EU: Commission to prolong EU State aid rules

The European Commission plans to prolong, for two years, seven sets of State aid rules, otherwise set to expire in 2020. The Commission also launched an evaluation of those rules and of other State aid rules on Monday, January 7, to assess whether to further prolong them or possibly update them in the future.

Since May 2012, the Commission has implemented a major reform of EU State aid rules, the State Aid Modernization. This allows Member States to quickly implement State aid that fosters investment, economic growth, and job creation, leaving the Commission to focus its State aid control on the cases most liable to distort competition. More than 97% of all State aid measures are now implemented by Member States without the need for prior approval by the Commission. As part of the State Aid Modernization, the Commission has revised a considerable number of State aid rules since 2013.

A number of the State aid rules adopted as part of the State Aid Modernization are due to expire by the end of 2020. Other State aid rules adopted as part of the Modernization process have no fixed expiry date. To provide predictability and legal certainty, while preparing for a possible future update of the State aid rules adopted as part of the State Aid Modernization, the Commission will take two steps.

First, the Commission intends to prolong for two years (until end 2022) the validity of those State aid rules, which would otherwise expire by end 2020.

Second, in line with the Commission’s Better Regulation Guidelines, the Commission will evaluate those rules together with the other State aid rules, which were adopted as part of the State Aid Modernisation.

Full Content: Europa Press

Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.