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THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 861/2006 of 22 May 2006 establishing Community financial measures for the implementation of the common fisheries policy and in the area of the Law of the Sea(1), and in particular Article 31 thereof,
Whereas:
(1) Council Regulation (EC) No 199/2008 of 25 February 2008 concerning the establishment of a Community framework for the collection, management and use of data in the fisheries sector and support for scientific advice regarding the Common Fisheries Policy(2) establishes a basis for scientific analyses of fisheries and for providing the formulation of sound scientific advice for the implementation of the Common Fisheries Policy.
(2) The Commission is to adopt a multi-annual Community programme pursuant to Council Regulation (EC) No 199/2008 based on which the Member States should establish multi-annual national programmes for the collection, management and use of data.
(3) Article 9 of Regulation (EC) No 861/2006 provides, amongst other actions, for Community financial contribution for measures in the area of basic data collection. Moreover, Article 24 of that Regulation requires the Commission to decide each year on the annual Community contribution to those measures.
(4) In view of the principle of sound financial management, it is necessary to lay down the rules and procedures to be complied with by Member States in order to benefit from Community financial assistance for expenditure incurred in the area of data collection. It is also appropriate that the non-compliance with such rules and procedures entails the exclusion of expenditures.
(5) The annual Community contribution should be based on annual budget forecasts which should be evaluated taking into account the national programmes established by the Member States.
(6) With a view to ensure that Community funds are allocated efficiently, the annual budget forecast should be consistent with the activities foreseen in the national programme.
(7) With a view to simplifying procedures, it is necessary to establish the rules and the format for the submission by Member States of the annual budgetary forecast in relation to the execution of the national programmes. Only costs directly related to the implementation of the national programmes, which are properly justified and actually incurred by the Member States, should be considered eligible. In this respect, it is also relevant to clarify the role and obligations of partners and sub-contractors in the implementation of the national programmes.
(8) With regard to the possibility to amend the technical aspects of the multi-annual programmes as provided for in Article 5(2) of Council Regulation (EC) No 199/2008, it is appropriate to establish the rules under which the Member States may amend adequately the funds necessary for the proper implementation of the national programmes. Member States should be allowed to reallocate funds between different cost categories if this is considered of a benefit for the implementation of the national programme.
(9) Rules should be established in order to ensure that the claims for reimbursement of expenditure are in line with the Commission Decision approving the annual Community contribution. Those rules should include the procedure for submission and approval of such claims. Where appropriate, claims which do not comply with those rules should be de-committed.
(10) It is appropriate that payments are made in two instalments, thus allowing Member States to benefit already from the Community financial contribution during the period of implementation of the programme.
(11) In view of ensuring correct use of Community funds, the Commission and the Court of Audit should be in a position to verify the compliance with the provisions provided in this Regulation and should, for that purpose, be provided with any information relevant for carrying out the audits and financial corrections as referred to in Article 28 of Regulation (EC) No 861/2006.
(12) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee for Fisheries and Aquaculture,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: