28.3.2014 Official Journal of the European Union L 94/65 DIRECTIVE 2014/24/EU OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 26 February 2014 on public procurement and repealing Directive 2004/18/EC (Text with EEA relevance) 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 53(1), Article 62 and Article 114 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 (?), Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure (%), Whereas: (1)  The award of public contracts by or on behalf of Member States’ authorities has to comply with the prin- ciples of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), and in particular the free movement of goods, freedom of establishment and the freedom to provide services, as well as the principles deriving therefrom, such as equal treatment, non-discrimination, mutual recognition, proportionality and transparency. However, for public contracts above a certain value, provisions should be drawn up coordinating national procurement procedures so as to ensure that those prin- ciples are given practical effect and public procurement is opened up to competition. (2)  Public procurement plays a key role in the Europe 2020 strategy, set out in the Commission Communication of 3 March 2010 entitled ‘Europe 2020, a strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth’ (Europe 2020 strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth), as one of the market-based instruments to be used to achieve smart, sustainable and inclusive growth while () OJ C 191, 29.6.2012, p. 84. () OJ C 391, 18.12.2012, p. 49. (}) Position of the European Parliament of 15 January 2014 (not yet published in the Official Journal), and decision of the Council of 11 February 2014. ensuring the most efficient use of public funds. For that purpose, the public procurement rules adopted pursuant to Directive 2004/17[EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (*) and Directive 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council () should be revised and modernised in order to increase the efficiency of public spending, facilitating in particular the partici- pation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in public procurement, and to enable procurers to make better use of public procurement in support of common societal goals. There is also a need to clarify basic notions and concepts to ensure legal certainty and to incorporate certain aspects of related well-established case-law of the Court of Justice of the European Union. (3)  When implementing this Directive, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (°) should be taken into account, in particular in connection with the choice of means of communications, technical specifications, award criteria and contract performance conditions. (4)  The increasingly diverse forms of public action have made it necessary to define more clearly the notion of procurement itself; that clarification should not however broaden the scope of this Directive compared to that of Directive 2004/18/EC. The Union rules on public procurement are not intended to cover all forms of disbursement of public funds, but only those aimed at the acquisition of works, supplies or services for consideration by means of a public contract. It should be clarified that such acquisitions of works, supplies or services should be subject to this Directive whether they are implemented through purchase, leasing or other contractual forms. The notion of acquisition should be understood broadly in the sense of obtaining the benefits of the works, supplies or services in question, not necessarily requiring a transfer of ownership to the contracting auth- orities. Furthermore, the mere financing, in particular through grants, of an activity, which is frequently linked to the obligation to reimburse the amounts received where they are not used for the purposes (*) Directive 2004[/17/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 coordinating the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors (O] L 134, 30.4.2004, p. 1). Directive 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 on the coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts (O] L 134, 30.4.2004, p. 114). (®) Approved by Council Decision 2010/48/EC of 26 November 2009 concerning the conclusion, by the European Community, of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (O] L 23, 27.1.2010, p. 35). ) -~