THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 1592/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 July 2002 on common rules in the field of civil aviation and establishing a European Aviation Safety Agency(1), and in particular Article 53(1) thereof,
After consulting the Management Board of the European Aviation Safety Agency,
Whereas:
(1) Commission Regulation (EC) No 488/2005(2) established the fees and charges to be levied by the European Aviation Safety Agency (hereinafter ‘the Agency’).
(2) The revenues of the Agency, consist of a contribution from the Community and from any European third country which has entered into the agreements referred to in Article 55 of Regulation (EC) No 1592/2002, of the fees paid by applicants for certificates and approvals issued, maintained or amended by the Agency, and of charges for publications, handling of appeals, training and any other service provided by the Agency.
(3) The Agency’s revenue and expenditure should be in balance.
(4) Fees and charges referred to in this Regulation should be demanded and levied by the Agency only and in euro. They should be set in a transparent, fair and uniform manner.
(5) The fees levied by the Agency should not jeopardize the competitiveness of the European industries concerned. Furthermore, they should be established on a basis which takes due account of the ability of small undertakings to pay.
(6) While civil aviation safety should be the prime concern, the Agency should nevertheless take full account of cost efficiency when conducting the tasks incumbent on it.
(7) The geographical location of the undertakings in the territories of the Member States should not be a discriminatory factor. Consequently, the travel costs related to the certification tasks carried out on behalf of such undertakings should be aggregated and divided between the applicants.
(8) The applicant should be informed, as far as possible, of the foreseeable amount to be paid for the service which will be provided and the way in which payment must be made before provision of the service starts. The criteria for determining the amount to be paid should be clear, uniform and public. Where it is impossible to determine this amount in advance, the applicant should be informed accordingly before provision of the service starts. In such a case, clear rules for assessing the amount to be paid during the provision of the service should be agreed before it is provided.
(9) The industry should enjoy good financial visibility and be able to anticipate the cost of the fees it will be required to pay. At the same time, it is necessary to ensure a balance between overall expenditure incurred by the Agency in carrying out certification tasks and overall income from the fees it levies. It should therefore be possible to review the levels of fees annually on the basis of the Agency’s financial results and forecasts.
(10) Interested parties should be consulted prior to any modification of fees. Moreover, the Agency should regularly provide interested parties with information on how and on what basis the fees are calculated. Such information should provide interested parties with an insight into the costs incurred by the Agency and its productivity.
(11) The tariffs set out in this Regulation should be based on Agency's forecasts as regards its workload and related costs.
(12) This Regulation should be reviewed within five years from its entry into force.
(13) Regulation (EC) No 488/2005 should be repealed.
(14) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee established by Article 54(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1592/2002,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
OJ L 240, 7.9.2002, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 1701/2003 (OJ L 243, 27.9.2003, p. 5).
OJ L 81, 30.3.2005, p. 7. Regulation as amended by Regulation (EC) No 779/2006 (OJ L 137, 25.5.2006, p. 3).