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67 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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What is the objective of the Services Directive? |
The objective of the Services Directive is to realize the full potential of services markets in Europe by removing legal and administrative barriers to trade |
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How do businesses benefit from the Services Directive? (3) |
1. Easier establishment 2. Easier provision of cross-border services 3. Simplified procedures and formalities |
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How do customers benefit from the Services Directive? (3) |
1. Strengthened rights of consumers and businesses receiving services 2. Higher quality of services 3. Enhances information and transparency on service providers |
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What are the steps of the two-folded exercise of national implementation? (3) |
1. Proper transposition of the Directive 2. Revision of existing sectoral regulation 3. Setting up of enabling mechanisms and monitoring mechanisms |
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What are points of single contact? |
Points of contact — one-stop-shops for service providers to get information and complete administrative formalities online in all EU countries |
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What are the enabling mechanisms and monitoring mechanisms of the Services Directive? |
- Points of single contact (enabling) - Periodical peer review (monitoring) |
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What are the general principles of the Services Directive? (4) |
1. Applicable to all professional services supplied by providers established in a Member State 2. Simplification of procedures must be carried out 3. Introduction of harmonised forms 4. Mutual recognition of certificates of equivalent purpose |
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What professional services are exceptions to the Services Directive? (9) |
1. Non-economic services of general interest 2. Financial services 3. Electronic communications 4. Transport 5. Healthcare 6. Gambling 7. Some social services provided by the State 8. Notaries 9. More... |
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Under the Services Directive, there's a general principle of no authorisation regime... unless (3) |
1. The scheme does not discriminate against providers of other Member States 2. The need for such a scheme is justified on an overriding reason of public interest (necessity) 3. The objective cannot be pursued by means of a less restrictive measure (proportionality) |
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With regards to criteria, what are the conditions for granting authorisation under the freedom of etablishment for providers in the Services Directive? (8) |
1. Non-discriminatory
2. Necessary 3. Proportionate 4. Clear and unambiguous 5. Objective 6. Made public in advance 7. Transparent 8. Accessible |
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Granting authorisation under the freedom of establishment for providers is normally unlimited in time, except (3) |
1. When automatically renewed 2. When the number of authorisations are limited on general interest reasons 3. Scarcity of available natural resources |
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What requirements are prohibited under the freedom of establishment for providers? (6+) |
1. Discrimination on nationality or residency 2. Prohibition to have an establishment in more than one Member State 3. Conditions on reciprocity 4. Case-by-case applications of ex-ante economic tests 5. Direct/indirect involvement of competitors in granting the authorisation 6. ... |
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What requirements are subject to evaluation under the establishment for providers? (6+) |
1. Quantitative or territorial restrictions 2. Obligations to take a specific legal form 3. Requirements related to the shareholding of a company 4. Requirements reserving access to activity to particular providers due to specific nature of activity 5. Ban on having more than one establishment 6. Fixed, minimum or maximum tariffs - ... |
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What are the general principles of the free movement of services? (2) |
1. Members States shall respect right of providers to provide services in a country other than that where the providers is established 2. Member States shall not make the provision of any service in its territory subject to compliance with any requirement that is discriminatory or faulty on necessity and proportionality |
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What derogations are there for the free movement of services? (6) |
1. Postal 2. Electricity 3. Gas 4. Water distribution 5. Legal services 6. Case-by-case derogations if some stringent conditions are fulfilled |
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What requirements are forbidden on Member States in the free movement of services? (5+) |
1. Obligation to have establishment in own territory 2. Registering obligations 3. Bans on setting up infrastructures needed for the service 4. Restrictions on self-employment 5. Requirements on equipment or material 6. ... |
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What is the general principle of multidisciplinary activities? |
No restrictions on the exercise of multidisciplinary activities, jointly or in partnership, providing conditions for the development of such activities are fulfilled. |
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What providers can be subject to restrictions on the exercise of multidisciplinary activities? (2) |
1. Regulated professions 2. Providers of certification |
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Big One: Key Aspects of the Services Directive (7) |
1. Administrative/legislative simplification and modernization 2. Points of Single Contact --> One-stop shops 3. Review and adaptation of legal requirements that are discriminatory, unnecessary, or disproportionate 4. Ensure the provision of services cross-border 5. Prohibition of total bans on commercial communications by regulated professions 6. Limits to restrictions to the exercise of multidisciplinary activities |
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What is the scope of application of the Services Directive? Or, what is a service? |
The Service Directive applies to services, defined as self-employed, economic activities normally provided for remuneration; applies to all activities and sectors that are not expressly excluded from its scope of application. |
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In which way does the Services Directive simplify and modernize administrative procedures? |
Member States must revise their authorization schemes and decide whether these pursue an “overriding reason relating to the public interest”, are necessary and proportionate. (Article 10 of the Directive) |
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How does the Services Directive continue to simplify the authorisation procedures that continue to exist? (8) |
1. Authorisation should be valid for the whole country 2. The duration should be unlimited 3. Accept documents from other MS 4. Allow simple copies 5. Do not duplicate requirements 6. Proceedings should be dealt within a reasonable time 7. Allow electronic communications (Art. 8) 8. One-stop shops |
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According to the case law of the Court of Justice, what are the overriding reasons relating to public interest of the Services Directive? (4) |
1. Public health 2. Consumer protection 3. Animal health 4. The protection of the urban environment |
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According to Majone, what are the three main forces pushing towards a regulatory State? (3) |
1. Privatisation 2. EU legislation 3. Indirect (and self-government) culture |
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According to Pierce, what are the four periods of administrative law in the US? |
1. Inception until 1946 2. Post-War (1946 – 1970s) 3. The 70s: Deregulation 4. 80s and 90s to present |
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According to Pierce, what characterizes the origins of US admin law? (4) |
1. Scattered agencies based on specific needs 2. Congress rarely specified the procedures and wide margin of discretion 3. The example of the Steamship Safety Comission 4. All changes with the APA in 1946 |
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What radical changes did the passage of the Administrative Procedures Act bring in 1946? (5) |
1. Uniformity 2. ALJ 3. Notice and comment 4. Judicial Review 5. Administrative decisions are not self-executing (as opposed to EU continental administrative law countries) |
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According to Pierce, what characteristics describe the period of 1946-1970 in US admin law? (2) |
1. A period of revigorated distrust towards admin agencies 2. New form of legitimacy through the Freedom of Information Act |
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According to Pierce, what characteristics describe the 1970s in US admin law? (5) |
1. Upsurge of rulemaking 2. Increased concern for informal and unreviewed discretionary action 3. Changes in practice to adapt to FOIA 4. Abolishing sovereign immunity 5. Increases in judicial creativity |
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According to Pierce, what characteristics describe the 80s and 90s in US admin law? (3) |
1. New challenges on agencies' legitimacy 2. The tension between democracy and policymaking through independent agencies 3. The issue of who should control independent agencies and how |
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How does Congress control independent agencies in the US? |
Ex ante, through legislation, particularly through delegation acts |
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How does the US President control independent agencies? |
An ongoing process, through his relationship with policy agency makers (executive orders) |
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According to Pierce, what are the landmark judgments in US administrative law? (4) |
1. Humphrey's Executor 2. Mistretta 3. The intelligible principle test 4. Chevron |
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What market failures give rise to a need for regulation? (9) |
1. Monopolies and natural monopolies 2. Windfall profits 3. Information inadequacies 4. Continuity and availability of service 5. Anticompetitive behaviour and predatory pricing 6. Public goods and moral hazards 7. Unequal bargaining power 8. Scarcity 9. Planning |
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What public interest rationales for regulation are there beyond the purely economic? (3) |
1. Media 2. Environment 3. Public health |
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What are agencies? |
Agencies are government entities that: - possess and exercise some grant of specialized public authority, separate from that of institutions, but - are neither directly elected by the people, nor directly managed by elected officials |
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According to Busioc, what are the categorizations of agencies at the EU level? |
- Commission agencies - Council agencies |
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What types of commission agencies does Busioc identify? (2) |
1. Executive agencies 2. Regulatory agencies (quasi-regulatory agencies) |
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What rationales does Busioc provide for agency creation? (4) |
1. Expertise 2. Increased administrative capacity 3. Efficiency 4. Credible commitment 5. Increased Member State cooperation 6. Catalysts of compliance |
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What is delegation? |
Delegation is an authoritative decision that transfers policymaking authority away from established, representative organs to a non-majoritarian institution, whether public or private |
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What are the main organizational features of an agency? (4) |
1. Own staff 2. Own budget 3. Designation 4. Fixed term of head and top ranks and reduced grounds for dismissal |
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What is ICANN? |
ICANN is a not-for-profit organisation that is the ruling body that monitors the domain naming system. Private "self-regulation" body entrusted by US Department of Commerce. |
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What does ICANN regulate? |
The domain name system (DNS): –makes it possible to assign domain namesin a meaningful way to Internet resources as well as to users, regardless ofthe entity's location. |
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What are SGEI? |
Services of an economic nature that public authorities identify as being of particular importance to citizens. Their provision may therefore require public intervention. |
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What are the main elements of SGEI? (3) |
1. Act of entrustment 2. Public service obligation 3. Public service compensation |
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Why are SGEIs important in the context of economic regulation? (2) |
1. As public intervention measures 2. Controls are needed |
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What problems do SGEIs give rise to? (2) |
1. State aid (by form of excessive compensations) 2. Cross-subsidies 3. Compensation (inadequate and overcompensation) |
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With regards to SGEIs, what are the consequences of inadequate compensation? (2) |
1. May put service operators at a disadvantage against their competitors 2. May also have an impact on the quality of public services for end users |
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With regards to SGEIs, what are the consequences of overcompensation? (2) |
1. Concerns arise over value for money in service provision 2. Risk that compensation is used as a conduit for unintended cross-subsidisation of commercial activities by the same entity |
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According to The Altmark Case, what four cumulative conditions have to be satisfied for a State measure to be considered aid-free? |
1. There must be an entrustment act clearly defining the public service obligation 2. The parameters for calculating the compensation must be established in advance in an objective and transparent manner 3. There is no overcompensation 4. The provider is either chosen through a public procurement procedure or the level of compensation is determined based on an analysis of the costs of an average "well-run" undertaking in the sector concerned |
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What is the current normative framework for governing SGEIs in EU? (4) |
1. Application communication 2. Commission regulation 3. Commission decision acting as a block exemption 4. A framework communication from the Commission |
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What are the issues associated with application communication? (7) |
1. Definition of an economic activity for SGEI purposes 2. Existence of SGEI 3. The entrustment act 4. Parameters of compensation 5. How to avoid overcompensation 6. The Selection of the provider |
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What is de minimis regulation? |
Regulation aimed at ruling out all problems from EU Law perspective in "small" compensations. |
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What are the characteristics of de minimis regulation at the EU law level? (3) |
1. Compensations below threshold of EURO50,000 over three fiscal years is deemed not to constitute State Aid 2. Aid element in compensation is therefore presumably much lower than the amount actually granted 3. Presumption that State Aid does not have an effect on trade in internal market |
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What is a block exemption decision? |
A block exemption decision sets out some thresholds for compensations which, qualifying as State Aid, are exempt from notification. |
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What are the three characteristics of block exemption decisions? |
1. The duration of the entrustment period has been limited to a maximum of 10 years 2. The amount of compensation must not exceed the net costs, including a reasonable profit 3. The reasonable profit is to be determined as the rate of return on capital that would be required by an undertaking considering whether or not to provide the service, taking into account the degree of risk. |
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What is the State Aid Framework? |
Deals with the methodology of analysis when SGEI have to be notified and assessed by the Commission. |
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What are the rules of compatibility for the State Aid Framework? (3) |
1. Transparency requirements 2. Compliance with public procurement rules 3. No discrimination |
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What are the transparency requirements for the State Aid Framework? (3) |
1. Undertaking hasto comply, where applicable, with the Transparency Directive 2. Proper consideration hasto be given to the public service needs by means of a public consultation or asimilar instrument 3. The MemberState must publish on the internet or by other appropriateinformation with regard to aid falling within thescope of the Framework. |
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How do you comply with the public procurement rules of the State Aid Framework? |
For aid to be declared compatible, thepublic authority which entrusted the provision of theSGEI must have complied with the relevant rules in the area of public procurement |
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What is the non-discrimination requirement for State Aid Framework? |
Compensation for several providers entrusted with the same SGEI has to be calculated in the same way. |
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For what reasons may a public power choose to grant a subsidy? (5) |
1. To address a market failure 2. To pursue general interest 3. To foster economic activity in home country 4. To protect companies from home country 5. To guarantee labour force |
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What are the forms that public powers may choose to grant a subsidy? (5) |
1. Plain subsidy 2. Tax benefit 3. Privileged loan 4. Privileged asset valuation 5. A subsidy to end consumers |
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What is the State Aid Regime? |
The State Aid Regime is a method of controlling subsidising activity from Member States. |
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What is the two-tier approach to the State Aid Regime? |
1. The illegality of aids by default 2. A compatibility exercise |
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What is the context for State Aid control? |
1. Rebuilding activity in post-war years 2. Preservation of internal market still important 3. Also the protection of efficiency and competition on their own merit |
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What are state funds? |
Public funds administered by the Member State through central, regional, local or other public or private bodies designated or controlled by the State |
