1.The revenues and resources of the Office shall consist, in particular, of:
(a)a subsidy from the Community, entered under the appropriate headings of the general budget of the European Union (Commission Section), as decided by the budgetary authority and in accordance with Point 47 of the IIA of 17 May 2006;
(b)financial contributions from Member States or from their NRAs made on a voluntary basis in accordance with Article 5(2). These contributions shall be used to finance specific items of operational expenditure as defined in the agreement to be concluded between the Office and the Member States or their NRAs pursuant to Article 19(1)(b) of Commission Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2343/2002 of 19 November 2002 on the framework Financial Regulation for the bodies referred to in Article 185 of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities(1). Each Member State shall ensure that NRAs have the adequate financial resources required to participate in the work of the Office. Before the establishment of the preliminary draft general budget of the European Union, the Office shall forward to the budgetary authority appropriate, timely and detailed documentation on assigned revenues under this Article.
2.The expenditure of the Office shall cover staff, administrative, infrastructure and operational expenses.
3.Revenue and expenditure shall be in balance.
4.All revenue and expenditure shall be the subject of forecasts for each financial year, coinciding with the calendar year, and shall be entered in the budget of the Office.
5.The organisational and financial structure of the Office shall be reviewed five years after the date of establishment of the Office.
1.By 15 February of each year, the Administrative Manager shall assist the Management Committee with the preparation of a preliminary draft budget covering the expenditure anticipated for the following financial year, together with a list of provisional posts. Each year the Management Committee shall, on the basis of the draft, make an estimate of revenue and expenditure of the Office for the following financial year. That estimate, including a draft establishment plan, shall be transmitted by the Management Committee to the Commission by 31 March.
2.The estimate shall be transmitted by the Commission to the budgetary authority together with the preliminary draft general budget of the European Union.
3.On the basis of the estimates, the Commission shall enter in the preliminary draft general budget of the European Union the forecasts it considers necessary in respect of the establishment plan and propose the amount of the subsidy.
4.The budgetary authority shall adopt the establishment plan for the Office.
5.The budget of the Office shall be drawn up by the Management Committee. It shall become final after the final adoption of the general budget of the European Union. Where necessary, it shall be adjusted accordingly.
6.The Management Committee shall, without delay, notify the budgetary authority of its intention to implement any project which may have significant financial implications for the funding of the budget, in particular any project relating to property such as the rental or purchase of buildings. It shall inform the Commission thereof. If either branch of the budgetary authority intends to issue an opinion, it shall, within two weeks after receipt of the information on the building project, notify the Management Committee of its intention to issue such an opinion. In the absence of a reply, the Management Committee may proceed with the planned operation.
1.The Administrative Manager shall act as authorising officer and shall implement the Office’s budget under the supervision of the Management Committee.
2.The Management Committee shall draw up an annual activity report for the Office, together with a statement of assurance. Those documents shall be made public.
3.By 1 March following the completion of each financial year, the Office accounting officer shall forward to the Commission’s accounting officer and the Court of Auditors the provisional accounts accompanied by the report on budgetary and financial management over the financial year. The Office accounting officer shall also send the report on budgetary and financial management to the European Parliament and the Council by 31 March of the following year. The Commission’s accounting officer shall thereafter consolidate the provisional accounts of the institutions and decentralised bodies in accordance with Article 128 of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002.
4.By 31 March following the completion of each financial year, the Commission’s accounting officer shall forward the provisional accounts of the Office accompanied by the report on the budgetary and financial management over the financial year to the Court of Auditors. The report on budgetary and financial management over the financial year shall also be forwarded to the European Parliament and the Council.
5.After receiving the observations of the Court of Auditors on the provisional accounts of the Office, in accordance with Article 129 of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002, the Administrative Manager shall, acting on his or her own responsibility, draw up the final accounts of the Office and transmit them, for opinion, to the Management Committee.
6.The Management Committee shall deliver an opinion on the final accounts of the Office.
7.The Administrative Manager shall transmit these final accounts, accompanied by the opinion of the Management Committee, by 1 July following the completion of the financial year, to the European Parliament, the Council, the Commission and the Court of Auditors.
8.The final accounts shall be published.
9.The Management Committee shall reply to the Court of Auditors’ observations by 15 October. The Management Committee shall also send this reply to the European Parliament and the Commission.
10.The Management Committee shall submit to the European Parliament, at the latter’s request, and as provided for in Article 146(3) of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002, any information necessary for the smooth application of the discharge procedure for the financial year in question.
11.The European Parliament shall, following a recommendation from the Council acting by a qualified majority, before 15 May of year N + 2, grant a discharge to the Management Committee for the implementation of the budget for the financial year N.
The Internal Auditor of the Commission shall be responsible for auditing the Office.
Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2343/2002 shall apply to the Office. Further financial rules applicable to the Office shall be drawn up by the Management Committee after consultation with the Commission. Those rules may deviate from Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2343/2002 if the specific operational needs of the functioning of the Office so require and only with the prior agreement of the Commission.
1.For the purpose of combating fraud, corruption and other illegal acts, the provisions of Regulation (EC) No 1073/1999 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 May 1999 concerning investigations conducted by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF)(2) shall apply without any restriction.
2.The Office shall accede to the Interinstitutional 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)(3) and shall immediately adopt appropriate provisions for all staff of the Office.
3.The funding decisions and the agreements and implementing instruments resulting from them shall explicitly stipulate that the Court of Auditors and OLAF may, if necessary, carry out on-the-spot checks among the beneficiaries of monies disbursed by the Office and on the staff responsible for allocating these monies.