Regulation (EU) No 1299/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 on specific provisions for the support from the European Regional Development Fund to the European territorial cooperation goal

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 178 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 (1),

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions (2),

Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure,

Whereas:

(1) Article 176 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) provides that the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) is intended to help to redress the main regional imbalances in the Union. Under that Article and the second and third paragraphs of Article 174 TFEU, the ERDF is to contribute to reducing disparities between the levels of development of the various regions and to reducing the backwardness of the least favoured regions, among which particular attention is to be paid to rural areas, areas affected by industrial transition, and regions which suffer from severe and permanent natural or demographic handicaps such as the northernmost regions with very low population density and island, cross-border and mountain regions.

(2) Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (3) sets out provisions common to the ERDF, the European Social Fund (ESF), the Cohesion Fund, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF). Regulation (EU) No 1301/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (4) sets out specific provisions concerning the type of activities which can be supported by the ERDF, and defines the goals for those activities. Those Regulations are not fully adapted to the specific needs of the European territorial cooperation goal, where at least two Member States or one Member State and a third country cooperate. It is therefore necessary to lay down provisions specific to the European territorial cooperation goal concerning scope, geographical coverage, financial resources, thematic concentration and investment priorities, programming, monitoring and evaluation, technical assistance, eligibility, management, control and designation, participation of third countries, and financial management.

(3) In order to increase the added value of the Union's cohesion policy, specific provisions should be aimed at achieving considerable simplification for all those involved: beneficiaries, programme authorities, authorities in participating Member States, at local, regional or national level, as appropriate, and third countries, as well as the Commission.

(4) In order to support the harmonious development of the Union's territory at different levels, the ERDF should support cross-border, transnational and interregional cooperation under the European territorial cooperation goal.

(5) Cross-border cooperation should aim to tackle common challenges identified jointly in the border regions, such as: poor accessibility, especially in relation to information and communication technologies (ICT) connectivity and transport infrastructure, declining local industries, an inappropriate business environment, lack of networks among local and regional administrations, low levels of research and innovation and take-up of ICT, environmental pollution, risk prevention, negative attitudes towards neighbouring country citizens and aim to exploit the untapped growth potential in border areas (development of cross-border research and innovation facilities and clusters, cross-border labour market integration, cooperation among education providers, including universities or between health centres), while enhancing the cooperation process for the purpose of the overall harmonious development of the Union.

(6) Transnational cooperation should aim to strengthen cooperation by means of actions conducive to integrated territorial development linked to the Union's cohesion policy priorities, and should also include maritime cross-border cooperation not covered by cross-border cooperation programmes.

(7) Interregional cooperation should aim to reinforce the effectiveness of cohesion policy by encouraging exchange of experience between regions on thematic objectives and urban development, including urban-rural linkages, to improve implementation of territorial cooperation programmes and actions as well as promoting analysis of development trends in the area of territorial cohesion through studies, data collection and other measures. The exchange of experience on thematic objectives should enhance design and implementation, principally of operational programmes under the Investment for growth and jobs goal, but also, where appropriate, of programmes under the European territorial cooperation goal, including the fostering of mutually beneficial cooperation between innovative research-intensive clusters and exchanges between researchers and research institutions in both developed and less developed regions, taking into consideration the experience of 'Regions of Knowledge' and 'Research potential in Convergence and Outermost regions' under the Seventh Framework Programme for Research.

(8) Objective criteria for designating eligible regions and areas should be fixed. To this end, the identification of eligible regions and areas at Union level should be based on the common system of classification of the regions established by Regulation (EC) No 1059/2003 of the European Parliament and of the Council (5).

(9) Cross-border cooperation should support regions located on land or maritime borders. Based on experience from previous programming periods, the Commission should define the list of cross-border areas that are to receive support under cross-border cooperation programmes in a simpler way, by cooperation programme. In drawing up that list, the Commission should take into account adjustments needed to ensure coherence, in particular with regard to land and maritime borders, and continuity of programme areas established for the 2007-2013 programming period. Such adjustments could involve reducing or enlarging existing programme areas or the number of cross-border cooperation programmes, while allowing for the possibility of geographical overlap.

(10) The Commission should define transnational cooperation areas having regard to actions needed to promote integrated territorial development. In defining those areas, the Commission should take into account the experience obtained in previous programmes and, where appropriate, macro-regional and sea-basin strategies.

(11) To ensure that all regions in the Union can benefit from the exchange of experience and good practices, interregional cooperation programmes should cover the whole Union.

(12) It is necessary to continue supporting or, as appropriate, to establish cross-border, transnational and interregional cooperation with the Union's neighbouring third countries, as such coopearation is an important regional development policy tool and should benefit the regions of the Member States which border third countries. To that effect, the ERDF should contribute to the cross-border and sea-basin programmes established under the European Neighbourhood Instrument (ENI) pursuant to a future Union legislative act concerning the European Neighbourhood Instrument for the period 2014–2020 (the 'ENI legislative act') and the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA II) pursuant to a future Union legislative act concerning the Pre-Accession Assistance for the period 2014-2020 (the 'IPA II legislative act').

(13) Apart from interventions on external borders supported by external policy instruments of the Union covering border regions inside and outside the Union, it should be possible for cooperation programmes supported by the ERDF to cover regions both inside and, in certain cases, outside the Union, where the regions outside the Union are not covered by external policy instruments either because they are not defined as a beneficiary country or because such external cooperation programmes cannot be set up. It is necessary, however, to ensure that the support from the ERDF for operations implemented in the territory of third countries should serve primarily for the benefit of the regions of the Union. Within those constraints, the Commission should, when drawing up the lists of cross-border and transnational programme areas, cover regions in third countries as well.

(14) It is necessary to set out the resources allocated to each of the different components of the European territorial cooperation goal, while maintaining a significant concentration on cross-border cooperation, including each Member State's share of the global amounts for cross-border and transnational cooperation, the potential available to Member States concerning flexibility between those components, and securing sufficient funding levels for outermost regions' cooperation.

(15) For the benefit of the regions of the Union, a mechanism to organise support from the ERDF to external policy instruments, such as the ENI and the IPA II, should be set up, including where external cooperation programmes cannot be adopted or have to be discontinued. That mechanism should seek to achieve optimal functioning and the maximum possible coordination between those instruments.

(16) The major part of the ERDF funding for cross-border and transnational cooperation programmes should be concentrated on a limited number of thematic objectives in order to maximise the impact of cohesion policy across the Union. However, the concentration under the interregional cooperation programme on thematic objectives should be reflected in the aim of each operation rather than in a limitation of the number of thematic objectives, in order to get the most out of interregional cooperation for the reinforcement of the effectiveness of cohesion policy principally under the Investment for growth and jobs goal and also, where appropriate, the European territorial cooperation goal. In the case of other interregional cooperation programmes, the thematic concentration should derive from their specific scope.

(17) In order to deliver on the targets and objectives set out in the Union strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth, the ERDF should contribute under the European territorial cooperation goal to the thematic objectives of developing an economy based on knowledge, research and innovation, including through the fostering of cooperation between businesses, particularly between SMEs, and through the promotion of the establishment of systems for cross-border information exchange in the area of ICT; promoting a greener, more resource-efficient and competitive economy, including through the promotion of sustainable cross-border mobility; fostering high employment that results in social and territorial cohesion, including through activities supporting sustainable tourism, culture and natural heritage as part of a territorial strategy aimed at achieving employment-friendly growth; and developing administrative capacity. However, the list of the investment priorities under the different thematic objectives should be adapted to the specific needs of the European territorial cooperation goal, by providing for additional investment priorities allowing in particular for the continuation under cross-border cooperation of legal and administrative cooperation, cooperation between citizens and institutions, and of cooperation in the fields of employment, training, integration of communities and social inclusion in a cross-border perspective, and by the development and coordination of macro-regional and sea-basin strategies under transnational cooperation. In addition, specific or additional investment priorities should be set out for certain interregional cooperation programmes to reflect their specific activities.

(18) Within the thematic objective of promoting social inclusion and combating poverty and taking into account its practical importance, it is necessary to ensure that, in the case of the PEACE cross-border programme between Northern Ireland and the border counties of Ireland in support of peace and reconciliation, the ERDF should also contribute to promoting social and economic stability in the regions concerned, in particular through actions to promote cohesion between communities. Given the specificities of that cross-border programme, certain rules on selection of operations in this Regulation should not apply to that cross-border programme.

(19) It is necessary to adapt the content requirements of cooperation programmes under the European territorial cooperation goal to their specific needs. Those requirements should therefore also cover aspects necessary for effective implementation on the territory of participating Member States, such as those concerning the bodies responsible for audit and control, the procedure for setting up a joint secretariat, and the allocation of liabilities in the case of financial corrections. Where Member States and regions participate in macro-regional and sea-basin strategies, the cooperation programmes concerned should set out how interventions could contribute to such strategies. In addition, due to the horizontal character of interregional cooperation programmes, the content of such cooperation programmes should be adapted, especially as regards the definition of the beneficiary or beneficiaries under the current INTERACT and ESPON programmes.

(20) In order to strengthen the co-ordination of ERDF support for cooperation programmes, adopted under this Regulation, involving the outermost regions with possible complementary financing from the European Development Fund (EDF), the ENI, the IPA II, and the European Investment Bank (EIB), Member States and third countries or overseas countries or territories (the latter hereinafter referred to as 'territories') participating in such cooperation programmes should set out rules for coordination mechanisms in those programmes.

(21) It is appropriate to involve third countries or territories in the preparatory process of cooperation programmes, where they have accepted the invitation to participate in such programmes. Special procedures should be established in this Regulation for such involvement. By way of derogation from the standard procedure, where cooperation programmes involve outermost regions and third countries or territories, the participating Member States should consult the respective third countries or territories before submitting the programmes to the Commission. In order to make the involvement of third countries or territories in cooperation programmes more effective and pragmatic, it should also be possible to have the agreements to the contents of the cooperation programmes and the possible contribution of the third countries or territories, expressed in the formally approved minutes of the consultation meetings with such third countries or territories, or of the deliberations of the regional cooperation organisations. Taking into account the principles of shared management and of simplification, the approval procedure for cooperation programmes should be such that the Commission approves only the core elements of the cooperation programmes, while the other elements should be approved by the participating Member State or Member States. For the sake of legal certainty and transparency, it is necessary to ensure that, in cases where the participating Member State or Member States amend an element of a cooperation programme which is not subject to approval by the Commission, the managing authority for that programme notifies such an amending decision to the Commission within one month of the date of that amending decision.

(22) In line with the Union strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth, the European Structural and Investment Funds should provide a more integrated and inclusive approach to tackling local problems. In order to strengthen such an approach, support from the ERDF in border regions should be coordinated with support from the EAFRD and the EMFF and should, where appropriate, involve European groupings of territorial cooperation (EGTCs) set up under Regulation (EU) No 1302/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (6) where local development is one of their objectives.

(23) Based on the experience from the 2007-2013 programming period, the conditions for selection of operations should be clarified and strengthened in order to ensure selection of only genuinely joint operations. Due to the particular context and specificities of cooperation programmes between outermost regions and third countries or territories, lightened cooperation conditions in terms of processing operations under those programmes should be established and adapted. The notion of sole beneficiaries should be defined and such beneficiaries should be permitted to carry out cooperation operations by themselves.

(24) The responsibilities of lead beneficiaries, retaining overall responsibility for the implementation of an operation, should be specified.

(25) The requirements for implementation reports should be adapted to the cooperation context and reflect the programme implementation cycle. In the interests of sound management, it should be possible for the annual review to be carried out in writing.

(26) In accordance with Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 the managing authority should ensure that evaluations of cooperation programmes are carried out on the basis of the evaluation plan and include evaluations to assess the effectiveness, efficiency and impact of those programmes. At least once during the programming period, an evaluation should assess how the support provided has contributed to the achievement of objectives of the programme. Such evaluations should include information about any proposed adjustments during the programming period.

(27) A common set of output indicators to facilitate the assessment of the progress of programme implementation, adapted to the specific character of cooperation programmes, should be set out in an Annex to this Regulation. Those indicators should be complemented by programme-specific result indicators and, where relevant, by programme specific output indicators.

(28) Due to the involvement of more than one Member State, and the resulting higher administrative costs, in particular, in respect of controls and translation, the ceiling for technical assistance expenditure should be higher than that under the Investment for growth and jobs goal. In order to offset the higher administrative costs, Member States should be encouraged wherever possible to reduce the administrative burden with regard to the implementation of joint projects. In addition, cooperation programmes with limited ERDF support should receive a certain minimum amount for technical assistance which could be greater than 6 %, to ensure sufficient funding for effective technical assistance activities.