to adopt an opinion or recommendation on any such matter.

5.  The ENRRB shall submit its opinion or recommendation to the rail regulatory bodies concerned within one month of receipt of all the relevant information regarding the complaint. The ENRRB may extend the period for particularly complex matters.

5a.   The ENRRB shall provide recommendations to the ENIM as regards the establishment and review of the European framework for performance review referred to in Article 50, including on performance areas, performance issues to be addressed under each of the performance areas, harmonisation of methodologies, processes, criteria and definitions for the collection and analysis of data related to performance and performance indicators. [Am. 232]

6.  The ENRRB shall develop common principles and practices for taking the decisions for which regulatory bodies are empowered under this Regulation.

6a.   ENRRB shall assess the European frameworks for capacity managements, traffic management and performance review as well as the network statement common structure and issue an opinion. Regulatory bodies shall take utmost account of the opinion of ENRRB in checking network statements. [Am. 233]

Article 66

Organisation and structure of the European Network of Rail Regulatory Bodies (ENRRB)

For the purpose of this regulation, the ENRRB shall be organised into:

(a)  a Board of Regulatory Bodies;

(b)  a Secretariat.

Regulatory bodies shall ensure the operation of the Secretariat.

ENRRB shall ensure that its methods of operation and all relevant information about its work are made publicly available on a common website. It shall include contact details for complaints, contact information for dedicated working groups, and information about procedures. [Am. 234]

ENRRB shall publish its opinions and recommendations on a dedicated website. [Am. 235]

Article 67

Composition of the Board of Regulatory Bodies

1.  The Board of Regulatory Bodies shall be composed of one voting member from each Member State that has a rail network in use and one member appointed by the Commission. ERA shall be an observer with no voting rights. [Am. 236]

2.  The voting members shall be the head, or a deputy head, of the regulatory body referred to in Article 55 of Directive 2012/34/EU. They shall have one alternate to represent the member in her or his absence. The alternate shall be appointed by the regulatory body from among the governance or the management of the regulatory body or, where this is not possible, from its staff.

3.  Members of the Board and their alternates shall act independently and objectively in the interests of the Union, regardless of any particular national or personal interests. They shall neither seek nor take instructions from any government, institution, person or body.

4.  An up-to-date list of members of the Board and their alternates, together with their declarations of interest, shall be made public by the Secretariat of the ENRRB.

Article 68

Role and tasks of the Board

1.  The Board shall perform all tasks of the ENRRB set out in this Regulation.

2.  In particular, the Board shall:

(a)  adopt opinions or recommendations on complaints or investigations presented to it by its Chair or by a regulatory body or bodies in accordance with the rules laid down in Article 69;

(aa)   adopt opinions and recommendations on decisions taken by ENIM working in cooperation with the network coordinator within the scope of this regulation; [Am. 237]

(ab)   following complaints from railway undertakings, operators of service facilities and other interested parties, adopt recommendations and opinions of the ENRRB in relation to the consultations referred to in Article 55 a, as well as to the decisions taken by ENIM working in cooperation with the network coordinator; [Am. 238]

(b)  draft and adopt an annual report on the ENRRB’s activities;

(c)  set up working groups and appoint their Chairs.

(ca)   draft and adopt a recommendation to the ENIM as regards the establishment and review of the European framework for performance review. [Am. 239]

Article 69

Organisation of the work of the Board

1.  The Board shall adopt its rules of procedure, following approval by the Commission.

1a.   The Board shall meet in regular intervals. It shall elect a Chair from among its members with a two-thirds majority of its members and shall serve a term of one year. [Am. 240]

2.  The Commission shall chairattend, support and facilitate coordination during the meetings of the Board. It shall have no voting right. [Am. 241]

3.  The Secretariat shall provide the necessary services for organising the meetings and the work of the Board.

4.  The Board shall take decisions by a simple majority of its members, unless otherwise provided for in the rules of procedure.

5.  Each member shall have one vote. In the absence of a member, the alternate shall be entitled to exercise the right to vote.

6.  The rules of procedure may establish more detailed voting arrangements, in particular the procedure for voting on urgent matters and on cases of recommendations on decisions of rail regulatory bodies.

Article 70

Working groups of the ENRRB

1.  On its own initiative or upon a proposal by the Commission, and in accordance with the Board’s rules of procedure, the Board may decide with a simple majority to set up working groups to organise the work of the ENRRB on specific topics related to the implementation of this Regulation.

2.  The Board shall define the mandate of the working group and appoint the Chairs of the working groups, representing, where possible, different rail regulatory bodies.

3.  The working groups shall be open, upon invitation, to the participation of experts from rail regulatory bodies, the Commission, operational stakeholdersERA, and, where relevant, from operational stakeholders and from other public or private bodies. [Am. 242]

4.  The Secretariat shall provide administrative support to the working groups.

5.  The Board or the Chairs of the working groups may invite experts from rail regulatory bodies, the Commission, ERA, operational stakeholders and - where relevant - from other public or private bodies as well as individual experts recognised as competent in the relevant field to participate in the working group meetings if necessary on a case-by-case basis. [Am. 243]

CHAPTER VII

FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 71

Exercise of the delegation

1.  The power to adopt delegated acts is conferred on the Commission subject to the conditions laid down in this Article.

2.  The power to adopt delegated acts referred to in Article 6(4a), Article 8(7), Article 10(8), Article 11(2) and (4a), Article 12(9a), Article 18(10a), Article 19(5), Article 20(4a), Article 21(9), Article 38(3), Article 39(9)39 (8a) and (9), Article 40(7), Article 41 (3), Article 44(3a), Article 46(6), Article 48(3) andArticle 52 (1), Article 53(5) and Article 62(5a), and shall be conferred on the Commission for a period of five years from [1 January 2026]. The Commission shall draw up a report in respect of the delegation of power not later than nine months before the end of the five-year period. The delegation of power shall be tacitly extended for periods of an identical duration, unless the European Parliament or the Council opposes such extension not later than three months before the end of each period. [Am. 244]

Article 72

Committee procedure

1.  The Commission shall be assisted by the Committee referred to in Article 62 of Directive 2012/34/EU. That committee shall be a committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011.

2.  Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 4 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.

3.  Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.

Article 73

Report and review

By [31 December 2030], the Commission shall evaluate the impact of this Regulation on the rail sector and shall submit to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions a report on its implementation.

The report shall, in particular, evaluate:

(a)  the impact of this Regulation on the performance of rail infrastructure services;

(b)  the impact of this Regulation on the development of rail services, notably international services, long-distance services and freight services;

(c)  the work of the European Network of Infrastructure Managers, of the Network Coordinator, the European Network of Rail Regulatory Bodies and the Performance Review Body in general and in relation to the development, adoption and implementation of common criteria, methodologies and procedures.

(d)  the need to reinforce coordination mechanisms by replacing elements of the European frameworks referred to in Articles 6 and 44 with binding rules;

(e)  the need to strengthen regulatory oversight by establishing a Union rail regulatory body.

Article 74

Amendments to Directive 2012/34/EU

1.  Directive 2012/34/EU is amended as follows:

(a)  In Article 1, point (c) is replaced by the following:"

‘(c) the principles and procedures applicable to the setting and collecting of railway infrastructure charges as set out in Chapter IV.’

"

(b)  In Article 2, paragraph 6 is deleted;

(c)  In Article 3, points (20), (22), (23), (27) and (28) are deleted; [Am. 245]

(d)  Article 7b is deleted;

(e)  Article 36 is deleted;

(f)  Articles 38 to 54 are deleted;

(g)  In Annex IV, points (1) and (3) are deleted;

(h)  Annex VII is deleted.

2.  References to the deleted provisions of Directive 2012/34/EU shall be construed as references to this Regulation and shall be read in accordance with the correlation table in Section 1 of Annex X.

Article 74a

Amendments to Regulation (EU) 2016/796

1.   Regulation (EU) 2016/796 is amended as follows:

(a)   In Article 19 (1), the following point is added:"

(m) issue recommendations to the Commission, upon request, regarding the drafting and updating of implementing and delegated acts provided for in Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council (EU) .../...[Regulation on the use of railways infrastructure capacity in the single European railways area, amending Directive 2012/34/EU and repealing Regulation (EU) No 913/2010]. [Am. 246]

"

Article 74b

Amendments to Directive (EU) 2016/797

1.   Directive (EU) 2016/797 is amended as follows:

(a)   In point 2 of Annex II, the following point is added:"

2.9 Use of railway infrastructure capacity: the structures, bodies and procedures referred to in Regulation (EU) .../... of the European Parliament and of the Council [this Regulation]. [Am. 247]

"

Article 75

Transitional provisions

1.  Framework agreements concluded in accordance with Article 42 of Directive 2012/34/EU before 1 January 2026 shall continue to apply until their expiration date. [Am. 248]

2.  Article 3, points (20), (22), (23), (27) and (28), Articles 7b, 36 and 38 to 54, Annex IV point (3) and Annex VII of Directive 2012/34/EU shall not apply to activities and tasks carried out in relation to the working timetables entering into force after [8 December 2029].

Article 76

Repeal

1.  Regulation (EU) No 913/2010 is repealed with effect from [9 December 2029].

2.  References to the repealed Regulation shall be construed as references to this Regulation and shall be read in accordance with the correlation table in Section 2 of Annex X.

Article 77

Entry into force and application

1.  This Regulation shall enter into force on the day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

2.  It shall apply from [1 January 2026]. However:

(a)  Articles 1, 2 and 3, Chapter II, with the exception of Article 9(1) and (2) and Article 27(4)Articles 26, 27, 28, 31, 39 and 50, and Chapter III, with the exception of Article 48, of this Regulation shall apply only to activities and tasks carried out in relation to the working timetables entering into force after [8 December 2029]2027; [Am. 249]

(b)  Article 9(1) and (2) shall apply from [1 January 2028]2027; [Am. 250]

(c)  Article 27(4) shall apply from [1 March 2026];

(ca)   Article 35 shall apply from1 December 2028; [Am. 251]

(cb)   Article 40 shall apply from 1 December 2027; [Am. 252]

(d)  Articles 48 and 62 shall apply from [13 December 2026];

(e)  Article 74 shall apply from [9 December 2029]2027. [Am. 253]

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at …,

For the European Parliament For the Council

The President The President

Annex I

DELIVERABLES AND SCHEDULE FOR CAPACITY MANAGEMENT REFERRED TO IN ARTICLES 11, 16, 18 AND 38

1.  Deliverables to be prepared by infrastructure managers in strategic capacity planning referred to in Articles 11, 16, 17 and 18

Deliverable

Contents

Capacity strategy (Article 16)

–  Planned development of physical infrastructure, including new construction, upgrades, renewals and closures /decommissioning;

–  Forecasted development of demand for rail transport services;

–  Strategic guidance on capacity utilisation by Member States, including an outlook on the evolution on public service obligations;

–  Capacity allocated in framework agreements and capacity required to provide transport services under public service contracts;

–  Infrastructure declared highly utilised or congested;

–  Major capacity restrictions resulting from infrastructure works.

Capacity model (Article 17)

–  All information included in the capacity strategy, where relevant updated and further detailed

–  Volume of capacity available to applicants by rail transport market segment and/or by allocation process, including safeguarded capacity for later requests and capacity assigned by Framework Agreements

–  Volume of capacity required for infrastructure works by impact on traffic (categories)

–  Geographical scope: at least the lines included in the TEN-T core and extended core network

–  Geographical detail: breakdown in appropriate planning sections reflecting infrastructure and demand characteristics

–  Temporal scope: one working timetable period

–  Temporal detail: at least annual overview (capacity restrictions) and one or more representative day/days (capacity available for requests)

Capacity supply plan (Article 18)

–  All information included in the capacity model, where relevant updated further detailed

–  Prep-planned capacity available for requests, defined in the form of capacity objects

–  Capacity restrictions, defined in the form of capacity objects

–  Alternative capacity available during capacity restrictions

–  Alternative capacity available in the event of network disruptions

[Am. 254]

2.  Schedule for strategic capacity management referred to in Articles 11, 16, 17 and 18

1.  When preparing the deliverables of strategic capacity planning for a given working timetable period, infrastructure managers shall respect the schedule set out in this section.

Infrastructure managers may define earlier deadlines. Such deadlines shall be harmonised at EU level and included in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6.

The consultation of stakeholders shall be carried out in accordance with Article 54 and shall involve at least railway undertakings and other applicants, operational stakeholders and public authorities. Infrastructure managers shall coordinate the deliverables on a continuous basis when coordinating in accordance with Article 53.

Deliverable

Milestone

Deadline

(at latest)

Capacity strategy (Article 16)

Publication of the first elements of the Capacity strategy elaboration phase

X–60

 

First consultation of stakeholders

X–58

 

Publication of the draft strategy and second consultation of stakeholders

X–38 48

 

Publication of final capacity strategy following final coordination between infrastructure managers

X–36

 

Publication of capacity model

X-18

 

Publication of final capacity supply plan following IM and ERP consultation

X - 11

Capacity model

(Article 17)

Start of preparation

X–36

 

Consultation of applicants and operational stakeholders

X–24

 

Coordination between infrastructure managers and operation participants and feasibility assessments for provided capacity needs that might not be fully considered in the draft capacity model

X-22

 

Publication of draft capacity model and start of the second consultation with the applicants and operation participants

X–21

 

Coordination with applicants and operational stakeholders

X–19

 

Publication of final capacity model following final coordination between infrastructure managers

X–18

Capacity supply plan

(Article 18)

Start of preparation

X–18

 

 

Consultation of applicants and operational stakeholders

X–14

 

 

Regulatory Body shall analyse the draft capacity supply plan and may take a decision requiring the infrastructure manager to amend the capacity supply plan

X-14 to X-13

 

 

Publication of capacity restrictions referred to in point (1) of section (3) of this Annex

X–12

 

 

Publication of final capacity supply plan following final coordination between infrastructure managers

X–11

 

 

Update of capacity supply plan for late requests

X-6,5

 

 

Publication of capacity restrictions referred to in point (5) of section (3) of this Annex

X–4

 

 

Re-purposing of capacity reserved for allocation through the working timetable for other allocation processes

X–2

 

 

Update of capacity supply plan to reflect any changes to pre-planned or allocated capacity

Until X+12 without delay

 

Note:

(1)  ‘X–m’ means ‘m’ months before the date of entry into force of the working timetable (‘X’), in accordance with section 4.

 

[Am. 255]

2.  By way of derogation to point 1, the following simplified and shortened schedule applies to the deliverable ‘Capacity strategy’ in relation to the working timetable periods starting in December 2029 and December 2030:

Capacity strategy (Article 16)

Publication of the draft strategy and consultation of stakeholders

X–38

Publication of final capacity strategy following final coordination between infrastructure managers

X–36

3.  Schedule for coordination, consultation and publication of capacity restrictions resulting from infrastructure works referred to in Articles 10 and 35

1.  As regards temporary restrictions of the capacity of railway lines, for reasons such as infrastructure works, including associated speed restrictions, axle load, train length, traction, or structure gauge (‘capacity restrictions’), of a duration of more than 7 consecutive days and for which more than 30 % of the estimated traffic volume on a railway line per day is cancelled, re-routed or replaced by other modes of transport, the infrastructure managers concerned shall publish all capacity restrictions, as far as they are known, and the preliminary results of a consultation with the applicants for a first time at least 24 months and, in an updated form, for a second time at least 12 months before the change of the working timetable concerned. These infrastructure restrictions shall be included in the capacity supply plan referred to in Article 18. [Am. 256]

2.  As part of the coordination between infrastructure managers in accordance with Article 53, the entities designated in paragraph 5 of that Article shall also jointly discuss those capacity restrictions, if the impact of the capacity restrictions is not limited to one network, with interested applicants and the main operators of service facilities concerned when they are published for the first time.

3.  When publishing capacity restrictions in accordance with point (1) for a first time, the infrastructure manager shall launch a consultation with the applicants and the main operators of services facilities concerned on the capacity restrictions. Where a coordination in accordance with point (4) is required between the first and second publication of capacity restrictions, the entities designated in accordance with Article 53(5) shall consult with applicants and the main operators of service facilities concerned a second time between the end of that coordination and the second publication of the capacity restriction.

4.  Before publishing capacity restrictions in accordance with point (1), if the impact of the capacity restrictions is not limited to one network, the entities designated in accordance with Article 53(5), including infrastructure managers that might be impacted by the rerouting of trains, shall coordinate between themselves capacity restrictions that could involve a cancellation, re-routing of a train path or a replacement by other modes.

The coordination before the second publication shall be completed:

(a)  no later than 18 months before the change of the working timetable if more than 50% of the estimated traffic volume on a railway line per day is cancelled, re-routed or replaced by other modes of transport for a duration of more than 30 consecutive days.

(b)  no later than 13 months and 15 days before the change of the working timetable period if more than 30% of the estimated traffic volume on a railway line per day is cancelled, re-routed or replaced by other modes of transport for a duration of more than 7 consecutive days.

(c)  no later than 13 months and 15 days before the change of the working timetable period if more than 50% of the estimated traffic volume on a railway line per day is cancelled, re-routed or replaced by other modes of transport for a duration of 7 consecutive days or less.

The entities performing the coordination between infrastructure managers in accordance with Article 53(5) shall, if necessary, invite the applicants active on the lines concerned and the main operators of service facilities concerned to get involved in that coordination.

5.  As regards capacity restrictions of a duration of 7 consecutive days or less that need not be published in accordance with point (1) and for which more than 10% of the estimated traffic volume on a railway line per day is cancelled, re-routed or replaced by other modes, that occur during the following timetable period and that the infrastructure manager becomes aware of no later than 6 months and 15 days before the change of the working timetable, the infrastructure manager shall consult the applicants concerned on the envisaged capacity restrictions and communicate the updated capacity restrictions at least four months before the change of the working timetable. The infrastructure manager shall provide details on the offered train paths for passenger trains no later than four months and for freight trains no later than one month before the beginning of the capacity restriction, unless the infrastructure manager and the concerned applicants agree on a shorter lead time.

6.  Infrastructure managers may decide to apply more stringent thresholds for capacity restrictions based on lower percentages of estimated traffic volumes or shorter durations than indicated in section 3 of this Annex or to apply criteria in addition to the ones mentioned in this Annex, pursuant to a consultation with applicants and facility operators. They shall publish the thresholds and criteria for clustering capacity restrictions in their network statements under point 3 of Annex IV of Directive 2012/34/EU.

7.  Without prejudice to Article 40, the infrastructure manager may decide not to apply the periods laid down in points (1) to (5), if the capacity restriction is necessary to re-establish safe train operations, the timing of the restrictions is beyond the control of the infrastructure manager, the application of those periods would be cost ineffective or unnecessarily damaging in respect of asset life or condition, or if all concerned applicants agree. In those cases and in case of any other capacity restrictions that are not subject to consultation in accordance with other provisions of this Annex, the infrastructure manager shall consult the applicants and the main operators of service facilities concerned forthwith. [Am. 257]

8.  The information to be provided by the infrastructure manager when acting in accordance with points (1), (5) or (7) shall include:

(a)  the planned day;

(b)  time of day, and, as soon as it can be set, the hour of the beginning and of the end of the capacity restriction;

(c)  the section of line affected by the restriction;

(d)  where applicable, the capacity of diversionary lines.

The infrastructure manager shall publish that information, or a link where it can be found, in its network statement as referred to in point (3) of Annex IV of Directive 2012/34/EU. The infrastructure manager shall keep this information updated. In addition, infrastructure managers shall publish this information in digital format in accordance with Article 9 and 62.

9.  As regards the capacity restrictions of a duration of at least 30 consecutive days and affecting more than 50% of the estimated traffic volume on a railway line, the infra-structure manager shall provide the applicants upon their request during the first round of consultation with a comparison of the conditions to be encountered under at least two alternatives of capacity restrictions. The infrastructure manager shall design those alter-natives on the basis of the input provided by the applicants at the time of their requests and jointly with them.

The comparison shall, for each alternative, include at least:

(a)  the duration of the capacity restriction,

(b)  the expected indicative infrastructure charges due,

(c)  the capacity available on diversionary lines,

(d)  the available alternative routes, and

(e)  the indicative travel times.

Before making a choice between the alternatives of capacity restrictions, the infrastructure manager shall consult the interested applicants and take into account the impacts of the different alternatives on those applicants and on the users of the services.

The analysis of alternative capacity restrictions shall include situations concerning more than one infrastructure manager. In this case, the infrastructure managers shall coordinate the planning of alternative of the capacity restriction in accordance with Article 53.

10.  As regards the capacity restrictions of a duration of more than 30 consecutive days and affecting more than 50 % of the estimated traffic volume on a railway line, the infrastructure manager shall establish criteria for which trains of each type of service should be re-routed, taking into account the applicant's commercial and operational constraints, unless those operational constraints result from managerial or organisational decisions of the applicant, and without prejudice to the aim of reducing costs of the infrastructure manager in accordance with Article 30(1) of Directive 2012/34/EU. The infrastructure manager shall publish in the network statement those criteria.

11.  ENIM shall publish the information required under point (8) on its website.

12.  The Commission shall review the implementation of section 3 of this Annex until 31 December 2024 and propose a legislative proposal if necessary.

4.  Schedule for capacity allocation through the annual allocation process referred to in Articles 32 and 38

1.  The infrastructure manager and the applicants shall comply with the following schedule:

Milestone or time period

Deadline or duration(1)

Period of validity of the working timetable (‘working timetable period’)

One year

Entry into force of the working timetable

Midnight on the second Saturday in December

Publication of capacity supply plan

In accordance with section 2 of this Annex

Publication of capacity restrictions resulting from infrastructure works

In accordance with sections 2 and 3 of this Annex

Deadline for applicants to submit requests for capacity rights

X–8.5

Preparation of draft working timetable Deadline for infrastructure manager(s) to submit draft capacity offer to applicants

X–6.5

Finalisation of coordination with applicants, ensuring that all prerequisites are met before this 2 week finalisation of ‘observation phase’

X–6

Deadline for infrastructure manager(s) to submit final capacity offer to applicants

X–5.5

Publication of final working timetable Deadline for infrastructure manager to allocate capacity rights to applicants

X–5.25

Conversion of capacity specifications in train paths

To be specified in the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6

Note: (1) ‘X–m’ means ‘m’ months before the date of entry into force of the working timetable (‘X’)

[Am. 258]

2.  Infrastructure managers shall allocate capacity requests received in accordance with Article 32(8) on the basis of the first come, first served principle.

3.  The deadline for applicants to submit requests for capacity rights laid down in the table under point 1 shall be the deadline for requests for infrastructure capacity referred to in Article 27(4) of Directive 2012/34/EU.

5.  Schedule for capacity allocation through framework agreements referred to in Articles 31 and 38

1.  The infrastructure manager shall comply with the following schedule:

Time period

Duration(1)

Standard period of validity of framework agreements

5 years

Conversion of capacity specifications in train paths

Between X–8.5 and X–6.5 (jointly with coordination under the annual allocation process referred to in section 4)

Note: (1) ‘X–m’ means ‘m’ months before the date of entry into force of the working timetable (‘X’) in accordance with section 4

6.  Schedule for the rolling planning capacity allocation process referred to in Articles 33 and 38

1.  The infrastructure manager and the applicants shall comply with the following schedule during the rolling planning process,:

Milestone or time period

Deadline or duration(1)

Earliest point in time for applicants to submit capacity requests under the rolling planning allocation process

4 months before the first train run

Latest point in time for applicants to submit capacity to requests under the rolling planning allocation process

1 month before the first train run

Maximum duration of capacity rights granted under the rolling planning allocation process

36 months starting from the first train run

Conversion of capacity specifications in train paths for capacity rights granted in accordance with paragraph 2, point (a) of Article 33

Between X–8.5 and X–6.5 (jointly with coordination under the annual allocation process referred to in section 4)

Conversion of capacity specifications in train paths for capacity rights granted in accordance with paragraph 2, point (b) of Article 33

To be specified by the infrastructure managers taking into account the European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6

Note: (1) ‘X–m’ means ‘m’ months before the date of entry into force of the working timetable (‘X’) in accordance with section 4

2.  Infrastructure managers shall allocate capacity through the rolling planning process based on the first come, first served principle.

7.  Schedule for capacity allocation through the ad hoc process referred to in Articles 34 and 38

When allocating infrastructure capacity through the ad hoc process, the infrastructure manager shall comply with the following schedule:

Time period

Duration

Maximum period for infrastructure managers to prepare an offer of capacity rights concerning a single network if the ad hoc request is placed after the publication date of the final working timetable

1 day24 hours

Maximum period for infrastructure managers to prepare an offer of multi-network capacity rights

5 days

[Am. 259]

8.  Schedule for changes to capacity allocated referred to in Article 39

When changing infrastructure capacity rights, the infrastructure manager shall comply with the following schedule:

Milestone or time period

Deadline or duration

Maximum time for the infrastructure manager to offer an alternative capacity right involving a single network if for use within the next two working days.

24 hours

Maximum time for infrastructure managers concerned to offer an alternative multi-network capacity right with special parameters (e.g. extraordinary consignments, test runs)

5 calendar days

[Am. 260]

Annex II

Highly utilized and congested infrastructure referred to in Article 20

1.  Thresholds for the declaration of highly utilised and congested infrastructure

Utilisation

Classification

Capacity utilisation

Reference period

Heterogenous traffic

Highly utilised

> 65% of theoretical capacity [value to be determined by ENIM]

More than 4 hours for more than 200 days per year

Heterogenous traffic

Congested

> 95% of theoretical capacity [value to be determined by ENIM]

More than 4 hours for more than 250 days per year

Homogeneous traffic

Highly utilised

> 80% of theoretical capacity [value to be determined by ENIM]

More than 4 hours for more than 200 days per year

Homogenous traffic

Congested

> 95% of theoretical capacity [value to be determined by ENIM]

More than 4 hours for more than 250 days per year

[Am. 261]

Capacity utilisation means the ratio between capacity allocated, or for previous timetable periods, the actual number of trains running and the theoretical capacity available on an element of infrastructure on the basis of the methodology referred to in section 2.

‘Homogenous traffic’ means that trains on the section concerned generally have similar characteristics relevant for capacity utilisation, in particular speed, stopping pattern and acceleration.

‘Heterogenous traffic’ means that trains on the section concerned differ in characteristics relevant for capacity utilisation, in particular speed, stopping pattern and acceleration.

2.  Procedures and methods to calculate the degree of capacity utilisation

Infrastructure managers shall assess the degree of capacity utilisation on the basis of objective, transparent and appropriate procedures and methods.

Infrastructure managers may continue to use existing procedure and methods that meet these criteria. At the latest 3 years of the entry into force of this Regulation, ENIM shall prepare a recommendation on the use of a harmonised EU procedure and method to assess the utilisation of rail infrastructure capacity.

Alternatively, capacity utilisation can be assessed as the ratio between the demand for capacity (observed / past or estimate of future demand) and capacity available in the capacity utilisation plan in accordance with Article 18.

Annex III

CONTENTS OF THE EUROPEAN FRAMEWORK FOR CAPACITY MANAGEMENT REFERRED TO IN ARTICLE 6

The European framework for capacity management referred to in Article 6 shall contain at least the following elements:

Element

Reference(s)

Procedures and methodologies to manage and allocate scarce infrastructure capacity on the basis of socio-economic and environmental criteria.

Article 8(5), Article 8(6)

Types and description of rail transport services to be used for the purposes of strategic planning of rail infrastructure capacity.

Article 12(2)

Common principles, procedures and methodologies for strategic capacity planning, including for the coordination between infrastructure managers and the consultation of stakeholders.

Article 12(9), Article 13, Article 14

Means for publication of the capacity supply plan and process for consultation of applicants

Article 18(10)

Rules and procedures for the allocation of pre-planned capacity included in the capacity supply plan.

Article 20(3)

Characteristics of capacity specifications

Article 26(1)

Ranges for threshold quotas applicable to the cancelation of unused capacity rights

Article 27(6)

Procedures and methods to coordinate the allocation of multi-network capacity rights, including minimum quality requirements.

Article 28(5)

Guidelines on the limits regarding the differences between capacity requests by applicants and infrastructure capacity proposed by infrastructure managers in the consensual conflict resolution process.

Article 36(2)

Procedures to manage changes to capacity rights after allocation.

Article 39(8)

Conditions giving rise to compensation for changes to capacity rights.

Article 40(3)

Principles, rules and procedures to manage and allocate infrastructure capacity in the event of a network disruption.

Article 41(2)

Annex IV

Contents of the Network Statement referred to in Article 27 of Directive 2012/34/EU – section on capacity management and traffic management

The network statement referred to in Article 27 of Directive 2012/34/EU shall contain:

(1)  A section setting out the nature of the infrastructure, which is available to railway undertakings and the conditions of access to it. This section shall refer to information available in the register of infrastructure referred to in Article 49 of Directive (EU) 2016/797.

(2)  A section on the principles and criteria for capacity management. This shall set out the general capacity characteristics of the infrastructure, which is available to railway undertakings and any restrictions relating to its use, including likely capacity requirements for maintenance. It shall also specify the procedures and deadlines which relate to the capacity management process. It shall contain specific criteria, which are employed during that process, in particular:

(a)  the procedures according to which applicants are consulted, as referred to in Article 55 a, on strategic capacity planning; [Am. 262]

(b)  the procedures according to which applicants may request capacity from the infrastructure manager;

(c)  the requirements governing applicants;

(d)  the schedule for strategic capacity planning, for application, allocation, adaptation and rescheduling processes and the procedures which shall be followed to request information on the scheduling and the procedures for scheduling planned and unforeseen maintenance work;

(e)  the principles governing the consensual conflict resolution mechanism referred to in Article 36, including the dispute resolution system made available as part of this process, and the formal conflict resolution mechanism referred to in Article 37;

(f)  the structure and level of compensations for changes to capacity rights;

(g)  the procedures which shall be followed and criteria used where infrastructure is highly utilised or congested;

(h)  details of restrictions on the use of infrastructure;

(i)  an explanation for any deviations from the European framework referred to in Article 6.

(3)  A section on operations, including on traffic management, disruption management and crisis management. This shall set out the implementation of requirements laid out in this Regulation and in Directive (EU) 2016/797, Directive (EU) 2016/798 and Directive 2007/59/EC, including:

(a)  operational rules, including priority rules or priority principles for traffic management, a list of or references to technical, operational and safety rules and to rules relating to operational staff;

(b)  operational measures, including rules and procedures for disruption management and crisis management, operational communication and data exchange with railway undertakings and other operational stakeholders;

(c)  a list of and references to information systems used in operations;

(d)  an explanation for any deviations from the European framework referred to in Article 44.

(4)  A section on the key elements of performance management, including in particular:

(a)  references to performance objectives set out in the business plan referred to in Article 8(2) of Directive 2012/34/EU and in the contractual agreement referred to in Article 30 of that Directive;

(b)  procedures to monitor and report on progress towards the achievement of the targets, to identify the causes of performance deficiencies with operational stakeholders and to design and implement remedial measures to improve performance;

(c)  an explanation for any deviations from the European framework referred to in Article 50.

Annex V

CONTENTS OF THE EUROPEAN FRAMEWORK FOR THE CROSS-BORDER COORDINATION OF TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT, DISRUPTION MANAGEMENT AND CRISIS MANAGEMENT REFERRED TO IN ARTICLE 44

The European framework for the coordination of cross-border traffic, disruption and crisis management shall contain at least the following elements:

Element

Reference(s)

Common principles for traffic management, disruption management and crisis management to be taken into account by infrastructure managers when setting out rules and procedures for traffic management.

Article 43

Common rules and procedures for the coordination of traffic management, disruption management and crisis management between infrastructure managers and with operational stakeholders.

Article 42, Article 43, Article 45, Article 46, Article 47, Article 48

Common rules and procedures for managing and allocating capacity in the event of network disruptions and crisis situations.

Article 41(1)

Definition of responsibilities of operational stakeholders involved in the management of cross-border traffic, based on a set of agreed operational procedures, milestones and interfaces.

Article 45

Procedures, rules, tools and interfaces for communication and the exchange of information, including harmonised digital tools and interfaces, between infrastructure managers, operational stakeholders and other stakeholders concerned, in particular public authorities.

Article 45, Article 48, Article 62

Principles to establish dedicated coordination groups in relation to traffic management, disruption management and crisis management.

Article 53(2)

Arrangements for simulation and training, in particular in relation to network disruptions and crisis situations.

Article 42, Article 46, Article 47

Arrangements to review the performance of traffic management, disruption management and crisis management, including the coordination between operational stakeholders.

Article 50, Article 51

Annex VI

Network Disruptions referred to in Article 46

Type of incident

Estimated likely duration

Estimated likely impact

Network disruption

The return to pre-incident levels of available capacity for train utilisation requires 3 or more days

–  50% or more of the trains on the affected section operating on a single network need an operational treatment

–  Less than 50% of trains on the affected section that operate on more than one network need or are expected to need an operational treatment

Multi-network disruption

The return to pre-incident levels of available capacity for train utilisation requires 3 or more days

–  50% or more of trains on the affected section that operate on more than one network need or are expected to need an operational treatment

The conditions on duration and the likely impact on traffic are cumulative.

Annex VII

Performance areas subject to performance review referred to in Article 50

Performance area

Relevant issues (indicative)

Infrastructure and equipment

–  Capacity and capabilities of the physical infrastructure and its equipment, including deployment of TEN-T standards

–  Reductions in infrastructure capacity or capability due to deferred infrastructure renewal, maintenance or repair

Infrastructure capacity

–  Capacity offer in terms of quantity and quality, including consistency across network borders

–  Capacity utilisation, spare capacity to accommodate traffic growth

–  Consistency between available capacity (planned or unplanned) and market needs

–  Stability of the capacity offer, in particular in connection with infrastructure works

–  Congested infrastructure

–  Planned dwelling times of trains at border stations

Traffic management

–  Punctuality / delays of different types of rail services, at origin, intermediate stops and destination and at operationally important locations

–  Train cancellations

–  Actual dwelling times of trains at border stations

Disruption management and crisis management

–  Share of traffic that could be re-routed or re-scheduled during the disruption or crisis

–  Impact of disruptions on rail traffic in terms of delays and cancellations

–  Impact of disruptions on operators of rail services and their customers

–  Specific issues encountered (qualitative)

Deployment and performance of digital services, tools and interfaces

–  Support of the processes related to capacity management, traffic management and disruption management

–  Completeness and quality of the information and data provided as well as ease of access for operational stakeholders

–  Alignment with European architecture developed in ERJU and with the relevant technical specifications in accordance with Directive (EU) 2016/797

Compliance with regulation; regulatory oversight

–  Process indicators monitoring compliance with rules and procedures

–  Complaints lodged with regulatory bodies and ENRRB

[Am. 263]

Annex VIII

Information to be provided to operational stakeholders referred to in Article 48

The following information provided in accordance with Directive (EU) 2016/797 and relevant implementing acts under that Regulation shall be in the scope of Article 48:

—  Train running number

—  Train reporting

—  Consignment Note data

—  Path Request and path allocation

—  Train Preparation

—  Train Running Information and Train Running Forecast

—  Service Disruption Information

—  Shipment Estimated Time of Departure (ETD), Estimated Time of Interchange (ETI), Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA)

—  Wagon Movement

—  Data Exchange for Quality Improvement

Annex IX

List of issues for coordination between infrastructure managers referred to in Article 53

Issues for coordination

Provisions to be covered by coordination

Strategic capacity planning

Section 1 of Chapter II, in particular:

–  Article 10

Section 2 of Chapter II, in particular:

–  Article 11

–  Article 13

–  Article 14

–  Article 15

–  Article 16

–  Article 17

–  Article 18

–  Article 19

–  Article 21

–  Article 22

–  Article 25

Scheduling, capacity allocation and rescheduling

Section 3 of Chapter II, in particular:

–  Article 27

–  Article 28

–  Article 31

–  Article 32

–  Article 33

–  Article 34

–  Article 35

–  Article 36

–  Article 37

Section 4 of Chapter II

–  Article 39

–  Article 40

–  Article 41

Traffic management, disruption management and crisis management

Chapter III, in particular:

–  Article 45

–  Article 46

–  Article 47

Performance review

Chapter IV, in particular:

–  Article 51

Deployment of digital services, tools and interfaces; contribution to development of technical specifications

–  Article 9(2)

–  Article 20(4)

–  Article 27(4)

–  Article 29(5), Article 29(6)

–  Article 42(3), point (c)

–  Article 45, point (c)

–  Article 48(2), Article 48(3)

–  Article 62

Annex X

Correlation Tables

1.  Correlation table for the provisions deleted in Directive 2012/34/EU

Directive 2012/34/EU

This Regulation

Article 2(6)

Article 36(2)

Article 3, point 20

Article 21

Article 3, point 22

Article 36

Article 3, point 23

Article 31

Article 3, point 27

Article 4, point 8

Article 3, point 28

Article 4, point 13

Article 7b(1)

Article 3(1)

Article 7b(2)

Article 3(2)

Article 7b(3)

Article 3(3) and Article 2(3), point b

Article 36

Article 40

Article 38(1)

Article 26(1), second subparagraph and Article 26(6)

Article 38(2)

Article 26(3)

Article 38(3)

Article 26(4)

Article 38(4)

Article 26(5)

Article 39(1)

Article 11(3)

Article 39(2)

Article 27(3)

Article 40(1)

Article 14(2), (3) and Article 28

Article 40(2)

Article 55(7), Article 57(2), Article 63(1), (4), Article 64(1) and (7)

Article 40(3)

Article 55 (2), (5) and (7)

Article 40(4)

Article 57(1)

Article 40(5)

 

Article 41(1)

Article 7(1)

Article 41(2)

Article 7 (2)

Article 41(3)

Article 7(3)

Article 42(1)

Article 31(1)

Article 42(2)

Article 31(4)

Article 42(3)

Article 31(5)

Article 42(4)

Article 31(5) and (6)

Article 42(5)

Article 31(7) and Annex I, section 5

Article 42(6)

Article 31(8)

Article 42(7)

Article 31(10)

Article 42(8)

Article 31(11)

Article 43(1)

Article 38(1), Article 32(6), (7), (8) and Article 33(1) and (2)

Article 43(2)

Article 10(8), Article 11(2), Article 21(9), Article 38(3), and Article 39(9)

Article 43(3)

n/a

Article 44(1)

Article 26(1)

Article 44(2)

Article 32(7) and 32(8)

Article 44(3)

Article 31(2)

Article 44(4)

Article 28

Article 45(1)

Article 32(2)

Article 45(2)

Article 32(4)

Article 45(3)

Article 32(10)

Article 45(4)

Article 32(11)

Article 46(1)

Article 8(3) Article 20(3) Article 32(3)

Article 46(2)

Article 36(2)

Article 46(3)

Article 36(3)

Article 46(4)

Article 36(4)

Article 46(5)

Article 36(5)

Article 46(6)

Article 36(6)

Article 47(1)

Article 21(1)

Article 47(2)

Article 21(4)

Article 47(3)

Article 21(5), Article 25(1)

Article 47(4)

Article 8(1), (2), (4) and Article 11(3)

Article 47(5)

Article 8(1) and (4)

Article 47(6)

Article 21(6)

Article 48(1)

Article 34(1)

Article 48(2)

Article 18(4)

Article 49(1)

Article 24(1)

Article 49(2)

Article 24(2)

Article 49(3)

Article 24(3)

Article 50(1)

Article 22(1)

Article 50(2)

Article 22(2)

Article 50(3)

Article 22(1)

Article 51(1)

Article 23(1)

Article 51(2)

Article 23(1) and (2)

Article 51(3)

Article 23(4)

Article 51(4)

Article 23(5)

Article 52(1)

Article 12(8)

Article 52(2)

Article 27(6)

Article 53(1)

Article 35(1)

Article 53(2)

Article 10(2), (4) and Article 35(4)

Article 53(3)

Article 9(1)

Article 54(1)

Article 43(3)

Article 54(2)

Article 43(5)

Article 54(3)

Article 43(6)

2.  Correlation table for Regulation (EU) No 913/2010

Regulation (EU) No 913/2010

This Regulation

Articles 1 to 7

 

Article 8

Articles 55(1) to (4), (6), (7) and (8) and Article 56(1)(a) to (c), (f) and (2)

Article 9(1)

Article 14(1), Article 22(3) and (4), Article 23(3) and Article 57

Article 9(1)(a), (c), (d), (e), (2), (3), (4) and (5)

 

Article 9(1)(b)

Article 15 and Article 22(3) and (4)

Article 10

 

Article 11

Article 55(1) to (4), (6), (7) and (8)

Articles 12-18

 

Article 19

Article 49 and Article 52

Articles 20 to 25

 

(1) OJ C, C/2024/891, 6.2.2024, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2024/891/oj.
(2) Not yet published in the Official Journal.
(3)OJ C , , p. .
(4)OJ C , , p. .
(5)Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the European Council, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions ‘The European Green Deal’, COM(2019)640 final of 11 December 2019.
(6)Commission Communication ‘Pathway to a Healthy Planet for All EU Action Plan: “Towards Zero Pollution for Air, Water and Soil”’, COM(2021) 400 final of 12 May 2021.
(7)Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic And Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions ‘Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy – putting European transport on track for the future’, COM(2020) 789 final of 9 December 2020.
(8)Directive 2012/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 November 2012 establishing a single European railway area the rules applicable to the management of railway infrastructure (OJ L 343 14.12.2012, p. 32).
(9)Regulation (EU) No 913/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 September 2010 concerning a European rail network for competitive freight (OJ L 276, 20.10.2010, p. 22).
(10)Regulation (EU) 2016/796 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2016 on the European Union Agency for Railways and repealing Regulation (EC) No 881/2004 (OJ L 138, 26.5.2016, p. 1).
(11)Regulation (EU) 2021/1153 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 July 2021 establishing the Connecting Europe Facility and repealing Regulations (EU) No 1316/2013 and (EU) No 283/2014 (OJ L 249, 14.7.2021, p. 38).
(12)OJ L 123, 12.5.2016, p. 1.
(13)Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 laying down the rules and general principles concerning mechanisms for control by Member States of the Commission’s exercise of implementing powers (OJ L 55, 28.2.2011, p. 13).
(14)SWD(2021) 134 final of 2 June 2021
(15)Directive (EU) 2016/797 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2016 on the interoperability of the rail system within the European Union (OJ L 138, 26.5.2016, p. 44).
(16)Regulation (EC) No 1370/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2007 on public passenger transport services by rail and by road and repealing Council Regulations (EEC) No 1191/69 and (EEC) No 1107/70 (OJ L 315 3.12.2007, p. 1).
(17)Regulation (EU) 2024/... of the European Parliament and of the Council of ...on Union guidelines for the development of the trans-European transport network, amending Regulations (EU) 2021/1153 and (EU) No 913/2010 and repealing Regulation (EU) No 1315/2013 (OJ...).
(18)Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/2177 of 22 November 2017 on access to service facilities and rail-related services (OJ L 307, 23.11.2017, p. 1).
(19)Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/1100 of 7 July 2015 on the reporting obligations of the Member States in the framework of rail market monitoring (OJ L 181, 9.7.2015, p. 1).


Amending certain financial services and investment support Regulations as regards certain reporting requirements
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Resolution
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European Parliament legislative resolution of 12 March 2024 on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulations (EU) No 1092/2010, (EU) No 1093/2010, (EU) No 1094/2010, (EU) No 1095/2010 and (EU) 2021/523 as regards certain reporting requirements in the fields of financial services and investment support (COM(2023)0593 – C9-0383/2023 – 2023/0363(COD))
P9_TA(2024)0128A9-0026/2024

(Ordinary legislative procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2023)0593),

–  having regard to Article 294(2) and Articles 114, 173 and Article 175, third paragraph, of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C9‑0383/2023),

–  having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 14 February 2024(1),

–  after consulting the Committee of the Regions,

–  having regard to Rule 59 of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the report of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (A9-0026/2024),

1.  Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out;

2.  Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal;

3.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

Position of the European Parliament adopted at first reading on 12 March 2024 with a view to the adoption of Regulation (EU) 2024/… of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulations (EU) No 1092/2010, (EU) No 1093/2010, (EU) No 1094/2010, (EU) No 1095/2010 and (EU) 2021/523 as regards certain reporting requirements in the fields of financial services and investment support(2)

P9_TC1-COD(2023)0363


(Text with EEA relevance)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 114, Article 173 and Article 175, third paragraph, thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,

After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee(3),

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions(4),

Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure,

Whereas:

(1)  Reporting and disclosure requirements play a key role in ensuring proper monitoring and correct enforcement of legislation. However, it is important to streamline those requirements, in order to ensure that they fulfil their intended purpose, ▌to limit the administrative burden and to avoid undue duplication, not least for the regulatory and supervisory authorities of smaller financial jurisdictions. Reporting and disclosure requirements can also impose a disproportionate burden on entities, particularly on small and medium-sized enterprises or micro-enterprises.

(2)  Streamlining reporting obligations and reducing administrative burdens without undermining policy objectives are therefore priorities including as regards reporting requirements in the financial sector and as regards the frequency of reporting related to the InvestEU Programme established under Regulation (EU) 2021/523 of the European Parliament and of the Council(5).

(3)  Regulations (EU) No 1092/2010(6), (EU) No 1093/2010(7), (EU) No 1094/2010(8), (EU) No 1095/2010(9), (EU) No 806/2014(10), Regulation (EU) …/…(11) of the European Parliament and of the Council, Council Regulation (EU) No 1024/2013(12) and Regulation (EU) 2021/523 contain a number of reporting and disclosure, requirements which should be simplified as part of a qualitative, rather than a quantitative, exercise in line with the Commission’s Communication on ‘Long-term competitiveness of the EU: looking beyond 2030’(13).

(3a)  That qualitative exercise is not intended to undermine any Union policy achievements and, moreover, acknowledges the growing demand for data needed to fulfil the objectives of the legislative acts pertaining to the sustainable finance agenda. Yet consistency and standardisation across legal frameworks and jurisdictions and over time can make requirements more workable without affecting the actual content of reporting standards.

(3b)  Divergences of data between Member States should also be analysed in a qualitative way. In particular, some Union legislative acts are by virtue of their legal basis meant to provide partial or minimum harmonisation. Furthermore, some reporting standards are voluntary or follow an opt-in regime. Also, Member States may develop best practices or be frontrunners in reporting requirements, as long as they adhere to the requirements provided for in Union legislative acts.

(4)  Financial institutions and other entities active on financial markets are required to report a wide range of information to enable Union and national authorities overseeing the financial system to monitor risks, ensure financial stability and market integrity, and protect investors and consumers of financial services in the Union. The European Supervisory Authorities and the European Anti-Money Laundering Authority should regularly review the reporting and disclosure requirements and propose, where appropriate, to streamline and remove redundant, ▌obsolete or disproportionate requirements in relevant regulatory and implementing technical standards. The European Supervisory Authorities▌ should coordinate this work via the Joint Committee of the European Supervisory Authorities. ▌ In addition, peer reviews of competent authorities should also be conducted to improve the effectiveness and the degree of convergence of those requirements. Both the tasks under the common supervisory culture as well as the peer reviews should be carried out on a standing basis, for which more human and material resources should be allocated as necessary.

(4a)  A large proportion of the redundant, obsolete or disproportionate reporting and disclosure requirements stem from vertical inconsistencies between Member State requirements and Union requirements (‘gold plating’), horizontal inconsistencies across sector-specific and cross-sector legislation, as well as a lack of proportionality in the requirements themselves. The European Supervisory Authorities and the European Anti-Money Laundering Authority should therefore not only review regulatory and implementing technical standards, but should also provide opinions on ongoing ordinary legislative procedures and legislative acts already in force.

(4b)  Facilitating the sharing and reuse of information collected by the authorities responsible for supervision in the financial sector, while safeguarding data protection, professional secrecy and intellectual property, should reduce the burden on reporting entities and on authorities by avoiding duplicative requests, in line with the Commission’s strategy on supervisory data in Union financial services. Information sharing should also contribute to better coordination of supervisory activities and supervisory convergence.

(4c)  In order to foster the exchange of information across the entire financial sector, all authorities responsible for supervision in the financial sector, including the ESRB, the ESAs, the AMLA, the SSM, the SRB, as well as all respective competent, supervisory and resolution authorities in the Member States, should be included in the scope of this amending Regulation.

(5)  To that end, the ‘report once’ principle should be more consistently enforced in the Union. All▌ authorities responsible for supervision in the financial sector should only request ▌information from financial institutions or other reporting entities if they have not already reported that information to other authorities. If information has already been reported to an authority, other authorities, ▌should be able to request that information from that authority directly ▌ as opposed to ▌collecting the same information, thereby putting an end to so-called double ▌reporting ▌. With the same objective of improving efficiency in the collection, processing and use of information, authorities that enhance information by cleaning or enriching it should also be able to share such enhanced information.

(5a)  Some data points that are needed by financial institutions from companies to comply with their reporting obligations are still not reflected in the Union reporting framework and need to be added. Therefore, in addition to the need to address redundant, duplicative or obsolete reporting requirements, regulatory gaps should be considered. That makes it even more important to ensure consistency between financial and non-financial reporting requirements.

(5b)  Where relevant, financial institutions should be able to rely on a sequential approach, meaning that they should be able to refer to information which has already been published by companies in their value chain.

(5c)  In order to facilitate the detection, monitoring, prevention and mitigation of systemic risks to financial stability, the ESRB should have access to relevant information from the ESAs and the ECB by default. In that way, systematic risks could be better detected ex ante, as opposed to ex post, due to more rigorous request and sharing procedures.

(6)  Such sharing of information should be complementary to the existing possibilities of information exchange provided for in Union law, and should not in any case restrict those existing possibilities.

(6a)  The European Supervisory Authorities should assess policy options to further integrate reporting processes from a procedural and content perspective. The European Supervisory Authorities should duly assess opportunities arising from an increase in the use of digital technology to promote effective and efficient formats that embrace metrics, methods, and parameters, which will foster the competitiveness of the financial sector.

(6b)  With that in mind, over the past few years, the Commission and the ESAs have made significant progress in exploring the possibilities of establishing integrated reporting systems. Such innovative reporting systems are necessary to reap the benefits of increased data sharing between the authorities responsible for supervision in the financial sector. Therefore, all authorities responsible for supervision in the financial sector in the Union should establish a Single Integrated Reporting System. That system should include a common data dictionary that ensures consistency and clarity of reporting requirements and data standardisation, a joint repository of requested and obtained data, a central data space for efficient data collection and exchange as well as a permanent single contact point for entities to indicate double, obsolete or redundant reporting and disclosure requirements.

(6c)  Legal obstacles in sectoral regulations make it impossible, at times, for authorities to exchange relevant information. Therefore, those authorities should report those legal obstacles to the Commission, and the Commission should, where appropriate, propose to remove those obstacles, while simultaneously respecting intellectual property rights, professional secrecy and data protection.

(7)  The Commission requires accurate and comprehensive information to develop policies, evaluate existing legislation and assess the impact of potential legislative and non-legislative initiatives, including during negotiations of legislative proposals. The sharing by authorities with the Commission of information that financial institutions or other entities have reported to those authorities pursuant to their obligations under Union law, should help in providing an evidence-based foundation for the formulation and evaluation of Union policies. For that purpose, such information should be in a form that does not allow the identification of individual entities and does not contain personal data. Authorities may also benefit from anonymised data and therefore should also share such information among themselves where necessary for the fulfilment of their tasks.

(8)  Innovation cycles in the financial sector are accelerating, becoming more open and increasingly collaborative. To that end, authorities should be able to share information with financial institutions, researchers, and other entities for the purposes of research and innovation beyond the initial purpose for which the information was collected. The sharing of such information held by authorities should enhance its utility by expanding the information available for financial sector research and provide more opportunities to test products and business models as well as greater collaboration between various financial market participants, including fintech, start-ups and incumbent financial institutions. The re-use of data shared by competent authority is governed by the general framework for the re-use of data set out in Chapter II of Regulation (EU) 2022/868 of the European Parliament and of the Council(14). However, considering the sensitive nature of the data received for supervision purposes by the authorities in the financial sector, specific mandatory conditions should be introduced for the re-use of this data, including the anonymisation of personal and non-personal data which would not allow the identification of individual financial institutions and the protection of confidential information. It follows that all procedures and steps in the collection, standardisation, anonymisation, storage and sharing of data will on an ongoing basis remain subject to the latest cyber security measures prescribed by Union law.

(9)  The change of frequency of the reporting on the InvestEU Programme by implementing partners from biannual to annual should reduce the workload of the implementing partners, the financial intermediaries, SMEs and other companies without changing any of the substantive elements of Regulation (EU) 2021/523.

(10)  Regulations (EU) No 1092/2010, (EU) No 1093/2010, (EU) No 1094/2010, (EU) No 1095/2010, and (EU) 2021/523 should therefore be amended accordingly,

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Amendments to Regulation (EU) No 1092/2010

Regulation (EU) No 1092/2010 is amended as follows:

1.  in Article 8, paragraph 3 is replaced by the following:"

‘3. Without prejudice to Articles 15 and 16 and the application of criminal law, no confidential information received by the persons referred to in paragraph 1 whilst performing their duties shall be divulged to any person or authority whatsoever, except in summary or aggregate form, such that individual financial institutions cannot be identified.’;

"

1a.  In Article 15, paragraphs 1 to 7 are replaced by the following:"

‘1. The ESAs, the European System of Central Banks (ESCB), the Commission, the national supervisory authorities and national statistics authorities shall cooperate closely with the ESRB by sharing the information and analysis necessary for the achievement of their tasks.

2.  The ESRB, the ESAs, and the ECB shall coordinate their efforts to detect, monitor, prevent and mitigate systemic risks to financial stability. Notwithstanding other provisions on the sharing of supervisory and statistical information in this Article, and in other Union legislative acts, the ESAs and the ECB shall share all relevant information without undue delay after it becomes available, including supervisory and statistical information, as well as the results of their analysis of such information, with the ESRB, necessary for the achievement of its mission, objectives and tasks.

For the purposes of sharing that information, the ESAs and the ECB shall use the Single Integrated Reporting System referred to in Article 15a, upon its establishment.

3.  Where the existing information available to the ESRB through the ESAs, the ECB and the European Statistical System is not sufficient or not available in a timely manner, the ESRB shall request the information necessary to fulfil its mandate from national central banks, national supervisory authorities and national statistical authorities in accordance with this Article. If the information remains unavailable, the ESRB may request it from the Member State concerned, without prejudice to the prerogatives conferred, respectively, on the Council, the Commission (Eurostat), the ECB, the Eurosystem and the ESCB in the field of statistics and data collection.

4.  If the ESRB requests, in accordance with paragraph 3, information that is not in summary or aggregate form, the reasoned request shall explain why data on the respective individual financial institution is deemed to be systemically relevant and necessary, considering the prevailing market situation.

5.  Before each request made in accordance with paragraph 3 for information of a supervisory nature which is not in summary or aggregate form, the ESRB shall duly consult the relevant ESAs in order to ensure that the request is justified and proportionate. If the relevant ESA does not consider the request to be justified and proportionate, it shall, without delay, send the request back to the ESRB and ask for additional justification. After the ESRB has provided the relevant ESA with such additional justification, the requested information shall be transmitted to the ESRB by the addressees of the request, provided that they have legal access to the relevant information.’;

"

2.  in Article 15, the following paragraphs are added:"

‘8. The ESRB shall share with another of the authorities referred to in paragraph 1, another member authority of the ESFS or the other authorities, on a case-by-case or regular basis, information it obtained from another ▌of those authorities, or the other authorities, when ▌ the requesting authority is entitled to obtain that ▌information ▌pursuant to its mission, objectives, tasks and powers or in accordance with relevant Union law.

For the purposes of sharing the information referred to in the first subparagraph of this paragraph, the ESRB shall use the Single Integrated Reporting System referred to in Article 15a, upon its establishment.

8a.  The ESRB shall request from the other authorities information it would otherwise request from financial institutions or other competent authorities, where both of the following conditions are met:

   (a) it is entitled to obtain that information pursuant to its mission, objectives, tasks and powers or in accordance with relevant Union law;
   (b) that information has been obtained by at least one of the other authorities.

The first subparagraph shall be without prejudice to the possibility for the ESRB to obtain the requested information from financial institutions or other competent authorities where, for operational reasons, the other authority is unable to share the data.

For the purposes of determining whether the condition referred to in the first subparagraph, point (b), is met, the ESRB shall use the Single Integrated Reporting System referred to in Article 15a, upon its establishment.

8b.  For the purposes of this Article and Article 15a, ‘other authorities’ means any of the following authorities:

   (a) the European Supervisory Authorities;
   (b) competent authorities, as defined in Article 4, point (2), of Regulation (EU) No 1093/2010;
   (c) competent authorities, as defined in Article 4, point (2), of Regulation (EU) No 1094/2010;
   (d) competent authorities, as defined in Article 4, point (3), of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010;
   (e) the AMLA, as established by Regulation (EU) …/… of the European Parliament and of the Council(15);
   (f) authorities, as defined in Article 2, point (1), of Directive (EU) …/… of the European Parliament and of the Council(16)+;
   (g) the SSM, as defined in Article 2, point (9), of Regulation (EU) No 1024/2013;
   (h) the SRB;
   (i) national resolution authorities, as defined in Article 3, point (3), of Regulation (EU) No 806/2014.

9.   The request for exchange of information pursuant to paragraph 8 shall duly indicate the legal basis under Union law allowing the requesting authority to obtain the information from financial institutions or another authority referred to in that paragraph. The requesting authority and the ESRB shall be subject to the obligations of professional secrecy and data protection provisions laid down in Article 8 and in sectoral legislation applicable to the sharing of data between the financial institution or another authority referred to in paragraph 8 and the requesting authority, as well as to the sharing of data between another authority referred to in that paragraph and the ESRB. The ESRB shall inform each relevant authority about such exchange of information, unless the information has been anonymised, modified, aggregated or treated by any other method of disclosure control to protect confidential information, without undue delay.

10.   Paragraphs 8, 8a and 9 shall also apply to information that the ESRB has received from the other authorities and upon which the ESRB has subsequently performed quality checks or which the ESRB has otherwise processed.

11.   For sharing information as referred to in paragraphs 8, 8a, 9 and 10, the ESRB and the other authorities shall enter into memoranda of understanding to specify the modalities of the exchange of information. They shall also specify arrangements for the sharing of resources for the collection and processing of such shared data, provided that they comply with the applicable rules on data protection, intellectual property and professional secrecy. The memoranda of understanding shall by agreement between all the authorities concerned follow a simple and standardised format, tailored where necessary to any special operating conditions that apply to specific authorities.

12.   Paragraphs 8, 9 and 10 shall be without prejudice to the protection of intellectual property rights and shall not prevent or restrict the exchange of information between the ESRB and the other authorities in accordance with provisions in other Union legislation. Where paragraph 8, 9 or 10 conflicts with provisions in other Union legislation that regulate the exchange of information between the other authorities ▌the provisions in such other Union legislation shall prevail.

13.   Without prejudice to other obligations laid down in Union law for sharing information, the ESRB may, upon justified request and on a case-by-case basis, share with the Commission ▌ information that other authorities have reported to it pursuant to their obligations under Union law, ▌in a form that does not allow the identification of individual entities and does not contain personal data. The authorities which have submitted such information shall be duly informed of the sharing that has taken place.

14.   The ESRB may grant access to information obtained when carrying out its duties for re-use by financial institutions, researchers and other entities with a legitimate interest in such information for research and innovation purposes, provided that the ESRB has ensured that all of the following has been complied with:

   (a) the information has been anonymised, in such a manner that the data subject or the financial institution is not or no longer identifiable;
   (b) the information has been modified, aggregated or treated by any other method of disclosure control to protect confidential information, including trade secrets or content covered by intellectual property rights;
   (c) the parties to whom access has been granted have demonstrated that they have the requisite technical means to protect confidential information, that is, they possess instruments capable of fully ensuring the protection of privacy and confidentiality.

Information received from another authority shall only be shared on that basis with the agreement of the authority that initially obtained the information.

14a.  The ESRB shall, by ... [1 year from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation], report to the Commission all legal obstacles in sectoral regulations that in any way prevent the ESRB from exchanging information with other authorities or with other entities. The report may also address non-material, obsolete, duplicative or otherwise irrelevant reporting requirements.

On the basis of that report and taking due account of the protection of intellectual property rights, the obligations of professional secrecy and data protection, the Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a legislative proposal to remove such legal obstacles in sectoral legislation to foster the exchange of information between authorities and with other entities by ... [2 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].’;

"

2a.  the following article is inserted:"

‘Article 15a

Establishment of a Single Integrated Reporting System

1.  By ... [2 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation], the ESRB shall, in close collaboration with the other authorities, prepare a report on the technical details of establishing a Single Integrated Reporting System as well as a roadmap, based on the work on the integration of reporting by the ESAs within their sectors and include an assessment of costs and benefits. For the purposes of that report, the  Single Integrated Reporting System shall include:

   (a) a common data dictionary to ensure consistency and clarity of reporting requirements and data standardisation;
   (b) a joint repository of reporting and disclosure requirements, of the descriptions of the collected data and of the authorities that hold it;
   (c) a central data space including the technical design for collecting and exchanging information; and
   (d) a permanent single contact point for entities to indicate instances of double reporting, and redundant or obsolete reporting or disclosure requirements.

In close collaboration with the Commission, the report shall be accompanied by an estimate of the overall financial impact.

The Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a legislative proposal to ensure the necessary financial, human and IT resources for the establishment of the Single Integrated Reporting System by ... [3 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].

The ESRB, together with the other authorities shall establish the Single Integrated Reporting System by ... [3 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation]..

"

Article 2

Amendments to Regulation (EU) No 1093/2010

Regulation (EU) No 1093/2010 is amended as follows:

-1.  in Article 16a(1), the following subparagraph is added:"

‘The Authority’s opinions shall not be limited to ongoing legislative procedures. The Authority may also propose in its opinions, where appropriate, amendments to legislative acts in force, including amendments:

   (a) to remove redundant or obsolete reporting and disclosure requirements in Union law or the national transposition of Union law by Member States;
   (b) to ensure consistent reporting and disclosure requirements across sector-specific, as well as cross-sector, legislation;
   (c) to ensure proportionality in reporting and disclosure requirements with respect to the nature, size and complexity of the reporting entity;
   (d) to ensure that complying with reporting and disclosure requirements are commensurate with the added value to fulfilling the tasks and objectives of the Authority.

For the purposes of opinions on legislative acts in force referred to in the first subparagraph, the Authority shall take due account of input from all relevant stakeholders through a dedicated consultation. On the basis of those opinions, the Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a legislative proposal.’;

"

1.  in Article 29(1), point (d) is replaced by the following:"

‘(d) reviewing the application of the relevant regulatory and implementing technical standards adopted by the Commission, and of the guidelines and recommendations issued by the Authority and proposing amendments where appropriate, while maintaining the usability and quality of the data, in order to:

   remove redundant or obsolete reporting and disclosure requirements;
   ensure proportionate and standardised reporting and disclosure requirements;
   minimise costs;
   address regulatory gaps;’;

"

2.  in Article 30(3), the following point (e) is added:"

‘(e) the effectiveness of national reporting and disclosure requirements and the degree of convergence of such requirements with the ones set out in Union law and their suitability to meet the standards established therein, while taking into account the specific characteristics of national financial jurisdictions.’;

"

3.  in Article 35, paragraph 4 is replaced by the following:"

‘4. Before requesting information in accordance with this Article and in order to ensure no duplication of reporting and disclosure obligations, the Authority shall take account of information collected by the other authorities referred to in Article 35a(1b) and any relevant existing statistics produced and disseminated by the European Statistical System and the European System of Central Banks.’;

"

4.  the following Article 35a is inserted:"

‘Article 35a

Information exchange between authorities and with other entities

1.   The Authority and the competent authorities shall share with the other authorities, on a case-by-case or regular basis, information they obtained from financial institutions or other competent authorities, where the requesting authority is entitled to obtain that information pursuant to its mission, objectives, tasks and powers or in accordance with relevant Union law.

2.   The request for exchange of information shall duly indicate the legal basis under Union law allowing the requesting authority to obtain the information from financial institutions or other competent authorities. The requesting authority and the sharing authority shall be subject to the obligations of professional secrecy and data protection laid down in Articles 70 and 71 and in sectoral legislation applicable to the sharing of data between the financial institution and the requesting authority as well as to the sharing of data between the financial institution and the sharing authority. The sharing authority shall inform each relevant financial institution ▌ about such exchange of information, unless the information has been anonymised, modified, aggregated or treated by any other method of disclosure control to protect confidential information, without undue delay.

3.   Paragraphs 1, 1a and 2 shall also apply to information that the sharing authority has received from a financial institution or the other authorities and upon which the sharing authority has subsequently performed quality checks or which the sharing authority has otherwise processed.

4.   For sharing information as referred to in paragraphs 1, 1a, 2 and 3, the Authority and the other authorities shall enter into memoranda of understanding to specify the modalities of the exchange of information. They shall also specify arrangements for the sharing of resources for the collection and processing of such shared data, provided that such arrangements comply with the applicable rules on data protection, intellectual property and professional secrecyThe memoranda of understanding shall by agreement between all the authorities concerned follow a simple and standardised format, tailored where necessary to the special operating conditions that might apply to specific authorities.

5.   Paragraphs 1 to 4 shall be without prejudice to the protection of intellectual property rights and shall not prevent or restrict the exchange of information between the Authority and the other authorities ▌ in accordance with provisions in other Union legislation. Where the provisions in this Article conflict with provisions in other Union legislation that regulate the exchange of information between the other authorities▌, the provisions in such other Union legislation shall prevail.

6.   Without prejudice to other obligations laid down in Union law for sharing information, the Authority and the competent authorities may, upon justified request, share on a case-by-case basis, with the Commission ▌, information that financial institutions have reported to them pursuant to their duties under Union law ▌ in a form that does not allow the identification of individual entities and does not contain personal data. The authorities which have submitted such information shall be duly informed of the sharing that has taken place.

7.   The Authority and the competent authorities may grant access to information obtained when carrying out their duties for re-use by financial institutions, researchers and other entities with a legitimate interest in such information for research and innovation purposes, provided that the Authority has ensured that all of the following has been complied with:

   (a) the information has been anonymised, in such a manner that the data subject or the financial institution is not or no longer identifiable;
   (b) the information has been modified, aggregated or treated by any other method of disclosure control to protect confidential information, including trade secrets or content covered by intellectual property rights.

Information received from another authority shall only be shared on this basis with the agreement of the authority that initially obtained the information.

7a.  The Authority and competent authorities shall, by ... [1 year from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation], report to the Commission all legal obstacles in sectoral regulations that in any way prevent them from exchanging information with the other authorities or with other entities. The report may also include non-material, obsolete, duplicative or otherwise irrelevant reporting requirements, and suggestions for ensuring consistency between reporting requirements of financial and non-financial companies.

On the basis of that report and taking due account of the protection of intellectual property rights, the obligations of professional secrecy and data protection, the Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a legislative proposal to remove such legal obstacles in sectoral legislation to foster the exchange of information between authorities and with other entities by ... [2 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].’;

"

4a.  the following article is inserted:"

‘Article 35b

Establishment of a Single Integrated Reporting System

1.  By ... [2 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation], the Authority shall, in close collaboration with the other authorities and the ESCB, prepare a report on the technical details of establishing a Single Integrated Reporting System as well as a roadmap, based on the work on the integration of reporting by the ESAs within their sectors and include an assessment of costs and benefits. For the purposes of that report, the Single Integrated Reporting System shall include:

   (a) a common data dictionary to ensure consistency and clarity of reporting requirements and data standardisation;
   (b) a joint repository of reporting and disclosure requirements, of the descriptions of the collected data and of the authorities that hold it;
   (c) a central data space including the technical design for collecting and exchanging the information; and
   (d) a permanent single contact point for entities to indicate instances of double reporting, and redundant or obsolete reporting or disclosure requirements.

In close collaboration with the Commission, the report shall be accompanied by an estimate of the overall financial impact.

The Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a legislative proposal to ensure the necessary financial, human and IT resources for the establishment of the Single Integrated Reporting System by ... [3 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].

The Authority, together with the other authorities shall establish the Single Integrated Reporting System by ... [3 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].’;

"

4b.  in Article 36, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:"

‘2. The Authority, together with the European System of Central Banks (ESCB), the Commission, the national competent authorities and national statistics authorities, shall cooperate closely with the ESRB by sharing the information and analysis necessary for the achievement of their tasks.

The Authority shall, together with the ESRB and the ECB, coordinate its efforts to detect, monitor, prevent and mitigate systemic risks to financial stability.

The Authority shall, in accordance with Article 15(1) to (5) of Regulation (EU) No 1092/2010, comply with the outlined data sharing provisions.

The Authority, in cooperation with the ESRB, shall have in place adequate internal procedures for the transmission of confidential information, in particular information regarding individual financial institutions.’;

"

5.  in Article 54(2), the following indent is added:"

‘ — reporting and disclosure requirements and the collection of information from financial institutions.’;

"

6.  In Article 70, paragraph 3 is replaced by the following:"

‘3. Paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not prevent the Authority from exchanging information with the other authorities referred to in Article 35a(1b) – in accordance with this Regulation and with other Union legislation applicable to financial institutions.’.

"

Article 3

Amendments to Regulation (EU) No 1094/2010

Regulation (EU) No 1094/2010 is amended as follows:

-1.  in Article 16a(1), the following subparagraph is added:"

‘The Authority’s opinions shall not be limited to ongoing legislative procedures. The Authority may also propose in its opinions, where appropriate, amendments to legislative acts in force, including amendments:

   (a) to remove redundant or obsolete reporting and disclosure requirements in Union law or the national transposition of Union law by Member States;
   (b) to ensure consistent reporting and disclosure requirements across sector-specific, as well as cross-sector, legislation;
   (c) to ensure proportionality in reporting and disclosure requirements with respect to the nature, size and complexity of the reporting entity;
   (d) to ensure that complying with reporting and disclosure requirements are commensurate with the added value to fulfilling the tasks and objectives of the Authority.

For the purposes of opinions on legislative acts in force referred to in the first subparagraph, the Authority shall take due account of input from all relevant stakeholders through a dedicated consultation. On the basis of those opinions, the Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a legislative proposal.’;

"

1.  in Article 29(1), point (d) is replaced by the following:"

‘(d) reviewing the application of the relevant regulatory and implementing technical standards adopted by the Commission, and of the guidelines and recommendations issued by the Authority and proposing amendments where appropriate, while maintaining the usability and quality of the data, in order to:

   remove redundant or obsolete reporting and disclosure requirements;
   ensure proportionate and standardised reporting and disclosure requirements;
   minimise costs;
   address regulatory gaps;’;

"

2.  in Article 30(3), the following point (e) is added:"

‘(e) the effectiveness of national reporting and disclosure requirements and the degree of convergence of such requirements with the ones set out in Union law and their suitability to meet the standards established therein, while taking into account the specific characteristics of national financial jurisdictions.’;

"

3.  in Article 35, paragraph 4 is replaced by the following:"

‘4.  Before requesting information in accordance with this Article and in order to ensure no duplication of reporting and disclosure obligations, the Authority shall take account of information collected by the other authorities referred to in Article 35a(1b) and any relevant existing statistics produced and disseminated by the European Statistical System and the European System of Central Banks.’;

"

4.  the following Article 35a is inserted:"

‘Article 35a

Information exchange between authorities and with other entities

1.   The Authority and the competent authorities  shall share with the other authorities, on a case-by-case or regular basis, information they obtained from financial institutions or other competent authorities, where the requesting authority is entitled to obtain that information, pursuant to its mission, objectives, tasks and powers or in accordance with relevant Union law.

For the purposes of sharing the information referred to in the first subparagraph of this paragraph, the Authority or competent authority shall use the Single Integrated Reporting System referred to in Article 35b, upon its establishment.

1a.  The Authority and the competent authorities shall each request from the other authorities information they would otherwise request from financial institutions or other competent authorities where both of the following conditions are met:

   (a) they are entitled to obtain that information pursuant to their mission, objectives, tasks and powers or in accordance with relevant Union law;
   (b) that information has been obtained by at least one of the other authorities.

The first subparagraph shall be without prejudice to the possibility for the Authority and the competent authorities to obtain the requested information from financial institutions or other competent authorities where, for operational reasons, the other authority is unable to share the data.

For the purposes of determining whether the condition referred to in the first subparagraph, point (b), is met, the Authority or the competent authorities shall use the Single Integrated Reporting System referred to in Article 35b, upon its establishment.

1b.  For the purposes of this Article, Article 35b and Article 70(3), ‘other authorities’ means any of the following authorities:

   (a) other European Supervisory Authorities;
   (b) the ESRB;
   (c) competent authorities, as defined in Article 4, point (2), of this Regulation;
   (d) competent authorities, as defined in Article 4, point (2), of Regulation (EU) No 1094/2010;
   (e) competent authorities, as defined in Article 4, point (3), of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010;
   (f) the AMLA, as established by Regulation (EU) …/… of the European Parliament and of the Council(17);
   (g) authorities, as defined in Article 2, point (1), of Directive (EU) …/… of the European Parliament and of the Council(18)+;
   (h) the SSM, as defined in Article 2, point (9), of Regulation (EU) No 1024/2013;
   (i) the SRB;
   (j) national resolution authorities, as defined in Article 3, point (3), of Regulation (EU) No 806/2014.

For the purposes of this Article, ‘financial institution’ means a ‘financial institution’ as defined in Article 2, point (a), of Regulation (EU) No 1092/2010.

2.   The request for exchange of information shall duly indicate the legal basis under Union law allowing the requesting authority to obtain the information from financial institutions or other competent authorities. The requesting authority and the sharing authority shall be subject to the obligations of professional secrecy and data protection laid down in Articles 70 and 71 and in sectoral legislation  applicable to the sharing of data between the financial institution and the requesting authority as well as to the sharing of data between the financial institution and the sharing authority. The sharing authority shall inform each relevant financial institution ▌about such exchange of information, unless the information has been anonymised, modified, aggregated or treated by any other method of disclosure control to protect confidential information, without undue delay.

3.   Paragraphs 1, 1a and 2 shall also apply to information that the sharing authority has received from a financial institution or the other authorities and upon which the sharing authority has subsequently performed quality checks or which the sharing authority has otherwise processed.

4.   For sharing information as referred to paragraphs 1, 1a, 2 and 3, the Authority and the other authorities shall enter into memoranda of understanding to specify the modalities of the exchange of information. They shall also specify arrangements for the sharing of resources for the collection and processing of such shared data. The memoranda of understanding shall by agreement between all the authorities concerned follow a simple and standardised format, tailored where necessary to any special operating conditions that might apply to specific authorities.

5.   Paragraphs 1 to 4 shall be without prejudice to the protection of intellectual property rights and shall not prevent or restrict the exchange of information between the Authority and the other authorities ▌ in accordance with provisions in other Union legislation. Where the provisions in this Article conflict with provisions in other Union legislation that regulate the exchange of information between the other authorities ▌, the provisions in such other Union legislation shall prevail.

6.   Without prejudice to other obligations laid down in Union law for sharing information, the Authority and the competent authorities may, upon justified request, share on a case-by-case basis with the Commission ▌, information that financial institutions have reported to them pursuant to their duties under Union law, ▌ in a form that does not allow the identification of individual entities and does not contain personal data.

7.  The Authority and the competent authorities may grant access to information obtained when carrying out their duties for re-use by financial institutions, researchers and other entities with a legitimate interest in such information for research and innovation purposes, provided that the Authority has ensured that all of the following has been complied with:

   (a) the information has been anonymised, in such a manner that the data subject or the financial institution is not or no longer identifiable;
   (b) the information has been modified, aggregated or treated by any other method of disclosure control to protect confidential information, including trade secrets or content covered by intellectual property rights.

Information received from another authority shall only be shared on this basis with the agreement of the authority that initially obtained the information. ’;

7a.  The Authority and competent authorities shall, by ... [1 year from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation], report to the Commission all legal obstacles in sectoral regulations that in any way prevent them from exchanging information with the other authorities or with other entities. The report may also address non-material, obsolete, duplicative or otherwise irrelevant reporting requirements, and suggestions to ensure consistency between reporting requirements of financial and non-financial companies.

On the basis of that report and taking due account of the protection of intellectual property rights, the obligations of professional secrecy and data protection, the Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a legislative proposal to remove such legal obstacles in sectoral legislation to foster the exchange of information between authorities and with other entities by ... [2 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].’;

"

4a.  the following article is inserted:"

‘Article 35b

Establishment of a Single Integrated Reporting System

1.  By ... [2 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation], the Authority shall, in close collaboration with the other authorities and the ESCB, prepare a report on the technical details of establishing a Single Integrated Reporting System as well as a roadmap, based on the work on the integration of reporting by the ESAs within their sectors and include an assessment of costs and benefits. For the purposes of that report, the Single Integrated Reporting System shall include:

   (a) a common data dictionary to ensure consistency and clarity of reporting requirements and data standardisation;
   (b) a joint repository of reporting and disclosure requirements, of the descriptions of the collected data and of the authorities that hold it;
   (c) a central data space including the technical design for collecting and exchanging the information; and
   (d) a permanent single contact point for entities to indicate instance of double reporting, and redundant or obsolete reporting or disclosure requirements.

In close collaboration with the Commission, the report shall be accompanied by an estimate of the overall financial impact.

The Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a legislative proposal to ensure the necessary financial, human and IT resources for the establishment of the Single Integrated Reporting System by ... [3 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].

The Authority, together with the other authorities shall establish a Single Integrated Reporting System by ... [3 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].’;

"

4b.  in Article 36, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:"

‘2. The Authority, together with the European System of Central Banks (ESCB), the Commission, the national competent authorities and national statistics authorities, shall cooperate closely with the ESRB by sharing the information and analysis necessary for the achievement of their tasks.

The Authority shall, together with the ESRB and the ECB, coordinate its efforts to detect, monitor, prevent and mitigate systemic risks to financial stability.

The Authority shall, in accordance with Article 15(1) to (5) of Regulation (EU) No 1092/2010, comply with the outlined data sharing provisions.

The Authority, in cooperation with the ESRB, shall have in place adequate internal procedures for the transmission of confidential information, in particular information regarding individual financial institutions.’;

"

5.  in Article 54(2), the following indent is added:"

‘ — reporting and disclosure requirements and the collection of information from financial institutions.’;

"

6.  in Article 70, paragraph 3 is replaced by the following:"

‘3. Paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not prevent the Authority from exchanging information with the other authorities referred to in Article 35a(1b) in accordance with this Regulation and with other Union legislation applicable to financial institutions.’

"

Article 4

Amendments to Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010

Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010 is amended as follows:

-1.  in Article 16a(1), the following subparagraph is added:"

‘The Authority’s opinions shall not be limited to ongoing legislative procedures. The Authority may also propose in its opinions, where appropriate, amendments to legislative acts in force, including amendments:

   (a) to remove redundant or obsolete reporting and disclosure requirements in Union law or the national transposition of Union law by Member States;
   (b) to ensure consistent reporting and disclosure requirements across sector-specific, as well as cross-sector, legislation;
   (c) to ensure proportionality in reporting and disclosure requirements with respect to the nature, size and complexity of the reporting entity;
   (d) to ensure that complying with reporting and disclosure requirements are commensurate with the added value to fulfilling the tasks and objectives of the Authority.

For the purposes of opinions on legislative acts in force referred to in the first subparagraph, the Authority shall take due account of input from all relevant stakeholders through a dedicated consultation. On the basis of those opinions, the Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a legislative proposal.’;

"

1.  in Article 29(1), point (d) is replaced by the following:"

‘(d) reviewing the application of the relevant regulatory and implementing technical standards adopted by the Commission, and of the guidelines and recommendations issued by the Authority and proposing amendments where appropriate, while maintaining the usability and quality of the data, in order to:

   remove redundant or obsolete reporting and disclosure requirements;
   ensure proportionate and standardised reporting and disclosure requirements;
   minimise costs;
   address regulatory gaps;’;

"

2.  in Article 30(3), the following point (e) is added:"

‘(e) the effectiveness of national reporting and disclosure requirements and the degree of convergence of such requirements with the ones set out in Union law and their suitability to meet the standards established therein, while taking into account the specific characteristics of national financial jurisdictions.’;

"

3.  in Article 35, paragraph 4 is replaced by the following:"

‘4. Before requesting information in accordance with this Article and in order to ensure no duplication of reporting and disclosure obligations, the Authority shall take account of information collected by the other authorities referred to in Article 35a(1b) and any relevant existing statistics produced and disseminated by the European Statistical System and the European System of Central Banks.’;

"

4.  the following Article 35a is inserted:"

‘Article 35a

Information exchange between authorities and with other entities 

1.   The Authority and the competent authorities  shall share with other authorities, on a case-by-case or regular basis, information they obtained from financial institutions or other competent authorities, where the requesting authority is entitled to obtain that information, pursuant to its mission, objectives, tasks and powers or in accordance with relevant Union law.

For the purposes of sharing the information referred to in the first subparagraph of this paragraph, the Authority or competent authority shall use the Single Integrated Reporting System referred to in Article 35b, upon its establishment.

1a.  The Authority and the competent authorities shall each request from the other authorities information they would otherwise request from financial institutions or other competent authorities where both of the following conditions are met:

   (a) they are entitled to obtain that information pursuant to their mission, objectives, tasks and powers or in accordance with relevant Union law;
   (b) that information has been obtained by at least one of the other authorities.

The first subparagraph shall be without prejudice to the possibility for the Authority and the competent authorities to obtain the requested information from financial institutions or other competent authorities where, for operational reasons, the other authority is unable to share the data.

For the purposes of determining whether the condition referred to in the first subparagraph, point (b), is met, the Authority or the competent authorities shall use the Single Integrated Reporting System referred to in Article 35b, upon its establishment.

1b.  For the purposes of this Article, Article 35b and Article 70(3), ‘other authorities’ means any of the following authorities:

   (a) other European Supervisory Authorities;
   (b) the ESRB;
   (c) competent authorities, as defined in Article 4, point (2), of this Regulation;
   (d) competent authorities, as defined in Article 4, point (2), of Regulation (EU) No 1094/2010;
   (e) competent authorities, as defined in Article 4, point (3), of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010;
   (f) the AMLA, as established by Regulation (EU) …/… of the European Parliament and of the Council(19);
   (g) authorities, as defined in Article 2, point (1), of Directive (EU) …/… of the European Parliament and of the Council(20)+;
   (h) the SSM, as defined in Article 2, point (9), of Regulation (EU) No 1024/2013;
   (i) the SRB;
   (j) national resolution authorities, as defined in Article 3, point (3), of Regulation (EU) No 806/2014.

For the purposes of this Article, ‘financial institution’ means a ‘financial institution’ as defined in Article 2, point (a), of Regulation (EU) No 1092/2010.

2.   The request for exchange of information shall duly indicate the legal basis under Union law allowing the requesting authority to obtain the information from financial institutions or other competent authorities. The requesting authority and the sharing authority shall be subject to the obligations of professional secrecy and data protection laid down in Articles 70 and 71 and in sectoral legislation  applicable to the sharing of data between the financial institution and the requesting authority as well as to the sharing of data between the financial institution and the sharing authority. The sharing authority shall inform each relevant financial institution about such exchange of information, unless the information has been anonymised, modified, aggregated or treated by any other method of disclosure control to protect confidential information, without undue delay.

3.  Paragraphs 1, 1a and 2 shall also apply to information that the sharing authority has received from a financial institution or the other authorities and upon which the sharing authority has subsequently performed quality checks or which the sharing authority has otherwise processed.

4.  For sharing information as referred to in paragraphs 1, 1a, 2 and 3, the Authority and the other authorities shall enter into memoranda of understanding to specify the modalities of the exchange of information. They shall also specify arrangements for the sharing of resources for the collection and processing of such shared data, provided that such arrangements comply with the applicable rules on data protection, intellectual property and professional secrecy. The memoranda of understanding shall by agreement between all the authorities concerned follow a simple and standardised format, tailored where necessary to any special operating conditions that might apply to specific authorities. 

5.  Paragraphs 1 to 4 shall be without prejudice to the protection of intellectual property rights and shall not prevent or restrict the exchange of information between the Authority and the other authorities ▌ in accordance with provisions in other Union legislation. Where the provisions in this Article conflict with provisions in other Union legislation that regulate the exchange of information between the other authorities ▌, the provisions in such other Union legislation shall prevail.

6.  Without prejudice to other obligations laid down in Union law for sharing information, the Authority and the competent authorities may , upon justified request, share on a case-by-case basis with the Commission ▌, information that financial institutions have reported to them pursuant to their duties under Union law, ▌ in a form that does not allow the identification of individual entities and does not contain personal data. The authorities which have submitted such information shall be duly informed of the sharing that has taken place.

7.  The Authority and the competent authorities may grant access to information obtained when carrying out their duties for re-use by financial institutions, researchers and other entities with a legitimate interest in such information for research and innovation purposes, provided that the Authority has ensured that all of the following has been complied with:

   (a) the information has been anonymised, in such a manner that the data subject or the financial institution is not or no longer identifiable;
   (b) the information has been modified, aggregated or treated by any other method of disclosure control to protect confidential information, including trade secrets or content covered by intellectual property rights;
   (c) the parties to whom access has been granted have demonstrated that they have the requisite technical means to protect confidential information, that is, they possess instruments capable of fully ensuring the protection of privacy and confidentiality.

Information received from another authority shall only be shared on this basis with the agreement of the authority that initially obtained the information.

7a.  The Authority and competent authorities shall, by ... [1 year from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation], report to the Commission all legal obstacles in sectoral regulations that in any way prevent them from exchanging information with the other authorities or with other entities. The report may also address non-material, obsolete, duplicative or otherwise irrelevant reporting requirements, and suggestions to ensure consistency between reporting requirements of financial and non-financial companies.

On the basis of that report and taking due account of the protection of intellectual property rights, the obligations of professional secrecy and data protection, the Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a legislative proposal to remove such legal obstacles in sectoral legislation to foster the exchange of information between authorities and with other entities by ... [2 years after the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].’;

"

4a.  the following article is inserted:"

‘Article 35b

Establishment of a Single Integrated Reporting System

1.  By ... [2 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation], the Authority shall, in close collaboration with the other authorities and the ESCB, prepare a report on the technical details of establishing a Single Integrated Reporting System as well as a roadmap, based on the work on the integration of reporting by the ESAs within their sectors and include an assessment of costs and benefits. For the purposes of that report, the Single Integrated Reporting System shall include:

   (a) a common data dictionary to ensure consistency and clarity of reporting requirements and data standardisation;
   (b) a joint repository of reporting and disclosure requirements, of the descriptions of the collected data and of the authorities that hold it;
   (c) a central data space including the technical design for collecting and exchanging the information; and
   (d) a permanent single contact point for entities to indicate instances of double reporting, and redundant or obsolete reporting or disclosure requirements.

In close collaboration with the Commission, the report shall be accompanied by an estimate of the overall financial impact.

The Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a legislative proposal to ensure the necessary financial, human and IT resources for the establishment of the Single Integrated Reporting System by ... [3 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].

The Authority, together with the other authorities shall establish the Single Integrated Reporting System by ... [3 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].’;

"

4b.  in Article 36, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:"

‘2. The Authority, together with the European System of Central Banks (ESCB), the Commission, the national competent authorities and national statistics authorities, shall cooperate closely with the ESRB by sharing the information and analysis necessary for the achievement of their tasks.

The Authority shall, together with the ESRB and the ECB, coordinate its efforts to detect, monitor, prevent and mitigate systemic risks to financial stability.

The Authority shall, in accordance with Article 15(1) to (5) of Regulation (EU) No 1092/2010, comply with the outlined data sharing provisions.

The Authority, in cooperation with the ESRB, shall have in place adequate internal procedures for the transmission of confidential information, in particular information regarding individual financial institutions.’;

"

5.  in Article 54(2), the following indent is added:"

‘ — reporting and disclosure requirements and the collection of information from financial market participants.’;

"

6.  in Article 70, paragraph 3 is replaced by the following:"

‘3. Paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not prevent the Authority from exchanging information with the other authorities referred to in Article 35a(1b) in accordance with this Regulation and with other Union legislation applicable to financial market participants.’.

"

Article 4a

Amendments to Regulation (EU) No 806/2014

In Regulation (EU) No 806/2014,the following Articles are inserted:"

‘Article 34a

Information exchange between authorities and with other entities

1.  The Board and the national resolution authorities shall share with the other authorities, on a case-by-case or regular basis, information they obtained from financial institutions or other competent authorities, when the requesting authority is entitled to obtain that information, pursuant to its mission, objectives, tasks and powers or in accordance with relevant Union law.

For the purposes of sharing the information referred to in the first subparagraph of this paragraph, the Board or the national resolution authorities shall use the Single Integrated Reporting System referred to in Article 34b, upon its establishment.

2.  The Board and the national resolution authorities shall request from the other authorities information they would otherwise request from financial institutions or other competent authorities, where both of the following conditions are met:

   (a) they are entitled to obtain that information, pursuant to their mission, objectives, tasks and powers or in accordance with relevant Union law;
   (b) that information has been obtained by at least one of the other authorities.

The first subparagraph shall be without prejudice to the possibility for the Board and the national resolution authorities to obtain the requested information from financial institutions or other competent authorities where, for operational reasons, the other authority is unable to share the data.

For the purposes of determining whether the condition referred to in the first subparagraph, point (b), is met, the Board shall use the Single Integrated Reporting System referred to in Article 34b, upon its establishment.

3.  For the purposes of this Article and Article 34b, ‘other authorities’ means any of the following authorities:

   (a) the European Supervisory Authorities;
   (b) the ESRB;
   (c) competent authorities, as defined in Article 4, point (2), of Regulation (EU) No 1093/2010;
   (d) competent authorities, as defined in Article 4, point (2), of Regulation (EU) No 1094/2010;
   (e) competent authorities, as defined in Article 4, point (3), of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010;
   (f) the AMLA, as established by Regulation (EU) …/… of the European Parliament and of the Council(21);
   (g) authorities, as defined in Article 2, point (1), of Directive (EU) …/… of the European Parliament and of the Council(22)+;
   (h) the SSM, as defined in Article 2, point (9), of Regulation (EU) No 1024/2013;
   (i) national resolution authorities, as defined in Article 3, point (3).

For the purposes of this Article, ‘financial institution’ means a ‘financial institution’ as defined in Article 2, point (a), of Regulation (EU) No 1092/2010.

4.  The request for exchange of information shall duly indicate the legal basis under Union law allowing the requesting authority to obtain the information from financial institutions or other competent authorities. The requesting authority and the sharing authority shall be subject to the obligations of professional secrecy and data protection laid down in Articles 88 and 89 and in sectoral legislation applicable to the sharing of data between the financial institution and the requesting authority as well as to the sharing of data between the financial institution and the sharing authority. The sharing authority shall inform each relevant financial institution about such exchange of information, unless the information has been anonymised, modified, aggregated or treated by any other method of disclosure control to protect confidential information, without undue delay.

5.  Paragraphs 1, 2 and 4 shall also apply to information that the sharing authority has received from a financial institution or the other authorities and upon which the sharing authority has subsequently performed quality checks or which the sharing authority has otherwise processed.

6.  For sharing information as referred to in paragraphs 1, 2, 4 and 5, the Board and the other authorities shall enter into memoranda of understanding to specify the modalities of the exchange of information. They shall also specify arrangements for the sharing of resources for the collection and processing of such shared data. provided that such arrangements comply with the applicable rules on data protection, intellectual property and professional secrecy. The memoranda of understanding shall by agreement between all the authorities concerned follow a simple and standardised format, tailored when necessary to the special operating conditions that might apply to specific authorities.

7.  Paragraphs 1 to 6 shall be without prejudice to the protection of intellectual property rights and shall not prevent or restrict the exchange of information between the Board and the other authorities in accordance with provisions in other Union legislation. Where the provisions in this Article conflict with provisions in this Regulation or other Union legislation that regulate the exchange of information between the other authorities, the provisions in such other Union legislation shall prevail.

8.  Without prejudice to other obligations laid down in Union law for sharing information, the Board and the national resolution authorities may, upon justified request, share on a case-by-case basis, with the Commission, information that financial institutions have reported to them pursuant to their duties under Union law, in a form that does not allow the identification of individual entities and does not contain personal data. The authorities which have submitted such information shall be duly informed of the sharing that has taken place.

9.  The Board and the national resolution authorities may grant access to information obtained when carrying out their duties for re-use by financial institutions, researchers and other entities with a legitimate interest in such information for research and innovation purposes, provided that the Board has ensured that all of the following has been complied with:

   (a) the information has been anonymised, in such a manner that the data subject or the financial institution is not or no longer identifiable;
   (b) the information has been modified, aggregated or treated by any other method of disclosure control to protect confidential information, including trade secrets or content covered by intellectual property rights;
   (c) the parties to whom access has been granted have demonstrated that they have the requisite technical means to protect confidential information, that is, they possess instruments capable of fully ensuring the protection of privacy and confidentiality.

Information received from another authority shall only be shared on this basis with the agreement of the authority that initially obtained the information.

10.  The Board and the national resolution authorities shall, by ... [1 year from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation], report to the Commission all legal obstacles in sectoral regulations that in any way prevent the Board from exchanging information with the other authorities or with other entities. The report may also address non-material, obsolete, duplicative or otherwise irrelevant reporting requirements, and suggestions to ensure consistency between reporting requirements of financial and non-financial companies.

On the basis of that report and taking due account of the protection of intellectual property rights, the obligations of professional secrecy and data protection, the Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a legislative proposal to remove such legal obstacles in sectoral legislation to foster the exchange of information between authorities and with other entities by ... [2 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].

Article 34b

Establishment of a Single Integrated Reporting System

1.  By ... [2 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation], the Board shall, in close collaboration with the other authorities, prepare a report on the technical details of establishing a Single Integrated Reporting System as well as a roadmap, based on the work on the integration of reporting by the ESAs within their sectors and include an assessment of costs and benefits. For the purposes of that report, the Single Integrated Reporting System shall include:

   (a) a common data dictionary to ensure consistency and clarity of reporting requirements and data standardisation;
   (b) a joint repository of reporting and disclosure requirements, of the descriptions of the collected data and of the authorities that hold it;
   (c) a central data space including the technical design for collecting and exchanging the information; and
   (d) a permanent single contact point for entities to indicate instances of double reporting, and redundant or obsolete reporting or disclosure requirements.

2.  In close collaboration with the Commission, the report shall be accompanied by an estimate of the overall financial impact.

The Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a legislative proposal to ensure the necessary financial, human and IT resources for the establishment of the Single Integrated Reporting System by ... [3 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].

The Board, together with the other authorities shall establish the Single Integrated Reporting System by ... [3 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].’;

"

Article 4b

Amendments to Regulation (EU) …/… establishing the Anti-Money Laundering Authority

Regulation (EU) …/..(23). is amended as follows:

1.  in Article 10(2), the following point (d) is added:"

'(d) reviewing the application of the relevant regulatory and implementing technical standards adopted by the Commission, and of the guidelines and recommendations issued by the Authority and proposing amendments where appropriate, while maintaining the usability and quality of the data, in order to:

   remove redundant or obsolete reporting and disclosure requirements;
   ensure proportionate and standardised reporting and disclosure requirements;
   minimise costs;
   address regulatory gaps;’;

"

2.  in Article 16, the following paragraph is added:"

'3a. Before requesting information in accordance with this Article and in order to ensure no duplication of reporting and disclosure obligations, the Authority shall take account of information collected by the other authorities referred to in Article 16a(3) and any relevant existing statistics produced and disseminated by the European Statistical System and the European System of Central Banks.';

"

3.  the following Article is inserted:"

‘Article 16a

Information exchange between authorities and with other entities

1.  The Authority and the supervisory authorities shall share with the other authorities, on a case-by-case or regular basis, information they obtained from obliged entities or other competent authorities, where the requesting authority is entitled to obtain that information, pursuant to their mission, objectives, tasks and powers or in accordance with relevant Union law.

For the purposes of sharing the information referred to in the first subparagraph of this paragraph, the Authority or supervisory authority shall use the Single Integrated Reporting System referred to in Article 16b, upon its establishment.

2.  The Authority and the supervisory authorities shall each request from the other authorities information they would otherwise request from obliged entities or other competent authorities, where both of the following conditions are met:

   (a) they are entitled to obtain that information, pursuant to their mission, objectives, tasks and powers or in accordance with relevant Union law;
   (b) that information has been obtained by at least one of the other authorities.

The first subparagraph shall be without prejudice to the possibility for the Authority and the competent authorities to obtain that information from financial institutions or other competent authorities where, for operational reasons, the other authority is unable to share the data.

For the purposes of determining whether the condition referred to in the first subparagraph, point (b), is met, the Authority and the supervisory authorities shall use the Single Integrated Reporting System referred to in Article 16b, upon its establishment.

3.  For the purposes of this Article and Article 16(3a) and Article 16b, ‘other authorities’ means any of the following authorities:

   (a) the European Supervisory Authorities;
   (b) the ESRB;
   (c) competent authorities, as defined in Article 4, point (2), of Regulation (EU) No 1093/2010;
   (d) competent authorities, as defined in Article 4, point (2), of Regulation (EU) No 1094/2010;
   (e) competent authorities, as defined in Article 4, point (3), of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010;
   (f) authorities, as defined in Article 2, point (1), of Directive (EU) …/… of the European Parliament and of the Council(24);
   (g) national competent authorities, as defined in Article 2, point (2) of Regulation (EU)  No 575/2013;
   (h) the SRB;
   (i) national resolution authorities, as defined in Article 3, point (3) Regulation (EU) No 806/2014.
   (j) the SSM, as defined in Article 2, point (9), of Regulation (EU) No 1024/2013;

For the purposes of this Article, ‘financial institution’ means a ‘financial institution’ as defined in Article 2, point (a), of Regulation (EU) No 1092/2010.

4.  The request for exchange of information shall duly indicate the legal basis under Union law allowing the requesting authority to obtain the information from obliged entities or other competent authorities. The requesting authority and the sharing authority shall be subject to the obligations of professional secrecy and data protection laid down in Articles 75 and 84 and in sectoral legislation applicable to the sharing of data between the obliged entity and the requesting authority as well as to the sharing of data between the obliged entity and the sharing authority. The sharing authority shall inform each relevant obliged entity about such exchange of information, unless that the information has been anonymised, modified, aggregated or treated by any other method of disclosure control to protect confidential information, without undue delay.

5.  Paragraphs 1, 2 and 4 shall also apply to information that the sharing authority has received from an obliged entity or the other authorities and upon which the sharing authority has subsequently performed quality checks or which the sharing authority has otherwise processed.

6.  For sharing information as referred to in paragraphs 1, 2, 4 and 5, the Authority and the other authorities shall enter into memoranda of understanding to specify the modalities of the exchange of information. They shall also specify arrangements for the sharing of resources for the collection and processing of such shared data, provided that such arrangements comply with the applicable rules on data protection, intellectual property and professional secrecy. The memoranda of understanding shall by agreement between all the authorities concerned follow a simple and standardised format, tailored where necessary to any special operating conditions that might apply to specific authorities.

7.  Paragraphs 1 to 6 shall be without prejudice to the protection of intellectual property rights and shall not prevent or restrict the exchange of information between the Authority and the other authorities in accordance with provisions in other Union legislation. Where the provisions in this Article conflict with provisions in this Regulation or other Union legislation that regulate the exchange of information between the other authorities, the provisions in such other Union legislation shall prevail.

8.  Without prejudice to other obligations laid down in Union law for sharing information, the Authority and the supervisory authorities may, upon justified request, share on a case-by-case basis, with the Commission, information that obliged entities have reported to them pursuant to their duties under Union law, in a form that does not allow the identification of individual entities and does not contain personal data. The authorities which have submitted such information shall be duly informed of the sharing that has taken place.

9.  The Authority and the supervisory authorities may grant access to information obtained when carrying out their duties for re-use by obliged entities, researchers and other entities with a legitimate interest in such information for research and innovation purposes, provided that the Authority or the supervisory authorities has ensured that all of the following has been complied with:

   (a) the information has been anonymised, in such a manner that the data subject or the obliged entity is not or no longer identifiable;
   (b) the information has been modified, aggregated or treated by any other method of disclosure control to protect confidential information, including trade secrets or content covered by intellectual property rights;
   (c) the parties to whom access has been granted have demonstrated that they have the requisite technical means to protect confidential information, that is, they possess instruments capable of fully ensuring the protection of privacy and confidentiality.

Information received from another authority shall only be shared on this basis with the agreement of the authority that initially obtained the information.

10.  The Authority and the supervisory authorities shall, by ... [1 year from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation], report to the Commission all legal obstacles in sectoral regulations that in any way prevent them from exchanging information with the other authorities or with other entities. The report may also address non-material, obsolete, duplicative or otherwise irrelevant reporting requirements, and suggestions to ensure consistency between reporting requirements of financial and non-financial companies.

On the basis of that report and taking due account of the protection of intellectual property rights, the obligations of professional secrecy and data protection, the Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a legislative proposal to remove such legal obstacles in sectoral legislation to foster the exchange of information between authorities and with other entities by ... [2 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].’;

"

4.  the following Article is inserted:"

'Article 16b

Establishment of a Single Integrated Reporting System

1.  By ... [2 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation], the Authority and the supervisory authorities shall, in close collaboration with the other authorities, and the ESCB, prepare a report on the technical details of establishing a Single Integrated Reporting System as well as a roadmap, based on the work on the integration of reporting by the ESAs within their sectors and include an assessment of costs and benefits. For the purposes of that report, the Single Integrated Reporting System shall include:

   (a) a common data dictionary to ensure consistency and clarity of reporting requirements and data standardisation;
   (b) a joint repository of reporting and disclosure requirements, of the descriptions of the collected data and of the authorities that hold it;
   (c) a central data space including the technical design for collecting and exchanging the information; and
   (d) a permanent single contact point for entities to indicate instances of double reporting, and redundant or obsolete reporting or disclosure requirements.

2.  In close collaboration with the Commission, the report shall be accompanied by an estimate of the overall financial impact.

The Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a legislative proposal to ensure the necessary financial, human and IT resources for the establishment of the Single Integrated Reporting System by ... [3 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].

The Authority, together with the other authorities shall establish the Single Integrated Reporting System by ... [3 years from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation].‘;

"

5.  in Article 44(1), the following subparagraph is added:"

‘The Authority’s opinions shall not be limited to ongoing legislative procedures. The Authority may also propose in its opinions, where appropriate, amendments to legislative acts in force, including amendments:

   (a) to remove redundant or obsolete reporting and disclosure requirements in Union law or the national transposition of Union law by Member States;
   (b) to ensure consistent reporting and disclosure requirements across sector-specific, as well as cross-sector, legislation;
   (c) to ensure proportionality in reporting and disclosure requirements with respect to the nature, size and complexity of the reporting entity;
   (d) to ensure that complying with reporting and disclosure requirements are commensurate with the added value to fulfilling the tasks and objectives of the Authority.

For the purposes of opinions on legislative acts in force referred to in the first subparagraph, the Authority shall take due account of input from all relevant stakeholders through a dedicated consultation. On the basis of those opinions, the Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a legislative proposal.’.

"

Article 5

Amendments to Regulation (EU) 2021/523

Regulation (EU) No 2021/523 is amended as follows:

-1.  In Article 8(6), the introductory part is replaced by the following:"

‘The Commission shall develop sustainability guidance that, in accordance with Union environmental and social objectives and standards and, taking appropriate account of the ‘do no significant harm’ principle as well as differences in the types of infrastructure projects, allows for:’;

"

-1a.  In Article 13(7), subparagraph 2 is replaced by the following:"

‘Contracts between the implementing partner and the final recipient or the financial intermediary or other entity referred to in point (a) of Article 16(1) under the EU guarantee referred to in the first subparagraph of Article 4(2) shall be signed by 31 August 2026. In other cases, contracts between the implementing partner and the final recipient or the financial intermediary or other entity referred to in point (a) of Article 16(1) shall be signed by 31 December 2028.’;

"

-1b.  In Article 17(2), point h is replaced by the following:"

‘(h) financial and operational reporting and monitoring of the financing and investment operations under the EU guarantee, ensuring proportionality in reporting and monitoring requirements as well as minimising costs for all stakeholders and final beneficiaries, without undermining the respective InvestEU objectives.’;

"

1.   In Article 28, paragraph 4 is replaced by the following:"

‘4. Once a year, each implementing partner shall submit a report to the Commission on the financing and investment operations covered by this Regulation, broken down by EU compartment and Member State compartment, as appropriate. Each implementing partner shall also submit information on the Member State compartment to the Member State whose compartment it implements. The report shall include an assessment of compliance with the requirements on the use of the EU guarantee and with the key performance indicators laid down in Annex III to this Regulation. The report shall also include operational, statistical, financial and accounting data on each financing or investment operation and an estimation of expected cash flows, at the level of compartment, policy window and the InvestEU Fund. The report from the EIB Group and, where appropriate, from other implementing partners, shall also include information on barriers to investment encountered when carrying out financing and investment operations covered by this Regulation. The reports shall contain the information the implementing partners have to provide under point (a) of Article 155(1) of the Financial Regulation.’.

"

Article 5a

Alignment with Council Regulation (EU) No 1024/2013

By ... [three months from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation], the Commission shall, where appropriate, submit to the Council a legislative proposal to align the amendments to Regulations (EU) No 1092/2010, (EU) No 1093/2010, (EU) No 1094/2010, (EU) No 1095/2010, (EU) No 806/2014 and (EU) …/...(25) in this Regulation, with Council Regulation (EU) No 1024/2013.

Article 6

Entry into force

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at …,

For the European Parliament For the Council

The President The President

(1) Not yet published in the Official Journal.
(2)* The changes throughout the text result from the adoption of amendment 1. New or amended text is highlighted in bold italics; deletions are indicated by the symbol ▌.
(3) OJ C […], […], p. […]
(4) OJ C […], […], p. […].
(5) Regulation (EU) 2021/523 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 March 2021 establishing the InvestEU Programme and amending Regulation (EU) 2015/1017 (OJ L 107, 26.3.2021, p. 30).
(6) Regulation (EU) No 1092/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 on European Union macro-prudential oversight of the financial system and establishing a European Systemic Risk Board (OJ L 331, 15.12.2010, p. 1).
(7) Regulation (EU) No 1093/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 establishing a European Supervisory Authority (European Banking Authority), amending Decision No 716/2009/EC and repealing Commission Decision 2009/78/EC (OJ L 331, 15.12.2010, p. 12).
(8) Regulation (EU) No 1094/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 establishing a European Supervisory Authority (European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority), amending Decision No 716/2009/EC and repealing Commission Decision 2009/79/EC (OJ L 331, 15.12.2010, p. 48).
(9) Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 establishing a European Supervisory Authority (European Securities and Markets Authority), amending Decision No 716/2009/EC and repealing Commission Decision 2009/77/EC (OJ L 331, 15.12.2010, p. 84).
(10) Regulation (EU) No 806/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 July 2014 establishing uniform rules and a uniform procedure for the resolution of credit institutions and certain investment firms in the framework of a Single Resolution Mechanism and a Single Resolution Fund and amending Regulation (EU) No 1093/2010 (OJ L 225, 30.7.2014, p. 1).
(11)+ OP: Please insert in the text the number of the Regulation contained in document 2021/0240(COD) (proposal for a Regulation establishing the Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism - COM/2021/421 final) and insert the number, date, title and OJ reference of that Regulation in the footnote.
(12) Council Regulation (EU) No 1024/2013 of 15 October 2013 conferring specific tasks on the European Central Bank concerning policies relating to the prudential supervision of credit institutions (OJ L  287, 29.10.2013, p. 63).
(13) COM(2023)168.
(14) Regulation (EU) 2022/868 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2022 on European data governance and amending Regulation (EU) 2018/1724 (Data Governance Act) (OJ L 152, 3.6.2022, p. 1).
(15)+ OP: Please insert in the text the number of the Regulation contained in document 2021/0240(COD) (proposal for a Regulation establishing the Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism - COM/2021/421 final) and insert the number, date, title and OJ reference of that Regulation in the footnote.
(16)++OP: Please insert in the text the number of the Directive contained in document 2021/0250(COD) (proposal for 6th Anti-Money Laundering Directive - COM/2021/423 final) and insert the number, date, title and OJ reference of that Directive in the footnote.
(17)+ OP: Please insert in the text the number of the Regulation contained in document 2021/0240(COD) (proposal for a Regulation establishing the Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism - COM/2021/421 final) and insert the number, date, title and OJ reference of that Regulation in the footnote.
(18)++OP: Please insert in the text the number of the Directive contained in document 2021/0250(COD) (proposal for 6th Anti-Money Laundering Directive - COM/2021/423 final) and insert the number, date, title and OJ reference of that Directive in the footnote.
(19)+ OP: Please insert in the text the number of the Regulation contained in document 2021/0240(COD) (proposal for a Regulation establishing the Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism - COM/2021/421 final) and insert the number, date, title and OJ reference of that Regulation in the footnote.
(20)++OP: Please insert in the text the number of the Directive contained in document 2021/0250(COD) (proposal for 6th Anti-Money Laundering Directive - COM/2021/423 final) and insert the number, date, title and OJ reference of that Directive in the footnote.
(21)+ OP: Please insert in the text the number of the Regulation contained in document 2021/0240(COD) (proposal for a Regulation establishing the Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism - COM/2021/421 final) and insert the number, date, title and OJ reference of that Regulation in the footnote.
(22)++OP: Please insert in the text the number of the Directive contained in document 2021/0250(COD) (proposal for 6th Anti-Money Laundering Directive - COM/2021/423 final) and insert the number, date, title and OJ reference of that Directive in the footnote.
(23)+ OJ: Please insert in the text the number of the Regulation contained in document 2021/0240(COD) (proposal for a Regulation establishing the Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism - COM/2021/421 final) and insert the number, date, title and OJ reference of that Regulation in the footnote.
(24)+ OP: Please insert in the text the number of the Directive contained in document 2021/0250(COD) (proposal for 6th Anti-Money Laundering Directive - COM/2021/423 final) and insert the number, date, title and OJ reference of that Directive in the footnote.
(25)+ OP: Please insert in the text the number of the Regulation contained in document 2021/0240(COD) (proposal for a Regulation establishing the Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism - COM/2021/421 final) and insert the number, date, title and OJ reference of that Regulation in the footnote.


Energy performance of buildings (recast)
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Resolution
Text
European Parliament legislative resolution of 12 March 2024 on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the energy performance of buildings (recast) (COM(2021)0802 – C9-0469/2021 – 2021/0426(COD))
P9_TA(2024)0129A9-0033/2023

(Ordinary legislative procedure – recast)

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2021)0802),

–  having regard to Article 294(2) and Article 194(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C9‑0469/2021),

–  having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to the reasoned opinion submitted, within the framework of Protocol No 2 on the application of the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality, by the Finnish Parliament asserting that the draft legislative act does not comply with the principle of subsidiarity,

–  having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 23 March 2022(1),

–  having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions of 30 June 2022(2),

–  having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 28 November 2001 on a more structured use of the recasting technique for legal acts(3),

–  having regard to the letter of 8 November 2022 sent by the Committee on Legal Affairs to the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy in accordance with Rule 110(3) of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the provisional agreement approved by the committee responsible under Rule 74(4) of its Rules of Procedure and the undertaking given by the Council representative by letter of 20 December 2023 to approve Parliament’s position, in accordance with Article 294(4) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to Rules 110 and 59 of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the opinions of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety and the Committee on Legal Affairs,

–  having regard to the report of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (A9-0033/2023),

A.  whereas, according to the Consultative Working Party of the legal services of the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission, the Commission proposal does not include any substantive amendments other than those identified as such in the proposal and whereas, as regards the codification of the unchanged provisions of the earlier acts together with those amendments, the proposal contains a straightforward codification of the existing texts, without any change in their substance;

1.  Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out, taking into account the recommendations of the Consultative Working Party of the legal services of the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission;

2.  Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal;

3.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

Position of the European Parliament adopted at first reading on 12 March 2024 with a view to the adoption of Directive (EU) 2024/… of the European Parliament and of the Council on the energy performance of buildings (recast)

P9_TC1-COD(2021)0426


(As an agreement was reached between Parliament and Council, Parliament's position corresponds to the final legislative act, Directive (EU) 2024/1275.)

(1) OJ C 290, 29.7.2022, p. 114.
(2) OJ C 375, 30.9.2022, p. 64.
(3) OJ C 77, 28.3.2002, p. 1.


Cyber Resilience Act
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Resolution
Text
Annex
European Parliament legislative resolution of 12 March 2024 on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on horizontal cybersecurity requirements for products with digital elements and amending Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 (COM(2022)0454 – C9-0308/2022 – 2022/0272(COD))
P9_TA(2024)0130A9-0253/2023
CORRIGENDA

(Ordinary legislative procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2022)0454),

–  having regard to Article 294(2) and Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C9‑0308/2022),

–  having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 14 December 2022(1),

–  having regard to the provisional agreement approved by the committee responsible under Rule 74(4) of its Rules of Procedure and the undertaking given by the Council representative by letter of 20 December 2023 to approve Parliament’s position, in accordance with Article 294(4) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to Rule 59 of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the opinion of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection,

–  having regard to the report of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (A9-0253/2023),

1.  Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out;

2.  Approves the joint statement by Parliament, the Council and the Commission annexed to this resolution, which will be published in the C series of the Official Journal of the European Union;

3.  Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal;

4.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

Position of the European Parliament adopted at first reading on 12 March 2024 with a view to the adoption of Regulation (EU) 2024/… of the European Parliament and of the Council on horizontal cybersecurity requirements for products with digital elements and amending Regulations (EU) No 168/2013 and (EU) 2019/1020 and Directive (EU) 2020/1828 (Cyber Resilience Act)

P9_TC1-COD(2022)0272


(As an agreement was reached between Parliament and Council, Parliament's position corresponds to the final legislative act, Regulation (EU) 2024/2847.)

ANNEX TO THE LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION

Joint political statement by the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on ENISA resources, on the occasion of the adoption of Regulation (EU) 2024/2847 of the European Parliament and of the Council on horizontal cybersecurity requirements for products with digital elements, amending Regulations (EU) No 168/2013 and (EU) 2019/1020 and Directive (EU) 2020/1828 (Cyber Resilience Act)

The European Parliament and the Council consider that this Regulation confers additional tasks on ENISA which result in additional workload and would require additional resources in terms of both expertise and number. In view of this, in order to enable ENISA to effectively carry out the tasks under this Regulation, the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission consider that an increase in its resources, in particular its human resources with the adequate expertise, may be necessary. Such increase could be provided for in the annual procedure related to the establishment plan of ENISA. Accordingly, the Commission, which is responsible for entering in the draft general budget of the Union the estimates it deems to be necessary for ENISA’s establishment plan, in the framework of the budgetary procedure set out in Article 314 TFEU and in accordance the procedure set out in the Cybersecurity Act, shall assess the estimates for the establishment plan of ENISA entered for the first year after entry into force of this Regulation in consideration of the necessary resources, in particular human resources, to enable ENISA to adequately carry out its tasks under this Regulation.

(1) OJ C 100, 16.3.2023, p. 101.


Substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims (Green Claims Directive)
PDF 351kWORD 88k
Resolution
Consolidated text
European Parliament legislative resolution of 12 March 2024 on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims (Green Claims Directive) (COM(2023)0166 – C9-0116/2023 – 2023/0085(COD))
P9_TA(2024)0131A9-0056/2024

(Ordinary legislative procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2023)0166),

–  having regard to Article 294(2) and Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C9‑0116/2023),

–  having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee(1),

–  having regard to Rule 59 of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the joint deliberations of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety and the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection under Rule 58 of the Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the opinion of the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development,

–  having regard to the report of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety and the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (A9-0056/2024),

1.  Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out;

2.  Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal;

3.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

Position of the European Parliament adopted at first reading on 12 March 2024 with a view to the adoption of Directive (EU) 2024/… of the European Parliament and of the Council on substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims (Green Claims Directive)

P9_TC1-COD(2023)0085


THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 114 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,

After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions(2),

Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure,

Whereas:

(1)  Claiming to be “green” and sustainable has become a competitiveness factor, with green products registering greater growth than standard products as consumer interest grows. If goods and services offered and purchased on the internal market are not as environmentally friendly as presented, this would mislead the consumers, hamper the green transition, and prevent the reduction of negative environmental impacts. The potential of green markets is not fully realised. Different requirements imposed by national legislation or private initiatives regulating environmental claims create a burden for companies in cross-border trade, as they need to comply with different requirements in each Member State. This affects their capacity to operate in and take advantage of the internal market. At the same time, market participants have difficulties with identifying reliable environmental claims and making optimal purchasing decisions on the internal market. With a proliferation of different labels and calculation methods on the market, it is difficult for consumers, businesses, investors and stakeholders to establish if claims are trustworthy. [Am. 1]

(2)  If environmental claims are not reliable, comparable and verifiable, consumers and other market actors cannot fully leverage their purchasing decisions to reward better environmental performance. Similarly, the lack of reliable, comparable and verifiable information hinders incentives for optimising environmental performance, which would typically go hand in hand with efficiency gains and cost savings for companies along the supply chain as well. These consequences are exacerbated by the lack of a common reference across the internal market and the ensuing confusion.

(3)  For users of environmental information (consumers, businesses, investors, public administrations, NGOs) included in environmental claims, the lack of reliability, comparability and verifiability leads to an issue of trust in environmental information and confusion in interpreting heterogeneous, contradictory messages. This is detrimental to consumers and other market actors, as they may choose a product or a business transaction over other alternatives based on misleading information.

(4)  It is therefore necessary to harmonise further the regulation of environmental claims. Such harmonisation will strengthen the market for more sustainable products and traders by avoiding market fragmentation due to diverging national approaches. It will also set a benchmark that can drive the global transition to a just, climate-neutral, resource-efficient and circular economy(3).

(5)  Detailed Union rules on substantiation of explicit environmental claims, applicable to companies operating on the Union market in business to consumer communication, will contribute to the green transition towards a circular, climate-neutral and clean economy in the Union, that respects the planetary boundaries, by enabling consumers to take informed purchasing decisions, and will help create a level-playing field for market operators making such claims while promoting sustainable consumption. [Am. 2]

(6)  A regulatory framework for environmental claims is one of the actions proposed by the Commission to implement the European Green Deal(4), which recognises that reliable, comparable and verifiable information plays an important part in enabling buyers to make more sustainable decisions and reduces the risk of ‘greenwashing’, and includes commitments to step up regulatory and non-regulatory efforts to tackle false environmental claims. Together with other applicable Union regulatory frameworks, including the proposal for a Directive on empowering consumers for the green transition(5), amending Directive 2005/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council(6) that this proposal aims at complementing as lex specialis, they establish a clear regime for environmental claims, including environmental labels. [Am. 3]

(7)  This Directive is part of a set of interrelated initiatives to establish a strong and coherent product policy framework that will make environmentally sustainable products and business models the norm, and not the exception, and to ensure that a claim, which merely reflects common practice, cannot be communicated to customers as sustainable, in order to transform consumption patterns so that no waste is produced in the first place. The Directive is complemented, amongst others, by interventions on the circular design of products, on fostering new business models and setting minimum requirements to prevent that environmentally harmful products are placed on the EU market through the proposal for an Eco-design for Sustainable Products Regulation(7). [Am. 4]

(8)  The specific needs of individual economic sectors should be recognised and this Directive should therefore apply to voluntary explicit environmental claims and environmental labelling schemes that are not regulated by any other Union act as regards their substantiation or communication, or verification. This Directive should therefore not apply to explicit environmental claims for which the Union legislation lays down specific rules, including on methodological frameworks, assessment or accounting rules related to measuring and calculating environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance of products or traders, or providing mandatory and non-mandatory information to consumers on the environmental performance of products and traders or sustainability information involving messages or representations that may be either mandatory or voluntary pursuant to the Union rules.

(9)  Within the context of the European Green Deal, the Farm to Fork Strategy and the Biodiversity Strategy, and in accordance with the target of achieving 25% of EU agricultural land under organic farming by 2030 and a significant increase in organic aquaculture and with the Action Plan on the Development of Organic Production (COM(2021) 141), organic farming and organic production need to be developed further. As regards Regulation (EU) 2018/848 of the European Parliament and of the Council(8), this Directive should not apply to environmental claims on organically certified products substantiated on the basis of that Regulation, related, for instance, to the use of pesticides, fertilisers and anti-microbials or, for instance, to positive impacts of organic farming on biodiversity, soil or water(9). It also has a positive impact on biodiversity, and a positive social impact as it creates jobs and attracts young farmers. Consumers recognise its value. In accordance with Regulation (EU) 2018/848, the terms “bio” and “eco” and their derivatives, whether alone or in combination, are only to be used in the Union for products, their ingredients or feed materials that fall under the scope of that Regulation where they have been produced in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2018/848. For instance, in order to call the cotton “eco”, it has to be certified as organic, as it falls within the scope of Regulation (EU) 2018/848. On the contrary, if the dishwasher detergent is called “eco”, this does not fall within the scope of Regulation (EU) 2018/848, and is instead regulated by the provisions of Directive 2005/29/EC. [Am. 5]

(9a)   Within the context of the European Green Deal, the EU Action Plan Towards Zero Pollution for Air, Water and Soil (COM 2021/400), the European Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability (COM/2020/667) and the European Union Strategic Approach to Pharmaceuticals in the Environment (COM/2019/128), the healthcare sector plays a relevant role in reducing environmental pressures. In that context, establishing a proper regulatory framework for using green claims relating to sustainability, biodegradability, circularity and origin of the product’s components both for medicinal products, in accordance with Directive 2001/83/EC, and medical devices, in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/745, is crucial in order to encourage companies to contribute to environmental objectives and guarantee reliable communication to consumers. [Am. 6]

(10)  In addition, this Directive shall not apply to sustainability information involving messages or representations that may be either mandatory or voluntary pursuant to the Union or national rules for financial services, such as rules relating to banking, credit, insurance and re-insurance, occupational or personal pensions, securities, investment funds, investment firms, payment, portfolio management and investment advice, including the services listed in Annex I to Directive 2013/36(10) of the European Parliament and of the Council, as well as settlement and clearing activities and advisory, intermediation and other auxiliary financial services, including standards or certification schemes relating to such financial services.

(11)  Furthermore, this Directive should not apply to environmental information reported by undertakings that apply European sustainability reporting standards on a mandatory or voluntary basis in accordance with Directive 2013/34/EU(11) and sustainability information reported on a voluntary basis by undertakings defined in articles 3(1), 3(2) or 3(3) of this Directive where that information is reported in accordance with standards referred to in Articles 29b or 29c of Directive 2013/34/EU or in accordance with other international, European or national sustainability reporting standards or guidelines.

(12)  Offers to purchase goods or receive services conditional on the fulfilment of environmental criteria defined by the seller or service provider or offers where consumers receive more favourable contractual terms or prices upon the fulfilment of such criteria, for example the so-called green loans, green home insurance or financial service products with similar rewards for environmental actions or behaviour should not be subject to the rules of this Directive.

(13)   In case future Union legislation lays down rules on environmental claims, environmental labels, or on the assessment or communication of environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance of certain products or traders in specific sectors, for example the announced “Count Emissions EU”, the forthcoming Commission proposal on a legislative framework for a Union sustainable food system, the Eco-design for Sustainable Products Regulation(12) or Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council(13), those rules should be applied to the explicit environmental claims in question instead of the rules set out in this Directive. [Am. 7]

(14)  The proposal for a Directive on empowering consumers for the green transition which amends Directive 2005/29/EC, sets out a number of specific requirements on environmental claims and prohibits generic environmental claims which are not based on recognised excellent environmental performance relevant to the claim. Examples of such generic environmental claims are ‘environmentally friendly’, ‘eco-friendly’, ‘eco’, ‘green’, ‘nature’s friend’, ‘ecological’ and, ‘environmentally correct’, ‘climate friendly’, ‘gentle on the environment’, ‘carbon friendly’, ‘energy efficient’, ‘biodegradable’, ‘biobased’ or similar statements that suggest or create the impression of excellent environmental performance. This Directive should complement the requirements set out in that proposal by addressing specific aspects and requirements for explicit environmental claims as regards their substantiation, communication and verification. The requirements set out in this Directive should apply to specific aspects of explicit environmental claims and will prevail over the requirements set out in Directive 2005/29/EC with regard to those aspects in case of conflict, pursuant to Article 3(4) of that Directive. [Am. 8]

(15)  In order to ensure that consumers are provided with reliable, comparable and verifiable information which enables them to make more environmentally sustainable decisions and to reduce the risk of ‘greenwashing, it is necessary to establish requirements for substantiation of explicit environmental claims. Such substantiation should take into account robust and independent internationally recognised and up-to-date scientific approaches to identifying and measuring environmental impacts, environmental aspects and environmental performance of products or traders, and it should result in reliable, transparent, comparable and verifiable information to the consumer. [Am. 9]

(16)  The assessment made to substantiate explicit environmental claims needs to consider the life-cycle of the product or of the overall activities of the trader and should not omit any relevant environmental aspects or environmental impacts. The benefits claimed should not result in an unjustifieda transfer of negative impacts to other stages of the life cycle of a product or trader, or to the creation or increase of other negative environmental impacts. [Am. 10]

(17)  The assessment substantiating the explicit environmental claim should make it possible to identify the environmental impacts and environmental aspects for the product or trader that jointly contribute significantly to the overall environmental performance of the product or trader (‘relevant environmental impacts’ and ‘relevant environmental aspects’). Indications for the relevance of the environmental impacts and environmental aspects can stem from assessments taking into account the life-cycle, including from the studies based on Environmental Footprint (EF) methods, provided that these are complete on the impacts relevant to the product category and do not omit any important environmental impacts. For example, in the Commission Recommendation on the use of Environmental Footprint methods(14) the most relevant impact categories identified should together contribute to at least 80% of the single overall score. These indications for the relevance of the environmental impacts or environmental aspects can also result from the criteria set in various ecolabels type I, as for instance the EU Ecolabel, or in Union criteria for green public procurement, from requirements set by the Taxonomy Regulation(15), from product specific rules adopted under the Regulation …./…. of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a framework for setting ecodesign requirements for sustainable products(16) or from other relevant Union rules.

(18)  In line with Directive 2005/29/EC as amended by the proposal for a Directive on empowering consumers for the green transition, the trader should not present requirements imposed by law on products within a given product category as a distinctive feature of the trader’s offer or advertise benefits for consumers that are considered as common practice in the relevant market. The information used to substantiate explicit environmental claims should therefore make it possible to identify the product’s or trader’s environmental performance in comparison to the common practice for products in the respective product group, such as food, or in the respective sector. This is necessary to underpin the assessment whether the explicit environmental claims can be made with regard to a given product or trader in line with the function of an environmental claim, which is to demonstrate that a product or trader has a positive impact or no impact on the environment, or that a product or a trader is less damaging to the environment than other products or traders. The common practice could be equivalent to the minimum legal requirements that are applicable to the specific environmental aspect or environmental performance, for example as regards product composition, mandatory recycled content or end-of-life treatment. However, in case the majority of products within the product group, or the or majority of traders within the sector perform better than those legal requirements, the minimum legal requirements should not be considered as common practice. Also, existing certification schemes and their trademarks, such as certification schemes using a chain of custody certification, which can be more susceptible to fraud or which cannot reliably guarantee the legality of the production for the certified products, should be fully verified under the requirements of this Directive to ensure that consumers are not misled. [Am. 11]

(19)  It would be misleading to consumers if an explicit environmental claim pointed to the benefits in terms of environmental impacts or environmental aspects while omitting that the achievement of those benefits leads to negative trade-offs on other environmental impacts or environmental aspects. To this end the information used to substantiate explicit environmental claims should ensure that the interlinkages between the relevant environmental impacts and between environmental aspects and environmental impacts can be identified along with potential trade-offs. The assessment used to substantiate explicit environmental claims should identify if improvements on environmental impacts or environmental aspects lead to the kind of trade-offs that significantly worsen the performance as regards other environmental impacts or environmental aspects, for example if savings in water consumption lead to a notable increase in greenhouse gas emissions, or in the same environmental impact in another life-cycle stage of the product, for example CO2 savings in the stage of manufacturing leading to a notable increase of CO2 emissions in the use phase. For example, a claim on positive impacts from efficient use of resources in intensive agricultural practices may mislead consumers due to trade-offs linked to impacts on biodiversity, ecosystems or animal welfare. An environmental claim on green energy may mislead consumers if it is based on resources negatively impacting the local development and environment, or on textiles containing plastic polymer from recycled PET bottles may also mislead consumers as to the environmental benefit of that aspect if the use of this recycled polymer competes with the closed-loop recycling system for food contact materials which is considered more beneficial from the perspective of circularity. [Am. 12]

(20)  In order for the environmental claim to be considered robust, it should reflect as accurately as possible the environmental performance of the specific product or trader. The information used to substantiate explicit environmental claims therefore needs to include primary, company-specific data for relevant aspects contributing significantly to the environmental performance of the product or trader referred to in the claim. It is necessary to strike the right balance between ensuring relevant and robust information for substantiating environmental claims and the efforts needed to gather primary information. The requirement to use primary information should be considered in the light of the influence the trader making the claim has over the respective process and of the availability of primary information. If the process is not run by the trader making the claim and primary information is not available, accurate secondary information should be able to be used even for processes that contribute significantly to the environmental performance of the product or trader. This is especially relevant to not disadvantage SMEs and to keep the efforts needed to acquire primary data at a proportionate level. Moreover, the relevant environmental aspects are different for each type of environmental claim. For instance, for claims on recycled or bio-based content, the composition of the product should be covered by primary data. For claims on being environmentally less polluting in a certain life cycle stage, information on emissions and environmental impacts related to that life cycle stage should include primary data as well. Both primary data and secondary data, i.e. average data, should show a high level of quality and accuracy.

(21)  Climate-related claims have been shown to be particularly prone to being unclear and ambiguous and to mislead consumers. This relates notably to environmental claims that products or entities are “climate neutral”, “carbon neutral”, “100% CO2 compensated”, or will be “net-zero” by a given year, or similar. Such statements are often based on “offsetting” of greenhouse gas emissions through “carbon credits” generated outside the company’s value chain, for example from forestry or renewable energy projects. The methodologies underpinning offsets vary widely and are not always transparent, accurate, or consistent. This leads to significant risks of overestimations and double counting of avoided or reduced emissions, due to a lack of additionality, permanence, ambitious and dynamic crediting baselines that depart from business as usual, and accurate accounting. These factors result in offset credits of low environmental integrity and credibility that mislead consumers when they are relied upon in explicit environmental claims. Offsetting can also deter traders from emissions reductions in their own operations and value chains. In order to adequately contribute to global climate change mitigation targets, traders should prioritise effective reductions of emissions across their own operations and value chains instead of relying on offsets. Any resulting residual emissions will vary by sector-specific pathway in line with the global climate targets and will have to be addressed through removals enhancements. When offsets are used nonetheless, it is deemed appropriate to address climate-related claims, including claims on future environmental performance, based on offsetscarbon credits in a transparent manner. Therefore, the substantiation of climate-related claims should consider any greenhouse gas emissions offsets used by the traders separately from the trader’s or the product’s greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, this information should also specify the share of total emissions that are addressed through offsetting, whether these offsets relate to emission reductions or removals enhancement, and the methodology applied. The climate-related claims that include the use of offsets have to be substantiated by methodologies that ensure the integrity and correct accounting of these offsets and thus reflect coherently and transparently the resulting impact on the climate. [Am. 13]

(22)  Traders are more and more interested in making environmental claims related to future environmental performance of a product or trader, including by joining initiatives that are promoting practices which could be conducive to a reduced environmental impact or to more circularity. These claims should be substantiated in line with the rules applicable to all explicit environmental claims. [Am. 14]

(23)  The information used to substantiate explicit environmental claims should be science based on independent, peer-reviewed, widely recognised, robust and verifiable scientific evidence, i.e. on methods, approaches or studies that have been developed in line with best practices in terms of transparency and peer reviewed by the scientific community, and any lack of consideration of certain environmental impacts or environmental aspects should be carefully considered. The methodologies need to be publicly accessible in order to ensure the transparency and integrity of assessments. [Am. 15]

(24)  The EF methods can support the substantiation of explicit environmental claims on specific life-cycle environmental impacts that the methods cover, provided that these are complete on the impacts relevant to the product category and do not omit any important environmental impacts. The methods cover 16 environmental impacts, including climate change, and impacts related to water, air, soil, resources, land use and toxicity.

(25)  The fact that a significant environmental impact of a product is not covered by any of the 16 impact categories of the EF methods should not justify the lack of consideration of such impacts. An economic actor making an explicit environmental claim on such product group should have an obligation of diligence to find evidence substantiating such claim. For instance, an economic actor making an explicit environmental claim about a fishery product as defined in Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No 1379/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council(17) should have an obligation of diligence to find evidence substantiating the sustainability of the targeted fish stock. Stock assessments by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea and similar stock assessment bodies can be used for that purpose.

(26)  Furthermore, there is not yet a reliable methodology for the assessment of life-cycle environmental impacts related to the release of microplastics. However, in case such release contributes to significant environmental impacts that are not subject to a claim, the trader making the claim on another aspect should not be allowed to ignore it, but should take into account available information and update the assessment once widely recognised scientific evidence becomes available.

(27)  Consumers can also be misled by explicit environmental claims that state or imply that a product or trader has less or more environmental impacts or a better or worse environmental performance than other products or traders (‘comparative environmental claims’). Without prejudice to the application, where appropriate, of Directive 2006/114/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council(18), in order to allow the consumers access to reliable information, it is necessary to ensure that comparative environmental claims can be compared in an adequate manner. For instance, performance-based certification and process-based certification rely on different sets of indicators, such as setting specific thresholds that need to be met or ensuring that a certain procedure is in place. Choosing indicators on the same environmental aspects but using a different formula for quantification of such indicators makes comparisons impossible, and therefore there is a risk of misleading consumers. In case two traders make an environmental claim on climate change, where one considered only direct environmental impacts, whilst the other considered both direct and indirect environmental impacts, these results are not comparable. Also, a decision to make the comparison only at certain stages of a products life cycle can lead to misleading claims, if not made transparent. A comparative environmental claim needs to ensure that also for products with very different raw materials, uses and process chains, like bio-based plastics and fossil-based plastics, the most relevant stages of the life-cycle are taken into account for all products. For example, agriculture or forestry is relevant for bio-based plastics while raw oil extraction is relevant for fossil-based plastics and the question whether a relevant share of the product ends up in landfill is highly relevant to plastics that biodegrade well under landfill conditions but maybe less relevant for plastics that do not biodegrade under such conditions. [Am. 16]

(27a)   It is important that traders do not make generic claims such as “conscious”, “sustainable”, and “responsible”, based exclusively on recognised excellent environmental performance, because such terms relate to other characteristics in addition to environmental characteristics, such as social characteristics. [Am. 17]

(28)  When setting up the requirements for substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims, including by delegated acts adopted by the Commission, the difficulties that traders may encounter in gathering information from actors throughout their value chain or on the product’s overall life-cycle, especially for services or where there is insufficient scientific evidence, should be taken into account. This is important for example for services such as electronic communications services, for which it can be difficult to define the scope and system boundaries, e.g. where the life-cycle starts and where it finishes and even more where supply chains are complex and not stable, e.g. in cases where many equipment or components are manufactured by a multitude of enterprises outside the EU, and thus sustainability related information might not be easily accessible to EU traders concerned.

(29)  For some sectors or for certain products or traders, significant environmental impacts or environmental aspects could be suspected but there might not yet be a recognised scientific method to fully assess those environmental impacts and environmental aspects. For such cases and while efforts are made to develop methods and gather evidence to enable the assessment of the respective environmental impact or environmental aspect for those sectors, traders or products, traders should be able to promote their sustainability efforts through publication of company sustainability reporting, factual reporting on the company’s performance metrics and work to reduce energy consumption, including on their websites. This flexibility would maintain and promote the incentives of those sectors or traders to continue their efforts to develop common environmental assessments pursuant to this Directive while providing for the necessary time to complete such work.

(29a)   It is important to acknowledge the challenges faced by micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in terms of resources and capabilities, especially in comparison to larger corporations. Therefore, it is essential for Member States, when implementing this Directive, to take all appropriate measures to help micro, small and medium-sized enterprises to comply with the requirements of this Directive. [Am. 18]

(30)  While unfair commercial practices, including misleading environmental claims, are prohibited for all traders pursuant to Directive 2005/29/EC(19), an administrative burden linked to substantiation and verification of environmental claims on the smallest companies could be disproportionate and should be avoided. To this end, microenterprises should be exempted from the requirements on substantiation of Article 3 and 4 unless these enterprises wish to obtain a certificate of conformity of explicit environmental claims that will be recognised by the competent authorities across the Union.

(31)  In order to meet both the needs of traders regarding dynamic marketing strategies and the needs of consumers regarding more detailed, and more accurate, environmental information, the Commission may adopt delegated acts to supplement the provisions on substantiation of explicit environmental claims by further specifying the criteria for such substantiation with regard to certain claims (e.g. climate-related claims, including claims about offsetsbased on carbon credits on residual emissions of a trader, such as “climate neutrality” or similar,, and claims on recyclability and recycled content). The Commission should be empowered to further establish rules for measuring and calculating the environmental impacts, environmental aspects and environmental performance, by determining which activities, processes, materials, emissions or use of a product or trader contribute significantly or cannot contribute to the relevant environmental impacts and environmental aspects; by determining for which environmental aspects and environmental impacts primary information should be used; and by determining the criteria to assess the accuracy of primary and secondary information. While in most cases the Commission would consider the need for adopting these rules only after having the results of the monitoring of the evolution of environmental claims on the Union market, for some types of claims it may be necessary for the Commission to adopt supplementary rules before the results of this monitoring are available. For example, in case of climate-related claims it may be necessary to adopt such supplementary acts in order to operationalise the provisions on substantiation of claims based on offsetscarbon credits used on residual emissions of a trader. [Am. 19]

(32)  The Commission Recommendation (EU) 2021/2279 contains guidance on how to measure the life cycle environmental performance of specific products or organisations and how to develop Product Environmental Footprint Category Rules (PEFCRs) and Organisation Environmental Footprint Sectorial Rules (OEFSRs) that allow comparison of products to a benchmark. Such category rules for specific products or traders can be used to support the substantiation of claims in line with the requirements of this Directive. Therefore, the Commission should be empowered to adopt delegated acts to establish product group or sector specific rules where this may have added value. However, for some product groups, the PEF method is not suitable for providing a holistic environmental assessment. In case the Product Environmental Footprint method does not yet cover an impact category, which is relevant for a product group, the adoption of PEFCR may take place only once these new relevant environmental impact categories have been added. For example, as regards marine fisheries, the PEFCR should for example reflect the fisheries-specific environmental impact categories, in particular the sustainability of the targeted stock. Concerning space, the PEFCR should reflect defence and space-specific environmental impact categories, including the orbital space use. As regards food and agricultural products, biodiversity and nature protection, as well as farming practices, including positive externalities of, extensive farming and animal welfare, should, for example, also be integrated before the adoption of PEFCR could be considered. As regards textiles, the PEFCR should for example reflect the microplastics release, before the adoption of PEFCR could be considered. To further develop the current PEF method and address its limitations, it is important that the Commission regularly evaluates and updates the methods in order to reflect scientific progress. It is also important that the Commission enables the Consultation forum established under this Directive to contribute to the development of PEFCR and OEFCR. [Am. 20]

(32a)   In order to ensure the integrity, impartiality and high quality of the substantiation of environmental claims, and to ensure that the requirements for the substantiation result in a better understanding of environmental impacts by consumers, it is important that those requirements for the substantiation of environmental claims are developed involving a balanced set of stakeholders, such as consumer organisations, environmental non-governmental organisations, operators of labelling schemes and competent bodies, in addition to industry representatives, including micro, small and medium-sized enterprises and craft industry representatives, trade unions, traders, retailers, importers. For this purpose, the Commission should establish a consultation forum, the role of which will be to provide opinions on whether existing rules and methods are suitable for substantiating specific environmental claims, and to be consulted on the preparation of the revision or the development of new delegated acts. [Am. 21]

(33)  Since Directive 2005/29/EC already applies to misleading environmental claims, it enables the national courts and administrative authorities to stop and prohibit such claims. For example, in order to comply with Directive 2005/29/EC, environmental claims should relate only to aspects that are significant in terms of the product’s or trader’s environmental impact. Environmental claims and labelling schemes should also be clear and unambiguous regarding which aspects of the product or trader they refer to and should not omit or hide important information about the environmental performance of the product or trader that consumers need in order to make informed choices. The wording, imagery and overall product presentation, including the taglines, layout, choice of colours, images, pictures, sounds, symbols, trademark or labels, included in the environmental claim should provide a truthful and accurate representation of the scale of the environmental benefit achieved, and should not overstate the environmental benefit achieved. Where applicable, information about the exact amount of a product’s certified material content, a feature around which certain types of labelling schemes operate, should not be omitted, especially when the minimum certified content could be zero. [Am. 22]

(34)  Where the explicit environmental claim concerns a final product and relevant environmental impacts or environmental aspects of such product occur at the use phase or at the end of life and consumers can influence such environmental impacts or environmental aspects via appropriate behaviour, such as, for example, correct waste sorting or impacts of use patterns on product’s longevity, the claim should also include information explaining to consumers how their behaviour can positively contribute to the protection of the environment. [Am. 23]

(35)  In order to facilitate consumers’ choices of more sustainable products and to incentivise efforts of traders to lower their environmental impacts, when the claim communicated relates to future environmental performance, it should as a priority be based on improvements inside trader’s own operations and value chains rather than relying on offsetting of greenhouse has emissions or other environmental impacts.

(36)  Consumers should have easy access to the information on the product or the trader that is the subject of the explicit environmental claim, including directly on the product or accompanying the product, and regarding information substantiating thatthe claim applicable to the product. This information should also consider needs of older consumers. For that purpose, traders should either provide this information in a physical form or provide a weblink, QR code, digital product passport or equivalent leading to a website where more detailed information on the substantiation of the explicit environmental claim is made available in at least one of the official languages of the Member State where the claim is made. In order to facilitate the enforcement of this Directive, the weblink, QR code or equivalent should also ensure easy access to the certificate of conformity regarding the substantiation of the explicit environmental claim and the contact information of the verifier who drew up that certificate. The underlying studies, assessments, methodologies or calculations should be made publicly available, unless the information is a trade secret in line with Article 2, paragraph 1 of Directive (EU) 2016/943. [Am. 24]

(37)  In order to avoid potential disproportionate impacts on the microenterprises, thethese smallest companies should be exempted from the requirements of Article 5 linked to information on the substantiation of explicit environmental claims unless these enterprises wish to obtain a certificate of conformity of explicit environmental claim that will be recognised by the competent authorities across the Union. [Am. 25]

(38)  When the Commission adopts delegated acts to supplement the provisions on substantiation of explicit environmental claims it may be necessary to also supplement the provisions on communication of such claims. For example, in case specific life-cycle-based rules on substantiation of explicit environmental claims for certain products group or sector are established, it may be necessary to add supplementary rules on presentation of environmental impacts assessed based on these rules by requiring that three main environmental impacts are presented next to the aggregated indicator of overall environmental performance. To this end the Commission should be empowered to adopt delegated acts to supplement the provisions on communication of explicit environmental claims.

(39)  Currently, more than 200 environmental labels are used on the Union market. They present important differences in how they operate as regards for example the transparency and comprehensiveness of the standards or methods used, the frequency of revisions, or the level of auditing or verification. These differences have an impact on how reliable the information communicated on the environmental labels is. While claims based on the EU Ecolabel or its national equivalents follow a solid scientific basis, have a transparent development of criteria, require testing and third-party verification and foresee regular monitoring, evidence suggests that many environmental labels currently on the EU market are misleading. In particular, many environmental labels lack sufficient verification procedures. Therefore, explicit environmental claims made on environmental labels should be based on a certification scheme.

(40)  In cases where an environmental label involves a commercial communication to consumers that suggests or creates the impression that a product has a positive or no impact on the environment, or is less damaging to the environment than competing products without the label, that environmental label also constitutes an explicit environmental claim. The content of such environmental label is therefore subject to the requirements on substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims.

(41)  The environmental labels often aim at providing consumers with an aggregated scoring presenting a cumulative environmental impact of products or traders to allow for direct comparisons between products or traders. Such aggregated scoring however presents risks of misleading consumers as the aggregated indicator may dilute negative environmental impacts of certain aspects of the product with more positive environmental impacts of other aspects of the product. In addition, when developed by different operators, such labels usually differ in terms of specific methodology underlying the aggregated score such as the environmental impacts considered or the weighting attributed to these environmental impacts. This may result in the same product receiving different score or rating depending on the scheme. This concern arises in relation to schemes established in the Union and in third countries. This is contributing to the fragmentation of the internal market, risks putting smaller companies at a disadvantage, and is likely to further mislead consumers and undermine their trust in environmental labels. In order to avoid this risk and ensure better harmonisation within the single market, the explicit environmental claims, including environmental labels, based on an aggregated score representing a cumulative environmental impact of products or traders should not be deemed to be sufficiently substantiated, unless those aggregated scores stem from Union rulesmeet requirements ensuring the reliability of the underlying environmental labelling schemes, including the delegated acts that the Commission is empowered to adopt under this Directive, resulting in Union-wide harmonised schemes for all products or per specific product group based on a single methodology to ensure coherence and comparabilitywith respect to their assessment methods and governance. [Am. 26]

(42)  In accordance with the proposal for a Directive on empowering consumers for the green transition, which amends Directive 2005/29/EC, displaying a sustainability label which is not based on a certification scheme or not established by public authorities constitutes an unfair commercial practice in all circumstances. This means that the ‘self-certified’ sustainability labels, where no third-party verification and regular monitoring takes place as regards compliance with the underlying requirements of the sustainability label are prohibited.

(43)  In order to combat misleading explicit environmental claims communicated in the form of environmental labels and increase consumer trust in environmental labels, including trademarks and logos of certification schemes, this Directive should establish governance criteria that all environmental labelling schemes are to comply with, complementing thus the requirements set in the said proposal amending Directive 2005/29/EC. [Am. 27]

(44)   In order to avoid further proliferation of national or regional officially recognised EN ISO 14024 type I environmental labelling (‘ecolabelling’) schemes, and other environmental labelling schemes, and to ensure more harmonisation in the internal market, new national or regional environmental labelling schemes should be developed only under the Union law. Nevertheless, Member States can request the Commission to consider developing public labelling schemes at the Union level for product groups or sectors where such labels do not yet exist in Union law and where harmonisation would bring added value to achieve the sustainability and internal market objectives in an efficient manner. [Am. 28]

(45)  In order not to create unnecessary barriers to international trade and to ensure equal treatment with the public schemes established in the Union, the public authorities outside of the Union setting up new labelling schemes should be allowed to request approval from the Commission for use of the label on the Union market. This approval should be conditional on the scheme’s contribution to reaching the objectives of this Directive and provided that the schemes demonstrate added value in terms of environmental ambition, coverage of environmental impacts, product group or sector and meet all the requirements of this Directive.

(46)  Environmental labelling schemes established by private operators, if too many and overlapping in terms of scope, may create confusion in consumers or undermine their trust in environmental labels. Therefore, Member States should only allow thatexisting environmental labelling schemes to be depicted in business-to-consumer commercial practice after this Directive has entered into application and when such schemes are in compliance with the obligations set in this Directive, and should only allow new environmental labelling schemes to be are established by private operators provided that they offer significant added value as compared to the existing national or regional schemes, in compliance with this Directive, in terms of environmental ambition of the criteria to award the label, coverage of relevant environmental impacts, and completeness of the underlying assessment. Member States should set up a procedure for the approval of new environmental labelling schemes based on a certificate of conformity drawn up by the independent verifier, and assess the claims made by existing environmental and sustainability labelling and certification schemes. This should apply to schemes established in the Union and outside of the Union, including existing schemes. [Am. 29]

(47)  In order to provide legal certainty and facilitate enforcement of the provisions on new national and regional officially recognised environmental labelling schemes and new private labelling schemes, the Commission should publish a list of such schemes that may either continue to apply on the Union market or enter the Union market. [Am. 30]

(48)  In order to ensure a harmonised approach by the Member States to the assessment and approval of environmental labelling schemes developed by private operators, and to establish an approval procedure by the Commission for proposed schemes established by public authorities outside of the Union, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts setting out common rules specifying detailed requirements for approval of such environmental labelling schemes, the format and content of supporting documents and rules of procedure to approve such schemes. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council(20). [Am. 31]

(49)  It is essential that explicit environmental claims and environmental labelling schemes reflect correctly the environmental performance and environmental impacts covered by the claim both directly on the product and accompanying the product, and consider the latest scientific evidence. Member States should therefore ensure that the trader making the claim reviews and updates and environmental labelling schemes review and update the substantiation and communication of the claims at least every 5 years to ensure compliance with the requirements of this Directive. [Am. 32]

(49a)   Article 13(1)e of the EU Tobacco Products Directive 2014/40/EU prohibits environmental claims on tobacco products and packaging, however it does not prohibit tobacco industry entities from making green claims about their activities as a whole, particularly through advertising campaigns on their environmental performance which could mislead consumers; therefore no environmental claims on tobacco industry activities should be allowed. [Am. 33]

(50)  To ensure that explicit environmental claims are reliable, it is necessary that Member States set up procedure for verifying that the substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims, including environmental labels, or the environmental labelling schemes, comply with the requirements set out in this Directive.

(51)  In order to allow the competent authorities to control more efficiently the implementation of the provisions of this Directive and to prevent as much as possible unsubstantiated explicit environmental claims, including environmental labels, from appearing on the market, verifiers complying with the harmonised requirements set up by the Directive should check that both the information used for the substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims meet the requirements of this Directive. In order to avoid misleading consumers, the verification should in any case take place before the environmental claims are made public or environmental labels are displayed. However, in order to avoid waste of products or packaging which have already been printed prior to the entry into force of this Directive, Member States may introduce a transitional period between the date of entry into force and the date of application of this Directive, during which time existing environmental claims submitted for verification can be used. Member States may prioritise the verification of claims made prior to the entry into force of this Directive. The verifier can, if appropriate, indicate several ways of communicating the explicit environmental claim that comply with the requirements of this Directive to avoid the need for continuous re-certification in case the way of communication is slightly modified without affecting the compliance with the requirements of this Directive. To facilitate the traders compliance with the rules on substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims, including the environmental labels, the verification should take into account the nature and content of the claim or the environmental label, including whether they appear to be unfair in the light of Directive 2005/29/EC. [Am. 34]

(52)  In order to provide traders with legal certainty across the internal market as regards compliance of the explicit environmental claims with the requirements of this Directive, the certificate of conformity should be recognised by the competent authorities across the Union. Microenterprises as well as small enterprises that make use of the transitional phase should be allowed to request such certificate if they wish to certify their claims in line with the requirements of this Directive and benefit from the certificate’s recognition across the Union. The certificate of conformity should however not prejudge the assessment of the environmental claim by the public authorities or courts which enforce Directive 2005/29/EC. [Am. 35]

(53)  In order to ensure uniform conditions for the provisions on verification of explicit environmental claims and environmental labelling schemes and to facilitate the enforcement of the provisions on verification of this Directive, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission to adopt a common form for certificates of conformity and the technical means for issuing such certificates. This common form should facilitate the recognition of certificates of conformity by the competent authorities across the Union. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council(21). [Am. 36]

(54)  Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) should be able to benefit from the opportunities provided by the market for more sustainable products but they could face proportionately higher costs and difficulties with some of the requirements on substantiation and verification of explicit environmental claims. The Member States and the Commission should provide adequate information and raise awareness of the ways to comply with the requirements of this Directive, ensure targeted and specialised training, and provide specific assistance and support, including financial, to SMEs wishing to make explicit environmental claims on their products or as regards their activities. Member States actions should be taken in respect of applicable State aid rules. To ensure a level playing field for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises across the Union, Member States should engage in regular dialogue regarding support measures for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises that are in place on regional and national levels respectively. In addition, and to ensure micro, small and medium-sized enterprises do not face disproportionately higher costs and difficulties with respect to the requirements of this Directive, the Commission should consider some initiatives within the framework of financial programmes dedicated to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, for cases where they wish to make explicit environmental claims with regard to their products or activities. [Am. 37]

(55)  In order to ensure a level-playing field on the Union market, where claims about the environmental performance of a product or a trader are based on reliable, comparable and verifiable information, it is necessary to establish common rules on enforcement and compliance.

(56)  In order to ensure that the objectives of this Directive are achieved and the requirements are enforced effectively, Member States should designate their own competent authorities responsible for the application and enforcement of this Directive. However, in view of the close complementarity of Articles 5 and 6 of this Directive with the provisions of Directive 2005/29/EC, Member States should also be allowed to designate for their enforcement the same competent authorities as those responsible for the enforcement of Directive 2005/29/EC. For the sake of consistency, when Member States make that choice, they should be able to rely on the means and powers of enforcement that they have established in accordance with Article 11 of Directive 2005/29/EC, in derogation from the rules on enforcement laid down in this Directive. In cases where there is more than one designated competent authority in their territory and to ensure effective exercise of the duties of the competent authorities, Member State should ensure a close cooperation between all designated competent authorities. [Am. 38]

(57)  Without prejudice to the powers already conferred by Regulation (EU) 2017/2394(22) to consumer protection authorities, competent authorities should have a minimum set of investigation and enforcement powers in order to ensure compliance with this Directive, to cooperate with each other more quickly and more efficiently, and to deter market actors from infringing this Directive. Those powers should be sufficient to tackle the enforcement challenges of e-commerce and the digital environment effectively and to prevent non-compliant market actors from exploiting gaps in the enforcement system by relocating to Member States whose competent authorities may be less equipped to tackle unlawful practices.

(58)  Competent authorities should be able to use all facts and circumstances of the case as evidence for the purpose of their investigation.

(59)  In order to prevent the occurrence of misleading and unsubstantiated explicit environmental claims on the Union market, competent authorities should carry out regular checks of explicit environmental claims made, and the environmental labelling schemes applied, to verify that the requirements laid down in this Directive are fulfilled.

(60)  When competent authorities detect an infringement of requirements of this Directive they should carry out an evaluation and based on its results notify the trader about the infringement detected and require that corrective actions are taken by the trader. To minimise the misleading effect on consumers of the non-compliant explicit environmental claim or non-compliant environmental labelling scheme, the trader should be required by the competent authorities to take an effective and rapid action to remediate that infringement. The corrective action required should be proportionate to the infringement detected and its expected harmful effects on the consumers.

(61)  Where an infringement is not restricted to their national territory, and the explicit environmental claim has been advanced between traders, competent authorities should inform the other Member States of the results of evaluation they have carried out and of any action that they have required the trader responsible to take.

(62)  Competent authorities should also carry out checks of explicit environmental claims on the Union market when in possession of and based on relevant information, including substantiated concerns submitted by third parties. Third parties submitting a concern should be able to demonstrate a sufficient interest or maintain the impairment of a right.

(63)  In order to ensure that traders are effectively dissuaded from non-compliance with the requirements of this Directive, Member States should lay down rules on penalties applicable to infringements of this Directive and ensure that those rules are implemented. The penalties provided for should be effective, proportionate and dissuasive. To facilitate a more consistent application of penalties, it is necessary to establish common non-exhaustive criteria for determining the types and levels of penalties to be imposed in case of infringements. That criteria should include, inter alia, the nature and gravity of the infringement as well as the economic benefits derived from the infringement in order to ensure that those responsible are deprived of those benefits.

(64)  When setting penalties and measures for infringements, the Member States should foresee that, based on the gravity of the infringement, the level of fines should effectively deprive the non-compliant trader from the economic benefit derived from using the misleading or unsubstantiated explicit environmental claim or non-compliant environmental labelling scheme, including in cases of repeated infringements. The measures for infringements foreseen by the Member States should therefore also include confiscation of the relevant product from the trader or revenues gained from the transactions affected by this infringement or a temporary exclusions or prohibitions from placing products or making available services on the Union market. The gravity of the infringement should be the leading criterion for the measures taken by the enforcement authorities. The maximum amount of fines should be dissuasive and set at least at the level of 4% of the trader’s total annual turnover in the Member State or Member States concerned in case of widespread infringements with a Union dimension that are subject to coordinated investigation and enforcement measures in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/2394(23).

(65)  When adopting delegated acts pursuant to Article 290 TFEU, it is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations, including with the consultation forum, during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making(24). In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States’ experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts. [Am. 39]

(66)  In order to assess the performance of the legislation against the objectives that it pursues, the Commission should carry out an evaluation of this Directive and present a report on the main findings to the European Parliament and the Council. In order to inform an evaluation of this Directive, Member States should regularly collect information on the application of this Directive and provide it to the Commission on an annual basis.

(67)  Where based on the results of the monitoring and evaluation of this Directive the Commission finds it appropriate to propose a review of this Directive, the feasibility and appropriateness of further provisions on mandating the use of common method for substantiation of explicit environmental claims, the extension of prohibition of environmental claims for products containing hazardous substances except where their use is considered essential for the society, or further harmonisation as regards requirements on the substantiation of specific environmental claims on environmental aspects or environmental impacts should also be considered. [Am. 40]

(68)  The use of the most harmful substances should ultimately be phased-out in the Union to avoid and prevent significant harm to human health and the environment, in particular their use in consumer products. The Commission should provide a report on the use of explicit environmental claims on products containing harmful substances and evaluate for which products or product groups the use of explicit environmental claims is misleading. Since the use of such claims can encourage consumption of those products that contain substances harmful to the environment or human health, the Commission should have the power to adopt delegated acts to introduce restrictions or prohibitions on the use of such explicit environmental claims. In its report, the Commission could also evaluate whether it would be appropriate that certain EU Ecolabel criteria set under Regulation (EC) No 66/2010 concerning the use of substances or preparations/mixtures be used for the potential restrictions or prohibitions on the use of explicit environmental claims under this Directive. Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council(25) prohibits the labelling of mixtures and substances that contain hazardous chemicals as ‘non-toxic’, ‘non-harmful’, ‘non-polluting’, ‘ecological’ or any other statements indicating that the substance or mixture is not hazardous or statements that are inconsistent with the classification of that substance or mixture. Member States are required to ensure that such obligation is fulfilled. As committed in the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability the Commission will define criteria for essential uses to guide its application across relevant Union legislation. . [Am. 41]

(69)  Since the objectives of this Directive, namely to improve the functioning of the internal market for economic actors operating in the internal market and consumers relying on environmental claims, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States, but can rather, by reason of its scale and effects, be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union. In accordance with the principle of proportionality as set out in that Article, this Directive does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives.

(70)  In accordance with the Joint Political Declaration of 28 September 2011 of Member States and the Commission on explanatory documents(26), Member States have undertaken to accompany, in justified cases, the notification of their transposition measures with one or more documents explaining the relationship between the components of a directive and the corresponding parts of national transposition instruments. With regard to this Directive, the legislator considers the transmission of such documents to be justified.

(71)  The Annex to Regulation (EU) 1024/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council(27) should be amended to include a reference to this Directive so as to facilitate the administrative cooperation between the competent authorities through the Internal Market Information System.

(72)  The Annex to Regulation (EU) 2017/2394 of the European Parliament and of the Council(28) should be amended to include a reference to this Directive so as to facilitate cross-border cooperation on enforcement of this Directive.

(73)  Annex I of Directive (EU) 2020/1828 of the European Parliament and of the Council(29) should be amended to include a reference to this Directive so as to ensure that the collective interests of consumers laid down in this Directive are protected.

HAVE ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:

Article 1

Subject matter and scope [Am. 42]

-1.   The purpose of this Directive is to provide for a high level of consumer and environmental protection, while contributing to the functioning of the internal market, by approximating the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States related to environmental claims made on or with reference to products made available on the market or to traders making products available on the market. [Am. 43]

1.  This Directive applies to explicit environmental claims made by traders about products placed on the market or put into service, including through online platforms or traders and environmental labelling schemes in business-to-consumer commercial practices. [Am. 44]

2.  This Directive does not apply to environmental labelling schemes or to explicit environmental claims regulated by or substantiated by rules established in:

(a)  Regulation (EC) No 66/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council(30),

(b)  Regulation (EU) 2018/848 of the European Parliament and of the Council(31),

(c)  Regulation (EU) 2017/1369 of the European Parliament and of the Council(32);

(d)  Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council(33),

(e)  Regulation (EU) No 305/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council(34)

(f)  Regulation (EC) No 765/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council(35);

(g)  Regulation (EC) No 1221/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council(36);

(h)  Directive 1999/94/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council(37);

(i)   Regulation (EU) No 305/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council(38); [Am. 45]

(j)  Directive 2006/66/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council(39);

(k)   Directive 94/62/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council(40); [Am. 46]

(l)  Regulation (EU) 2020/852 of the European Parliament and of the Council(41)

(m)  Regulation (EU) … /… of the European Parliament and of the Council(42);

(n)  Directive 2012/27/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council(43);

(o)  Directive 2013/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council(44), Regulation (EU) 2019/2088 of the European Parliament and of the Council(45) and other Union, national or international rules, standards or guidelines for financial services, financial instruments, and financial products; [Am. 47]

(oa)   Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council(46); [Am. 48]

(p)   other existing or future Union rules setting out the conditions under which certain explicit environmental claims about certain products or traders may be or are to be made or Union rules laying down requirements on the assessment or communication of environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance of certain products or traders or conditions for environmental labelling schemes. [Am. 49]

2a.   The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 18 to amend the list referred to in paragraph 2 to delete or add new or revised legislation where they provide a level of requirements that can be considered equivalent to those provided by this Directive. The requirements that shall be required to be equivalent include:

(a)   the level of disclosure of information;

(b)   the requirements on third-party verification prior to the claim being put on the market;

(c)   the level of enforcement. [Am. 50]

Article 2

Definitions

For the purposes of this Directive, the following definitions shall apply:

(1)  ‘environmental claim’ means environmental claim as defined in Article 2, point (o), of Directive 2005/29/EC;

(2)  ‘explicit environmental claim’ means an environmental claim that is in textual form or contained in an environmental label;

(3)  ‘trader’ means trader as defined in Article 2, point (b), of Directive 2005/29/EC;

(4)  ‘product’ means product as defined in Article 2, point (c), of Directive 2005/29/EC;

(5)  ‘consumer’ means consumer as defined in Article 2, point (a), of Directive 2005/29/EC;

(6)  ‘business-to-consumer commercial practices’ means business-to-consumer commercial practices as defined in Article 2, point (d), of Directive 2005/29/EC;

(7)  ‘sustainability label’ means sustainability label as defined in Article 2, point (r), of Directive 2005/29/EC;

(8)  ‘environmental label’ means a sustainability label covering only or predominantlyone or more environmental aspects of a product, a process or a trader; [Am. 51]

(9)  ‘product group’ means a set of products that serve similar purposes or are similar in terms of use or have similar functional properties;

(10)  ‘certification scheme’ means a certification scheme as defined in Article 2, point (s), of Directive 2005/29/EC;

(11)  ‘verification’ means the conformity assessment process carried out by a verifier to verify whether the substantiation and communication of the explicit environmental claims are in compliance with the requirements set out in this Directive or whether environmental labelling schemes comply with this Directive;

(12)  ‘value chain’ means all activities and processes that are part of the life cycle of a product or activity of a trader, including remanufacturing, reuse, recycling and end-of-life; [Am. 52]

(13)  ‘life cycle’ means the consecutive and interlinked stages of a product’s life, consisting of raw material acquisition or generation from natural resources, pre-processing, manufacturing, storage, distribution, installation, use, maintenance, repair, upgrading, refurbishment as well as re-use, and end-of-life;

(14)  ‘primary information’ means information that is directly measured or collected by the trader from one or more facilities that are representative for the activities of the trader;

(15)  ‘secondary information’ means information that is based on other sources than primary information including peer-reviewed literature studies, engineering studies and patents. [Am. 53]

(16)  ‘public’ means one or more natural or legal persons and their associations, traders or groups;

(17)  ‘environmental performance’ means the performance of a certain product or product group or trader or sector related to the environmental aspects or environmental impacts of that product or product group or the activities of that trader or sector;

(18)  ‘environmental aspect’ means an element of a trader’s or sector’s activities or of products or product groups that interact or can interact with the environment.

(19)  ‘environmental impact’ means any measurable change to the environment, whether positive or negative, that wholly or partially results from a trader’s or sector’s activities or from a product or product group during its life cycle. [Am. 54]

(19a)   ‘environmental labelling scheme’ means a certification scheme which certifies that a product, a process or a trader complies with the requirements for an environmental label. [Am. 55]

Article 3

Substantiation of explicit environmental claims

1.  Member States shall ensure that traders carry out an assessment to substantiate explicit environmental claims. This assessment shall:

(a)  specify if the claim is related to the whole product, part of a product, part of a life-cycle of a product, or certain aspects of a product, or to all activities of a trader or a certain part or aspect of these activities, as relevant to the claim; [Am. 56]

(b)  rely on independent, peer-reviewed, widely recognised, robust and verifiable scientific evidence, use accurate information and take into account relevant Union or international standards; [Am. 57]

(c)  demonstrate that environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance that are subject to the claim are significant from a life-cycle perspective;

(d)  where a claim is made on environmental performance, take into account all environmental aspects or environmental impacts which are significant to assessing the environmental performance, including from a life-cycle perspective; [Am. 58]

(e)  demonstrate that the claim is not equivalent to requirements imposed by law on products within the product group, or traders within the sector;

(f)  provide information whether the product or trader which is subject to the claim performs significantly better regarding environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance which is subject to the claim than what is common practice for products in the relevant product group or traders in the relevant sector;

(g)  identify whether improving environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance subject to the claim leads to significant harmnegative trade-offs in relation to the environment and to specific environmental impacts, including on climate change, resource consumption and circularity, sustainable use and protection of water and marine resources, pollution, biodiversity, animal welfare and ecosystems; [Am. 59]

(h)  separate any greenhouse gas emissions offsetscarbon credits used from greenhouse gas emissions as additional environmental information, specify whether those offsetscredits relate to emission reductions or removals, and describe how the offsets relied upon are of high integrity and accounted for correctly to reflect the claimed impact on climate; [Ams. 156 and 167]

(ha)   for use of carbon credits in accordance with paragraph 3b, indicate the share of residual emissions expressed as a share of base-year emissions, the share of biogenic and fossil emissions within these residual emissions and the quantity and type of activity (permanent carbon removal, carbon storage in products, carbon farming sequestration, or soil emission reductions, as defined in [Regulation (EU) .../... establishing a Union certification framework for permanent carbon removals, carbon farming and carbon storage in products]) underlying the credits used, providing evidence that the credits have been appropriately retired from the registry of the certification scheme, in order to avoid double counting; [Ams. 157 and 168]

(i)  include primary information available to the trader for environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance, which are subject to the claim that is accessible or obtainable by the trader, including through possession, research or procurement; [Am. 62]

(j)  include as a supplement to primary information, relevant secondary information for environmental impacts, environmental aspects, or environmental performance which is representative of the specific value chain of the product or the trader on which a claim is made, in cases where no primary information is available, accompanied with a justification of why secondary information has been used. [Am. 63]

(ja)   for use of carbon credits for contribution claims, ensure no financial contribution is used to claim an improved climate or environmental impact of the product or trader, and separate any financial contributions from the climate or environmental impact of the product or trader as additional environmental information. [Am. 64]

2.  Where it is demonstrated that significant environmental impacts that are not subject to the claim exist but there is no widely recognised scientific evidence to perform the assessment referred to in point (c) of paragraph 1, the trader making the claim on another aspect shall take account of available information and, if necessary, update the assessment in accordance with paragraph 1 once widely recognised scientific evidence is available.

3.  The requirements set out in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply to traders that are microenterprises within the meaning of Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC(47) unless they request the verification with the aim of receiving the certificate of conformity in accordance with Article 10.

3a.   Environmental claims on neutral, reduced or positive environmental impact for a product based on the use of carbon credits shall be prohibited, in line with Directive 2005/29/EC as amended by Directive (EU) .../... of the European Parliament and of the Council [Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition]. [Ams. 159 and 169]

3b.   Compensation claims based on the use of carbon credits may only be made in respect of the residual emissions of a trader in accordance with the delegated act set out in Article 3(4a). For claims on future environmental performance based on the use of carbon credits, the trader shall comply with the relevant rules set out in Delegated Regulation (EU) 2023/2772. The carbon credits used must be certified units issued in accordance with [Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a Union certification framework for carbon removals], or other units in accordance with paragraph 3c. Where the use of units is for compensation of fossil emissions, the claim shall be substantiated by permanent removals as defined in [Regulation (EU) .../... of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a Union certification framework for carbon removals]. [Ams. 160 and 170]

3c.   Certified units other than those issued in accordance with [Regulation establishing a Union certification framework for permanent carbon removals, carbon farming and carbon storage in products] may be used in duly justified cases where those schemes are recognised by the Commission as part of the list of compliant schemes corresponding to at least equivalent requirements to those provided by [Regulation (EU) .../... establishing a Union certification framework for permanent carbon removals, carbon farming and carbon storage in products], in particular with regard to monitoring, reporting, verification and liability requirements, and ensuring no double counting. The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 18 to list recognised carbon credit schemes that are considered to comply with such equivalent requirements. [Ams. 161 and 171]

3d.   By ..[18 months after the entry into force of this Directive], the Commission shall provide a report on the use of explicit environmental claims on products or product groups containing substances or preparations/mixtures meeting the criteria for classification as toxic, hazardous to the environment, carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic for reproduction (CMR), causing endocrine disruption to human health or the environment, persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic (PBT), very persistent, very bioaccumulative (vPvB), persistent, mobile and toxic (PMT), or very persistent, very mobile (vPvM) properties as defined in Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures, and substances referred to in Article 57 of Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2006 concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH), establishing a European Chemicals Agency. That report shall evaluate for which products or product groups the use of explicit environmental claims is misleading and assess the need for restrictions or prohibitions on the use of explicit environmental claims for these products or product groups in view of preventing misleading claims and contributing to the protection of human health and the environment.

Where the report concludes that the use of explicit environmental claims in a product or product group containing substances or preparations/mixtures referred to in sub-paragraph 1 is misleading, the Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 18 to supplement the requirements for substantiation of explicit environmental claims by introducing restrictions or prohibitions on the use of explicit environmental claims for this product or product group. [Am. 68]

4.  When the regular monitoring of the evolution of explicit environmental claims referred to in Article 20 reveals differences in the application of the requirements laid down in paragraph 1 for specific claims and such differences create obstacles formay have an adverse impact on the functioning of the internal market, or where the Commission identifies that the absence of requirements for specific claims leadsmay lead to widespread misleading of consumers, the Commission mayshall adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 18 to supplement the requirements for substantiation of explicit environmental claims laid downin paragraph 1 by: [Am. 69]

(-a)   determining the relevant environmental impacts that shall be covered by the substantiation; [Am. 70]

(a)  determining the rules for assessing the environmental aspects, environmental impacts and environmental performance, including by determining the activities, processes, materials, emissions or use of a product, which contribute significantly or cannot contribute to the relevant environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance;

(b)  determining for which environmental aspects or environmental impacts primary information shall be provided and determining criteria based on which the accuracy of the primary information and secondary information can be assessed; or

(c)  establishing specific life-cycle-based rules on substantiation of explicit environmental claims for certain product groups and sectors, including where appropriate on the basis of the Product Environmental Footprint Category Rules and Organisation Environmental Footprint Sectorial Rules where those rules cover all environmental impacts or aspects relevant for the product category or trader. [Am. 71]

4a.   To supplement the provisions on the use of certified units for residual emissions of a trader, the Commission shall adopt by [12 months from the date of entry into force of this Directive] a delegated act in accordance with Article 18 to establish a method for defining residual emissions, based on an emission reduction pathway compatible with limiting global warming to 1.5°C taking into account technological feasibility and in consultation with the European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change. [Ams. 162/rev and 172]

4b.   By ... [1 year from the date of entry into force of this Directive], the Commission shall identify the most common explicit environmental claims made on the Union market and publish a working plan listing the claims that the Commission intends to supplement with the delegated act referred to in paragraph 4. That working plan shall be updated at least every 3 years. [Am. 72]

4c.   By ... [1 year from the date of entry into force of this Directive], the Commission shall adopt guidelines to facilitate the interpretation of Article 3(1) point (b). [Am. 73]

5.  When specifying further the requirements for substantiation of explicit environmental claims in accordance with previous paragraph, the Commission shall take into account scientific or other available technical information, including relevant international standards, and where relevant consider the following:

(a)  the specificities of the sectors and products that require a specific methodological approach;

(aa)   existing Product Environmental Footprint Category Rules and Organisation Environmental Footprint Sectorial Rules; [Am. 74]

(b)  the potential contribution of specific product groups or sectors to achieving Union climate and environmental objectives;

(c)  any relevant information derived from Union legislation;

(d)  ease of access to information and data for the assessment and use of this information and data by micro enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises (‘SMEs’). [Am. 75]

5a.   Where there is no recognised scientific method or insufficient evidence to assess environmental impacts and aspects, the exclusion of these impacts shall be transparent and efforts shall be made to develop methods and accumulate evidence to enable the assessment of the respective impact. Until the method meeting the requirements set out in the first paragraph is developed, claims referring to such environmental impacts shall not be made. [Am. 76]

Article 4

Substantiation of comparative explicit environmental claims

1.  The substantiation of explicit environmental claims that state or imply that a product or trader has less environmental impacts or a better environmental performance than other products or traders (‘comparative environmental claims’) shall, in addition to the requirements set out in Article 3, comply with the following requirements:

(a)  the information and data, data and methods used for assessing the environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance of the products or traders against which the comparison is made, are equivalent to the information and data, data and methods used for assessing the environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance of the product or trader which is subject to the claim; [Am. 77]

(b)  the data used for assessing the environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance of the products or traders is generated or sourced in an equivalent manner as the data used for assessing the environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance of the products or traders against which the comparison is made;

(c)  the coverage of the stages along the value chain is equivalent for the products and traders compared and ensures that the most significant stages are taken into account for all products and traders;

(d)  the coverage of environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performances is equivalent for the products and traders compared and ensures that the most significant environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performances are taken into account for all products and traders;

(e)  assumptions used for the comparison are set in an equivalent manner for the products and traders compared.

2.  Where a comparative environmental claim relates to an improvement in terms of environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance of a product that is subject to the claim compared to environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance of another product from the same trader, from a competing trader that is no longer active on the market or from a trader that no longer sells to consumers, the substantiation of the claim shall explain how that improvement affects other relevant environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance of the product subject to the claim and shall clearly state the baseline year for the comparison.

3.  The requirements laid down in this Article shall not apply to traders that are microenterprises within the meaning of Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC(48) unless they request the verification with the aim of receiving the certificate of conformity in accordance with Article 10.

Article 5

Communication of explicit environmental claims

1.  Member States shall ensure that a trader is required to communicate an explicit environmental claim in accordance with the requirements set out in this Article.

2.  Explicit environmental claims may only cover environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance that are substantiated in accordance with the requirements laid down in Articles 3, 4 and 5 and that are identified as significant for the product or trader concerned in accordance with Article 3 paragraph (1) point (c) or (d).

3.  Where the explicit environmental claim is related to a final product, and the use or end-of-life phase is among the most relevant life-cycle stages of that product, the claim shall include information on how the consumer should use or dispose of the product in order to achieve the expected environmental performance of that product. That information shall be made clearly visible and available together with the claim. [Am. 78]

4.  Where the explicit environmental claim is related to future environmental performance of a product ortrader, the trader it shall include a time-bound commitment for improvements inside own operations and value chains.:

(a)   include a time-bound, science-based and measurable commitment for improvements inside own operations and value chains,

(b)   include an implementation plan containing measurable and verifiable interim targets and other relevant elements necessary to support implementation, such as allocation of resources, a monitoring plan and a reporting plan based on reporting and verifications at regular intervals,

(c)   make publicly available the information referred to in points (a) and (b), including the results of reporting. [Am. 79]

5.  Explicit environmental claims on the cumulative environmental impacts of a product or trader based on an aggregated indicator of environmental impacts can be made only when they are based on environmental labels compliant with Article 7. Where such claims are made,on the basis of rules used to calculate suchthe aggregated indicator that are established in the Union lawshall be communicated to the consumers. [Am. 80]

6.  Information on the product or the trader that is the subject of the explicit environmental claim and on the substantiation shall be made publicly available together with the claim in a physical form or in the form of a weblink, QR code, digital product passport or equivalent. [Am. 81]

That information shall include at least the following:

(a)  environmental aspects, environmental impacts or environmental performance covered by the claim;

(b)  the relevant Union or the relevant international standards, where appropriate;

(c)  the underlying studies, methods or calculations, including the assessment referred to in Article 3, used to assess, measure and monitor the environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance covered by the claim, without omitting the results of such studies or calculations and, explanations of their scope, assumptions and limitations, unless the information is a trade secret in line with Article 2 paragraph 1 of Directive (EU) 2016/943(49); [Am. 82]

(d)  a brief explanation how the improvements that are subject to the claim are achieved;

(e)  the certificate of conformity referred to in Article 10 regarding the substantiation of the claim and the contact information of the verifier that drew up the certificate of conformity;

(ea)   a description of the type of monitoring and evaluation system that the environmental labelling scheme has in place to ensure regular assessments of performance and impacts are carried out; [Am. 83]

(f)  for climate-related explicit environmental claims that rely on greenhouse gas emission offsetsuse carbon credits, information referred to in Article 3(1)(h), (ha) and (ja)to which extent they rely on offsets and whether these relate to emissions reductions or removals; [Am. 84]

(fa)   environmental claims by highly-polluting industries shall be made in relative terms to allow consumers to understand the product’s overall negative impact on the environment; [Am. 85]

(g)  a summary of the assessment including the elements listed in this paragraph that is clear and understandable to the consumers targeted by the claim and that is provided in at least one of the official languages of the Member State where the claim is made.

7.  The requirements set out in paragraphs 2, 3 and 6 shall not apply to traders that are microenterprises within the meaning of Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC unless they request the verification with the aim of receiving the certificate of conformity in accordance with Article 10.

8.  Where the substantiation of certain environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance is subject to the rules established in delegated acts referred to in Article 3, paragraph 4(a) and paragraph 4(c), The Commission may adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 18 to supplement the requirements for communication of explicit environmental claims set out in Article 5 by specifying further the information that can be or shall be communicated regarding such environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance, so as to make sure that the consumers are not misled, in particular where the substantiation of certain environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance is subject to the rules established in delegated acts referred to in Article 3, paragraph 4(a) and paragraph 4(c). [Am. 86]

Article 6

Communication of comparative environmental claims

Comparative environmental claims shall not relate to an improvement of the environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance of the product that is the subject of the claim compared to the environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance of another product from the same trader or from a competing trader that is no longer active on the market or from a trader that no longer sells to consumers, unless they are based on evidence proving that the improvement is significant and achieved in the last five years.

Article 7

Environmental labels

1.  Member States shall ensure that environmental labels fulfil the requirements set out in Articles 3 to 6 and are subject to verification in accordance with Article 10.

1a.   If an environmental label demonstrates recognised excellent environmental performance as defined in ECGT Article 2(s) or is developed by recognised consumer organisations and when their method is based on the use of scientific and reproducible assessment methods, the label shall only be subject to verification according to Article 10(2), but not the requirements and related testing for each individual product or service group covered by the label. [Am. 87]

2.  Only environmental labels complying with the requirements of the first paragraph and awarded under environmental labelling schemes established under Union lawthat are based on scientific, independent and reproducible assessment methods and a lifecycle approach may present a rating or score of a product or trader based on an aggregated indicator of environmental impacts of a product or a trader. [Am. 88]

Article 8

Requirements for environmental labelling schemes

1.   Environmental labelling scheme means a certification scheme which certifies that a product, a process or a trader complies with the requirements for an environmental label. [Am. 89]

2.  The environmental labelling schemes shall comply with the following requirements:

(a)  information about the ownership and the decision-making bodies of the environmental labelling scheme is transparent, accessible, free of charge, easy to understand and sufficiently detailed and available online or on a durable medium; [Am. 90]

(aa)   the decision-making bodies of the environmental labelling scheme are free of conflicts of interest and independent from traders using the label; [Am. 91]

(b)  information about the objectives of the environmental labelling scheme and the requirements and procedures to monitor compliance of the environmental labelling scheme are transparent, accessible free of charge, easy to understand and sufficiently detailed;

(c)  the conditions for joining the environmental labelling schemes are proportionate to the size and turnover of the companies in order not to exclude micro, small and medium enterprises, including by setting reasonable and non-discriminatory fees; [Am. 92]

(d)  the requirements for the environmental labelling scheme have been developed by experts that can ensure their scientific robustness and have been submitted for transparent consultation to a heterogeneous group of stakeholders or the stakeholders’ representatives that havethat has reviewed them and ensured their relevance from a societal perspective. The stakeholders shall be free of any conflicts of interest, including by being independent from the owner of the environmental labelling scheme, and include, as a minimum, relevant experts; [Am. 93]

(e)  the environmental labelling scheme has a complaint and dispute resolution mechanism in place;

(f)  the environmental labelling scheme sets out transparent procedures for dealing with non-compliance and foresees the withdrawal or suspension of the environmental label in case of persistent and flagrant non-compliance with the requirements of the scheme. [Am. 94]

(fa)   the environmental labelling scheme has a robust monitoring and evaluation system to regularly review its objectives, strategies, performance and impacts, based on the latest best practices, scientific data and evidence, and where relevant, to update its requirements in line with the findings. [Am. 95]

3.   From [OP: Please insert the date = the date of transposition of this Directive] no new national or regional environmental labelling schemes shall be established by public authorities of the Member States. However, national or regional environmental labelling schemes established prior to that date may continue to award the environmental labels on the Union market, provided they meet the requirements of this Directive. [Am. 96]

From the date referred to in the first subparagraph, environmental labelling schemes may only be established under Union law. [Am. 97]

4.  From [OP: Please insert the date = the date of transposition of this Directive] any new environmental labelling schemes established by public authorities of the Member States or in third countries awarding environmental labels to be used on the Union market, shall be subject to approval, without undue delay, by the Commission prior to entering the Union market with the aim of ensuring that these labels provide added value in terms of their environmental ambition including notably their coverage of environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance, or of a certain product group or sector, as compared to the existing Union, national or regional schemes referred to in paragraph 3, and meet the requirements of this Directive. Environmental labelling schemes established by public authorities of the Member State or in third countries prior to that date may continue to award the environmental labels which are to be used on the Union market, provided they meet the requirements of this Directive. [Am. 98]

5.  Member States shall ensure that environmental labelling schemes established by private operators after [OP: Please insert the date = the date of transposition of this Directive] are only approved if those schemes provide added value in terms of their environmental ambition, including notably their extent of coverage of environmental impacts, environmental aspects or environmental performance, or of a certain product group or sector and their ability to support the green transition of SMEs, as compared to the existing Union, national or regional schemes referred to in paragraph 3, and meet the requirements of this Directive. Environmental labelling schemes established by private operators prior to that date may continue to award environmental labels, which are to be used on the Union market, provided they meet the requirements of this Directive. [Am. 99]

This procedure for approval of new environmental labelling schemes shall apply to schemes established by private operators in the Union and in third countries.

Member States shall notify the Commission when new private schemes are approved.

6.  In order to receive the approvals referred to in paragraphs 4 and 5, the operators of new environmental labelling schemes shall provide supporting documents setting out the following:

(a)  the rationale underlying the development of the scheme

(aa)   a description of how the requirements set out in this Directive are met; [Am. 100]

(b)  the proposed scope of the scheme,

(c)  the evidence the scheme will provide added value as set out in in paragraph 4 for environmental labelling schemes established by public authorities in third countries, or in paragraph 5 for environmental labelling schemes established by private operators; [Am. 101]

(d)  a proposal for draft criteria and the methodology used to develop and award the environmental label and the expected impacts on the market;

(e)  a detailed description of the ownership and the decision-making bodies of the environmental labelling scheme.

The documents referred to in the first subparagraph shall be made publicly available and submitted to the Commission in case of schemes referred to in paragraph 4 or to the Member States’ authorities in case of schemes referred to in paragraph 5, together with the certificate of conformity for environmental labelling schemes drawn up in accordance with Article 10. [Am. 102]

7.  The Commission shall publish and keep-up-to date a list of officially recognisedenvironmental labelling schemes that comply with this Directive and environmental labels as laid down in Regulation (EC) No 66/2010, that are allowed to be used on the Union market after [OP: Please insert the date = the date of transposition of this Directive] pursuant to paragraphs 3, 4 and 5, including the information provided in accordance with paragraph 6. This list shall be available to the public free of charge and be presented in an understandable manner. [Am. 103]

8.  In order to ensure a uniform application across the Union, the Commission shall by ... [12 months from the date of entry into force of this Directive] adopt implementing acts delegated acts in accordance with Article 18 to: [Am. 104]

(a)  provide detailed requirements for approval and review of environmental labelling schemes pursuant to the criteria referred to in paragraphs 4 and 5; [Am. 105]

(b)  specify further the format and content of supporting documents referred to in paragraph 6;

(c)  provide detailed rules on the procedure for the approval referred to in paragraph 4.

Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 19. [Am. 106]

Article 9

Review of the substantiation of explicit environmental claims

Member States shall ensure that the information used for substantiation of explicit environmental claims is reviewed and updated by traders when there are circumstances that may affectchange the accuracy of a claim, and no later than 5 years from the date when the information referred to in Article 5(6) is provided. In the review, the trader shall revise the used underlying information to ensure that the requirements of Articles 3 and 4 are fully complied with. [Am. 107]

The trader shall not be obliged to review the substantiation nor reapply for certification in case of spelling mistakes or other cosmetic changes in the text of the claim if it does not affect the substance and accuracy of the claim. [Am. 108]

The updated explicit environmental claim shall be subject to verification in accordance with Article 10.

Article 10

Verification and certification of the substantiation and communication of environmental claims and environmental labelling schemes

1.  Member States shall set up procedures for verifying the substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims against the requirements set out in Articles 3 to 7. The Commission shall regularly review those procedures. [Am. 109]

2.  Member States shall set up procedures for verifying the compliance of environmental labelling schemes with the requirements set out in Article 8. The Commission shall regularly review those procedures. [Am. 110]

3.  The verification and certification requirements shall apply to traders that are microenterprises within the meaning of Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC only if they so request.

3a.   When setting up the procedures referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2, Member States shall ensure that the cost of verification and certification shall take into account the complexity of the substantiation of the claim, and the size and turnover of traders requesting verification and certification with a particular regard to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises. [Am. 111]

3b.   The verification requirements shall not apply to traders displaying an environmental label verified in accordance with this Article when making an explicit environmental claim regarding environmental aspects, impacts and environmental performance certified by that label.

The information required in Article 5(6) shall be that of the environmental labelling scheme. [Am. 112]

4.  The verification shall be undertaken by a verifier fulfilling the requirements set out in Article 11, in accordance with the procedures referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2, before the environmental claim is made public or the environmental label is displayed by a trader.

4a.   The verification of explicit environmental claims and environmental labelling schemes shall be completed within 30 days. The verifier may decide to extend the period for verification for more than 30 days in duly justified cases. Verifiers shall provide an estimation of the period of the verification procedure to the trader on the date when the request for verification has been submitted. [Am. 113]

5.  For the purposes of the verification the verifier shall take into account the nature and content of the explicit environmental claim or the environmental label.

6.  Upon completion of the verification, the verifier shall draw up, where appropriate, a certificate of conformity certifying that the explicit environmental claim or the environmental label complies with the requirements set out in this Directive.

7.  The certificate of conformity shall be recognised by the competent authorities responsible for the application and enforcement of this Directive. Member States shall notify the list of certificates of conformity via the Internal Market Information System established by Regulation (EU) No 1024/2012. Once a certificate of conformity is delivered and notified, the labelling scheme or the environmental claim can be used within the Union, insofar as that the scheme or the claim is communicated in a language that can be understood by consumers in the Member States where the product or service is marketed. The certificates of conformity shall be made publicly available in a searchable database clearly identifying the trader, the type of claim, the assessment method and the sector. [Am. 114]

8.  The certificate of conformity shall not prejudge the assessment of the environmental claim by national authorities or courts in accordance with Directive 2005/29/EC.

9.  By ... [12 months from the date of entry into force of this Directive], the Commission shall adopt implementing acts to set out details regarding the form of the certificate of conformity referred to in paragraph 5 and the technical means for issuing such certificate of conformity. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 19. [Am. 115]

9a.   Member States may prioritise the verification of existing environmental claims made before the entry into force of this Directive. [Am. 116]

Article 11

Verifier

1.  The verifier shall be a third-party conformity assessment body accredited in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 765/2008(50).

2.  The accreditation shall, in particular, include the evaluation of compliance with the requirements in paragraph 3.

3.  The verifier shall comply with the following requirements:

(a)  the verifier shall be independent of the product bearing, or the trader associated to, the environmental claim;

(b)  the verifier, its top-level management and the personnel responsible for carrying out the verification tasks shall not engage in any activity that may conflict with their independence of judgement or integrity in relation to the verification activities;

(c)  the verifier and its personnel shall carry out the verification activities with the highest degree of professional integrity and the requisite technical competence and shall be free from all pressures and inducements, particularly financial, which might influence their judgement or the results of their verification activities,

(d)  the verifier shall have the expertise, equipment and infrastructure required to perform the verification activities in relation to which it has been accredited;

(e)  the verifier shall have adequate resources, in particular technical capabilities and a sufficient number of suitably qualified and experienced personnel, with experience in life-cycle assessments, where necessary, responsible for carrying out the verification tasks; [Am. 117]

(f)  the personnel of a verifier shall observe professional secrecy and act in compliance with applicable Union law on the protection of trade secrets, in particular Directive (EU) 2016/943, with regard to all information obtained in carrying out the verification tasks; where the verifier does not receive the prerequisite information for verification due to the protection of trade secrets, the verifier shall not issue a certificate of conformity; [Am. 118]

(g)  where a verifier subcontracts specific tasks connected with verification or has recourse to a subsidiary, it shall take full responsibility for the tasks performed by subcontractors or subsidiaries and shall assess and monitor the qualifications of the subcontractor or the subsidiary and the work carried out by them. Requirements of paragraph 3, points (a) to (f), shall apply also to subcontractors and subsidiaries. [Am. 119]

(ga)   the verifier shall have a complaint and dispute resolution mechanism in place; [Am. 120]

(gb)   the verifier who grants the certificate of conformity shall be responsible for the accuracy of the assessment of the claim which is being certified and be held accountable if an investigation finds that it has been negligent in its assessment. This accountability applies, however, only insofar as the trader did not engage in misleading commercial practices as underlined in Annex 1 of Directive 2005/29/EC. [Am. 121]

3a.   Accredited verifiers established in one Member State in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 765/2008 may perform verification activities in any other Member State under the same conditions as accredited verifiers established in that Member State. [Am. 122]

Article 12

Micro, small and medium sized enterprises [Am. 123]

Member States, in cooperation with the Commission, shall take appropriate measures to help micro, small and medium sized enterprises to apply the requirements set out in this Directive. Those measures shall at least include guidelines or similar mechanisms to raise awareness of wayswith specific examples and procedures to comply with the requirements on explicit environmental claims. In addition, Without prejudice to applicable state aid rules, such measures mayto be taken by the Member States shall include one or more of the following: [Am. 124]

(a)  financial support;

(aa)   other mechanisms to raise awareness of ways to comply with the requirements on explicit environmental claims; [Am. 125]

(b)  access to finance;

(c)  specialised management and staff training;

(d)  tailor-made organisational and technical assistance. [Am. 126]

(da)   specialised management and staff training. [Am. 127]

In the context of Union programmes from which micro, small and medium-sized enterprises can benefit, the Commission shall take into account and promote initiatives which can facilitate the compliance of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises with the requirements set out in this Directive. [Am. 128]

Member States shall designate single points of contact for microenterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises from where they can request information on complying with the requirements on explicit environmental claims and on the available support referred to in the previous subparagraph. [Am. 129]

Article 12a

Simplified verification system

1.   By ... [18 months after the entry into force], the Commission shall establish, by means of a delegated act, a simplified verification system that allows traders to benefit from a simplified procedure, that may include a presumption of conformity, for certain environmental claims. In that simplified verification system, the Commission shall, where appropriate:

(a)   prioritise environmental claims that do not require the conduct of a full life-cycle analysis or the use of complex methods, due to the nature of the claim;

(b)   facilitate a faster approval of the most common environmental claims, in accordance with the list outlined in Article 3, paragraph 4a;

(c)   facilitate the approval of environmental claims that are based on and conform to standards or methods, such as for life-cycle analysis, that have been officially recognised by the Commission, in accordance with paragraph 2 of this Article;

(d)   allow for certification of environmental claims and environmental labels based on product specific and sectoral category rules developed pursuant to Article 3(4)(c) and 5(8), where such rules already foresee third-party verification.

2.   In accordance with paragraph 1, the Commission shall develop a database of those recognised standards and methods that may benefit from a simplified procedure, which shall be regularly reviewed and updated. [Am. 130]

Article 13

Designation of competent authorities and coordination mechanism

1.  Member States shall designate one or more competent authorities as responsible for the application and enforcement of this Directive.

2.  For the purpose of the enforcement of Articles 5 and 6, Member States may designate the national authorities or courts responsible for the enforcement of Directive 2005/29/EC. In that case, Member States may derogate from Articles 14 to 17 ofshall ensure that consumers whose economic interests are harmed by non-compliance with this Directive have access to proportionate and effective remediesand apply the enforcement rules adopted in accordance with Articles 11 to 13Article 11a of Directive 2005/29/EC. [Am. 131]

3.  Where there is more than one competent authority in their territory, Member States shall ensure that the respective duties of those authorities are clearly defined and that appropriate communication and coordination mechanisms are established.

4.  Member States shall notify the Commission and other Member States without delay of the identity of the competent authorities in their Member State and the areas of competence of those authorities.

Article 14

Powers of the competent authorities

1.  Member States shall confer on their competent authorities the powers of inspection and enforcement necessary to ensure compliance with this Directive.

2.  The powers conferred on competent authorities under paragraph 1 shall include at least the following:

(a)  the power of access to any relevant documents, data or information related to an infringement of this Directive, in any form or format and irrespective of their storage medium, or the place where they are stored, and the power to take or obtain copies thereof;

(b)  the power to require any natural or legal person to provide any relevant information, data or documents, in any form or format and irrespective of their storage medium or the place where they are stored, for the purposes of establishing whether an infringement of this Directive has occurred or is occurring and the details of such infringement;

(c)  the power to start investigations or proceedings on their own initiative to bring about the cessation or prohibition of infringements of this Directive;

(d)  the power to require traders to adopt adequate and effective remedies and take appropriate action to bring an infringement of this Directive to an end;

(e)  the power to adopt, where appropriate, injunctive relief with regard to infringements of this Directive;

(f)  the power to impose penalties for infringements of this Directive in accordance with Article 17.

3.  Competent authorities may use any information, document, finding, statement or intelligence as evidence for the purpose of their investigations, irrespective of the format in which or medium on which they are stored.

Article 15

Compliance monitoring measures

1.  Competent authorities of the Member States designated in accordance with Article 13 shall undertake regular checks of the explicit environmental claims made and the environmental labelling schemes applied, on the Union market. The reports detailing the result of those checks shall be made available to the public online.

2.  Where the competent authorities of a Member State detect an infringement of an obligation set out in this Directive, they shall carry out an evaluation covering all relevant requirements laid down in this Directive.

3.  Where, further to the evaluation referred to in the first subparagraph, the competent authorities find that the substantiation and communication of the explicit environmental claim or the environmental labelling scheme does not comply with the requirements laid down in this Directive, they shall notify the trader making the claim about the non-compliance prior to publishing the report referred to in Article 15(1) and require that trader to take all appropriate corrective action within 30 days to bring the explicit environmental claim or the environmental labelling scheme into compliance with this Directive or within 30 days, to cease the use of and references to the non-compliant explicit environmental claim. Such action shall be as effective and rapid as possible, while complying with the principle of proportionality and the right to be heard.

The competent authorities may decide upon a duly justified request from the trader, in exceptional cases, to grant the trader one extension to the original 30 days, during which the trader will be required to take all appropriate corrective action. [Am. 132]

3a.   Where the competent authorities of a Member State establish that an explicit environmental claim or an environmental labelling scheme does not comply with the requirements laid down in this Directive, it shall require the trader to disclose, without undue delay, if the explicit environmental claim or the environmental labelling scheme has been communicated in another Member State. Where this is the case, the competent authorities who established the non-compliance shall notify without undue delay the competent authorities of the other Member States where the claim or label have been communicated of the result of the evaluation pursuant to Article 15(3). [Am. 133]

3b.   Where the competent authorities of a Member State establish that verifiers have repeatedly issued certificates of conformity for explicit environmental claims that do not comply with the requirements laid down in this Directive, the verifier's accreditation shall be withdrawn without undue delay. [Am. 134]

Article 16

Complaint-handling and access to justice

1.  Natural or legal persons or organisations regarded under Union or national law as having a legitimatesufficient interest shall be entitled to submit substantiated complaints to competent authorities when they deem, on the basis of objective circumstances, that a traderone or more traders or verifiers is failing to comply with the provisions of this Directive. [Am. 135]

2.  For the purposes of the first subparagraph, non-governmental entities or organisations promoting human health, environmental or consumer protection and meeting any requirements under national law shall be deemed to have sufficient interest.

3.  Competent authorities shall without undue delay assess the substantiated complaint referred to in paragraph 1 and, where necessary, take the necessary steps, including inspections and hearings of the person or organisation and traders or verifiers concerned, with a view to verifydetecting non-compliance with the provisions of this Directive and verifying those complaints. If confirmed, the competent authorities shall take the necessary actions in accordance with Article 15. [Am. 136]

4.  Competent authorities shall, as soon as possible and in any case within 30 days from receiving the substantiated concern and in accordance with the relevant provisions of national law, inform the person or organisation referred to in paragraph 1 that submitted the complaint of its decision to accede to or refuse the request for action put forward in the complaint and shall provide the reasons for it and a description of the further steps and measures it will take. Competent authorities shall allow for additional information to be provided by the person who has submitted the concern. [Am. 137]

5.  Member States shall ensure that a person or organisation referred to in paragraph 1 submitting a substantiated complaint shall have access to a court or other independent and impartial public body competent to review the procedural and substantive legality of the decisions, acts or failure to act of the competent authority under this Directive, without prejudice to any provisions of national law which require that administrative review procedures be exhausted prior to recourse to judicial proceedings. Those judicial review procedures shall be fair, equitable, timely and free of charge or not prohibitively expensive, and shall provide adequate and effective remedies, including injunctive relief where necessary.

6.  Member States shall ensure that practical information is made available to the public free of charge in an easily accessible and understandable manner on access to the administrative and judicial review procedures referred to in this Article. [Am. 138]

Article 17

Penalties

1.  Without prejudice to the obligations of Member States under Directive 2008/99/EC40(51), Member States shall lay down the rules on penalties applicable to infringements of national provisions adopted pursuant to this Directive and shall take all measures necessary to ensure that they are implemented. The penalties provided for shall be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.

2.  When determining the type and level of penalties to be imposed in case of infringements, the competent authorities of the Member States shall give due regard to the following:

(a)  the nature, gravity, extent and duration of the infringement;

(b)  the intentional or negligent character of the infringement and any action taken by the trader to mitigate or remedy the damage suffered by consumers, where applicable;

(c)  the financial strength of the natural or legal person held responsible, as indicated for example by the total turnover of the legal person held responsible or the annual income of the natural person held responsible;

(d)  the economic benefits derived from the infringement by those responsible;

(e)  any previous infringements by the natural or legal person held responsible;

(f)  any other aggravating or mitigating factor applicable to the circumstances of the case;

(g)  penalties imposed on the trader for the same infringement in other Member States in cross-border cases where information about such penalties is available through the mechanism established by Regulation (EU) 2017/2394, where applicable.

3.  Member States shall provide that penalties and measures for infringements of this Directive shall include:

(a)  fines which effectively deprive those responsible of the economic benefits derived from their infringements, and increasing the level of such fines for repeated infringements;

(b)  confiscation of revenues gained by the trader from a transaction with the relevant products concerned;

(c)  temporary exclusion for a maximum period of 12 months from public procurement processes and from access to public funding, including tendering procedures, grants and concessions.

For the purposes of point (a), Member States shall ensure that when penalties are to be imposed in accordance with Article 21 of Regulation (EU) 2017/2394(52), the maximum amount of such fines being at least at 4 % of the trader’s annual turnover in the Member State or Member States concerned.

Article 18

Exercise of the delegation

1.  The power to adopt delegated acts is conferred on the Commission subject to the conditions laid down in this Article.

2.  The power to adopt delegated acts as referred to in Article 3(4) and Article 5(8) shall be conferred on the Commission for a period of five years from [OP please insert the date = the date of transposition of this Directive]. The Commission shall draw up a report in respect of the delegation of power not later than nine months before the end of the five-year period. The delegation of power shall be tacitly extended for periods of an identical duration, unless the European Parliament or the Council opposes such extension not later than three months before the end of each period.

3.  The delegation of power referred to in Article 3(4) and Article 5(8) may be revoked at any time by the European Parliament or by the Council. A decision to revoke shall put an end to the delegation of the power specified in that decision. It shall take effect the day following the publication of the decision in the Official Journal of the European Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect the validity of any delegated acts already in force.

4.  Before adopting a delegated act, the Commission shall consult experts designated by each Member State in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making.

5.  As soon as it adopts a delegated act, the Commission shall notify it simultaneously to the European Parliament and to the Council. A delegated act adopted pursuant to Article 3(4) and Article 5(8) shall enter into force only if no objection has been expressed either by the European Parliament or by the Council within a period of [two months] of notification of that act to the European Parliament and the Council or if, before the expiry of that period, the European Parliament and the Council have both informed the Commission that they will not object. That period shall be extended by [two months] at the initiative of the European Parliament or of the Council.

Article 18a

Consultation forum

The Commission shall establish a green claims consultation forum (the Forum) involving balanced participation of Member States’ representatives and all relevant interested parties, such as industry representatives, including micro, small and medium-sized enterprises and craft industry representatives, trade unions, traders, retailers, importers, academic researchers, environmental protection groups and consumer organisations. The Commission shall consult the forum on the following:

(i)   the establishment of the working plans referred to in Article 3(4a);

(ii)   the development of delegated acts;

(iii)   update to the requirements for the substantiation and communication of environmental claims;

(iv)   any evaluation of the requirements for the substantiation and communication of environmental claims;

(v)   any evaluation of the effectiveness of the existing requirements for the substantiation and communication of environmental claims. [Am. 139]

Article 19

Committee procedure

1.  The Commission shall be assisted by a committee. That committee shall be a committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011.

2.  Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5(4), third subparagraph, of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.

Article 20

Monitoring

1.  Member States shall regularly monitor the application of this Directive based on:

(a)  an overview of the types of explicit environmental claims and of environmental labelling schemes which have been subject to substantiated complaints in accordance with Article 16;

(b)  an overview of explicit environmental claims and of environmental labelling schemes with regard to which competent authorities have required the trader to take corrective action, in accordance with Article 15, or have imposed penalties in accordance with Article 17.

2.  The information referred to in paragraph 1 shall specify the explicit environmental claim or environmental labelling scheme, the nature of the alleged infringement, the nature and duration of the corrective action and, if applicable, the penalty imposed.

3.  Member States shall provide the information referred to in paragraph 1 to the Commission on an annual basis.

3a.   National competent authorities shall actively collaborate and regularly exchange best practices regarding the implementation of this Directive. [Am. 140]

4.  Based on the information collected pursuant to paragraph 3 and the information made available by the Member States pursuant to Article 15(1), and, if necessary, additional consultations with competent authorities, the European Environmental Agency shall publish, every two years, a report containing an assessment of the evolution of explicit environmental claims and environmental labelling schemes in each Member State and for the Union as a whole. The report shall enable a differentiation according to the size of the trader making the claim and according to the quality of the substantiation.

Article 21

Evaluation and review

1.  By [OP please insert the date = 5 years after the date of transposition of this Directive], the Commission shall carry out an evaluation of this Directive in light of the objectives that it pursues and present a report on the main findings to the European Parliament and the Council.

2.  The report referred to in paragraph 1 shall assess whether this Directive has achieved its objective, in particular with regard to:

(a)  ensuring that explicit environmental claims made about the environmental performance of a product or trader are based on reliable, comparable and verifiable information;

(b)  ensuring that environment labelling schemes are based on certification schemes and meet the relevant requirements set out in Article 8;

(c)  ensuring that new private environmental labelling schemes concerning products or traders already covered by existing schemes are approved by the Member States only if they provide added value as compared to the existing schemes;

(d)  setting out the rules for communicating explicit environmental claims on the Union market, and avoiding duplication of costs when communicating such claims;

(da)   ensuring that traders effectively prioritise emission reductions in their own operations and value chains, by assessing the adequacy of the provisions related to the use of carbon credits; [Am. 141]

(e)  strengthening the functioning of the internal market.

(ea)   facilitating transition towards toxic free environment. [Am. 142]

3.  Where the Commission finds it appropriate, the report referred to in paragraph 1 shall be accompanied by a legislative proposal for amendment of the relevant provisions of this Directive, including considering further provisions on:

(a)  unlocking opportunities for the circular, bio and green economy by assessing the appropriateness and feasibility of mandating the use of common, and where relevant life-cycle based, method for substantiation of environmental claims;

(b)   facilitating transition towards toxic free environment by considering introducing a prohibition of environmental claims for products containing hazardous substances except where their use is considered essential for the society in line with the criteria to be developed by the Commission; [Am. 143]

(ba)   further strengthening consumer protection and the functioning of the internal market by considering extending the requirements on substantiation of explicit environmental claims to micro enterprises; [Am. 144]

(c)  further harmonisation as regards requirements on the substantiation of specific environmental claims on environmental aspects or impacts such as durability, reusability, reparability, recyclability, recycled content, use of natural content, including fibers, environmental performance or sustainability, bio-based elements, biodegradability, biodiversity, waste prevention and reduction.

Article 22

Amendment to Regulation (EU) 1024/2012

In the Annex to Regulation (EU) 1024/2012, the following point is added:"

‘X. [OP: Please insert the next consecutive number] Directive (EU) … of the European Parliament and of the Council of … on substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims (OJ L …, date, page: Articles 13(3) and 15).’

"

Article 23

Amendments to Regulation (EU) 2017/2394

In the Annex to Regulation (EU) 2017/2394, the following point is added:"

’X. [OP: Please insert the next consecutive number] Directive (EU) … of the European Parliament and of the Council of … on substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims (OJ L …, date, page).’

"

Article 24

Amendment to Directive (EU) 2020/1828

In Annex I to Directive (EU) 2020/1828, the following point is added:"

‘(X) [OP: Please insert the next consecutive number] Directive (EU) … of the European Parliament and of the Council of … on substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims (OJ L …, date, page).’

"

Article 25

Transposition

1.  Member States shall adopt and publish by [OP please insert the date = 18 months after the date of entry into force of this Directive] the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive. They shall immediately communicate the text of those measures to the Commission.

They shall apply those measures from [OP please insert the date = 2430 months after the date of entry into force of this Directive]. [Am. 173]

When Member States adopt those measures, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or be accompanied by such a reference on the occasion of their official publication. Member States shall determine how such reference is to be made.

This Directive shall apply to small enterprises within the meaning of Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC by 42 months after its entry into force. [Am. 145]

1a.   Member States may introduce a transitional period, between the date of entry into force and the date of application of this Directive, during which existing environmental claims submitted for verification can be used. [Am. 146]

2.  Member States shall communicate to the Commission the text of the main measures of national law which they adopt in the field covered by this Directive.

Article 26

Entry into force

This Directive shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Article 27

Addressees

This Directive is addressed to the Member States.

Done at …,

For the European Parliament For the Council

The President The President

(1)OJ C 293, 18.8.2023, p. 86.
(2)OJ C , , p. .
(3)Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions: A new Circular Economy Action Plan For a cleaner and more competitive Europe, COM/2020/98 final
(4)Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions: The European Green Deal, COM/2019/640 final
(5)Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directives 2005/29/EC and 2011/83/EU as regards empowering consumers for the green transition through better protection against unfair practices and better information, COM(2022) 143 final
(6)Directive 2005/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2005 concerning unfair business-to-consumer commercial practices in the internal market and amending Council Directive 84/450/EEC, Directives 97/7/EC, 98/27/EC and 2002/65/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council (Unfair Commercial Practices Directive) (OJ L 149, 11.6.2005, p. 22).
(7)Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a framework for setting ecodesign requirements for sustainable products and repealing Directive 2009/125/EC, COM(2022) 132 final
(8)Regulation (EU) 2018/848 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 on organic production and labelling of organic products and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 (OJ L 150, 14.6.2018, p. 1).
(9)https://agriculture.ec.europa.eu/system/files/2023-01/agri-market-brief-20-organic-farming-eu_en_1.pdf
(10)Directive 2013/36/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 on access to the activity of credit institutions and the prudential supervision of credit institutions and investment firms, amending Directive 2002/87/EC and repealing Directives 2006/48/EC and 2006/49/EC (OJ L 176, 27.6.2013, p. 338).
(11)Directive 2013/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 on the annual financial statements, consolidated financial statements and related reports of certain types of undertakings, amending Directive 2006/43/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Council Directives 78/660/EEC and 83/349/EEC (OJ L 182, 29.6.2013, p. 19).
(12)COM(2022) 132 final
(13)Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 September 2011 on textile fibre names and related labelling and marking of the fibre composition of textile products and repealing Council Directive 73/44/EEC and Directives 96/73/EC and 2008/121/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 272, 18.10.2011, p. 1).
(14)Commission Recommendation (EU) 2021/2279 of 15 December 2021 on the use of the Environmental Footprint methods to measure and communicate the life cycle environmental performance of products and organisations, OJ L 471, 30.12.2021, p. 1.
(15)Regulation (EU) 2020/852 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 June 2020 on the establishment of a framework to facilitate sustainable investment, and amending Regulation (EU) 2019/2088 (OJ L 198, 22.6.2020, p. 13).
(16)[…]
(17)Regulation (EU) No 1379/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 on the common organisation of the markets in fishery and aquaculture products, amending Council Regulations (EC) No 1184/2006 and (EC) No 1224/2009 and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 104/2000 (OJ L 354, 28.12.2013, p. 1).
(18)Directive 2006/114/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 concerning misleading and comparative advertising (OJ L 376, 27.12.2006, p. 21).
(19)Directive 2005/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2005 concerning unfair business-to-consumer commercial practices in the internal market and amending Council Directive 84/450/EEC, Directives 97/7/EC, 98/27/EC and 2002/65/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council (Unfair Commercial Practices Directive) (OJ L 149, 11.6.2005, p. 22) as amended.
(20)Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 laying down the rules and general principles concerning mechanisms for control by Member States of the Commission’s exercise of implementing powers (OJ L 55, 28.2.2011, p. 13).
(21)Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 laying down the rules and general principles concerning mechanisms for control by Member States of the Commission’s exercise of implementing powers (OJ L 55, 28.2.2011, p. 13).
(22)Regulation (EU) 2017/2394 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2017 on cooperation between national authorities responsible for the enforcement of consumer protection laws and repealing Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 (OJ L 345, 27.12.2017, p. 1).
(23)Regulation (EU) 2017/2394 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2017 on cooperation between national authorities responsible for the enforcement of consumer protection laws and repealing Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 (OJ L 345, 27.12.2017, p. 1).
(24)OJ L 123, 12.5.2016, p. 1.
(25)Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures, amending and repealing Directives 67/548/EEC and 1999/45/EC, and amending Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 (OJ L 353, 31.12.2008, p. 1).
(26)OJ C 369, 17.12.2011, p. 14.
(27)Regulation (EU) No 1024/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on administrative cooperation through the Internal Market Information System and repealing Commission Decision 2008/49/EC ( ‘the IMI Regulation’ ) (OJ L 316, 14.11.2012, p. 1).
(28)OJ L 345, 27.12.2017, p. 1
(29)Directive (EU) 2020/1828 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2020 on representative actions for the protection of the collective interests of consumers and repealing Directive 2009/22/EC (OJ L 409, 4.12.2020, p. 1).
(30)Regulation (EC) No 66/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2009 on the EU Ecolabel (OJ L 27, 30.1.2010, p. 1).
(31)Regulation (EU) 2018/848 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 on organic production and labelling of organic products and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 (OJ L 150, 14.6.2018, p. 1).
(32)Regulation (EU) 2017/1369 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2017 setting a framework for energy labelling and repealing Directive 2010/30/EU (OJ L 198, 28.7.2017, p. 1).
(33)Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 October 2009 establishing a framework for the setting of ecodesign requirements for energy-related products (recast) (OJ L 285, 31.10.2009, p. 10).
(34)Regulation (EU) No 305/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 2011 laying down harmonised conditions for the marketing of construction products and repealing Council Directive 89/106/EEC (OJ L 88, 4.4.2011, p. 5).
(35)Regulation (EC) No 765/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 July 2008 setting out the requirements for accreditation and market surveillance relating to the marketing of products and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 339/93 (OJ L 218, 13.8.2008, p. 30).
(36)Regulation (EC) No 1221/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2009 on the voluntary participation by organisations in a Community eco-management and audit scheme (EMAS), repealing Regulation (EC) No 761/2001 and Commission Decisions 2001/681/EC and 2006/193/EC (OJ L 342, 22.12.2009, p. 1).
(37)Directive 1999/94/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 1999 relating to the availability of consumer information on fuel economy and CO2 emissions in respect of the marketing of new passenger cars (OJ L 12, 18.1.2000, p. 16).
(38)Regulation (EU) No 305/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 2011 laying down harmonised conditions for the marketing of construction products and repealing Council Directive 89/106/EEC (OJ L 88, 4.4.2011, p. 5).
(39)Directive 2006/66/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 September 2006 on batteries and accumulators and waste batteries and accumulators and repealing Directive 91/157/EEC (OJ L 266, 26.9.2006, p. 1).
(40)Directive 94/62/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 December 1994 on packaging and packaging waste (OJ L 365, 31.12.1994, p. 10).
(41)Regulation (EU) 2020/852 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 June 2020 on the establishment of a framework to facilitate sustainable investment, and amending Regulation (EU) 2019/2088 (OJ L 198, 22.6.2020, p. 13).
(42)Regulation (EU) … /… of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a Union certification framework for carbon removals (OJ L …).
(43)Directive 2012/27/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on energy efficiency, amending Directives 2009/125/EC and 2010/30/EU and repealing Directives 2004/8/EC and 2006/32/EC (OJ L 315, 14.11.2012, p. 1).
(44)Directive 2013/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 on the annual financial statements, consolidated financial statements and related reports of certain types of undertakings, amending Directive 2006/43/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Council Directives 78/660/EEC and 83/349/EEC (OJ L 182, 29.6.2013, p. 19).
(45)Regulation (EU) 2019/2088 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019 on sustainability‐related disclosures in the financial services sector
(46)Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council on textile fibre names and related labelling and marketing of the fibre composition of textile products
(47)Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC of 6 May 2003 concerning the definition of micro, <BR/>small and medium-sized enterprises (OJ L 124, 20.5.2003, p. 36).
(48)Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC of 6 May 2003 concerning the definition of micro, <BR/>small and medium-sized enterprises (OJ L 124, 20.5.2003, p. 36).
(49)Directive (EU) 2016/943 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2016 on the protection of undisclosed know-how and business information (trade secrets) against their unlawful acquisition, use and disclosure (OJ L 157, 15.6.2016, p. 1).
(50)Regulation (EC) No 765/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 July 2008 setting out the requirements for accreditation and market surveillance relating to the marketing of products and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 339/93 (OJ L 218, 13.8.2008, p. 30).
(51)Directive 2008/99/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 November 2008 on the protection of the environment through criminal law (OJ L 328, 6.12.2008, p. 28).
(52)OJ L 345, 27.12.2017, p. 1.


Liability for defective products
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Resolution
Text
European Parliament legislative resolution of 12 March 2024 on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on liability for defective products (COM(2022)0495 – C9-0322/2022 – 2022/0302(COD))
P9_TA(2024)0132A9-0291/2023
CORRIGENDA

(Ordinary legislative procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2022)0495),

–  having regard to Article 294(2) and Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C9‑0322/2022),

–  having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 24 January 2023(1),

–  having regard to the provisional agreement approved by the committees responsible under Rule 74(4) of its Rules of Procedure and the undertaking given by the Council representative by letter of 24 January 2024 to approve Parliament’s position, in accordance with Article 294(4) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to Rule 59 of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the joint deliberations of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection and the Committee on Legal Affairs under Rule 58 of the Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the report of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection and the Committee on Legal Affairs (A9-0291/2023),

1.  Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out;

2.  Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal;

3.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

Position of the European Parliament adopted at first reading on 12 March 2024 with a view to the adoption of Directive (EU) 2024/… of the European Parliament and of the Council on liability for defective products and repealing Council Directive 85/374/EEC

P9_TC1-COD(2022)0302


(As an agreement was reached between Parliament and Council, Parliament's position corresponds to the final legislative act, Directive (EU) 2024/2853.)

(1) OJ C 140, 21.4.2023, p. 34.


Amending Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 as regards the digital labelling of EU fertilising products
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Resolution
Text
European Parliament legislative resolution of 12 March 2024 on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 as regards the digital labelling of EU fertilising products (COM(2023)0098 – C9-0030/2023 – 2023/0049(COD))
P9_TA(2024)0133A9-0330/2023

(Ordinary legislative procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2023)0098),

–  having regard to Article 294(2) and Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C9‑0030/2023),

–  having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 14 June 2023(1),

–  having regard to the provisional agreement approved by the committee responsible under Rule 74(4) of its Rules of Procedure and the undertaking given by the Council representative by letter of 7 February 2024 to approve Parliament’s position, in accordance with Article 294(4) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to Rule 59 of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the letter of the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development,

–  having regard to the report of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (A9-0330/2023),

1.  Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out;

2.  Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal;

3.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

Position of the European Parliament adopted at first reading on 12 March 2024 with a view to the adoption of Regulation (EU) 2024/… of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 as regards the digital labelling of EU fertilising products

P9_TC1-COD(2023)0049


(As an agreement was reached between Parliament and Council, Parliament's position corresponds to the final legislative act, Regulation (EU) 2024/2516.)

(1)OJ C 293, 18.8.2023, p. 108.


European Maritime Safety Agency and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002
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Resolution
Consolidated text
European Parliament legislative resolution of 12 March 2024 on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the European Maritime Safety Agency and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002 (COM(2023)0269 – C9-0190/2023 – 2023/0163(COD))
P9_TA(2024)0134A9-0423/2023

(Ordinary legislative procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2023)0269),

–  having regard to Article 294(2) and Article 100(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C9‑0190/2023),

–  having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 20 September 2023(1),

–  after consulting the Committee of the Regions,

–  having regard to Rule 59 of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the opinions of the Committee on Budgets and of the Committee on Fisheries,

–  having regard to the report of the Committee on Transport and Tourism (A9-0423/2023),

1.  Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out;

2.  Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal;

3.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

Position of the European Parliament adopted at first reading on 12 March 2024 with a view to the adoption of Regulation (EU) 2024/… of the European Parliament and of the Council on the European Maritime Safety Agency and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002

P9_TC1-COD(2023)0163


(Text with EEA relevance)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 100(2) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,

After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee(2),

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions(3),

Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure,

Whereas:

(1)  A number of legislative measures have been adopted at the Union in order to enhance maritime safety and security, to promote the sustainability, by also preventing pollution, and the decarbonisation of shipping, and to facilitate the exchange of information and the digitalisation of the maritime sector. In order to be effective, such legislation should be applied in a proper and uniform manner throughout the Union. That would ensure a level playing field, reduce the distortion of competition resulting from the economic advantages enjoyed by non-complying ships and would reward the serious maritime players.

(1a)   The fishing sector has high accident rates, which also have high mortality levels, and the important role of fishers training when it comes to work safety. [Am. 1]

(2)  The pursuit of those goals requires substantial technical work led by a specialised body. That is why it was necessary, as part of the second ‘Erika package’ in 2002, to establish, within the existing institutional framework and with respect for the responsibilities and rights of the Member States as flag, port and coastal States, a European agency for the purpose of ensuring a high, uniform and effective level of maritime safety and prevention of pollution by ships.

(3)  Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council(4) established the European Maritime Safety Agency (‘the Agency’) in order to assist the Commission and the Member States with the effective implementation at the Union level of the legislation in the areas of maritime safety and pollution prevention through appropriate visits to Member States for the monitoring of the relevant legislation and the provision of training and capacity building.

(4)  Following the establishment of the Agency in 2002, the Union legislation in the areas of maritime safety, sustainability and pollution prevention and maritime security expanded significantly resulting in five amendments to the Agency’s mandate.

(5)  Since 2013 the Agency continued to expand significantly its tasks either through the activation of relevant ancillary tasks prescribed in Article 2a of Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002 or through requests for technical assistance to the Commission and the Member States especially in the area of decarbonisation and digitalisation of the maritime sector. In addition, amendments to Directives 2005/35/EC(5), 2009/16/EC(6), 2009/18/EC(7) and 2009/21/EC(8) of the European Parliament and of the Council have a direct impact on the tasks of the Agency. Those Directives provide in particular for the performance of tasks by the Agency relating to ship source pollution, the port State control regime at the Union level, the Member States activities concerning the investigations related to maritime accidents in Union waters and the obligations of the Member States as flag States.

(6)  In addition, the administrative and financial governance of the Agency needs to be aligned to the inter-institutional agreement on the governance of decentralised agencies(9) and the framework financial regulation for the decentralized bodies of the Union(10).

(7)  Due to the substantial number of changes in view of the above developments, it is appropriate to repeal Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002 and replace it by a new legal act.

(8)  The Agency was initially established with the objective of contributing to the establishment of a high level of maritime safety across the Union while also assisting the pollution prevention from ships and later also from oil and gas installations. While these objectives were further strengthened with the addition of promoting maritime security, the Agency’s focus, during recent years, on support to regulatory developments in the area of decarbonisation and digitalisation of shipping, including port areas, merit the addition of those areas in the overall objectives of the Agency enabling it to contribute to the goals of the twin, green and digital, transition of the industry. Likewise, the crucial role of the Agency in the provision of a maritime awareness picture in the sea, through satellite images and the operation of remotely piloted aircraft systems, justifies the addition of a relevant overall objective for the Agency. [Am. 2]

(9)  These objectives should define the areas of the Agency’s engagement in supporting the Commission and the Member States with technical and operational assistance in order to implement the Union’s policies in the maritime domain.

(10)  For the proper achievement of these objectives, it is appropriate that the Agency carries out specific tasks in the area of maritime safety, prevention of pollution by ships, sustainability, decarbonisation of the maritime sector, maritime security and cybersecurity, maritime surveillance and maritime crises and the promotion of the digitalisation and facilitation of exchanges of data in the maritime domain. While carrying out these tasks the Agency should pay attention to the specificities of the different types of maritime activities with a specific attention to the conditions applicable to the fishing sector. [Am. 3]

(11)  In addition to the specific tasks, the Agency should provide horizontal, technical support, upon request by the Commission or the Member States, for the implementation of any task that falls under the remit of its competences and objectives, stemming from future needs and developments at the Union level under the remits of maritime legislation. Such additional tasks shall be subjected to a consideration of the available human and financial resources, which the Management Board of the Agency should take into account before deciding to include them in the Single Programming Document of the Agency as part of its annual or multiannual work program. Therefore, new additional tasks should be accompanied with a legislative financial statement presented to the legislative and budgetary authorities. This is necessary to ensure that certain tasks which constitute the core of the Agency could be prioritised if needed. [Am. 4]

(11a)   The Agency should pay special attention to the fisheries sector when carrying out its tasks, since it has an important economic and social impact in the EU. In particular, fishing vessels and workers are highly vulnerable to maritime safety risks and play a relevant role in the green transition. [Am. 5]

(12)  The Agency is at the forefront of the technical expertise in the areas of its competence and thus it should provide training and capacity building activities to the Member States with the development of common core curricula courses and the use of the most technologically advanced tools in their delivery. The Agency should inter alia support the training of Port State Control inspectors of the Member States and officials of the Flag State Administrations to conduct targeted inspections as regards the implementation and enforcement of the MLC 2006 in relation to the implementation of seafarers' rights and working and living conditions on board ships. In order to increase the attractiveness of maritime professions, the Agency should assess building up a network comprising academia and any other establishments providing for suitable qualifications for promoting lifelong learning needs. [Am. 6]

(13)  This technical expertise of the Agency should be further cultivated by conducting research in the maritime field and contributing to the relevant Union’s activities in the area. The Agency should contribute with a proactive approach to the objectives of enhancing maritime safety, security, decarbonisation of shipping and maritime ports and prevention of pollution by ships. In this regard, the Agency could issue relevant non-binding guidance, recommendations or manuals that could assist the Commission, the Member States and/or the maritime industry in attaining these objectives. [Am. 7]

(14)  As regards maritime safety, the Agency should develop a proactive approach in determining safety risks and challenges on the basis of which it should present to the Commission every three years a report on the progress on maritime safety. Moreover, the Agency should continue assisting the Commission and the Member States in the implementation of the relevant Union legislation, especially in the areas of flag and port State obligations, thedirectly supporting accident investigation of marine accidents, the passenger ship safety legislation, Recognised Organisations and marine equipment. Finally, the Agency should have a proactive role in assisting the deployment of maritime autonomous and automated surface ships while also it is important to collect further data in the area of the training and certification for seafarers and the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC, 2006). [Am. 8]

(14a)   Calls on the Commission to transpose the IMO International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Fishing Vessel Personnel (STCW-F 1995), into EU law in order to achieve a harmonized framework for minimum level of training of fishers in Europe. [Am. 9]

(15)  Since the last substantial amendment of the Regulation in 2013, there have been significant legislative developments in the maritime sector with regards to sustainability. In addition to the tasks that the Agency’s mandate covered until now, such as the prevention of pollution from ships and oil and gas installations, mainly through the operation of CleanSeaNet, the Agency should continue assisting the Commission in the implementation of Directive (EU) 2019/883 of the European Parliament and of the Council(11) by reflecting this task in its updated mandate. Moreover, there is an increased need for the Agency to continue assisting in the implementation of the shipping related elements of Directives 2008/56/EC(12) and (EU) 2016/802(13) of the European Parliament and of the Council. Those two areas together with the engagement of the Agency in the collection, analysis and sharing of data in relation to nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions from ships are of importance for promoting sustainability in the maritime sector for which the Agency should deliver a report on the progress made every three years.

(16)  In the area of decarbonisation of the shipping sector, efforts to limit global maritime emissions through the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) are under way and should be encouraged, including the rapid implementation of the initial IMO Strategy on Reduction of Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Ships, adopted in 2018. Discussions are undergoingongoing on the means to implement in practice such ambition, including on a revision of. Those discussions cover the possibility of revising the initial strategy, and offer the opportunity to reflect on the Union´s ambitions at international level and the importance of securing a global level playing field that would result in the strengthening of EU maritime competitiveness. At the Union level, a set of policies and legislative proposals to support the decarbonisation and further promote the sustainability of the maritime sector has been developed, as reflected in particular in the European Green Deal, the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy, the “Fit for 55” package and the Zero Pollution Strategy. As a result, the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the maritime sector should be reflected in the mandate of the Agency. [Am. 10]

(17)  In this regard, while the Agency should continue assisting the Commission and the Member States in the implementation of Regulation (EU) 2015/757 of the European Parliament and of the Council(14) it should further assist in the implementation of the new regulatory measures to decarbonise the shipping sector, as stemming from the Fit for 55 legislative package, such as the Regulation [..] on the use of renewable and low-carbon fuels in maritime transport and the shipping-related elements of Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council(15) establishing a scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Community. That includes monitoring and reporting on the impacts of EU ETS Maritime and FuelEU Maritime on port traffic, port evasion and traffic shift to transhipment ports in third countries, at the detriment of EU ports. The Agency should continue to be at the forefront of expertise at Union level to assist in the transition of the sector into renewable and low carbon fuels by conducting research and providing guidance on the uptake and deployment of sustainable alternative sources of power for ships, including and the related infrastructure in port areas, onshore power supply to ships and in relation to the deployment of energy efficiency and windwind-assisted, solar and kinetic wave propulsion assistance solutions. That also includes new greenhouse gas abatement technologies, such as onboard carbon capture and energy efficiency practices, such as slow steaming. Furthermore, it should also share its expertise related with ports safety-related risks, bunkering and storage on uptaking sustainable alternative fuels, technological and regulatory barriers. In order to monitor and pave the way for progress in the area of decarbonisation of the shipping sector and port areas, the Agency should report to the Commission and the Parliament on the greenhouse gas reduction efforts and any recommendations that might have every three years. The Agency should also report on all the administrative and practical difficulties met by Member States in implementing the related legislative acts. [Am. 11]

(18)  In the area of maritime security, the Agency should continue to provide technical assistance to the Commission inspections in the framework of Regulation (EC) No 725/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council (16) on enhancing ship and port facility security. Given that the number of cybersecuritycyber security incidents in the maritime sector has gone up significantly in recent years, the Agency should assist Union efforts to prevent cyber security incidents and enhance cyber resilience against cybersecurity incidents in the maritime sector by preparing guidelines, facilitating the exchange of best practices and information on cyber security incidents between the Member States. [Am. 12]

(19)  The Agency should continue to host the vessel monitoring and information system established under Directive 2002/59/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council(17) together with other systems underpinning the establishment of a maritime awareness picture. In this regard, the Agency should continue to play a vital role in the management of the maritime security component of Copernicus programme and should continue making use of available state-of-the-art technology, such as remotely piloted aircraft systems providing to Member States and other Union bodies a useful tool for surveillance and monitoring. In addition to these services, the Agency has demonstrated its strategic role in providing maritime situational awareness supporting various crises, such as the COVID-19 and Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. As a result, the Agency should operate a centre, open 24 hours per day and 7 days per week, which should assist the Commission and the Member States with suchand provide information regarding potential and emergency situations. In support of a strong and united answer of the Union and its Member States to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, the Agency should, inter alia, monitor suspicious behaviour around pipelines and detect sanctions evasion at sea. [Am. 13]

(20)  Digitalisation of data is part of technological progress in the area of data collection and communication with a view to helping to bring down costs, reducing administrative burden and making efficient use of human resources. The deployment and operation of Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS) and the digital and technological developments provide a wide range of new opportunities in terms of data collection and management of integrated systems. This creates opportunities for the potential digitalisation, automation and standardisation of several processes, which would allow for the facilitation of safety, security, sustainability and efficiency of maritime operations, including surveillance mechanisms, at Union level, reducing in parallel the administrative burden to the Member States. In this regard, the Agency should, among others, facilitate and promote the use of electronic certificates, the collection, recording and evaluation of technical data, the systematic exploitation of existing databases, including their cross-fertilisation through the use of innovative IT and artificial intelligence tools, and, where appropriate, the development of additional interoperable databases. [Am. 14]

(21)  In order to properly carry out the tasks entrusted to the Agency, it is appropriate that its officials should carry out visits to the Member States in order to monitor the overall functioning of the Union maritime safety and pollution prevention system. The Agency should also carry out inspections in order to assist the Commission in the assessment of the effective implementation of Union law.

(22)  In the context of the IMO, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the Paris Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control, signed at Paris on 26 January 1982 (‘Paris MoU’), the Commission and the Member States may need technical assistance and expertise, thus the role of EMSA should be reinforced, in particular within IMO, where EMSA should participate in and attend the discussions. Likewise, the Commission may also need the technical assistance of the Agency in supporting third countries in the maritime domain, in particular with capacity building and pollution prevention and response means. The Management Board of the Agency should be tasked with adopting a strategy for international relations of the Agency concerning matters under its competence, as part of the single programming document. [Am. 15]

(23)  National authorities carrying out coast guard functions are responsible for a wide range of tasks, which may include maritime safety, security, search and rescue, border control, fisheries control, customs control, general law enforcement and environmental protection. The Agency, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, established by Regulation (EU) 2019/1896 of the European Parliament and of the Council(18), and the European Fisheries Control Agency, established by Regulation (EU) 2019/473 of the European Parliament and of the Council(19), should therefore strengthen their cooperation, within their mandate, both with each other and with the national authorities carrying out coast guard functions, in order to increase maritime situational awareness and to support coherent and cost-efficient action, by providing services, information, technology, equipment and training, as well as by coordinating multi-purpose operations, collecting data for scientific research, monitoring European waters and implementing cooperation programmes with third countries. [Am. 16]

(24)  The implementation of this Regulation should not affect the division of competence between the Union and the Member States or the obligations of Member States under international conventions such as the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, the International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue, the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers, and other relevant international maritime instrument.

(25)  In order to streamline the decision-making process in the Agency and to contribute to enhancing efficiency and effectiveness, a two-level governance structure should be introduced. To that end, the Member States and the Commission should be represented on a Management Board vested with the necessary powers, including the power to establish the budget and approve the programming document. The European Parliament should be represented as an observer. The Management Board should give general orientations for the Agency's activities and be more closely involved in the monitoring of the Agency's activities, with a view to reinforcing supervision on administrative and budgetary matters. A smaller Executive Board should be set up with the task of preparing the meetings of the Management Board in an appropriate manner and supporting its decision-making process. The powers of the Executive Board should be defined in a mandate to be adopted by the Management Board and should, where necessary, include opinions and provisional decisions subject to final endorsement by the Management Board. The Agency should be headed by an Executive Director. [Am. 17]

(26)  In order to guarantee the transparency of the Management Board's decisions, representatives of the sectors concerned should attend its meetings, but without the right to vote. The representatives of the various stakeholders should be appointed by the Commission on the basis of their representativeness at Union level.

(27)  In order to perform its tasks properly, the Agency should have legal personality and an autonomous budget funded mainly through a contribution by the Union and through proportional fees and charges paid by third countries or other entities. The Agency's independence and impartiality should not be compromised by any financial contribution that it receives from Member States, third countries or other entities. In order to ensure independence in its daily management and in the opinions, recommendations and decisions which it issues, the Agency's organisation should be transparent and the Executive Director should have full responsibility. The Agency's staff should be independent and should be employed on both short-term and long-term contracts in order to maintain its organisational knowledge and business continuity, while keeping a necessary and ongoing exchange of expertise with the maritime sector. The expenditure of the Agency should include staff, administrative, infrastructure and operational expenses. [Am. 18]

(28)  With regard to the prevention and management of conflicts of interest, it is essential that the Agency acts impartially, demonstrates integrity and establishes high professional standards. There should never be any legitimate reason to suspect that decisions might be influenced by interests conflicting with the role of the Agency as a body serving the Union as a whole or by private interests or affiliations of any member of the Management Board which would create, or have the potential to create, a conflict with the proper performance of the official duties of the person concerned. The Management Board should therefore adopt and make publicly available comprehensive rules on conflicts of interests, giving due consideration to the recommendations of the European Ombudsman. [Am. 19]

(29)  A broader strategic perspective in relation to the activities of the Agency would facilitate the planning and management of its resources in a more effective manner and would contribute to a higher quality of its outputs. That is confirmed and reinforced by Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/715. Therefore, a single programming document containing the annual and multi-annual work programmes should be adopted and updated periodically by the Management Board, following proper consultation of the relevant stakeholders.

(30)  When the Agency is asked to conduct a new task not specifically provided for in its mandate or certain tasks for which a consideration and an analysis of the impact on its resources, in human and budgetary terms, is necessary according to its mandate, the Management Board should include such tasks in the programming document only after such an analysis. That analysis should identify the necessary resources with which the Agency could deliver upon those new tasks and whether the existing tasks of the Agency are negatively affected.

(31)  The Agency should be properly resourced to carry out its tasks and granted an autonomous budget. It should be mainly financed by a contribution from the general budget of the Union. The Union budgetary procedure should be applicable to the Union contribution and to any other subsidies chargeable to the general budget of the Union. The auditing of accounts should be undertaken by the Court of Auditors of the Union.

(32)  Fees improve the funding of an agency and may be considered for specific services, falling under the scope of its competencies, rendered by the Agency to third countries or the industry. Any fees levied by the Agency should cover its costs for providing the respective services.

(33)  In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this Regulation with regards to fees and charges, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission in respect of the determination of the fees and charges for the delivery of services. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council(20). [Am. 20]

(33a)   In order to specify the methodology for the calculation of those fees and charges, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union should be delegated to the Commission in respect of … [content and scope]. It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making(21). In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States' experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts. [Am. 21]

(34)  Over the past years, as more decentralised agencies have been created, transparency and control over the management of Union funding allocated to them has improved, in particular as regards the budgetisation of fees, financial control, power of discharge, pension scheme contributions and the internal budgetary procedure (code of conduct). Similarly, Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council(22) should apply without restriction to the Agency, which should accede to the Inter-institutional Agreement of 25 May 1999 between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the Commission of the European Communities concerning internal investigations by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF)(23).

(34a)   The proposed increase in EMSA's resources is insufficient given the extent of the proposed increase in the Agency's tasks and the scale of the EU's ambitions for maritime policy. Thus, the amount of the financial resources dedicated to this proposal should be drawn from the unallocated margins under MFF ceilings or mobilised through the non-thematic MFF special instruments. Since the Commission proposal for MFF revision did not reinforce EMSA budget, the increase in appropriations for EMSA cannot be offset by a compensatory reduction of programmed spending under CEF Transport or lead to a reduction of the funding for any other Union programmes. [Am. 22]

(35)  Since the objectives of this Regulation, namely to establish a specialised body that can assist the Commission and the Member States in the application and monitoring of the Union legislation in the field of maritime safety, as well as with the evaluation of its effectiveness, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States but can rather, by reason of the cooperation to be done, be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union. In accordance with the principle of proportionality, as set out in that Article, this Regulation does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives.

(36)  It is necessary for the proper functioning of the Agency to implement certain principles regarding the governance of the Agency in order to comply with the Joint Statement and Common Approach agreed by the Inter-Institutional Working Group on EU decentralised agencies in July 2012, the purpose of which is to streamline the activities of agencies and increase their performance.

(37)  This Regulation respects the fundamental rights and observes the principles recognised in particular by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.

(38)  The European Maritime Safety Agency established by Regulation (EC) No 1406/2022 remains the same legal person and will continue all its activities and procedures,

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

CHAPTER I

SUBJECT MATTER, SCOPE AND OBJECTIVES

Article 1

Establishment, subject matter and scope

1.  This Regulation provides comprehensive rules on the tasks, functioning and governance of the European Maritime Safety Agency established by Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002 (‘the Agency’).

2.  The Agency shall assist the Member States and the Commission in the effective application and implementation of Union law related to maritime transport across the Union. To that end, the Agency shall cooperate with the Member States and the Commission and provide them with technical, operational and scientific assistance within the scope of the Agency’s objectives and tasks set out in Article 2 and Chapters II and III.

3.  By providing the assistance referred to in paragraph 2, the Agency shall in particular provide support to the Member States and the Commission to apply the relevant Union legal acts properly while contributing to the overall efficiency of maritime traffic and maritime transport as set out in this Regulation, so as to facilitate the achievement of the Union’s objectives in the maritime transport domain.

4.  Any assistance provided by the Agency shall be without prejudice to the rights and responsibilities of the Member States as flag, port or coastal States.

Article 2

Objectives of the Agency

1.  The objectives of the Agency shall be the promotion and establishment of a high, uniform and effective level of maritime safety aiming towards zeroat the maximum reduction of accidents, maritime security, the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from ships and the sustainability of the maritime sector as well as the prevention of and response to pollution caused by ships and the response to marine pollution caused by oil and gas installations. [Am. 23]

2.  Further objectives of the Agency shall be the promotion of digitalisation of the maritime sector by facilitating the electronic transmission of data supporting simplification, the reduction of the administrative burden and the provision of integrated maritime surveillance and awareness systems and services to the Commission and the Member States. [Am. 24]

CHAPTER II

TASKS OF THE AGENCY

Article 3

Horizontal technical support

1.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States: [Am. 25]

(a)  in the control of the effective implementation of relevant binding legal acts of the Union, falling under the objectives of the Agency, in particular by carrying-out the visits and inspections as referred to in Article 10. In this regard, the Agency may address suggestions to the Commission for possible improvements;

(b)  in the preparatory work for updating and developing relevant legal acts of the Union falling under the objectives of the Agency, in particular in accordance with the development of international law;

(c)  in the performance of any other task assigned to the Commission in legislative acts of the Union regarding the objectives of the Agency.

2.  The Agency shall work with the Member States to:

(a)  organise, where appropriate, relevant capacity building and training activities in fields which fall under the objectives of the Agency and are the responsibility of the Member States. In this regard, the Agency shall establish appropriate capabilities with the aim to develop, implement and coordinate training activities relevant to the objectives of the Agency, including through the development of common core curricula courses, seminars, conferences, workshops as well as web-based, e-learning and other innovative and advanced training tools. The details of such training activities provided outside formal education shall be developed in close consultation with the Member States and the Commission and approved by the Management Board in accordance with Article 17 of this Regulation, while fully respecting Article 166 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU);

(b)  develop technical solutions, including the provision of relevant operational services, and provide technical assistance, to building up the necessary national capacity for the implementation of relevant legal acts of the Union pertinent to the objectives of the Agency.

3.  The Agency shall promote and facilitate cooperation between Member States and between them and the Commission in the implementation of the Union legislation by promoting the exchange and dissemination of experiences and good practices.

4.  The Agency shall contribute, at the Commission’s request, or on its own initiative, subject to the approval of the Management Board in accordance with Article 17, to maritime research activities at the Union level consistent with the objectives of the Agency. In this regard, the Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in identifying key research themes, without prejudice to other research activities at the Union level, and in analysing ongoing and completed research projects relevant to the objectives of the Agency. Where appropriate, subject to the applicable rules on intellectual property and security considerations, the Agency mayshall disseminate the results of its research and innovation activities, following approval by the Commission, as part of its contribution to creating synergies between the research and innovation activities of other Union bodies and the Member States. [Am. 26]

5.  Where required for the implementation of its tasks, the Agency shall undertake studies, involving the Commission and where applicable, through consultation steering groups, the Member States, and where appropriate, the social partners and industry representatives with expertise in the relevant topics.

6.  On the basis of the research and studies conducted by the Agency, but also on the basis of the experience gained through its own activities, especially the visits and inspections, and exchange of information and good practices with the Member States and the Commission, the Agency may issue, after prior consultation with the Commission, relevant non-binding recommendations, guidelines or manuals to support and facilitate Member States, and where appropriate the industry, in the implementation of the Union legislation.

Article 4

Tasks relating to maritime safety

1.  The Agency shall monitor progress on the safety of maritime transport in the Union, conduct risk analysis on the basis of the available data and develop safety risk assessment models to identify safety challenges and risks. Every three years it shall present to the Commission a report on progress on maritime safety with possible technical recommendations that could be addressed at the Union or the international level. In this regard, the Agency shall in particular analyse and propose relevant guidance or recommendations in relation to potential safety risks stemming from the uptake and deployment of sustainable alternative sources of power for ships, including onshore power supply to ships at berth, battery technologies used for propulsion, “zero emission technologies”, as defined in [FuelEU Maritime] or other future technologies on board of ships or in port areas. [Am. 27]

2.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in the implementation of Directive 2009/21/EC. In particular, the Agency shall develop and maintain the inspection database in accordance with [Article 6a] of that Directive, establish the electronic reporting tool referred to in [Article 9b] of that Directive, maintain the public website referred to in Article 8(2c) and provide to the Commission recommendations on the basis of the data collected.

The Agency shall assist the Commission in participating as an observer in the International Maritime Organisation auditing process according to [Article 7] of Directive 2009/21/EC. The Agency shall also develop relevant tools and services assisting the Member States, upon their request, on fulfilling their obligations under Directive 2009/21/EC.

The Agency shall also provide a common capacity building scheme for flag State surveyors and flag State inspectors of the Member States, referred to in [Article 4c] of the aforementioned Directive.

3.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in the development and maintenance of the databases provided for in Articles 24 and 24a of Directive 2009/16/EC. On the basis of the data collected, the Agency shall assist the Commission in the analysis of the relevant information and the publication of information concerning ships and companies with low and very low performance pursuant to Directive 2009/16/EC. [Am. 28]

The Agency shall develop relevant tools and services assisting the Member States, upon their request, on fulfilling their obligations under Directive 2009/16/EC.

The Agency shall also provide a professional development and training program for port State control inspectors of the Member States, as provided for in [Article 22(7)] of the aforementioned Directive 2009/16/EC.

4.  The Agency shall assist the Commission in the development and maintenance of the database provided for in Article 17 of Directive 2009/18/EC. On the basis of the data collected the Agency shall compile a yearly overview of marine casualties and incidents. The Agency shall, if requested by the concernedmay be invited by Member States to provide operational and technical support concerning safety investigations. The Agency shall comply with such requestsand where no conflict of interest arises, provide operational support to these Member States concerning safety investigations for the Agency. The Agency shall also carry out an analysis of safety investigation reports with a view to identify added value at Union level in terms of any relevant lessons to be drawn. [Am. 29]

The Agency shall provide a professional development and training program to the competent marine safety accident investigation Authorities.

5.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in the implementation of Directives 2009/45/EC(24) and 2003/25/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council(25) and Council Directive 98/41/EC(26). The Agency shall, in particular, develop and maintain a database for recording measures as provided for in Article 9 of Directive 2009/45/EC and Article 9 of Directive 98/41/EC and assist the Commission in the assessment such measures.

6.  The Agency shall facilitate the cooperation and the exchange of information between the Commission and the Member States for the assessment of the recognised organisations that carry out survey and certification tasks in accordance with Article 8(1) of Regulation (EC) No 391/2009(27). In particular, the Agency shall:

(a)  provide to the Commission an opinion on its assessment of the recognised organisations under Article 8(1) of Regulation (EC) No 391/2009;

(b)  provide to the Member States appropriate information in the context of the inspections conducted to support the Commission’s assessment under Article 8 (1) of Regulation (EC) No 391/2009 in order to support the monitoring and oversight of the recognised organisations according to Article 9 of Directive 2009/15/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council(28) supporting the Member States in the discharge of their Union and international obligations as flag States. In this regard, the Agency shall assist the Commission in the managing of the high level group on flag State matters under [Article 9(1)] of Directive 2009/21/EC;

(c)  provide, on its own initiative or at the Commission’s request, a recommendation and technical assistance to the Commission on possible remedial measures or the imposition of fines to the recognised organisations in accordance with Article 5 and 6 of Regulation (EC) No 391/2009.

7.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in the implementation of Directive 2014/90/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council(29) by providing its technical assessment on safety aspects, providing recommendations with lists of the respective design, construction and performance requirements and testing standards, developing and maintaining the database provided for in Article 35(4) of that Directive and facilitating cooperation between notified assessment bodies acting as the technical secretariat for their coordination group. [Am. 30]

8.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in the identification of safety risks related to the development of maritime autonomous and automated surface ships (MASS), and assist the Member States by facilitating, through research and the development of relevant digital tools, guidance and manuals for the approval of MASS projects and/or operations.

9.  The Agency shall gather and analyse data on seafarers provided and used in accordance with Directive (EU) 2022/993 of the European Parliament and of the Council(30). It may also gather and analyse data on the implementation of the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 (MLC, 2006) with the aim of assisting in the improvement of the onboard working and living conditions of seafarers. The Commission shall use that data, jointly with the data generated by the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers information system (STCW IS) for developing appropriate strategic responses to recruit and retain seafarers in activity. [Am. 31]

Article 5

Tasks relating to sustainability

1.  The Agency shall, in a cost efficient, way support the Member States with additional pollution response means in case of pollution caused by ships as well as marine pollution caused by oil and gas installations. The Agency shall so act on request of the affected Member State under the authority of which the cleaning operations are conducted. Such assistance is without prejudice to the responsibility of coastal States to have appropriate pollution response mechanisms in place and shall respect existing cooperation between Member States in this field. The operational means that the Agency provides to the Member States shall take into account and cater for the transition of the sector to the use of sustainable alternative sources of power for ships. As appropriate, requests for mobilisation of anti-pollution actions shall be relayed through the Union Civil Protection Mechanism established by Decision No 1313/2013/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council(31).

2.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States with the detection of possible pollution and pursuit of ships making illegal discharges in accordance with Directive 2005/35/EC. The Agency shall in particular assist with the implementation of Articles [10, 10a, 10b, 10c and 10d] of that Directive by:

(a)  developing and maintaining the necessary information system (CleanSeaNet), as part of the Union Maritime Information and Exchange System (SafeSeaNet), and databases;

(b)  collecting, analysing and disseminating the relevant information on the implementation and enforcement of Directive 2005/35/EC;

(c)  providing capacity building to the competent national authorities and facilitating the exchange of best practices;

(d)  developing and maintaining the online external reporting channel for receiving and handling information on potential illegal discharges communicated by the crew and shall relay such information to the Member State or Member States concerned;

(da)   sharing and receiving relevant information from other EU Agencies, such as EFCA, especially in relation to lost fishing gear. [Am. 32]

3.  The Agency shall provide the CleanSeaNet service and any other tools to assist the Commission and the Member States, upon their request, to monitor the extent and environmental impact of marine oil pollution caused by oil and gas installations.

4.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in the implementation of Directive (EU) 2019/883 on port reception facilities for the delivery of waste from ships. In particular, the Agency shall assist the Commission in the development and maintenance of the inspection database provided for in Article 14 of that Directive.

5.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in the context of the implementation of Directive 2008/56/EC, by contributing to the objective of achieving good environmental status of marine waters with its shipping-related elements and in exploiting the results of existing tools such as the Integrated Maritime Services. In this regard, the Agency shall conduct further research in issues related to lost containers, including plastic pellets, and underwater noise and, provide recommendations to the Commission and the Member States.

On the containers lost at the Sea, the Agency shall provide guidance to the industry stakeholders and to the Flag State on the requirements agreed at IMO for mandatory reporting of lost containers. The possibility of collective and coordinated response mechanisms at EU and international level shall also be examined. [Am. 33]

6.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States, including with operational tools and services, in the implementation of the shipping-related elements of Directive (EU) 2016/802. In this regard, the Agency shall also enhance and maintain a database providing assistance to the Member States on targeting and prioritising appropriately ships for inspections based on risk of non compliance with that Directive.

7.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States, upon their request, with appropriate operational tools and services on the monitoring and collection of data in relation to nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions from ships.

8.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in the implementation of Regulation (EU) No 1257/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council(32) by issuing appropriate guidance and through the collection and analysis of data on compliance with the provisions of that Regulation.

9.  The Agency shall every three years present to the Commission a report on the progress made in reducing the environmental impact of maritime transport at the Union level.

Article 6

Tasks relating to decarbonisation

1.  The Agency shall monitor progress on the operational and technical measures undertaken to increase the energy efficiency of ships and ports and the deployment of sustainable alternative fuels, energy and power systems for ships, including onshore power supply and windwind-assisted propulsion assistanceand onboard carbon capture, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from ships. [Am. 34]

1a.   The Agency shall assess the need to implement additional training modules for maritime professionals handling new and often complex hybrid and zero emission systems. [Am. 35]

2.  The Agency shall provide technical assistance to the Commission and the Member States, upon their request, in relation to regulatory efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from ships and ports. In this regard, the Agency may utilize any operational tools or services pertinent to the task. The Agency shall in particular research, analyse and propose relevant guidance or recommendations in relation to the uptake and deployment of sustainable alternative fuels, energy and power systems for ships, including, onshore power supply, wind-assisted, solar and kinetic wave and wind propulsion assistanceand on-board carbon capture, ensuring respect for technology neutrality, as well as in relation to energy efficiency measures, with practices such as slow steaming and speed optimisation. [Am. 36]

3.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in the implementation of Regulation (EU)[.., on the use of renewable and low-carbon fuels in maritime transport]. In particular, the Agency shall assist the Commission with the development and maintenance of the FuelEU database and other relevant IT tools as referred to in [Article 16] of that Regulation, in the development of the appropriate monitoring tools, guidance and risk-based targeting tools to facilitate verification and enforcement activities provided for in [Article 15 ter] of that Regulation and with the analysis of the relevant data and the preparation of the reporting under [Article 28] of that Regulation.

4.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in the implementation of Regulation (EU) 2015/757. In particular, the Agency shall assist the Commission with the development, update and maintenance of relevant IT tools, databases and guidance for the purposes of implementing that Regulation and facilitating enforcement activities, assist the Commission with the analysis of relevant data reported under that Regulation, and support the Commission in its activities to comply with the obligations under Article 21 of that Regulation.

5.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in the implementation of Directive 2003/87/EC, as relevant to the maritime sector. In particular, the Agency shall assist the Commission with the development of the appropriate IT implementation tools, monitoring tools, guidance and risk-based targeting tools to facilitate verification, enforcement and implementation activities related to Directive 2003/87/EC, as relevant to the maritime sector, while exploiting the results of existing relevant tools, services and databases.

Such assistance shall also include monitoring and reporting on impacts on port traffic, port evasion and traffic shift to the neighbouring container transhipment ports, to the detriment of EU ports. [Am. 37]

6.  The Agency shall every three years present to the Commission a report on the progress made in achieving the decarbonisation of maritime transport at the Union level. Where possible, the report shall include technical analysis on identified issues that could to be addressed at the Union level. The report shall be made publicly available on the Agency's website in a searchable format and in a disaggregated manner. [Am. 38]

Article 7

Tasks relating to maritime security and cybersecurity

1.  The Agency shall provide technical assistance to the Commission and the Member States in the performance of the inspection tasks assigned to it pursuant to Article 9(4)9 of Regulation (EC) No 725/2004. [Am. 39]

2.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States, together with any other relevant Union body, in developing resilience against cybersecurity incidents in the maritime sector in particular by providing guidelines, facilitating the exchange of best practices and information on cyber security incidents between the Member States. [Am. 40]

Article 8

Tasks relating to maritime surveillance and maritime crises

1.  The Agency shall provide to the Commission and the Member States, upon their request, maritime surveillance and communication services based on state-of-the-art, including space-based and ground infrastructure and sensors mounted on any kind of platform, improving maritime situational awareness, including with regard to new geopolitical challenges, such as Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the related security threats to specific Member States and to the Union as a whole. [Am. 41]

2.  In the field of traffic monitoring covered by Directive 2002/59/EC, the Agency shall in particular promote cooperation between riparian States in the shipping areas concerned, as well as, develop, maintain and operate the European Union Long-Range Identification and Tracking of Ships European Data Centre and the Union Maritime Information and Exchange System (SafeSeaNet) as referred to in Articles 6b and 22a of that Directive as well as the International Long-Range Identification and Tracking information data exchange system in accordance with the commitment made in the IMO.

3.  The Agency shall provide, upon request and without prejudice to national and Union law, relevant vessel positioning and Earth observation data to the Commission, the competent national authorities and relevant Union bodies within their mandate in order to facilitate measures against threats of piracy and of intentional unlawful acts as provided for in applicable Union law or under internationally agreed legal instruments in the area of maritime transport, subject to applicable data protection rules and in accordance with administrative procedures to be established by the High Level Steering Group established in accordance with Directive 2002/59/EC, as appropriate. The provision of long-range identification and tracking of ships data shall be subject to the consent of the flag State concerned.

4.  The Agency shall operate a centre available 24 hours a day and 7 days a week providing, upon request and without prejudice to national and Union law, to the Commission, the competent national authorities, without prejudice to their rights and responsibilities as flag, coastal and port States, and to relevant Union bodies, within their mandate, maritime situational awareness and analytical data, as appropriate, supporting them in: [Am. 42]

(a)  safety, security and pollution at sea;

(b)  situations of emergency at sea;

(c)  the implementation of any Union legislation requiring the monitoring of ship movements and containers lost at sea; [Am. 43]

(d)  measures against threats of piracy and of intentional unlawful acts as provided for in applicable Union law or under internationally agreed legal instruments in the area of maritime transport;

(e)  the deployment of MASS and their interaction with conventional ships.

The provision of such information shall be subject to applicable data protection rules and in accordance with administrative procedures to be established by the High Level Steering Group established in accordance with Directive 2002/59/EC, as appropriate. The provision of long-range identification and tracking of ships data shall be subject to the consent of the flag State concerned.

5.  The Agency shall within its field of competence contribute to a timely response to and mitigation of crises by assisting, upon request, the Member States and the Commission with the execution of contingency plans and by facilitating the exchange of information and best practices.

6.  The Agency shall assist the Commission in the operation of the maritime surveillance component of the Copernicus Security Service within the governance and financial framework of the Copernicus programme.

7.  The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in the development and maintenance of the voluntary Common Information Sharing Environment (CISE), an interoperability solution, with the aim of facilitating information exchange between different systems used by civil and military authorities with responsibility in the maritime domain complementing the information already available through the mandatory information systems.

Article 9

Tasks relating to digitalisation and simplification

1.  The Agency shall, where appropriate, collect and provide, in the areas of Union law within the Agency’s competence, objective, reliable and comparable statistics, information and data, to enable the Commission and the Member States to take the necessary steps to improve their actions and to evaluate the effectiveness and cost-efficiency of existing measures. Such tasks shall include the facilitation and promotion of electronic certificates, the collection, recording and evaluation of technical data, the systematic exploitation of existing databases, including their cross-fertilisation through the use of innovative IT and artificial intelligence tools, and, where appropriate, the development of additional interoperable databases. In this regard, the Agency shall also contribute to the maritime domain of the common European mobility data space by exploring links with systems of other transport modes.

2.  The Agency shall assist the Commission in the implementation of the Regulation (EU) 2019/1239 of the European Parliament and of the Council(33), with the following tasks:

(a)  to develop, make available and maintain the common IT components and services of the European Maritime Single Window environment (‘EMSWe’) under the responsibility of the Commission;

(b)  to maintain the EMSWe Data Set, the Message Implementation Guide and the templates of the digital spreadsheets;

(c)  to provide technical guidance to the Member States for the implementation of the EMSWe;

(d)  to facilitate and improve the re-use and the sharing of data exchanged in the EMSWe using SafeSeaNet. [Am. 44]

3.  The Agency shall provide technical and operational assistance, as well as regular training and certification programmes to the Member States, upon their request and without prejudice to their rights and obligations as flag States, in the digitalization of their registries and their procedures facilitating the uptake of electronic certificates and in the digitalisation of any other procedures, which may have a positive effect in reducing the administrative burden on flag, port or coastal State Authorities. [Am. 45]

Article 10

Visits to Member States and inspections

1.  In order to assist the Commission in fulfilling its duties under the TFEU, and in particular the assessment of the effective implementation of relevant Union law, the Agency shall carry out visits to Member States in accordance with a methodology established by the Management Board. Such methodology shall take into account an integrated approach by each visit aiming to verify more than one piece of legislation each time pertinent to the function of flag, port or coastal State of the examined Member State during the visit.

2.  The Agency shall inform the Member State concerned in good time of the planned visit, the names of the authorised officials, and the date on which the visit starts and its expected duration. The Agency officials delegated to carry out such visits shall do so on presentation of a decision in writing from the Executive Director of the Agency specifying the purpose and the aims of their mission.

3.  The Agency may carry out inspections on behalf of the Commission as required by binding legal acts of the Union regarding organisations recognised by the Union in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 391/2009, and as regards the training and certification of seafarers in third countries in accordance with Directive (EU) 2022/993.

4.  The Agency may also carry out inspections on behalf of the Commission as required by any other binding legal act of the Union if the Commission decides to delegate such a task to the Agency.

5.  At the end of each visit or inspection, the Agency shall draw up a report and send it to the Commission and to the Member State concerned. The report would follow the template previously established by the Commission.

6.  Where appropriate, and in any case when a cycle of visits or inspections is concluded, the Agency shall analyse reports from that cycle with a view to identifying horizontal findings and general conclusions on the effectiveness and cost-efficiency of the measures in place. The Agency shall present this analysis to the Commission for further discussion with Member States in order to draw any relevant lessons and facilitate the dissemination of good working practices, in particular as regards the implementation of Union law. [Am. 46]

CHAPTER III

OTHER TASKS OF THE AGENCY REGARDING INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND EUROPEAN COAST GUARD COOPERATION

Article 11

International relations

1.  The Agency shall provide technical assistance necessary for the Member States and the Commission, upon their request, to contribute to the relevant work of the technical bodies of the IMO, where EMSA should, within the Commission delegation, participate in and attend the discussions, the International Labour Organisation as far as shipping is concerned, and the Paris Memorandumrelevant Memoranda of Understanding on Port State Control (‘Paris MoU’) and relevant regional organisations to which the Union has acceded, with regard to matters of Union competence. [Am. 47]

For the purpose of carrying out these tasks in an efficient and effective manner, the Executive Director may decide to locate staff in Union delegations in third countries subject to the appropriate agreements with the European External Action Service. That decision requires the prior consent of the Commission and of the Management Board. That decision shall specify the scope of the activities to be carried out by the located staff in a manner that avoids unnecessary costs and duplication of administrative functions of the Agency.

2.  The Agency may, upon the request ofin consultation with the Commission, provide technical assistance, including the organisation of relevant training activities, as regards relevant legal acts of the Union, to States applying for accession to the Union, and, where applicable, to European Neighbourhood partner countries and to countries taking part in the Paris MoU. [Am. 48]

3.  The Agency may, upon the request ofin consultation with the Commission or the European External Action Service, or both, provide assistance in case of pollution caused by ships as well as marine pollution caused by oil and gas installations affecting third countries sharing a regional sea basin with the Union. The Agency shall provide the assistance in line with the Union Civil Protection Mechanism established by Decision No 1313/2013/EU, and with the conditions applicable to Member States as referred to in Article 5(1) of this Regulation applied by analogy to the third countries. Those tasks shall be coordinated with the existing regional cooperation arrangements related to marine pollution. [Am. 49]

4.  Without prejudice to Article 24, the Agency may provide, upon the request ofin consultation with the Commission, technical assistance to third countries for matters falling under its competence. [Am. 50]

5.  The Agency may enter into administrative arrangements and cooperation with other Union bodies working in the matters falling within the scope of the Agency’s competence following the approval of the Commission. Such arrangements and cooperation shall be subject to the opinion of the Commission and periodical reporting to it. [Am. 51]

6.  The Management Board shall adopt a strategy for international relations of the Agency concerning matters under its competence. That strategy shall be in line with the Commission’s political priorities and shall aim at assisting the Commission and the European External Action Service in fulfilling suchthe Union's priorities. It shall be included in the programming document of the Agency, with a specification of associated resources. [Am. 52]

Article 12

European cooperation on coast guard functions

1.  The Agency shall, in cooperation with the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, established by Regulation (EU) 2019/1896, and the European Fisheries Control Agency, established by Regulation (EU) 2019/473, each within their mandate, support national authorities carrying out coast guard functions at national and Union level and, where appropriate, at international level by:

(a)  sharing, fusing and analysing information available in ship reporting systems and other information systems hosted by or accessible to those agencies, in accordance with their respective legal bases and without prejudice to the ownership of data by Member States;

(b)  providing surveillance and communication services based on state-of-the-art technology, including space-based and ground infrastructure and sensors mounted on any kind of platform;

(c)  building capacity by drawing up guidelines and recommendations and by establishing best practices as well as by providing training and exchange of staff;

(d)  enhancing the exchange of information and cooperation on coast guard functions including by analysing operational challenges and emerging risks in the maritime domain including by using digital simulation tools to study the effect of accidents; [Am. 53]

(e)  sharing capacity by planning and implementing multipurpose operations and by sharing assets and other capabilities, to the extent that these activities are coordinated by those agencies and are agreed to by the competent authorities of the Member States concerned;

(ea)   sharing the relevant research, developments and technologies, including artificial intelligence, in a collaborative and flexible way, to find solutions to the challenges faced in the different areas; [Am. 54]

(eb)   increasing the cooperation in order to collect data for marine scientific research purpose on marine ecosystems, physical oceanography, marine chemistry, marine biology, fisheries, scientific ocean drilling and coring, geological and geophysical research, and other activities; [Am. 55]

(ec)   implementing cooperation projects with third countries to improve maritime safety, pollution prevention by ships, maritime security and preservation of the marine environment. [Am. 56]

2.  Without prejudice to the powers of the Management Board of the Agency set out in Article 15, the precise forms of cooperation on coast guard functions between the Agency, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency and the European Fisheries Control Agency shall be determined in a working arrangement, in accordance with their respective mandates and the financial rules applicable to those agencies. Such an arrangement shall be approved by the management Board of the Agency, the Administrative Board of the European Fisheries Control Agency and the management board of the European Border and Coast Guard Agency.

3.  The Commission shall, in close cooperation with the Member States, the Agency, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency and the European Fisheries Control Agency, make available a practical handbook on European cooperation on coast guard functions. That handbook shall contain guidelines, recommendations and best practices for the exchange of information. The Commission shall adopt the handbook in the form of a recommendation.

4.  The tasks set out in this Article shall not be detrimental to the Agency's tasks referred to in Articles 4 to 12 and shall not infringe upon Member States' rights and obligations, in particular as flag States, port States or coastal States.

Article 13

Communication and dissemination

The Agency may engage in communication activities on its own initiative in the fields within its mandate. Communication activities shall not be detrimental to the rest of the tasks referred to in the Articles 4 to 13 and shall be carried out in accordance with relevant communication and dissemination plans adopted by the Management Board. Those plans, based on an analysis of needs, shall be regularly updated by the Management Board.

CHAPTER IV

ORGANISATION OF THE AGENCY

Article 14

Administrative and management structure

The Agency's administrative and management structure shall comprise:

(a)  a Management Board, which shall exercise the functions set out in Article 16;

(b)  an Executive Board, which shall exercise the functions set out in Article 21;

(c)  an Executive Director, who shall exercise the duties set out in Article 23.

Article 15

Composition of the Management Board

1.  The Management Board shall be composed of one representative of each Member State and four representatives of the Commission, all with voting rights.

The Management Board shall also include as well as of four professionals from the sectors most concerned, as referred to in Article 2, appointed by the Commission, without the right to vote. [Am. 57]

The Management Board shall also include two representatives of the European Parliament, acting as observers, without voting rights. [Am. 58]

All Management Board members shall be appointed on the basis of their degree of relevant experience and expertise in the areas referred to in Article 2. The Member States and the Commission shall each strive for a balanced representation between men and women on the Management Board. One of the four professionals shall be a representative of the Permanent Cooperation Framework of accident investigation bodies in accordance with Article 10 of Directive 2009/18/EC.

2.  Each Member State, the European Parliament and the Commission shall appoint their members of the Management Board as well as an alternate who will represent the member in his or her absence. [Am. 59]

3.  The duration of the term of office shall be four years. The term of office may be renewed.

4.  Each member and alternate shall sign a written statement at the time of taking office declaring that he or she is not in a situation of conflict of interests. Each member and alternate shall update his or her statement in the case of a change of circumstances with regard to any conflict of interests. The Agency shall publish the statements and updates on its website.

Article 16

Functions of the Management Board

1.  In order to ensure that the Agency carries out its tasks, the Management Board shall:

(a)  give the general and strategic orientations for the Agency's activities;

(b)  adopt each year, by a two-thirds majority of its members with voting rights, after having received the opinion of the Commission and in accordance with Article 17, the single programming document of the Agency;

(c)  adopt, by a two-thirds majority of its members with voting rights, the annual budget and the staff establishment plan of the Agency and exercise other functions in respect of the Agency's budget pursuant to Chapter VI;

(d)  adopt, by a two-thirds majority of its members with voting rights, the consolidated annual activity report on the Agency’s activities and forward it each year by 1 July to the European Parliament, the Council, the Commission, the Court of Auditors and the Member States. The report shall be made public;

(e)  adopt the financial rules applicable to the Agency in accordance with Article 25;

(f)  deliver an opinion on the Agency's final accounts ;

(g)  establish the methodology for the visits to be carried out pursuant to Article 10. In the event that the Commission expresses, within 15 days from the date of adoption of the methodology, its disagreement, the Management Board shall re-examine and adopt it, possibly amended, in second reading either with a two- thirds majority, including the Commission representatives, or by unanimity of the representatives of the Member States; [Am. 60]

(h)  consider and approve administrative arrangements, as referred to in Article 11 (5);

(i)  adopt an anti-fraud strategy, proportionate to fraud risks taking into account the costs and benefits of the measures to be implemented;

(j)  adopt and make publicly available the rules for the prevention and management of conflicts of interest in respect of its members and publish annually on its website the declaration of interests of the Management Board members; [Am. 61]

(k)  adopt and regularly update the communication and dissemination plans referred to in Article 13, based on an analysis of needs;

(l)  adopt and make publicly available its rules of procedure; [Am. 62]

(m)  appoint the members of the Executive Board, by a two-third majority of its members with voting rights, in accordance with Article 21;

(n)  adopt a mandate for the tasks of the Executive Board referred to in Article 21;

(o)  in accordance with paragraph 2, exercise, with respect to the staff of the Agency, the powers conferred by the Staff Regulations on the Appointing Authority and by the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants on the Authority Empowered to Conclude a Contract of Employment(34);

(p)  adopt implementing rules for giving effect to the Staff Regulations and the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants in accordance with Article 110 (2) of the Staff Regulations;

(q)  appoint, provide guidance and monitor the performance of the Executive Director and where relevant extend his or her term of office or remove him or her from office in accordance with Article 22;

(r)  establish procedures for decision-making by the Executive Director;

(s)  if appropriate, appoint an Accounting Officer, subject to the Staff Regulations and the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants, who shall be totally independent in the performance of his or her duties;

(t)  ensure adequate follow-up to findings and recommendations stemming from the internal or external audit reports and evaluations, as well as from investigations of the European Anti-fraud Office (OLAF) and the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO);

(u)  take all decisions on the establishment of the Agency's internal structures, including the set-up of advisory or working groups and, where necessary, their modification taking into consideration the Agency's activity needs and having regard to sound budgetary management; [Am. 63]

(v)  decide on the services that the Agency may offer against fees and charges and a adopt a framework model for the financial apportionment of the fees and charges payable as referred to in Article 26(3), point (c). In the event that the Commission expresses, within 15 days from the date of adoption of the Management Board’s decision concerning the services offered against fees or the framework model, its disagreement, the Management Board shall re-examine and adopt it, possibly amended, in second reading either with a two- thirds majority, including the Commission representatives, or by unanimity of the representatives of the Member States; [Am. 64]

(w)  adopt an efficiency gains and synergies strategy;

(x)  adopt a strategy for cooperation with third countries or international organisations, or both, referred to in Article 11 (6). In the event that the Commission expresses, within 15 days from the date of adoption of the strategy, its disagreement, the Management Board shall re-examine and adopt it, possibly amended, in second reading either with a two- thirds majority, including the Commission representatives, or by unanimity of the representatives of the Member States; [Am. 65]

(y)  adopt the internal security rules of the Agency referred to in Article 41;

(z)  appoint the data protection officer of the Agency.

2.  The Management Board shall adopt, in accordance with Article 110(2), of the Staff Regulations, a decision based on Article 2(1) of the Staff Regulations and on Article 6 of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants, delegating relevant appointing authority powers to the Executive Director and defining the conditions under which this delegation of powers can be suspended. The Executive Director shall be authorised to sub-delegate those powers.

Where exceptional circumstances so require, the Management Board may, by way of a decision, temporarily suspend the delegation of the appointing authority powers to the Executive Director and those sub-delegated by the latter and exercise them itself or delegate them to one of its members or to a staff member other than the Executive Director.

Article 17

Annual and multi-annual programming

1.  By 30 November each year the Management Board shall adopt a single programming document containing multi-annualmultiannual and annual programming, based on a draft put forward by the Executive Director, taking into account the opinion of the Commission and in relation to multiannual programming after consulting the European Parliament. If the Management Board decides not to take into account elements of the opinion of the Commission, it shall provide a thorough justification. The obligation to provide a thorough justification shall also apply to the elements raised by the European Parliament during the consultation. The management board It shall forward itthe single programming document to the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission by 31 January of the following year. [Am. 66]

In the event that the Commission expresses, within 15 days from the date of adoption of the single programming document, its disagreement with the document, the Management Board shall re-examine the single programming document and adopt it, possibly amended, within a period of two months, in second reading either with a two-thirds majority, including the Commission representatives, or by unanimity of the representatives of the Member States. [Am. 67]

2.  The single programming document shall become definitive after final adoption of the general budget and if necessary shall be adjusted accordingly.

3.  The annual work programme shall comprise detailed objectives and expected results including performance indicators. It shall also contain a description of the actions to be financed and an indication of the financial and human resources allocated to each action, in accordance with the principles of activity-based budgeting and management. The annual work programme shall be coherent with the multi-annual work programme referred to in paragraph 7. It shall clearly indicate tasks that have been added, changed or deleted in comparison with the previous financial year. Annual or multi-annual programming, or both, shall include the strategy for relations with third countries or international organisations referred to in Article 11 and the actions linked to this strategy.

4.  The Management Board shall amend the adopted annual work programme when a new task is given to the Agency. The inclusion of such a new task shall be subject to an analysis of the human and budgetary resources implications and may be subject to a decision to postpone other tasks.

5.  The Management Board shall examine and approve, in the framework of the preparation of the single programming document, Commission’s or Member States’ requests for technical assistance, as referred to in Article 3(1), point (c), Article 3 (2), point (b), Article 5(5) to (8), Article 8(6) and (7), Article 9(3), Article 10(4) and Article 11(2) and (4). The approval of such requests shall:

(a)  not be detrimental to the other tasks of the Agency;

(b)  shall avoid duplication of efforts;

(c)  shall be subject to an analysis of the human and budgetary resources implications; and

(d)  may be subject to a decision to postpone other tasks.

6.  Any substantial amendment to the annual work programme shall be adopted by the same procedure as the initial annual work programme. The Management Board may delegate the power to make non-substantial amendments to the annual work programme to the Executive Director.

7.  The multi-annual work programme shall set out overall strategic programming including objectives, expected results and performance indicators. It shall also set out resource programming including multi-annual budget and staff.

8.  The resource programming shall be updated annually. The strategic programming shall be updated where appropriate, and in particular to address the outcome of the evaluation referred to in Article 41.

Article 18

Chairperson of the Management Board

1.  The Management Board shall elect a Chairperson and a Deputy Chairperson from among its members with voting rights. The Chairperson and the Deputy Chairperson shall be elected by a majority of two thirds of the members of the Management Boards with voting rights.

2.  The Deputy Chairperson shall automatically take the place of the Chairperson if he or she is prevented from attending to Chairperon’s duties.

3.  The terms of office of the Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson shall be four years. Their term of office may be renewed once. If, however, their membership of the Management Board ends at any time during their term of office, their term of office shall automatically expire on that date.

Article 19

Meetings of the Management Board

1.  Meetings of the Management Board shall be conducted in accordance with its rules of procedure and convened by its Chairperson.

2.  The Executive Director of the Agency shall take part in the deliberations except when his or her participation may lead to a conflict of interests, as decided by the Chairperson, or when the Management Board is to take a decision, in accordance with Article 35.

3.  The Management Board shall hold an ordinary meeting twice a year. In addition, it shall meet on the initiative of the Chairperson or at the request of the Commission or of one-third of the Member Statesits members. [Am. 68]

4.  When a matter of confidentiality or a conflict of interest arises, the Management Board may decide to examine specific items on its agenda without the members concerned being present. This shall not affect the right of the Member States and of the Commission to be represented by an alternate or by any other person. Detailed rules for the application of this provision shall be laid down in the Management Board's rules of procedure.

5.  The Management Board may invite any person whose opinion can be of interest to attend its meetings as an observer.

6.  The members of the Management Board may, subject to the provisions of its rules of procedure, be assisted by advisers or experts.

7.  The secretariat for the Management Board shall be provided by the Agency.

Article 20

Voting rules of the Management Board

1.  The Management Board shall take its decisions by absolute majority of its members with voting rights, except if provided otherwise in this Regulation.

2.   The decisions referred to in Article 16(1) points (c) to (e) and points (i), (j), (n), (o), (p), (q), (t), (u) and in Article 16(2) may only be taken if the representatives of the Commission cast a positive vote. For the purposes of taking the decisions referred to in Article 16(1), point (b), the positive vote of the representative of the Commission shall only be required on the elements of the decision not related to the annual and multi-annual working programme of the Agency. [Am. 69]

3.  Each member with voting rights shall have one vote. The Executive Director of the Agency shall not vote. [Am. 70]

4.  In the absence of a member, his or her alternate shall be entitled to exercise the member’s right to vote.

5.  The rules of procedure shall establish more detailed voting arrangements, including the conditions for a member to act on behalf of another member.

Article 21

Executive Board

1.  The Management Board shall be assisted by an Executive Board.

2.  The Executive Board shall :

(a)  supervise the implementation of the decisions of the Management Board on administrative and budgetary management;.

(aa)   decide on those matters provided for in the financial rules adopted pursuant to Article 25 that are not reserved to the Management Board by this Regulation; [Am. 71]

(b)  prepare decisions to be adopted by the Management Board;

(c)  ensure, together with the Management Board, adequate follow-up to the findings and recommendations stemming from the internal or external audit reports and evaluations, as well as from investigations of OLAF and of the EPPO.

3.  When necessary, because of urgency, the Executive Board may take certain provisional decisions on behalf of the Management Board, in particular on administrative management matters, including the suspension of the delegation of the appointing authority powers and budgetary matters.

4.  The Executive Board shall be composed of the Chairperson and the deputy Chairperson of the Management Board, one representative of the Commission to the Management Board and three other members appointed by the Management Board from among its members with the right to vote. The Chairperson of the Management Board shall also be the Chairperson of the Executive Board. The Executive Director shall take part in the meetings of the Executive Board, but shall not have the right to vote. The Executive board may invite other observers to attend its meetings. [Am. 72]

5.  The term of office of members of the Executive Board shall be four years with the possibility to be renewed. The term of office of members of the Executive Board shall end when their membership of the Management Board ends.

6.  The Executive Board shall hold at least one ordinary meeting every three months. In addition, it shall meet on the initiative of its Chairperson or at the request of its members.

6a.   The Executive Board shall take its decisions by consensus. If the Executive Board is not in a position to take a decision by consensus, the matter shall be referred to the Management Board. [Am. 73]

7.  The Management Board shall lay down the rules of procedure of the Executive Board.

CHAPTER V

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Article 22

Appointment, extension of the term of office and removal from office

1.  The Executive Director shall be appointed by the Management Board on the basis of merit and, skills, expertise and proven competence and experience relevant to the maritime sector, from a list of candidates proposed by the Commission following an open and transparent selection procedure which shall respect the principle of gender balance. [Am. 74]

1a.   Before appointment, the candidate selected by the Management Board shall be invited to make a statement to the competent committee of the European Parliament and to answer questions posed by its members. [Am. 75]

2.  For the purpose of concluding the contract of the Executive Director, the Agency shall be represented by the Chairperson of the Management Board.

3.  The term of office of the Executive Director shall be five years. In due time before the end of that period, the Commission shall undertake an assessment that takes into account an evaluation of the Executive Director's performance and the Agency's future tasks and challenges.

4.  The Management Board, acting on a proposal from the Commission, taking into account the assessment referred to in paragraph 3, may extend once the term of office of the Executive Director, for not more than five years. The Management Board shall inform the European Parliament and the Council about its intention to extend the Executive Director’s mandate. Before the Management Board takes a decision to extend the mandate, the Executive Director may be invited to make a statement to the competent committee of the European Parliament and to answer questions posed by its members. [Am. 76]

5.  An Executive Director whose term of office has been extended may not participate in another selection procedure for the same post.

6.  The Executive Director may be removed from office only upon a decision of the Management Board acting on a proposal from the Commission. The European Parliament and the Council shall be informed in a manner that complies with the applicable confidentiality requirements, about the reasons for such a decision. [Am. 77]

6a.   The Management Board shall reach decisions on appointment, extension of the term of office or removal from office of the Executive Director on the basis of a two-thirds majority of its members with voting rights. [Am. 78]

7.  The Executive Director shall be engaged as a temporary agent of the Agency under Article 2(a) of the Conditions of Employment of Other servants.

Article 23

Tasks and responsibilities of the Executive Director

1.  The Executive Director shall manage the Agency in accordance with the decisions of the Management Board and shall be accountable to the Management Board.

2.  Without prejudice to the powers of the Commission, the Management Board, and the Executive Board, the Executive Director shall be independent in the performance of the duties and shall neither seek nor take instructions from any government nor from any other body.

3.  The Executive Director shall report to the European Parliament on the performance of his/her duties when invited to do so. The Council may invite the Executive Director to report on the performance of his/her duties.

4.  The Executive Director shall be the legal representative of the Agency. Therefore, the Executive Director shall: [Am. 79]

(a)   provide for technical assistance and expertise to the Commission and the Member States in the context of the IMO; [Am. 80]

(b)   be accountable to the Management Board of the Agency, when taking politically sensitive decisions in the interest of the Union. [Am. 81]

5.  The Executive Director shall be responsible for the implementation of the tasks assigned to the Agency by this Regulation. In particular, the Executive Director shall:

(a)  ensure the sustainable and efficient day-to-day administration of the Agency; [Am. 82]

(b)  organise, direct and supervise the operations and the staff of the Agency within the limits of the decisions of the Management Board;

(c)  prepare and implement the decisions adopted by the Management Board;

(d)  prepare draft financial rules applicable to the Agency for adoption by the Management Board;

(e)  draw up estimates of the Agency's revenue and expenditure, in accordance with Article 27, and implementing the budget in accordance with Article 28;

(f)  prepare the draft single programming document and submit it for adoption to the Management Board after consulting the Commission at least four weeks before the relevant Management Board meeting;

(g)  implement the single programming document, assessing progress compared to the relevant indicators and report to the Management Board on its implementation;

(h)  prepare the Agency’s consolidated annual activity report and present it to the Management Board for assessment and adoption;

(i)  respond to any requests for assistance in accordance with Article 17(5);

(j)  decide to carry out the visits and inspections provided for in Article 10, after consultation of the Commission and following the methodology for visits established by the Management Board in accordance with Article 16(1) point (g);

(k)  decide to enter into administrative arrangements with other Union bodies working in the Agency's fields of activities provided that the draft arrangement has been submitted for consultation to the Commission first and the Management Board in accordance with Article 11(5) and provided that the Management Board has not objected within four weeks;

(l)  take all necessary steps, including the adoption of internal administrative instructions and the publication of notices, to ensure the functioning of the Agency in accordance with the provisions of this Regulation;

(m)  organise an effective monitoring system in order to be able to compare the Agency's achievements with its objectives and tasks as laid down in this Regulation. To that end, he or she shall establish, in agreement with the Commission and the Management Board, tailored performance indicators allowing for an effective assessment of the results achieved. He or she shall ensure that the Agency's organisational structure be regularly adapted to the evolving needs within the available financial and human resources. In this regard, he or she shall establish regular evaluation procedures that meet recognised professional standards;

(n)  establish and ensure the functioning of an effective and efficient internal control system and report any significant change to it to the Management Board;

(o)  ensure the carrying out of risk assessments and risk management for the Agency;

(p)  prepare a follow-up action plan in relation to the conclusions of internal or external audit reports and evaluations, as well as investigations by OLAF and EPPO, as referred to in Article 38, and report on progress twice a year to the Commission and regularly to the Management Board;

(q)  protect the financial interests of the Union by applying preventive measures against fraud, corruption and any other illegal activities, without prejudicing the investigative competence of OLAF and EPPO, by effective checks and, if irregularities are detected, by recovering amounts wrongly paid and, where appropriate, by imposing effective, proportionate and dissuasive administrative, including financial penalties;

(r)  prepare an anti-fraud strategy, an efficiency gains and synergies strategy, a strategy for cooperation with third countries or international organisations, or both, and a strategy for the organisational management and internal control systems, for the Agency and present it to the Management Board for approval;

(s)  promote diversity and ensure gender balance as regards the recruitment of the Agency’s staff;

(t)  recruit staff on the broadest possible geographical basis;

(u)  design and implement a communication policy for the Agency;

(v)  perform any other tasks entrusted or delegated to him or her by the Management Board or as may be required by this Regulation.

Article 24

Participation of third countries

1.  The Agency shall be open to the participation of third countries, which have entered into agreements with the Union, whereby they have adopted and are applying the Union law in the field of maritime safety, maritime security, prevention of pollution and response to pollution caused by ships.

2.  Under the relevant provisions of those agreements, arrangements specifying the nature and the extent of the detailed rules for the participation by those countries in the work of the Agency including provisions on financial contributions and staff shall be concluded by the Agency following the opinion of the Commission.

CHAPTER VI

FINANCIAL PROVISIONS

Article 25

Financial rules

The financial rules applicable to the Agency shall be adopted by the Management Board after consulting the Commission. The financial rules shall not depart from Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/715 unless such a departure is specifically required for the Agency's operation and the Commission has given its prior consent.

Article 26

Budget

1.  Estimates of all revenue and expenditure for the Agency shall be prepared each financial year, corresponding to the calendar year, and shall be shown in the Agency's budget.

2.  The Agency's budget shall be balanced in terms of revenue and of expenditure.

3.  Without prejudice to other resources, the Agency's revenue shall comprise:

(a)  a contribution from the Union entered in the general budget of the European Union and grants from Union bodies;

(b)  possible contributions from any third country which participates in the work of the Agency in accordance with Article 24;

(c)  any fees and charges for infrastructure, publications, training or any other services falling under the scope of this Regulation provided by the Agency in accordance with the delegated acts and implementing acts adopted pursuant to referred to in Article 33; [Am. 83]

(d)  any voluntary financial contribution from Member States, third countries or other entities, provided such contribution is transparent, is clearly identified in the budget and does not compromise the independence and impartiality of the Agency.

4.  The expenditure of the Agency shall include staff remuneration, administrative and infrastructure expenses and operating costs.

Article 27

Establishment of the budget

1.  Each year, the Executive Director shall draw up a draft statement of estimates of the Agency's revenue and expenditure for the following financial year, including the establishment plan, and send it to the Management Board.

2.  The Management Board shall, on the basis of that draft, adopt a provisional draft estimate of the Agency's revenue and expenditure for the following financial year.

3.  The provisional draft estimate of the Agency's revenue and expenditure shall be sent to the Commission by 31 January each year. The Management Board shall send the final draft estimate to the Commission by 31 March of that year.

4.  The Commission shall send the statement of estimates to the budgetary authority together with the draft general budget of the European Union.

5.  On the basis of the statement of estimates, the Commission shall enter in the draft general budget of the European Union the estimates it considers necessary for the establishment plan and the amount of the subsidy to be charged to the general budget, which it shall place before the budgetary authority in accordance with Articles 313 and 314 of the TFEU.

6.  The budgetary authority shall authorize the appropriations for the contribution to the Agency.

7.  The budgetary authority shall adopt the Agency's establishment plan.

8.  The Agency's budget shall be adopted by the Management Board by a majority of two-thirds of members entitled to vote. It shall become final following final adoption of the general budget of the European Union. Where necessary, it shall be adjusted accordingly. [Am. 84]

9.  For any building project likely to have significant implications for the budget of the Agency the provisions of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/715 shall apply.

Article 28

Implementation of the budget

1.  The Executive Director shall implement the Agency's budget.

2.  Each year the Executive Director shall send to the budgetary authority all information relevant to the findings of evaluation procedures.

Article 29

Presentation of accounts and discharge

1.  By 1 March of the following financial year, the Agency's accounting officer shall send the provisional accounts to the Commission's accounting officer and to the Court of Auditors.

2.  By 31 March of the following financial year, the Agency shall send the report on the budgetary and financial management to the European Parliament, the Council and the Court of Auditors.

3.  By 31 March of the following financial year, the Commission's accounting officer shall send the Agency's provisional accounts, consolidated with the Commission's accounts, to the Court of Auditors.

4.  On receipt of the Court of Auditors' observations on the Agency's provisional accounts pursuant to Article 246 of the Financial Regulation, the Executive Director shall draw up the Agency's final accounts under his or her own responsibility and submit them to the Management Board for an opinion.

5.  The Management Board shall deliver an opinion on the Agency's final accounts.

6.  The accounting officer shall, by 1 July of the following financial year, send the final accounts to the European Parliament, the Council, the Commission and the Court of Auditors, together with the Management Board's opinion.

7.  The final accounts shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union by 15 November of the following financial year.

8.  The Executive Director shall send the Court of Auditors a reply to its observations by 30 September. The Executive Director shall also send that reply to the Management Board.

9.  The Executive Director shall submit to the European Parliament, at the latter's request, any information required for the smooth application of the discharge procedure for the financial year in question, in accordance with Article 261(3) of the Financial Regulation.

10.  On a recommendation from the Council acting by a qualified majority, the European Parliament shall, before 15 May of year N + 2, give a discharge to the Executive Director in respect of the implementation of the budget for year N.

CHAPTER VII

STAFF

Article 30

General provision

The Staff Regulations and the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants and the rules adopted by agreement between the institutions of the Union for giving effect to those Staff Regulations and the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants shall apply to the staff of the Agency.

Article 31

Seconded national experts and other staff

1.  The Agency may make use of seconded national experts or other staff not employed by the Agency.

2.  The Management Board shall adopt a decision laying down rules on the secondment of national experts to the Agency.

CHAPTER VIII

GENERAL AND FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 32

Legal status and seat

1.  The Agency shall be a body of the Union and shall have legal personality.

2.  In each of the Member States, the Agency shall enjoy the most extensive legal capacity accorded to legal persons under their laws. It may in particular, acquire and dispose of movable and immovable property and be a party to legal proceedings.

3.  The Agency shall be represented by its Executive Director.

4.  The seat of the Agency shall be in Lisbon, the Republic of Portugal.

4a.   In order to achieve financial savings, the Agency shall where appropriate cooperate closely with other Union institutions, agencies and bodies, especially those that have their seat in the same Member State. [Am. 85]

5.  At the request of the Commission, the Management Board may decide, after informing the competent committee of the European Parliament, with the agreement of and in cooperation with the Member States concerned and with due regard to budgetary implications, including any contribution the Member States concerned may provide, to establish regional centres necessary in order to carry out, in the most efficient and effective way, some of the Agency’s tasks. When taking such a decision, the Management Board shall define the precise scope of activities of the regional centre while avoiding unnecessary financial costs and enhancing cooperation with existing regional and national networks. [Am. 86]

Article 33

Implementing acts relating to Fees and charges [Am. 87]

1.   The Commission shall adopt, in accordance with the principles set out in paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 implementing acts specifying:

(a)   the fees and charges payable to the Agency, in particular in application of Article 26 (3) point (c); and

(b)   the conditions of payment.

Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 34 (2). [Am. 88]

2.  Fees and charges shall be levied for possible services provided by the Agency, in particular to third countries and the industry for tasks falling under its competencies.

3.  All fees and charges shall be expressed, and payable, in euro. Fees and charges shall be set in a transparent, fair and uniform manner. The specific needs of small and medium-sized enterprises, including the possibility of splitting payments into several instalments and phases, shall be taken into account, as appropriate. The apportionment of the fees shall be clearly identified in the accounts. Reasonable deadlines shall be set for the payment of fees and charges.

4.  The amount of the fees and charges shall be fixed at such a level as to ensure that the revenue in respect thereof is sufficient to cover the full cost of the services provided. All expenditure of the Agency attributed to staff involved in the activities referred to in paragraph 2, including the employer's pro-rata contribution to the pension scheme, shall in particular be reflected in that cost. Should a significant imbalance resulting from the provision of the services covered by fees and charges become recurrent, the level of those fees and charges shall be revised. Those fees and charges shall be assigned revenues for the Agency.

4a.   The Commission shall adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 33a, supplementing this Regulation by laying down the methodology for calculating the fees and charges referred to in paragraph 2. That methodology shall be based on the principles laid down in paragraphs 3 and 4. [Am. 89]

4b.   On the basis of the methodology laid down pursuant to paragraph 4a, the Commission shall adopt implementing acts specifying the fees and charges for the delivery of services. Those acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 34(2). [Am. 90]

Article 33a

Exercise of the delegation

1.   The power to adopt delegated acts is conferred on the Commission subject to the conditions laid down in this Article.

2.   The power to adopt delegated acts referred to in Article 33(4a) shall be conferred on the Commission for an indeterminate period of time from ...[date of application of the Regulation]. / for a period of … years from …

3.   The delegation of power referred to in Article 33(4a) may be revoked at any time by the European Parliament or by the Council. A decision to revoke shall put an end to the delegation of the power specified in that decision. It shall take effect the day following the publication of the decision in the Official Journal of the European Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect the validity of any delegated acts already in force.

4.   Before adopting a delegated act, the Commission shall consult experts designated by each Member State in accordance with the principles laid down in the Inter-institutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making.

5.   As soon as it adopts a delegated act, the Commission shall notify it simultaneously to the European Parliament and to the Council.

6.   A delegated act adopted pursuant to Article 33(4a) shall enter into force only if no objection has been expressed either by the European Parliament or by the Council within a period of two months of notification of that act to the European Parliament and the Council or if, before the expiry of that period, the European Parliament and the Council have both informed the Commission that they will not object. That period shall be extended by two months at the initiative of the European Parliament or of the Council. [Am. 91]

Article 34

Committee procedure

1.  The Commission shall be assisted by the Committee on Safe Seas and the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (COSS) established by Regulation (EC) No 2099/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council(35). That committee shall be a committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011.

2.  Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.

Article 35

Privileges and immunities

The Protocol on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Union shall apply to the Agency and its staff.

Article 36

Language arrangements

1.  The provisions laid down in Council Regulation No 1(36) shall apply to the Agency.

2.  The translation services required for the functioning of the Agency shall be provided by the Translation Centre of the Bodies of the European Union.

Article 37

Transparency

1.  Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council(37) shall apply to documents held by the Agency.

2.  The Management Board shall, within six months of the date of its first meeting, adopt the detailed rules for applying Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001.

3.  Decisions taken by the Agency under Article 8 of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 may form the subject of a complaint to the Ombudsman or of an action before the Court of Justice of the European Union, under the conditions laid down in Articles 228 and 263 of the TFEU respectively.

4.  The processing of personal data by the Agency shall be subject to Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council(38).

Article 38

Combating fraud

1.  In order to facilitate combating fraud, corruption, abuse of office and other unlawful activities under Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 the Agency shall adopt appropriate provisions applicable to all employees of the Agency. [Am. 92]

2.  The European Court of Auditors shall have the power of audit, on the basis of documents and on the spot, over all grant beneficiaries, contractors and subcontractors who have received Union funds from the Agency.

3.  OLAF may carry out investigations, including on-the-spot checks and inspections with a view to establishing whether there has been fraud, corruption, abuse of office or any other illegal activity affecting the financial interests of the Union in connection with a grant or a contract funded by the Agency, in accordance with the provisions and procedures laid down in Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013. [Am. 93]

4.  Without prejudice to paragraphs 1, 2 and 3, cooperation agreements with third countries and international organisations, contracts, grant agreements and grant decisions of the Agency shall contain provisions expressly empowering the European Court of Auditors OLAF and EPPO to conduct such audits and investigations, according to their respective competences.

Article 39

Security rules on the protection of classified and sensitive non-classified information

The Agency shall adopt own security rules equivalent to the Commission's security rules for protecting European Union Classified Information (EUCI) and sensitive non-classified information, as set out in the Commission Decisions (EU, Euratom) 2015/443(39) and 2015/444(40). The security rules of the Agency shall include provisions for the exchange, processing and storage of such information.

Article 40

Liability

1.  The Agency's contractual liability shall be governed by the law applicable to the contract in question.

2.  The Court of Justice of the European Union shall have jurisdiction to give judgment pursuant to any arbitration clause contained in a contract concluded by the Agency.

3.  In the case of non-contractual liability, the Agency shall, in accordance with the general principles common to the laws of the Member States, make good any damage caused by its departments or by its staff in the performance of their duties.

4.  The Court of Justice of the European Union shall have jurisdiction in disputes over compensation for damages referred to in paragraph 3.

5.  The personal liability of its staff towards the Agency shall be governed by the provisions laid down in the Staff Regulations or Conditions of Employment applicable to them.

Article 41

Evaluation and review

1.  No later than 5 years after the [date of entry into force], and every 5 years thereafter, the Commission shall conduct an evaluation to assess particularly the impact, effectiveness and, efficiency and the cost-benefit analysis of the Agency and its working practices. The evaluation shall, in particular, address the possible need to modify the mandate of the Agency, and the financial implications of any such modification. [Am. 94]

2.  The Commission shall forward the evaluation report together with its conclusions on the report, to the European Parliament, the Council and the Management Board. The findings of the evaluation shall be made public.

3.  On the occasion of every second evaluation, there shall also be an assessment of the results achieved by the Agency having regard to its objectives, mandate and tasks. If the Commission considers that the continuation of the Agency is no longer justified with regard to its assigned objectives, mandate and tasks, it may propose that this Regulation be amended accordingly or repealed.

Article 42

Administrative inquiries of the European Ombudsman

The activities of the Agency shall be subject to the inquiries of the European Ombudsman in accordance with Article 228 of the TFEU.

Article 43

Transitional provisions

1.  By way of derogation from Article 15 of this Regulation, the members of the Administrative Board appointed under Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002 before [date of entry into force] shall remain in office as members of the Management Board until the expiry date of their term of office, without prejudice to the right of each Member State to appoint a new representative.

2.  The Executive Director of the Agency appointed on the basis of Article 16 of Regulation (EU) No 1406/2002 shall remain assigned to the post of the Executive Director with the tasks and responsibilities provided for in Article 23 of this Regulation. If a decision extending the mandate of the Executive Director in accordance with Article 16(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1406/2002 is adopted prior to the entry into force of this Regulation, the duration of the extended mandate shall be for 5 years. The other conditions of her contract shall remain unchanged.

3.  The entry into force of this Regulation is without prejudice to all employment contracts in force on [date of entry into force].

Article 44

Repeal

Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002 is repealed.

Article 45

Entry into force

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at …,

For the European Parliament For the Council

The President The President

(1) OJ C, C/2023/873, 8.12.2023, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2023/873/oj.
(2)OJ C , , p. .
(3)OJ C , , p. .
(4)Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 June 2002 establishing a European Maritime Safety Agency (OJ L 208, 5.8.2002, p. 1).
(5)Directive 2005/35/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 September 2005 on ship-source pollution and on the introduction of penalties, including criminal penalties, for pollution offences (OJ L 255, 30.9.2005, p. 11).
(6)Directive 2009/16/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on port State control (OJ L 131, 28.5.2009, p. 57).
(7)Directive 2009/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 establishing the fundamental principles governing the investigation of accidents in the maritime transport sector and amending Council Directive 1999/35/EC and Directive 2002/59/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 131, 28.5.2009, p. 114).
(8)Directive 2009/21/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on compliance with flag State requirements (OJ L 131, 28.5.2009, p. 132).
(9)https://european-union.europa.eu/system/files/2022-06/joint_statement_on_decentralised_agencies_en.pdf
(10)Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/715 of 18 December 2018 on the framework financial Regulation for the bodies set up under the TFEU and Euratom Treaty and referred to in Article 70 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046 of the European Parliament and of the Council, (OJ L 122, 10.5.2019, p. 1).
(11)Directive (EU) 2019/883 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 April 2019 on port reception facilities for the delivery of waste from ships, amending Directive 2010/65/EU and repealing Directive 2000/59/EC (OJ L 151, 7.6.2019, p. 116).
(12)Directive 2008/56/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 June 2008 establishing a framework for community action in the field of marine environmental policy (Marine Strategy Framework Directive) (OJ L 164, 25.6.2008, p. 19).
(13)Directive (EU) 2016/802 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2016 relating to a reduction in the sulphur content of certain liquid fuels (OJ L 132, 21.5.2016, p. 58).
(14)Regulation (EU) 2015/757 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2015 on the monitoring, reporting and verification of carbon dioxide emissions from maritime transport, and amending Directive 2009/16/EC (OJ L 123, 19.5.2015, p. 55).
(15)Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 October 2003 establishing a system for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Union and amending Council Directive 96/61/EC (OJ L 275, 25.10.2003, p. 32).
(16)Regulation (EC) No 725/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 on enhancing ship and port facility security, OJ L 129 of 29.4.2004, p. 6
(17)Directive 2002/59/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 June 2002 establishing a Community vessel traffic monitoring and information system and repealing Council Directive 93/75/EEC (OJ L 208, 5.8.2002, p. 10).
(18)Regulation (EU) 2019/1896 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 November 2019 on the European Border and Coast Guard and repealing Regulations (EU) No 1052/2013 and (EU) 2016/1624 (OJ L 295, 14.11.2019, p. 1).
(19)Regulation (EU) 2019/473 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 March 2019 on the European Fisheries Control Agency (OJ L 83, 25.3.2019, p. 18).
(20)Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 laying down the rules and general principles concerning mechanisms for control by the Member States of the Commission's exercise of implementing powers (OJ L55, 28.2.2011, p. 13).
(21)OJ L 123, 12.5.2016, p. 1.
(22)Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 September 2013 concerning investigations conducted by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1073/1999 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Council Regulation (Euratom) No 1074/1999 (OJ L 248, 18.9.2013, p. 1).
(23)OJ L 136, 31.5.1999, p. 15.
(24)Directive 2009/45/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 May 2009 on safety rules and standards for passenger ships (OJ L 163, 25.6.2009, p. 1).
(25)Directive 2003/25/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 April 2003 on specific stability requirements for ro-ro passenger ships (OJ L 123, 17.5.2003, p. 22).
(26)Council Directive 98/41/EC of 18 June 1998 on the registration of persons sailing on board passenger ships operating to or from ports of the Member States of the Community (OJ L 188, 2.7.1998, p. 35).
(27)Regulation (EC) No 391/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on common rules and standards for ship inspection and survey organisations (OJ L 131, 28.5.2009, p. 11).
(28)Directive 2009/15/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on common rules and standards for ship inspection and survey organisations and for the relevant activities of maritime administrations (OJ L 131, 28.5.2009, p. 47).
(29)Directive 2014/90/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 2014 on marine equipment and repealing Council Directive 96/98/EC (OJ L 257, 28.8.2014, p. 146).
(30)Directive (EU) 2022/993 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2022 on the minimum level of training of seafarers (OJ L 169, 27.6.2022, p. 45).
(31)Decision No 1313/2013/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 on a Union Civil Protection Mechanism (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 924).
(32)Regulation (EU) No 1257/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 November 2013 on ship recycling and amending Regulation (EC) No 1013/2006 and Directive 2009/16/EC (OJ L 330, 10.12.2013, p. 1).
(33)Regulation (EU) 2019/1239 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 establishing a European Maritime Single Window environment and repealing Directive 2010/65/EU (OJ L 198, 25.7.2019, p. 64).
(34)Regulation (EEC, Euratom, ECSC) No 259/68 of the Council of 29 February 1968 laying down the Staff Regulations of Officials and the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Communities and instituting special measures temporarily applicable to officials of the Commission (OJ L 56, 4.3.1968, p. 1).
(35)Regulation (EC) No 2099/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 November 2002 establishing a Committee on Safe Seas and the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (COSS) and amending the Regulations on maritime safety and the prevention of pollution from ships (OJ L 324, 29.11.2002, p. 1).
(36)OJ 17, 6.10.1958, p. 385/58. Regulation as last amended by the Regulation (EC) No 1791/2006 of 20 November 2006 adapting certain Regulations and Decisions by reason of the accession of Bulgaria and Romania.
(37)Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2001 regarding public access to European Parliament, Council and Commission documents (OJ L 145, 31.5.2001, p. 43).
(38)Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data by the Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 and Decision No 1247/2002/EC (OJ L 295, 21.11.2018, p. 39).
(39)Commission Decision (EU, Euratom) 2015/443 of 13 March 2015 on Security in the Commission (OJ L 72, 17.3.2015, p. 41).
(40)Commission Decision (EU, Euratom) 2015/444 of 13 March 2015 on the security rules for protecting EU classified information (OJ L 72, 17.3.2015, p. 53).


Council decision inviting Member States to ratify the Violence and Harassment Convention, 2019 (No 190) of the International Labour Organization
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European Parliament legislative resolution of 12 March 2024 on the draft Council decision inviting Member States to ratify the Violence and Harassment Convention, 2019 (No 190) of the International Labour Organization (13106/2023 – C9-0396/2023 – 2020/0011(NLE))
P9_TA(2024)0135A9-0040/2024

(Consent)

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the draft Council decision (13106/2023),

–  having regard to the Violence and Harassment Convention, 2019 (No 190) of the International Labour Organization,

–  having regard to the request for consent submitted by the Council in accordance with Article 153(2) in conjunction with Article 153(1), point (a), Article 157(3) and Article 218(6), second subparagraph, point (a)(v), of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (C9‑0396/2023),

–  having regard to Rule 105(1) and (4) and Rule 114(7) of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the joint deliberations of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs and the Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality under Rule 58 of the Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the opinion of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs,

–  having regard to the recommendation of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs and the Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality (A9-0040/2024),

1.  Gives its consent to the draft Council decision;

2.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the governments and parliaments of the Member States.


Extending Rule 168 of Parliament's Rules of Procedure until the end of the 10th parliamentary term
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European Parliament decision of 12 March 2024 extending Rule 168 of Parliament’s Rules of Procedure until the end of the tenth parliamentary term (2024/2565(RSO))
P9_TA(2024)0136B9-0159/2024

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to Article 342 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to Council Regulation No 1 of 15 April 1958 determining the languages to be used by the European Economic Community(1),

–  having regard to the Code of Conduct on Multilingualism adopted by the Bureau on 1 July 2019,

–  having regard to its decision of 12 March 2019(2) extending the applicability of Rule 168 of Parliament’s Rules of Procedure until the end of the ninth parliamentary term and the subsequent decisions of the Bureau extending the derogation from Rule 167 until the end of this term,

–  having regard to the recommendation from the Bureau of 5 February 2024,

–  having regard to Rules 167 and 168 of its Rules of Procedure,

A.  whereas, pursuant to Rule 167, all Parliament’s documents are to be drawn up in the official languages, and all Members have the right to speak in Parliament in the official language of their choice, with interpretation being provided into the other official languages;

B.  whereas, under Rule 168, derogations from Rule 167 are permissible until the end of the ninth parliamentary term if and to the extent that, despite adequate precautions having been taken, interpreters or translators required for an official language are not available in sufficient numbers; whereas, with respect to each official language for which a derogation is considered necessary, the Bureau, on a proposal from the Secretary-General and having due regard to any temporary special arrangements adopted by the Council on the basis of the Treaties concerning the drafting of legal acts, is required to ascertain whether the conditions are fulfilled and to review its decision every six months;

C.  whereas the derogation in respect of Irish as regards legal acts of general application laid down in Council Regulation (EC) No 920/2005(3) lapsed as from 1 January 2022;

D.  whereas, despite all adequate precautions, capacity in Irish and Maltese is not expected to be such as to allow a full interpretation service in those languages from the beginning of the tenth parliamentary term;

E.  whereas, despite sustained and continuous interinstitutional efforts and considerable progress, the number of qualified translators is still expected to be so limited as regards Irish that, for the foreseeable future, full coverage of that language under Rule 167 cannot be assured for documents other than legal acts of general application;

F.  whereas Rule 168(4) provides that, on the basis of a reasoned recommendation from the Bureau, Parliament may decide, at the end of the parliamentary term, to extend that Rule;

G.  whereas, in the light of the foregoing, the Bureau has recommended that Rule 168 be extended until the end of the tenth parliamentary term;

1.  Decides to extend Rule 168 of Parliament’s Rules of Procedure until the end of the tenth parliamentary term;

2.  Instructs its President to forward this decision to the Council and the Commission for information.

(1) OJ 17, 6.10.1958, p. 385.
(2) OJ C 23, 21.1.2021, p. 171.
(3)Council Regulation (EC) No 920/2005 of 13 June 2005 amending Regulation No 1 of 15 April 1958 determining the language to be used by the European Economic Community and Regulation No 1 of 15 April 1958 determining the language to be used by the European Atomic Energy Community and introducing temporary derogation measures from those Regulations (OJ L 156, 18.6.2005, p. 3).

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