Na podlagi druge alinee prvega odstavka 107. člena in prvega odstavka 91. člena Ustave Republike Slovenije izdajam
U K A Z
O RAZGLASITVI ZAKONA O RATIFIKACIJI LETNEGA SPORAZUMA O FINANCIRANJU 2002 POSEBNEGA PRISTOPNEGA PROGRAMA ZA KMETIJSTVO IN RAZVOJ PODEŽELJA V REPUBLIKI SLOVENIJI (SAPARD) MED KOMISIJO EVROPSKIH SKUPNOSTI V IMENU EVROPSKE SKUPNOSTI
IN VLADO REPUBLIKE SLOVENIJE (MLSF2K)
Razglašam Zakon o ratifikaciji Letnega sporazuma o financiranju 2002 Posebnega pristopnega programa za kmetijstvo in razvoj podeželja v Republiki Sloveniji (SAPARD) med Komisijo Evropskih skupnosti v imenu Evropske skupnosti in Vlado Republike Slovenije (MLSF2K), ki ga je sprejel Državni zbor Republike Slovenije na seji 15. julija 2003.
Št. 001-22-73/03
Ljubljana, dne 23. julija 2003
Predsednik
Republike Slovenije
dr. Janez Drnovšek l. r.
Z A K O N
O RATIFIKACIJI LETNEGA SPORAZUMA O FINANCIRANJU 2002 POSEBNEGA PRISTOPNEGA PROGRAMA ZA KMETIJSTVO IN RAZVOJ PODEŽELJA V REPUBLIKI SLOVENIJI (SAPARD)
MED KOMISIJO EVROPSKIH SKUPNOSTI V IMENU EVROPSKE SKUPNOSTI
IN VLADO REPUBLIKE SLOVENIJE (MLSF2K)
1. člen
Ratificira se Letni sporazum o financiranju 2002 Posebnega pristopnega programa za kmetijstvo in razvoj podeželja v Republiki Sloveniji (SAPARD) med Komisijo Evropskih skupnosti v imenu Evropske skupnosti in Vlado Republike Slovenije, podpisan v Bruslju in v Ljubljani 7. aprila 2002.
2. člen
Sporazum se v izvirniku v slovenskem in angleškem jeziku glasi:
POSEBNI PRISTOPNI PROGRAM ZA
KMETIJSTVO IN RAZVOJ PODEŽELJA
V REPUBLIKI SLOVENIJI
LETNI SPORAZUM O FINANCIRANJU 2002
med
KOMISIJO EVROPSKIH SKUPNOSTI
V IMENU EVROPSKE SKUPNOSTI
in
VLADO REPUBLIKE SLOVENIJE
LETNI SPORAZUM O FINANCIRANJU 2002
Komisija Evropskih skupnosti, v nadaljevanju “Komisija”, ki nastopa za Evropsko skupnost, v nadaljevanju imenovano “Skupnost”, in v njenem imenu
na eni strani, in
Vlada Republike Slovenije, ki nastopa za Republiko Slovenijo, v nadaljevanju imenovano “Republika Slovenija”, in v njenem imenu,
na drugi strani,
in skupaj imenovani “pogodbenici”,
STA SE
glede na to, da
(1) je bil z Uredbo Sveta (ES) št. 1268/1999 o podpori Skupnosti za predpristopne ukrepe za kmetijstvo in razvoj podeželja v državah prosilkah iz Srednje in Vzhodne Evrope v predpristopnem obdobju ustanovljen Posebni predpristopni program za kmetijstvo in razvoj podeželja (v nadaljevanju imenovan “SAPARD”)(*1), ki zagotavlja finančni prispevek Skupnosti;
(2) je bil načrt, ki ga je predložila Republika Slovenija, 27. oktobra 2000 odobren kot program za kmetijstvo in razvoj podeželja s sklepom Komisije, sprejetim v skladu s petim odstavkom 4. člena Uredbe (ES) št. 1268/1999;
(3) je bil 28. avgusta 2001 sklenjen Večletni sporazum o financiranju med Komisijo Evropskih skupnosti, ki nastopa v imenu Evropske skupnosti, in Vlado Republike Slovenije, ki nastopa za Republiko Slovenijo in v njenem imenu, v nadaljevanju Večletni sporazum o financiranju med Skupnostjo in Republiko Slovenijo, in je v njegovem 2. členu določeno, da se finančna obveznost Skupnosti določi v letnih sporazumih o financiranju;
(4) je treba določiti finančno obveznost Skupnosti za leto 2002 za izvajanje programa za kmetijstvo in razvoj podeželja (v nadaljevanju imenovanega “program”) ter vseh njegovih sprememb v Republiki Sloveniji in opredeliti obdobje veljavnosti te obveznosti. Ker bo v obdobju veljavnosti obveznosti financiranja za leto 2002 lahko prišlo do širitve Skupnosti, se za vsak primer omeji obdobje sklepanja novih pogodb agencije SAPARD z vsemi upravičenci, da se zagotovi pravilen prehod med instrumentom SAPARD in katero koli novo obliko pomoči za razvoj podeželja za Republiko Slovenijo kot članico Evropske unije. To ne vpliva na izid kakršnega koli možnega akta o pristopu;
(5) je bila s četrtim odstavkom 12. člena Uredbe Sveta št. 2500/2001 z dne 17. decembra 2001 spremenjena Uredba št. 1268/1999, tako da je zdaj pravica sodelovanja na javnih razpisih in v pogodbah, med drugim tudi za program SAPARD, razširjena še na fizične in pravne osebe Cipra, Malte in Turčije po enakih pogojih, ki se uporabljajo za vse fizične in pravne osebe iz držav članic in držav upravičenk. Zato je treba to pravico razširiti na te države in jim omogočiti, da zanje veljajo enake prvotne določbe kot za vse države prosilke;
(6) je treba zaradi izjemnih naravnih nesreč, ki so povzročile poplave v avgustu 2002, in na podlagi pridobljenih izkušenj in danih pripomb od podpisa Večletnega sporazuma o financiranju med Skupnostjo in Republiko Slovenijo še nekoliko prilagoditi omenjen sporazum. Zlasti je primerno prilagoditi določbe, ki se nanašajo na izbiro projektov za nekatere ukrepe;
DOGOVORILI, KOT SLEDI:
1. člen
Cilj
Ta sporazum določa finančno obveznost Skupnosti za Republiko Slovenijo za leto 2002. Spreminja tudi Večletni sporazum o financiranju, podpisan 5. 3. 2001, kot je bil spremenjen.
2. člen
Obveznost
Finančni prispevek Skupnosti za leto 2002 je omejen na 6.757.436 EUR. Ta obveznost velja le za izvajanje programa v skladu z Večletnim sporazumom o financiranju med Skupnostjo in Republiko Slovenijo.
3. člen
Obdobje obveznosti
Komisija bo samodejno ukinila vsak del obveznosti, navedene v 2. členu, ki ne bo poravnan s plačilom na račun ali za katerega ne bo prejela sprejemljivega zahtevka za plačilo najpozneje do 31. decembra 2004.
Brez vpliva na določbe, ki bodo morebiti vsebovane v aktu o pristopu Republike Slovenije, ne sme agencija SAPARD po datumu, ko bo ta država lahko sklenila pogodbe za pridobitev oblik pomoči za razvoj podeželja Republike Slovenije kot članice Evropske unije, z nobenim upravičencem skleniti nobene pogodbe za sredstva Skupnosti po tem sporazumu.
4. člen
Sprememba Večletnega sporazuma o financiranju
Večletni sporazum o financiranju, sklenjen med Komisijo in Republiko Slovenijo, se spremeni, kot sledi:
1. 8. člen se nadomesti s tem:
“8. člen
Točke za stike
1. Dopise, ki se nanašajo na katero koli zadevo iz tega večletnega sporazuma o financiranju, razen na podatke, navedene v dodatku I k razdelku F, in/ali iz letnih sporazumov o financiranju, predvidenih po 2. členu, in na katerih sta, kadar je to primerno, navedena številka in naziv programa, je treba nasloviti takole:
za Skupnost:
Commission of the European Communities
Directorate General Agriculture
SAPARD Unit
Rue de la Loi 130, B – 1049 Brussels
Telefon: 00 32 2 296 73 37
Faks: 00 32 2 295 17 46
E-pošta: agri-sapard@cec.eu.int
za Republiko Slovenijo:
Ministrstvo za kmetijstvo, gozdarstvo in prehrano
Dunajska 56, 58, SI – 1000 Ljubljana
Slovenija
Tel.: 00 386 1 478 91 04
Faks: 00 386 1 478 90 21
E-pošta: sapard.mkgp@gov.si
in
Ministrstvo za finance, Nacionalni sklad
Beethovnova 11, SI-1502 Ljubljana Slovenija
Tel.: 00 386 1 478 63 05
Faks: 00 386 1 478 62 04
E-pošta: mf.nfsapard@mf-rs.si
2. Dopise, ki se nanašajo na podatke, navedene v dodatku I k razdelku F, in se nanašajo na področje tega večletnega sporazuma o financiranju in/ali na področje letnih sporazumov o financiranju, predvidenih po 2. členu, in na katerih sta, kadar je to primerno, navedena številka in naziv programa, pa je treba nasloviti takole:
za Skupnost:
European Commission
European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF)
Directorate C
30, Rue Joseph II
B – 1049 Brussels
za Republiko Slovenijo:
Ministrstvo za finance, Služba za nadzor proračuna
Prežihova 4, SI-1502 Ljubljana
Slovenija.”
2. V razdelku A
– Točka (b) prvega odstavka 5. člena se nadomesti s to:
“(b) izbiranje projektov, vključno z merili za njihovo razvrščanje.
Vendar pa,
i) kadar je za določen ukrep v programu samo en imenovan upravičenec;
ii) če je bila za ukrep kmetijskega okolja iz programa naloga izbiranja projektov dodeljena določenemu organu ali organom; in
iii) za infrastrukturne projekte, če je bila v programu naloga izbiranja projektov dodeljena določenemu organu ali organom;
agencija SAPARD ne sme izbirati projektov, kar pa ne vpliva na njene druge naloge, vključno z ocenjevanjem upravičenosti.”
– Sedmi odstavek 5. člena se nadomesti s tem:
“7. Razen za naložbe v infrastrukturo, ki ne ustvarjajo znatnega čistega prihodka, agencija SAPARD za naložbe v projekte zagotovi, da javna pomoč po programu iz vseh virov skupaj za noben projekt ne presega 50% skupnih upravičenih stroškov. Ukrepi za usposabljanje se štejejo kot vlaganje v človeške vire in ne kot naložba za namene tega odstavka.”
– Točka (b) prvega odstavka 8. člena se nadomesti s to:
“(b) temelji na poročilih o izdatkih upravičenca, dokazanih z izvirniki prejetih računov ali drugimi ustreznimi listinami, kadar po programu pomoč ni vezana na izdatek. V ta poročila morajo biti vključeni samo tisti izdatki oziroma dogodki, kadar pomoč ni vezana na izdatke, ki se niso zgodili pred datumom sklenitve pogodbe, s katero je vlagatelj zahtevka za tak projekt upravičenec po programu, kar pa ne velja za študije izvedljivosti in druge podobne študije in za ukrep tehnične pomoči. Izdatki, razen za dejavnosti ukrepa tehnične pomoči, se ne smejo nanašati na izbrane projekte, pogodbe, ki jih je z upravičenci sklenila agencija SAPARD ali so bile z njimi sklenjene v njenem imenu, in na izdatke, plačane pred datumom oziroma datumi, določenimi v sklepu Komisije, navedenem v prvem odstavku 3. člena tega razdelka. Če agencija SAPARD po prejemu izvirnikov računov ali drugih ustreznih listin, omenjenih v tem pododstavku, teh ne zadrži, mora zagotoviti izdelavo kopij in urediti tako, da so izvirniki na voljo za revizijo in preglede.”
– Točka (b) prvega odstavka 10. člena se nadomesti s to:
“(b) za preplačila agencije SAPARD in za terjatve, ki jih agencija SAPARD ni dobila povrnjene, ter za vse terjatve, ki so ostale odprte še dve leti po vpisu v knjigo terjatev do dolžnikov, tečaj predzadnjega delovnega dneva Komisije v mesecu pred mesecem, v katerem je bilo preplačilo ali terjatev prvič ugotovljeno.”
– Točka 2.3.6 14. člena se nadomesti s to:
“2.3.6 Merila za oceno vlog in njihov vrstni red morajo biti jasno opredeljena in dokumentirana, kar pa ne vpliva na določbe točke (b) prvega odstavka 5. člena.”
– Točka 2.6 14. člena se nadomesti s to:
“2.6 Pravila za javna naročila storitev, del in blaga v Republiki Sloveniji morajo biti skladna s pravili, določenimi v priročniku Skupnosti z naslovom Pogodbe o nabavi storitev, blaga in del, sklenjene v okviru sodelovanja Skupnosti za tretje države(*2). Ne velja pa zahteva Komisije za predhodno odobritev, ki jo vsebuje omenjeni priročnik. Storitve, dela, stroji in blago iz javnih naročil morajo biti po poreklu iz Skupnosti ali iz držav, navedenih pod zap. št. 8 razdelka F.”
– Doda se ta člen:
“16. člen
Izjemne naravne nesreče
1. Če se ustrezno spremeni Uredba Sveta št. 1268/1999, lahko Komisija, če ugotovi, da je Republiko Slovenijo prizadela izjemna naravna nesreča, na podlagi utemeljenega zaprosila Republike Slovenije za ustrezne projekte na prizadetem območju in za določeno obdobje odobri stopnje sofinanciranja Skupnosti v obsegu skupne javne pomoči, ki so večje od stopenj, določenih v programu, vendar največ do 85%.
Poleg tega lahko Komisija dovoli odstopanja od naslednjih določb tega razdelka sporazuma:
a) če se ustrezno spremeni Uredba Sveta št. 1268/1999, se 50-odstotni pragi, določeni v šestem in sedmem odstavku 5. člena, lahko nadomestijo s pragi do 75%;
b) tudi zahtevki iz drugega pododstavka petega odstavka 7. člena za dodatna vplačila na račun lahko temeljijo na ocenah potreb zaradi pričakovanih posledic izjemnih naravnih nesreč;
c) v točki (b) prvega odstavka 8. člena:
– zahteva za poročila o izdatkih upravičenca, dokazanih z izvirniki prejetih računov, se lahko nadomesti z uradno odločitvijo agencije SAPARD, da podpre projekt. Merila za tako odločitev je treba podrobno opredeliti v utemeljenem zahtevku, ki ga predloži Republika Slovenija in odobri Komisija. Upravičenec se mora obvezati, da bo v največ enem letu priskrbel poročila o izdatkih, ki jih je dejansko imel, kot je določeno v točki (b) prvega odstavka 8. člena. Nobeno plačilo kateremu koli upravičencu na podlagi tega odstopanja ne sme presegati 20% skupnih stroškov naložbe, ki jo je odobrila agencija SAPARD, in za nobeno tako plačilo se ne zahtevajo ustrezna jamstva;
– določba, ki omejuje poročila o izdatkih na dogodke, ki se niso zgodili pred datumom sklenitve pogodbe, s katero je vlagatelj zahtevka postal upravičenec, se zamenja z omejitvijo na datum, ki ne more biti datum, pred katerim se je zgodila izjemna naravna nesreča;
d) obveznost iz točke 2.6 14. člena, da morajo biti javna naročila storitev, del in blaga s strani javnih organov skladna s pravili, določenimi v priročniku Skupnosti, se lahko zamenja z milejšimi določbami in tudi s takimi, ki dovoljujejo pogajanja, pri čemer se organi posvetujejo z izbranimi ponudniki in se z enim ali več dogovorijo za pogodbene pogoje.”
3. V razdelku B
– V 4. členu se doda naslednji odstavek:
“6. Če Komisija ugotovi, da je Republiko Slovenijo prizadela izjemna naravna nesreča, lahko na podlagi utemeljenega zaprosila Republike Slovenije za ustrezne projekte na prizadetem območju in za določeno obdobje odobri odstopanja od določb točke (e) drugega odstavka, točk (b) in (c) tretjega odstavka in četrtega odstavka tega člena.”
– Drugi odstavek 6. člena se nadomesti s tem:
“2. Spremljanje in nadzor se izvajata na podlagi fizičnih, okoljskih in finančnih kazalcev. Kazalci spremljanja in nadzora, ki ponazarjajo v program vložena sredstva in dosežene rezultate programa, se nanašajo na posebnosti take pomoči, njene cilje ter na socialno-ekonomske, strukturne in okoljske razmere Republike Slovenije.”
– V točki (c) petega odstavka 8. člena se na novo doda:
“(v) podatke, ki kažejo, da sredstva Skupnosti niso nadomestila financiranja Republike Slovenije.”
4. V razdelku C se doda ta člen:
“8. člen
Evropski sporazumi
Republika Slovenija zagotovi, da se za vsako državno pomoč, ki z ugodnejšim obravnavanjem določenih podjetij ali proizvodnje določenega blaga po programu SAPARD izkrivlja ali morda lahko izkrivlja konkurenco in se nanaša na izdelke, ki niso navedeni v II. in III. poglavju III. oddelka evropskega sporazuma, upošteva 65. člen(*3) evropskega sporazuma.”
5. V razdelku D se obrazcu D-1 doda preglednica A1 (priložena kot priloga III).
6. V razdelku F
– Seznam držav, navedenih pod zaporedno številko 8 v stolpcu (e), se nadomesti s tem:
“Bolgarija, Češka republika, Estonija, Latvija, Litva, Madžarska, Poljska, Romunija, Slovaška, Slovenija, Ciper, Malta in Turčija.”
– Določbe pod zap. št. 7.3 se pod 7.3.1 v stolpcu (e) nadomestijo s temi:
“7.3.1 V dveh mesecih po koncu vsakega četrtletja Republika Slovenija poroča Komisiji o vseh nepravilnostih, zaradi katerih so bile začete upravne ali sodne preiskave. Poročilo je treba predložiti v skladu z obrazcem iz dodatka I k temu razdelku.”
– Določbe pod zap. št. 7.5 se pod številko 7.5.1 v stolpcu (e) nadomestijo s temi:
“7.5.1 V dveh mesecih po koncu vsakega četrtletja Republika Slovenija v zvezi z vsakim predhodnim poročilom iz zap. št. 7.3 z obrazcem iz dodatka I k temu razdelku obvesti Komisijo o postopkih, ki jih je uvedla po vseh prej javljenih nepravilnostih, in o pomembnih spremembah, ki so iz tega sledile.”
– Priloga I tega letnega sporazuma o financiranju se kot dodatek I priloži razdelku F Večletnega sporazuma o financiranju.
5. člen
Začetek veljavnosti
Sporazum začne veljati na dan, ko sta se pogodbenici uradno obvestili, da so končane vse potrebne formalnosti za njegovo sklenitev.
6. člen
Podpis
Sporazum je sestavljen v dveh izvodih v angleškem in slovenskem jeziku, verodostojno pa je samo angleško besedilo.
Sestavljeno v Bruslju in v Ljubljani na sedmi dan meseca aprila leta dva tisoč tri.
Za Komisijo Evropskih skupnosti:
Franz Fischler l.r.
član Komisije
Za Republiko Slovenijo:
Franci But l.r.
minister za kmetijstvo, gozdarstvo in prehrano
(*1) UL L 161, 26. 6. 1999, str. 87–93.
(*2) SEC 1999 1801/2.
(*3) UL L 051, 26. 2. 1999, str. 0003–0206.
PRILOGA I
ZAUPNO Št. zadeve: DP/XX/XXX/S/X
ČETRTLETNO POROČILO O NEPRAVILNOSTIH
V ZVEZI S POSEBNIM PRISTOPNIM PROGRAMOM
ZA KMETIJSTVO IN RAZVOJ PODEŽELJA (SAPARD),
KOT JE ZAHTEVANO V ZAP. ŠT. 7.3 IN 7.5
RAZDELKA F VEČLETNEGA SPORAZUMA
O FINANCIRANJU
OSNOVNI PODATKI ZA IDENTIFIKACIJO SPOROČILA
Država prosilka:
Številka zadeve: XX/XX/XXX/S/0 (*4)
Četrtletje: XX/XX (*5)
Poslano dne:
Upravni oddelek v državi prosilki:
Točka za stike: Ime in priimek: Telefon:
Faks: E-pošta:
(*4) Razen zadnje številke ostaja številka zadeve enaka in je sestavljena iz
začetnic imena držav prosilke, letnice, trimestne številke zadeve, črke S za
SAPARD, 0 za prvo sporočilo, 1 za prvo nadaljnje sporočilo, 2 za drugo nadaljnje
sporočilo itd., npr. PO/02/001/S/0
(*5) Števki za leto in števki za četrtletje, npr. 0203, 0206, 0209, 0212.
PODROBNOSTI O NEPRAVILNOSTI
1 Opis posla
1.1 Ime programa:
1.2 Sklep Komisije o odobritvi programa:
1.3 Ime ukrepa in naziv projekta:
1.4 Številka projekta države prosilke:
2 Kršena določba
2.1 Kršena določba Skupnosti:
2.2 Kršena določba države:
3 Datum prve informacije, na podlagi katere je bilo mogoče posumiti,
a gre za nepravilnost:
3.1 Vir prve informacije, na podlagi katere je bilo mogoče posumiti,
da gre za nepravilnost:
4 Način odkritja nepravilnosti:
5 Vrsta nepravilnosti
5.1 Postopki, uporabljeni pri storjeni nepravilnosti:
5.2 Ali so to morda novi postopki?
da ( ) ne ( )
5.3 Če so, ali je bilo o tem poslano uradno obvestilo po zap. št. 7.4
razdelka F Večletnega sporazuma o financiranju?
6 Ali so vključene tudi druge države?
da( ) ne( )
6.1 Če so, ali je bilo o tem poslano uradno obvestilo po zap. št. 7.4
razdelka F Večletnega sporazuma o financiranju?
da ( ) Datum in številka dopisa:
ne ( ) ni znano ( )
7 Obdobje nepravilnosti
7.1 Datum storitve nepravilnosti ali datumi, med katerimi je bila
nepravilnost storjena:
8 Organi
8.1 Organi, ki so sestavili prvo uradno poročilo o nepravilnosti:
8.2 Organi, odgovorni za nadaljnje upravno ali sodno ukrepanje:
9 Datum sestavljenega uradnega poročila o nepravilnosti:
10 Ime in naslov vpletenih fizičnih in pravnih oseb
10.1 Fizične osebe:
– Priimek:
– Ime:
– Naslov:
– Poštna številka:
– Kraj:
– Država:
– Funkcija:
10.2 Pravne osebe:
– Ime:
– Sedež:
– Poštna številka:
– Država:
FINANČNI VIDIKI
11 Skupni znesek in porazdelitev med vire financiranja
11.1 Skupni znesek posla:
11.2 Financiranje Skupnosti:
11.3 Financiranje države prosilke:
12 Vrsta in znesek izdatka, za katerega je bila ugotovljena
nepravilnost
12.1 Vrsta izdatka:
12.2 Skupni znesek izdatka:
12.3 Izdatek Skupnosti:
12.4 Izdatek države prosilke:
13 Znesek, ki bi bil nepravilno izplačan, če nepravilnost ne bi bila
odkrita:
14 Finančne posledice
14.1 Znesek izdatka iz 12.2, ki še ni izplačan:
Znesek EU:
Znesek države prosilke:
15 Možnost za izterjavo zneska:
16 Skupni izterjani znesek:
16.1 Delež Skupnosti:
16.2 Delež države prosilke:
17 Skupni znesek, ki ga je treba izterjati:
17.1 Delež Skupnosti:
17.2 Delež države prosilke:
18 Datum posebnega poročila po 7.5.2 razdelka F Večletnega sporazuma
o financiranju:
STOPNJA POSTOPKOV
19 Ukrepanje države prosilke
19.1 Začasni ukrepi:
20 Upravni postopki:
21 Sodni postopki:
22 Razlogi za opustitev postopka izterjave:
22.1 Ali je bila Komisija uradno obveščena pred sprejetjem sklepa o
opustitvi postopka izterjave?
da ( ) Datum in številka dopisa:
ne ( ) ni znano ( )
23 Ali je bi opuščen kazenski postopek?
da ( ) ne ( ) ni znano ( )
24 Končanje postopkov
24.1 Ali je bila Komisija uradno obveščena o upravnih ali sodnih
odločbah ali o glavnih točkah teh odločb o končanju postopkov v
skladu s 7.5.1 razdelka F Večletnega sporazuma o financiranju:
da ( ) Datum in številka dopisa:
ne ( ) ni znano ( )
25 Naložene kazni (upravne in/ali sodne):
26 Dodatne ugotovitve:
SPECIAL ACCESSION PROGRAMME FOR
AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT
IN THE REPUBLIC OF SLOVENIA
ANNUAL FINANCING AGREEMENT 2002
between
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
ON BEHALF OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY
and
THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF SLOVENIA
ANNUAL FINANCING AGREEMENT 2002
The Commission of the European Communities, hereinafter referred to as “the Commission”, acting for and on behalf of the European Community, hereinafter referred to as “the Community”
of the one part, and
The Government of the Republic of Slovenia acting for and on behalf of the Republic of Slovenia, hereinafter referred to as “the Republic of Slovenia”
of the other part,
and together jointly referred to as “the Contracting Parties”,
Whereas:
(1) A Special Accession Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development (hereinafter referred to as “SAPARD”) providing for a Community financial contribution has been established by Council Regulation (EC) No 1268/1999 on Community support for pre-accession measures for agriculture and rural development in the Applicant Countries of central and eastern Europe in the pre-accession period(*1);
(2) The plan submitted by the Republic of Slovenia was approved as an Agriculture and Rural Development Programme by a Decision taken in accordance with Article 4 (5) of Regulation (EC) No 1268/1999 on 27 October 2000;
(3) The Multi-Annual Financing Agreement between the Commission of the European Communities acting on behalf of the European Community and the Government of the Republic of Slovenia acting for and on behalf of the Republic of Slovenia, hereinafter referred to as the Multi-Annual Financing Agreement between the Community and the Republic of Slovenia, has been concluded on 28 August 2001 and provides in Article 2 that the financial commitment of the Community shall be set out in Annual Financing Agreements;
(4) It is necessary to set out the Community financial commitment for the year 2002 for the execution of the Agriculture and Rural Development Programme, and any amendments thereof, (hereinafter referred to as “the Programme”), in the Republic of Slovenia, and to state the period of validity of that commitment. As enlargement of the Community may take place within the period of validity for payments of the 2002 financing commitment, the precaution is taken to limit the period for entering into new contracts by the SAPARD Agency to any beneficiary, in order to ensure a proper transition between the SAPARD instrument and any new form of assistance for rural development for the Republic of Slovenia as a member of the European Union. This is done without prejudice of the outcome of any possible Act of Accession;
(5) Article 12(4) of Council Regulation No 2500/2001 of 17 December 2001 modified Regulation No 1268/1999 by extending to natural and legal persons from Cyprus, Malta and Turkey the right to participate in invitations to tender and contracts inter alia under SAPARD on the same terms that apply to all natural and legal persons from Member States and beneficiary countries. It is therefore necessary to extend to these countries that right and to allow them to enjoy the same origin provisions as granted to all Applicant Countries;
(6) In the light of the exceptional natural disasters causing flooding in August 2002, of experience gained and comments made since signature of the Multi-Annual Financing Agreement between the Community and the Republic of Slovenia, it appears necessary to make certain other adjustments to that agreement. In particular it is appropriate to adjust the provisions concerning project selection for certain measures;
HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:
Article 1
Objective
This Agreement sets out the Community financial commitment for the Republic of Slovenia for the year 2002. It also modifies the Multi-annual Financing Agreement signed on 5.03.2001, as amended.
Article 2
Commitment
The financial contribution of the Community for the year 2002 is limited to 6.757.436 EUR. This commitment is valid only for execution of the Programme in conformity with the Multi-annual Financing Agreement between the Community and the Republic of Slovenia.
Article 3
Period of commitment
The Commission shall automatically decommit any part of the commitment referred to in Article 2 which has not been settled by a payment on account, or for which it has not received an acceptable payment application, by 31 December 2004 at the latest.
Without prejudice to provisions which may be laid down in an Act of Accession for the Republic of Slovenia, no contract involving Community funds relating to this Agreement shall be entered into by the SAPARD Agency with any beneficiary later than the date for this country to enter into contracts involving a form of assistance for Rural Development for the Republic of Slovenia as a member of the European Union.
Article 4
Modification of the Multi-Annual Financing Agreement
The Multi-annual Financing Agreement concluded between the Commission and the Republic of Slovenia, is modified as follows:
1. Article 8 is replaced by the following:
“Article 8
Contact Points
1. Correspondence relating to any matter, except information set out in Appendix I to Section F, falling within the scope of this Multi-Annual Financing Agreement, and/or the scope of the Annual Financing Agreements provided for in Article 2, where appropriate stating the Programme’s number and title, shall be addressed to the following:
for the Community:
Commission of the European Communities
Directorate General Agriculture
SAPARD Unit
Rue de la Loi 130, B – 1049 Brussels
Telephone: 00 32 2 296 73 37
Fax: 00 32 2 295 17 46
E-MAIL: agri-sapard@cec.eu.int
for the Republic of Slovenia:
Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food
(Ministrstvo za kmetijstvo, gozdarstvo in prehrano)
Dunajska 56, 58, SI – 1000 Ljubljana
Slovenia
Telephone: 00 386 1 478 91 04
Fax: 00 386 1 478 90 21
E-MAIL: sapard.mkgp@gov.si
and
Ministry of Finance, National Fund
(Ministrstvo za finance, Nacionalni sklad)
Beethovnova 11, SI – 1502 Ljubljana
Slovenia
Telephone: 00 386 1 478 63 05
Fax: 00 386 1 478 62 04
E-MAIL: mf.nfsapard@mf-rs.si
2. Correspondence relating to information set out in Appendix I to Section F, falling within the scope of this Multi-Annual Financing Agreement, and/or the scope of the Annual Financing Agreements provided for in Article 2, where appropriate stating the Programme’s number and title, shall be addressed to the following:
for the Community:
European Commission
European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF)
Directorate C
30, Rue Joseph II
B – 1049 Brussels
for the Republic of Slovenia:
Ministry of Finance, Budget Supervisory Service
(Ministrstvo za finance, Služba za nadzor proračuna)
Prežihova 4, SI – 1502 Ljubljana
Slovenia. “
2. In Section A
– In Article 5 (1) the point (b) is replaced by the following:
“(b) Project selection, including the application of ranking criteria.
However,
i) where for the measure in question in the Programme there is only one designated beneficiary;
ii) for the agri-environment measure provided in the Programme the task of project selection has been granted to a designated body or bodies; and
iii) for projects involving infrastructure where in the Programme the task of project selection has been granted to a designated body or bodies;
the SAPARD Agency, without prejudice to all of its other responsibilities, including assessment of eligibility, shall not perform project selection.”
– Article 5 (7) is replaced by the following:
“7. In respect of investments in projects except those in infrastructure of a type not generating substantial net revenue, the SAPARD Agency shall ensure that for any project under the programme the cumulation of public aid granted from all sources does not exceed 50% of total eligible cost. Measures for training are considered to be human capital and not investment for the purposes of this paragraph”.
– In Article 8 (1) the point (b) is replaced by the following:
“(b) based on declarations of expenditure incurred by the beneficiary evidenced by original receipted invoices or other relevant documents where, according to the Programme, aid is not a function of expenditure. Such declarations shall include only expenditure or, in the case where aid is not a function of expenditure, events occurring no earlier than the date the contract was concluded making the claimant a beneficiary under the Programme for the project concerned, except as regards that for feasibility and related studies and for the Technical Assistance measure. Except for actions under the Technical Assistance measure, expenditure shall in no case relate to projects selected, contracts concluded by or on behalf of the SAPARD Agency and beneficiaries, and expenditure paid earlier than the date(s) specified in the Commission Decision referred to in Article 3 (1) of this Section. Where original invoices or the other relevant documents referred to in this sub-paragraph are not retained by the SAPARD Agency following receipt, the SAPARD Agency shall ensure that copies shall be taken and arrangements made to ensure that the originals will be made available for audit and inspection purposes.”
– In Article 10 (1) the point (b) is replaced by the following:
“(b) for overpayments by the SAPARD Agency and for debts not recovered by the SAPARD Agency, as well as debts that have not been collected within 2 years of their registration in the debtor’s ledger, the rate on the last but one working day at the Commission in the month preceding the month during which the overpayment or the debt were first noted.”
– In Article 14 the point 2.3.6 is replaced by the following:
“2.3.6. Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 5 (1) (b), criteria for assessing applications and their order of priority shall be clearly defined and documented.”
– In Article 14 the point 2.6 is replaced by the following:
“2.6. The rules for the procurement by public bodies of services, works and supplies in the Republic of Slovenia shall be consistent with the rules set out in the Commission manual entitled “Service, Supply, and Work Contracts concluded within the Framework of Community Co-operation for the Third Countries(*2)”. However, the requirement for ex-ante approval by the Commission included therein shall not apply. The services, works, machinery and supplies procured shall originate in the Community or in the countries referred to in Item 8 of Section F.”
– The following Article is added:
"Article 16
Exceptional natural disasters
1. Provided Council Regulation 1268/1999 has been modified accordingly, the Commission may, in the event that it determines that an exceptional natural disaster has affected the Republic of Slovenia, on the basis of a reasoned request by the Republic of Slovenia authorise, for relevant projects in the region affected and for a specified period, rates of Community co-financing to total public aid above those specified in the Programme but within the ceiling of 85%.
Moreover, the Commission may authorise derogations from the following provisions of this Section of the Agreement:
a) provided Council Regulation 1268/1999 has been modified accordingly, the 50% thresholds as provided for in Article 5 (6) and (7) may be replaced by thresholds of up to 75%;
b) in Article 7 (5) second sub paragraph, requests for additional payments on account may also be based on estimates of needs flowing from the expected impact of the exceptional natural disaster;
c) in Article 8 (1) (b):
– the requirement for declarations of expenditure incurred by the beneficiary to be evidenced by receipted invoices may be replaced by a formal decision by the SAPARD Agency to support the project. The criteria for such decisions shall be specified in the reasoned request submitted by the Republic of Slovenia and approved by the Commission. The beneficiary must undertake within a period not exceeding one year to provide declarations of expenditure actually incurred as provided for in Article 8 (1) (b). No payment to any beneficiary pursuant to this derogation may exceed 20% of the total cost of the investment approved by the SAPARD Agency and any such payment shall be the subject of appropriate guarantees;
– the provision limiting expenditure declarations to events occurring no earlier than the date the contract was concluded making the claimant a beneficiary shall be replaced by a limit of no earlier than the date the exceptional natural disaster occurred;
d) in Article 14 point 2.6, the obligation for procurement by public bodies of services, works and supplies to be consistent with the Commission manual may be replaced by less onerous provisions including those permitting negotiated procedures whereby authorities consult providers of their choice and negotiate the terms of the contract with one or more of them.”
3. In Section B
– In Article 4 the following paragraph is added:
“6. In the event that the Commission determines that an exceptional natural disaster has affected the Republic of Slovenia it may on the basis of a reasoned request by the Republic of Slovenia authorise, for relevant projects in the region affected and for a specified period, derogations from provisions of paragraphs 2 (e), 3 (b) and 3 (c), and 4 above.”
– Article 6 (2) is replaced by the following:
“2. Monitoring shall be carried out by reference to relevant physical, environmental and financial indicators. These monitoring indicators, concerning the inputs and the outputs of the Programme, shall relate to the specific character of the assistance concerned, its objectives and the socio-economic, structural and environmental situation of the Republic of Slovenia.”
– In Article 8 (5) (c) the following indent is added:
“(v) data to demonstrate that Community funds have not replaced funding available in the Republic of Slovenia.”
4. In Section C the following Article is added:
"Article 8
Europe Agreements
The Republic of Slovenia shall ensure that for any public aid which distorts or threatens to distort competition by favouring certain undertakings or the production of certain goods granted under SAPARD, which concern products other than those referred to in Title III, Chapters II and III of the Europe Agreement, Article 65(*3) of the Europe Agreement are respected.”
5. In Section D the Table A1 (attached as Annex III) is annexed to the Form D-1.
6. In Section F
– The list of countries set out in item n° 8 column (e) is replaced by the following:
“Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Cyprus, Malta and Turkey.”
– The provisions in sub-item 7.3 under 7.3.1 column (e) are replaced by the following:
“7.3.1. During the two months following the end of each quarter, the Republic of Slovenia shall report to the Commission any irregularities, which have been the subject of initial administrative or judicial investigations. This report shall be presented in accordance with the form in Appendix I to this Section.”
– The provisions in sub-item 7.5 under 7.5.1 column (e) are replaced by the following:
“7.5.1. During the two months following the end of each quarter, the Republic of Slovenia shall inform the Commission, using the form in Appendix I to this Section and with reference to any previous report made under sub-item 7.3, of the procedures instituted following all irregularities previously notified and of important changes resulting therefrom.”
– The Annex I to this Annual Financing Agreement is attached as Appendix I to Section F of the Multi-Annual Financing Agreement.
Article 5
Entry into Force
This Agreement shall enter into force on the date when both Contracting Parties have notified each other of the completion of all necessary formalities for its conclusion.
Article 6
Signature
This Agreement shall be drawn up in duplicate in English and in Slovenian, only the English text being authentic.
Done at Brussels and at Ljubljana, respectively, this seventh day of April in the year two thousand and three.
For the Commission of the European Communities:
Franz Fischler (s)
Member of the Commission
For the Republic of Slovenia:
Franci But (s)
Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Food
(*1) OJ L 161, 26.6.1999, p. 87–93.
(*2) SEC(1999) 1801/2
(*3) OJ L 051, 26.2.1999, p. 0003–0206.
ANNEX I
CONFIDENTIAL Case No: AC/XX/XXX/S/X
QUARTERLY COMMUNICATION OF IRREGULARITIES
IN CONNECTION WITH THE SPECIAL ACCESSION
PROGRAMME FOR AGRICULTURE AND RURAL
DEVELOPMENT (SAPARD) AS REQUIRED
BY SECTIONS F – 7.3 AND F – 7.5 OF
THE MULTI-ANNUAL FINANCING AGREEMENT
IDENTIFICATION OF COMMUNICATION
Applicant Country:
Case Number: XX/XX/XXX/S/0 (*4)
Quarter: XX/XX (*5)
Date Sent:
Administrative Department in Applicant Country:
Contact Point: Name: Phone:
Fax: E-mail:
(*4) With the exception of the last digit the case number remains the same and
is composed of: applicant country’s initials/year/three digit case number/S for
SAPARD/0 for initial communication, 1 for first update, 2 for second update etc.
eg PO/02/001/S/0.
(*5) Two digits for the year and two digits for the quarter eg 0203, 0206, 0209,
0212.
DETAILS OF IRREGULARITY
1. Description of Operation
1.1 Name of programme:
1.2 Commission Decision approving the programme:
1.3 Name of measure and title of project:
1.4 Applicant country’s project number:
2. Provision Infringed
2.1 Community provision infringed:
2.2 National provision infringed:
3. Date of First Information Leading to Suspicion of Irregularity:
3.1 Source of first information leading to suspicion of
irregularity:
4. Manner in which Irregularity was discovered:
5. Type of Irregularity
5.1 Practices employed in committing the irregularity:
5.2 Are these practices considered new?
Yes ( ) No ( )
5.3 If yes, has notification been sent under Section F-7.4 of the
Multi-Annual Financing Agreement?
6. Are other Countries Involved?
Yes ( ) No ( )
6.1 If yes, has notification been sent under Section F-7.4 of the
Multi-Annual Financing Agreement?
Yes ( ) Date and reference:
No ( ) Not known ( )
7. Period of Irregularity
7.1 Date on which, or dates between which, the irregularity was
committed:
8. Authorities or Bodies
8.1 Authorities or bodies which drew up the official report on the
irregularity:
8.2 Authorities or bodies responsible for administrative or
judicial follow-up:
9. Date on which the Official Report on the Irregularity was drawn
up:
10. Name and Address of Natural and Legal Persons Involved
10.1 Natural Persons:
– Name:
– First Name:
– Address:
– Postal Code:
– City:
– Country:
– Function:
10.2 Legal Persons:
– Name:
– Registered Office:
– Postal Code:
– Country:
FINANCIAL ASPECTS
11. Total Amount and Distribution between Sources of Financing
11.1 Total amount of the operation:
11.2 Community financing:
11.3 Applicant country financing:
12. Nature and Amount of the Expenditure Found to be Irregular
12.1 Nature of the expenditure:
12.2 Total amount of the expenditure:
12.3 Community expenditure:
12.4 Applicant country expenditure:
13. Amount which would have been wrongly paid if the Irregularity
had not been discovered:
14. Financial consequences
14.1 Amount of expenditure under 12.2 not yet paid:
Amount EU:
Amount applicant country:
15. Possibility of Recovery:
16. Total Amount Recovered:
16.1 Community share:
16.2 Applicant country share:
17. Total Amount to be Recovered:
17.1 Community share:
17.2 Applicant country share:
18. Date of Special Report in accordance with Section F – 7.5.2 of
the Multi-Annual Financing Agreement:
STAGE OF PROCEDURES
19. Action by Applicant Country
19.1 Interim measures:
20. Administrative Proceedings:
21. Judicial Proceedings:
22. Reasons for any abandonment of recovery proceedings:
22.1 Was the Commission notified before the decision to abandon the
recovery procedure was taken?
Yes ( ) Date and reference:
No ( ) Not known ( )
23. Have criminal proceedings been abandoned?
Yes ( ) No ( ) Not known ( )
24. Termination of Procedures
24.1 Has the Commission been notified of administrative or judicial
decisions or the main points thereof, concerning termination of
proceedings in accordance with Section F-7.5.1 of the Multi-Annual
Financing Agreement:
Yes ( ) Date and references:
No ( ) Not known ( )
25. Penalties imposed (administrative and/or judicial):
26. Additional observations:
3. člen
Za izvajanje sporazuma skrbi Ministrstvo za kmetijstvo, gozdarstvo in prehrano.
4. člen
Ta zakon začne veljati naslednji dan po objavi v Uradnem listu Republike Slovenije – Mednarodne pogodbe.
Št. 411-04/03-11/1
Ljubljana, dne 15. julija 2003
EPA 908-III
Predsednik
Državnega zbora
Republike Slovenije
Borut Pahor l. r.
