COMMON POSITION (EC) No 9/1999 adopted by the Council on 21 December 1998 with a view to the adoption of Council Decision 1999/.../EC of ... 1999, adopting a series of actions and measures in order to ensure interoperability of and access to trans-European networks for the electronic interchange of data between administrations (IDA)
25. 2. 1999 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 55/15 COMMON POSITION (EC) No 9/1999 adopted by the Council on 21 December 1998 with a view to the adoption of Council Decision 1999/. /EC of. 1999, adopting a series of actions and measures in order to ensure interoperability of and access to trans-European networks for the electronic interchange of data between administrations (IDA) (1999/C 55/02) THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, (4) Whereas the Commission has proposed an action plan for the single Market; Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular paragraph 3 of Article 129d thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1), Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee (2), Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions (3), Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 189b of the Treaty (4), (5) Whereas the European Parliament, in its resolution of 12 June 1997 (7), invited the European Union and the Member States to take action with regard to the development and application of new information and communication technologies (ICT) in the next decade; (6) Whereas the European Parliament and the Council, in Decision No 2717/95/EC (8), adopted a series of guidelines for the development of Euro-ISDN as a trans-European network; (7) Whereas the European Parliament and the Council, in Decision No 1336/97/EC (9), adopted a series of guidelines for trans-European telecommunication networks; (1) Whereas the Council, in its resolution of 20 June 1994 (5), emphasised the need for coordination with regard between administrations; information exchange to (2) Whereas the Council, resolution of 21 November 1996 (6), established new policy priorities regarding the information society; its in (3) Whereas the Commission, in its communication of 19 July 1994, proposed an action plan for the information society; (1) OJ C 54, 21. 2. 1998, p. 12. (2) OJ C 214, 10. 7. 1998, p. 33. (3) OJ C 251, 10. 8. 1998, p. 1. (4) Opinion of the European Parliament of. (not yet published in the Official Journal), Council common position of 21 December 1998 and Decision of the European in the Official. (not yet published Parliament of Journal). (5) OJ C 181, 2. 7. 1994, p. 1. (6) OJ C 376, 12. 12. 1996, p. 1. (8) Whereas the Council, in its Recommendation 95/144/EC of 7 April 1995 on common information technology security evaluation criteria (ITSEC) (10), recommended the use of security evaluation and certification schemes; criteria within evaluation (9) Whereas, in order to establish economic and monetary union, to implement Community policies to support communication and activities and between the Community institutions and bodies, there integrated data communications systems between administrations, hereinafter referred to as ‘telematic networks‘; is a need to establish (10) Whereas such networks must link the information systems, both existing and future, of the Member State administrations and the Community across Europe trans-European telecommunication networks for administrations; therefore, and are, (7) OJ C 200, 30. 6. 1997, p. 196. (8) OJ L 282, 24. 11. 1995, p. 16. (9) OJ L 183, 11. 7. 1997, p. 12. (10) OJ L 93, 26. 4. 1995, p. 27. C 55/16 EN Official Journal of the European Communities 25. 2. 1999 (11) Whereas the effective linkage of such information systems of interoperability between the various systems and their components; a maximum requires degree (12) Whereas it is essential to maximise the use of standards, publicly available specifications and public domain applications to ensure seamless interoperability in order to achieve economies of scale and the benefits of such networks; increase to (13) Whereas an enhanced interface with public administrations will encourage citizens of the European Union to reap the benefits of the information society; (14) Whereas the elimination to communication between public administrations and the private sector is an important factor for the prosperity and competitiveness of Community industry; obstacles of those (15) Whereas the Community is a user or a beneficiary of support Community policies and activities, interinstitutional communication and economic and monetary union; telematic networks which (16) Whereas the task of establishing such networks is incumbent on both the Community and the Member States; (20) Whereas any measures to ensure interoperability between and access to such networks must maintain a judicious balance between satisfying common requirements and preserving national specificities; (21) Whereas there is thus a need to carry out specific horizontal actions and measures in order to ensure interoperability between such networks; (22) Whereas, in accordance with the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality established by Article 3b of the Treaty, the objective of carrying out such horizontal actions and measures cannot be adequately attained by the Member States and can therefore, by reason of the scale and effects of the proposed action, be better attained at Community level; whereas the proposed action does not go beyond what is necessary to achieve the said objective; (23) Whereas the implementation of the Agreement on the European Economic Area and the association agreements with the European Community requires a high degree of interoperability within and across the relevant telematic networks; (24) Whereas there international dimension to telematic networks and electronic communication; inherent is an (17) Whereas, in order to make efficient use of the Community’s financial resources, it is necessary to avoid equipment, proliferation repetition of investigations and diversity of approach; needless of (25) Whereas the measures aimed at ensuring the interoperability of telematic networks betrween administrations are the priorities adopted in relation to the guidelines for trans-European telecommunications networks; in accordance with (18) Whereas common tools and techniques for sectoral network applications can, inter alia, be related to document management and dissemination, data gathering, multilingual user interfaces and security of electronic communication; (19) Whereas cost-efficiency, responsiveness, flexibility and adaptability to technological change in the establishment and operation of such networks can best be achieved by embracing a market-oriented approach and thus selecting suppliers on a competitive basis in a multi-vendor environment; (26) Whereas actions have been carried out under Council Decision 95/468/EC of 6 November 1995 on a Community contribution telematic interchange of data between administrations in the Community (IDA) (1); whereas the Court of Justice annulled Decision 95/468/EC on 28 May 1998; whereas the effects of the measures taken by the Commission on the basis of this Decision before annulment by the Court are maintained; for (1) OJ L 269, 11. 11. 1995, p. 23. 25. 2. 1999 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 55/17 (27) Whereas a financial reference amount, within the meaning of point 2 of the Declaration by the European Parliament, the Commission of 6 March 1995 (1), is included in this Decision without thereby affecting the powers of the budgetary authority as they are defined by the Treaty, the Council and Article 2 Definitions For the purpose of this Decision, the following definitions shall apply: HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: (a) Article 1 Scope and objectives The Community 1. field of trans-European telematic networks for administrations and shall take the measures set out in this Decision with the following objectives: shall act the in network: comprehensive telematic data a communication system, comprising not only the physical infrastrucure and connections, but also the service and application layers which are built on top of this infrastructure, thus enabling the interchange of information electronically between organisations and individuals; (b) sectoral network: a trans-European telematic network for administrations or set of services and applications, devoted to the implementation or the administrative support of one particular Community policy, activity or objective which is hereinafter referred to as an ‘administrative sector’; (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) the achievement of a high degree of interoperability, within and across different administrative sectors and, where appropriate, with the private sector, between the telematic networks established in the Member States and between the Community and the Member States in order to support the establishment of economic and monetary union and to implement the Community policies and activities referred to in Articles 3 and 3a of the Treaty taking into account work already underway in the existing Community or Member State programmes; towards a the convergence of such networks common telematic interface between the Community and the Member States; the achievement of substantial benefits for Member the Community by State administrations and streamlining operations, reducing maintenance, speeding up implementation of new networks and enhancements, achieving an overall secure and reliable the cost-efficiency, achievement responsiveness, to technological change and market evolution in the establishment and operation of such networks; interchange of data, as well as greater of flexibility and adaptability the extension of the benefits of such networks, as mentioned in the previous paragraph, to Community industry and citizens of the European Union; the promotion of the spread of best practice and the encouragement of the development of innovative telematic solutions in administrations. (c) generic services: telematic network functionalities which meet common user requirements, such as data collection, data dissemination, data exchange, and security. The characteristics of each service shall be clearly specified and associated with a guaranteed level of quality. Article 3 Horizontal actions and measures 1. In order to achieve the objectives laid down in Article 1, the Community shall undertake horizontal actions and measures, as provided for by Articles 4 to 10, in support of sectoral networks and in accordance with the IDA work programme. For each action or measure envisaged under this 2. Decision, the IDA work programme shall contain, as appropriate: — a complete description of the intended actions, including their objectives, scope, rationale and potential beneficiaries, as well as the anticipated costs and benefits, — a complete description of the functionalities and of the technical approach 2. This Decision forms part of the IDA programme. and (1) OJ C 102, 4. 4. 1996, p. 1. — a detailed plan for its implementation, specifying the individual tasks and their sequence. C 55/18 EN Official Journal of the European Communities 25. 2. 1999 shall include Implementation of the horizontal actions and 3. measures and demonstrations, the establishment of working groups of Member State and Community experts, and the procurement of goods and services for the Community, as appropriate. feasibility studies 4. The implementation of the horizontal actions and measures shall build on suitable results achieved by other relevant Community activities, the Community research and technological development programmes and Community activities in the field of trans-European telecommunication networks. in particular 5. Horizontal actions and measures shall make reference to European standards or publicly available specifications, such as open Internet standards, as appropriate, in order to ensure a high degree of interoperability between national and Community systems within and across administrative sectors and with the private sector. Account shall be taken of guidelines and support tools in the area of standardisation in public procurement communication information and technologies (ICT) systems and services. for Article 4 Generic services The Community shall adopt all necessary measures 1. in order for a suitable choice of common generic services that meet sectoral user requirements to be made available to sectoral networks on a competitive basis in a multi-vendor environment. These measures shall include the continuation of suitable measures undertaken under Decision 95/468/EC as appropriate. 2. With the aim of enabling sectoral network users to identify their technical requirements and making available the suitable choice of common generic services that meet sectoral user requirements, the Community shall, in particular: (a) define architecture guidelines sectoral networks designed to ensure interoperability between the various physical infrastructures and services; the for (b) define and publish the specifications of the generic services which are commonly required by telematic including the networks between administrations, quality of service and the relevant interoperability requirements imposed by a multi-vendor and competitive environment; (c) and/or standard identify interfaces to encourage portability and replicability of application developments; appropriate specify (d) define and implement a mechanism through which the degree of interoperability between the services offered by the telematic service providers can be assessed and published; (e) ensure a sustained common requirements and a continued monitoring of the telematics services offered by the said providers. evolution of Article 5 Common tools and techniques The Community shall ensure that common tools and techniques for sectoral network applications are acquired from the market or are developed if the market cannot appropriately support the requirement with the aim of reducing the overall costs associated with application technical development, rationalising and solutions, decreasing the for implementation of operational systems, and streamlining system maintenance. improving required time the For this purpose, the Community shall identify and specify, within sectoral networks, fundamental and recurring functionalities which can form the basis of common tools and techniques or modules. It shall also encourage the development and use of such common tools and techniques and modules by sectoral networks; in particular, the spread of suitable solutions which are developed within a sectoral network shall be ensured. Article 6 Information content interoperability information which The Community shall encourage interoperability in 1. terms of the content of the is exchanged within and across administrative sectors and with the private sector. For this purpose, and subject to the legal, security, data protection, and confidentiality requirements of the sectoral users, the Community shall adopt appropriate measures and, in particular, the following: (a) support for the efforts of the administrations of the interoperability, Member States to ensure such simplify administrative procedures and improve information flows; 25. 2. 1999 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 55/19 (b) coordination of sectoral networks for formatted information exchange, and the ensuring of the spread of suitable solutions; requirements of the (c) suitable of the technological the monitoring developments field of electronic data in communication, including innovative data collection and presentation mechanisms, investigation of their impact and encouragement of their adoption by sectoral networks. For 2. solutions the purpose of paragraph 1, facilitating interoperability between different message formats shall be preferred to, but not exclude, the development of harmonised message formats. Due consideration shall be given to the linguistic diversity in the Community. Solutions allowing integrate administrative requirements easily into business processes shall also be favoured. the private sector to Article 7 Reference legal and security practices Without prejudice to the competence and specific obligations of the Member States in the areas covered by this Article, the Community shall contribute to the identification of barriers the smooth exchange of data between network users and shall ensure an appropriate degree of security within sectoral networks. In particular, the Community shall: impede that (a) identify, in cooperation with the Member States, reference the legal and security practices trans-European interchange of data between administrations and between administrations and the private sector, in order to facilitate a common approach; for (b) issue appropriate recommendations to support the efforts of the Member States to apply these practices referred to in (a) within their own administrative environments; (c) ensure, with regard to sectoral networks and in accordance with the practices referred to in (a): the recognition, within the administrative environment of the Community, of the evidential value of the data exchanged; the establishment of a methodology for the protection of personal data; the definition of the the rights and responsibilities of the users; and confidentiality, non-repudiation of the information exchanged, as well as measures to control access to networks; authentication integrity, (d) identify and analyse the different levels of security depending on the nature and purpose of sectoral networks; (e) the choice and formulate guidelines and provide common solutions for tools; components and systems that ensure the identified levels of security. implementation of Article 8 Quality assurance and control shall define, implement, The Community and continuously update a specific, consistent, integrated quality programme, taking into account the results of similar actions, which shall apply to the horizontal actions and measures under this Decision and to the projects under Decision No. /1999/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of. on a series of guidelines, including the identification of projects of common for trans-European networks for the electronic interchange of data between administrations (IDA) (1). That quality programme shall include the necessary actions to: common interest, interest of (a) improve the manner in which user requirements and project specifications are established; (b) improve the quality of project deliverables, both in terms of compliance with project specifications and in terms of satisfaction of user expectations; (c) ensure that the experiences gained are learning experiences and are disseminated through the spread of best practice described in Article 10. Article 9 Interoperability with national and regional initiatives In implementing the IDA programme, the Community facilitate shall endeavour, where appropriate, similar interoperability and cross-fertilisation with to (1) Common position (EC) No 8/1999, adopted by the Council on 21 December 1998 (see page 1 of this Official Journal). C 55/20 EN Official Journal of the European Communities 25. 2. 1999 the national and interchange of data between administrations within the Member States. initiatives regional relating to Article 10 Spread of best practice 1. The Community shall ensure coordination and the exchange of views, knowledge, and experiences within and across sectoral networks, with a view to encouraging the wider adoption of good and innovative solutions. 2. Due consideration shall be given to the linguistic diversity in the Community. The Community shall ensure general awareness of the achievements and benefits of the IDA programme, the dissemination of IDA guidelines and recommendations, and coordination of user the requirements and experiences with standardisation bodies and Community standardisation-related initiatives. Article 11 Implementation The Commission shall implement the Community 1. action set out in Articles 3 to 10. The section of IDA work programme the 2. concerning the implementation of this Decision, which the Commission shall draw up for its entire duration and which shall be reviewed at least twice a year, shall be approved, based on its compliance with the relevant provisions of Articles 3 to 10, in accordance with the procedure set out in Article 12. Article 12 Committee procedures 1. The Commission shall be assisted by a committee composed of the representatives of the Member States and chaired by a representative of the Commission. This committee shall be called the ‘Telematics between Administrations Committee’ (TAC). The representative of the Commission shall submit to the committee a draft of the measures to be taken. The committee shall deliver its opinion on the draft within a time-limit which the chairman may lay down according to the urgency of the matter. The opinion shall be delivered by the majority laid down in Article 148(2) of the Treaty in the case of decisions which the Council is required to adopt on a proposal from the Commission. The votes of the representatives of the Member States within the committee shall be weighted in the manner set out in that Article. The chairman shall not vote. The Commission shall adopt measures which shall apply immediately. However, if these measures are not in accordance with the opinion of the committee, they shall be communicated by the Commission to the Council forthwith. In that event: — the Commission shall defer application of the measures which it has decided for a period of three months from the date of communication, — the Council, acting by a qualified majority, may take a different decision within the time-limit referred to in the previous subparagraph. The Commission shall report annually to the TAC 2. on the implementation of this Decision. The common rules and procedures for bringing 3. about technical and administrative interoperability shall be adopted in accordance with the procedure set out in Article 12. 4. The procedure set out in Article 12 shall also apply in respect of the approval of the breakdown of the yearly budgetary expenditure under this Decision. Proposals for any budgetary changes of more than EUR 250 000 per project line within a year shall also be subject to this procedure. Article 13 Evaluation The Commission shall, in coordination with the the 1. Member States, carry out an evaluation of implementation of this Decision at two-yearly intervals. The evaluation shall establish the progress and 2. current status of the horizontal actions and measures provided for in this Decision. The technical specifications of calls for tender to be 5. issued in the implementation of the Decision shall, for contract values in excess of EUR 500 000, be defined in coordination with the Member States. It shall also examine, in the light of the expenditure incurred by the Community, the benefits yielded by such horizontal actions and measures to the Community, the 25. 2. 1999 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 55/21 Member States, Community industry and citizens of the European Union, and for potential improvement and verify synergy with other Community activities trans-European field in telecommunication networks. identify areas the of 3. The Commission shall forward its evaluation to the Council, once the TAC has examined it, together with any appropriate proposal for the amendment of this Decision. The evaluations shall be forwarded no later than the draft budget for the years 2001, 2003 and 2005 respectively. Article 14 Extension to the EEA and associated countries 1. The IDA programme may be opened, within the framework of their respective agreements with the European Community, to participation by the countries of the European Economic Area and the associated countries of central and eastern Europe and Cyprus in the horizontal actions and measures under this Decision. In the curse of 2. this Decision, cooperation with non-member countries and with international organisations or bodies, as appropriate, shall be encouraged. implementing Article 15 Financial reference amount The financial reference amount for Community action under this Decision for the period 1998—2000 shall be EUR 33,1 million. Annual appropriations shall be authorised by the budgetary authority within the limit of the financial perspective. Article 16 Entry into force This Decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Communities. It shall enter into force on the day of its publication and shall apply until. (*). Done at. For the Council The President (*) 31 December of the fifth year after the entry into force of this Decision. C 55/22 EN Official Journal of the European Communities 25. 2. 1999 STATEMENT OF THE COUNCIL’S REASONS I. INTRODUCTION 1. On 16 December 1997, the Commission submitted a proposal for a Council Decision relating to interoperability of and access to trans-European networks for the electronic interchange of data between administrations (IDA). The proposal is based on Article 129d, third paragraph of the EC Treaty. 2. The European Parliament delivered its first-reading opinion on 18 November 1998. The Economic and Social Committee delivered its opinion on 29 April 1998. The Committee of the Regions adopted its opinion on 14 May 1998. Further to the European Parliament’s opinion, the Commission submitted an amended proposal on 16 December 1998. 3. The Council adopted its common position, under Article 189c of the Treaty, on 21 December 1998. II. OBJECTIVE This draft Decision, which accompanies a draft European Parliament and Council Decision on a series of guidelines for trans-European networks (1), sets out a series of horizontal actions and measures with a view to ensuring interoperability of and access to trans-European networks during the second phase of the IDA programme. III. ANALYSIS OF THE COMMON POSITION A. General comments The Council’s common position is in line with the objectives and the content of the Commission proposal. B. Specific comments 1. P r i n c i p a l c h a n g e s m a d e t o t h e C o m m i s s i o n p r o p o s a l Apart from the changes made by the Council to ensure consistency with the modifications made to the Commission’s proposal on guidelines (e. g. evaluation period, expiry date, comitology etc. ), the Council also considered that the text should be improved in the following ways: (i) Scope and objectives (Article 1) The Council has inserted two new objectives: (i) convergence of networks towards a common telematic interface; (ii) substantial benefits by streamlining operations, reducing maintenance etc. and achieving an overall secure and reliable interchange of data. (1) See page 1 of this Official Journal. 25. 2. 1999 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 55/23 (ii) Horizontal actions and measures (Article 3) The Council considered that for the efficient management of the programme, the IDA work programme should contain detailed information about intended actions, functionalities and implementation for each action or measure envisaged under this Decision. (iii) Generic Services (Article 4) Several changes to paragraphs 1 and 2b and to recital (19) have been made with a view to ensuring a pro-competitive environment for generic services. (iv) Common tools and techniques (Article 5) The text of the first paragraph has been modified, again to ensure a more market-oriented approach, and a new recital has been added to clarify the scope of such tools and techniques. (v) Information content interoperability (Article 6) The Council considered it important to include a reference to the linguistic diversity of the Community in this context and also in Article 10 (spread of best practice). (vi) Reference legal and security practices (Article 7) It was considered useful to state that the requirements of this provision were without prejudice to the competence and specific obligations of the Member States and to clarify some of the wording, such as model legal and security framework. A new ITSEC recommendation was also added in order to clarify the scope of this article. recital containing a reference the to (vii) Financial framework (Article 15) In order to ensure transparency, the Council has inserted a new article which gives the financial framework for Community action for the period 1998—2000 and an accompanying recital. 2. C o u n c i l p o s i t i o n o n t h e E u r o p e a n P a r l i a m e n t ’ s a m e n d m e n t s (i) Amendments included in the common position The Council accepted amendments Nos 1 and 6 as proposed by the European Parliament. (ii) Amendments not incorporated into the common position In declining to include amendments Nos 2, 3, 5, 9 and 11 in its common position, the Council endorsed the Commission’s position as set out in its amended proposal. As regards the remaining amendments, the Council was guided by the following considerations: — amendment No 4: the Council preferred not to retain this amendment as it did not correspond to the usual formulation relating to incorporation of financial provisions into legislative acts, but has inserted a recital which reflects the same principle, C 55/24 EN Official Journal of the European Communities 25. 2. 1999 — amendment No 7: as the Council has already inserted a reference to Member States administrations and the Community, the concerns of the Parliament have to some extent already been taken into account, — amendment No 8: this point has already been addressed in the common position, — amendment No 10: this was rejected for the same reasons as for amendment No 14 in the guidelines Decision