Section 1 — General rules
1. Without prejudice to any disciplinary action, authorising officers by delegation and subdelegation may at any time have their delegation or subdelegation withdrawn temporarily or definitively by the authority which appointed them. The authorising officer may at any time withdraw his/her agreement to a specific subdelegation.
2. Without prejudice to any disciplinary action, the accounting officer may at any time be suspended temporarily or definitively from his/her duties by the Management Board. The Management Board shall appoint an interim accounting officer.
3. Without prejudice to any disciplinary action, imprest administrators may at any time be suspended temporarily or definitively from their duties by the accounting officer.
1. The provisions of this chapter are without prejudice to the criminal-law liability which the authorising officer and the persons referred to in Article 45 may incur as provided in the applicable national law and in the provisions in force on the protection of the Communities' financial interests and on the fight against corruption involving officials of the Communities or officials of Member States.
2. Each authorising officer, accounting officer or imprest administrator shall be liable to disciplinary action and payment of compensation as laid down in the Staff Regulations, without prejudice to Articles 47, 48 and 49. In the event of illegal activity, fraud or corruption which may harm the interests of the Community, the matter will be referred to the authorities and bodies designated by the applicable legislation.
Section 2 — Rules applicable to authorising officer and authorising officer by delegation or by subdelegation
1. The authorising officer shall be liable to payment of compensation as laid down in the Staff Regulations.
1a. The obligation to pay compensation shall apply in particular if:
(a)
the authorising officer, whether intentionally or through gross negligence on his/her part, determines entitlements to be recovered or issues recovery orders, commits expenditure or signs a payment order without complying with this Regulation and its implementing rules;
(b)
the authorising officer, whether intentionally or through gross negligence on his/her part, omits to draw up a document establishing an amount receivable, neglects to issue a recovery order or is late in issuing it, or is late in issuing a payment order, thereby rendering Europol liable to civil action by third parties.
2. An authorising officer by delegation or subdelegation who considers that a decision falling under his/her responsibility is irregular or contrary to the principles of sound financial management shall inform the delegating authority in writing. If the delegating authority then gives a reasoned instruction in writing to the authorising officer by delegation or subdelegation to implement the decision in question, the latter must implement it and may not be held liable.
3. In the event of delegation, the authorising officer shall continue to be responsible for the efficiency and effectiveness of the internal management and control systems put in place and for the choice of the authorising officer by delegation.
4. The specialised financial irregularities panel set up by the Commission in accordance with Article 66(4) of the general Financial Regulation shall exercise the same powers in respect of Europol as it does in respect of Commission departments. As an alternative to the aforementioned panel established under the general Financial regulation (the ‘general panel’), the Management Board may decide on an ad hoc basis to set up a functionally independent panel to investigate particular financial irregularities or to participate in a joint panel established by several Community bodies. For cases submitted by Communities bodies, the specialised financial irregularities panel set up by the Commission shall include one staff member of a Community body.
On the basis of the opinion of the panel (whether the general panel or an ad hoc panel as described above), the Director shall decide whether to initiate disciplinary proceedings or proceedings for the payment of compensation. If the panel detects systemic problems, it shall send a report with recommendations to the authorising officer and to the Commission's internal auditor. If the opinion implicates the Director, the panel shall send it to the Management Board, Europol internal audit function and the Commission's internal auditor. The Director shall refer, in anonymous form, to opinions of the panel in his annual activity report and indicate the follow-up measures taken.
5. Any member of staff may be required to compensate, in whole or in part, any damage suffered by Europol as a result of serious misconduct on his/her part in the course of or in connection with the performance of his/her duties.
The appointing authority shall take a reasoned decision, after completing the formalities laid down by the Staff Regulations with regard to disciplinary matters.
Section 3 — Rules applicable to the accounting officer and imprest administrator
An accounting officer may be liable to disciplinary action and payment of compensation, as laid down in the Staff Regulations, in particular where:
(a)
he/she loses or damages monies, assets and documents in his/her keeping or causes them to be lost or damaged by his/her negligence;
(b)
he/she alters bank accounts or postal giro accounts without notifying the authorising officer in advance;
(c)
he/she recovers or pays amounts which are not in conformity with the corresponding recovery or payment orders;
(d)
he/she fails to collect revenue due.
An imprest administrator may be liable to disciplinary action and payment of compensation, as laid down in the Staff Regulations, in particular where:
(a)
he/she loses or damages monies, assets and documents in his/her keeping or causes them to be lost or damaged by his/her negligence;
(b)
he/she cannot provide proper supporting documents for the payments he/she has made;
(c)
he/she makes payments to persons other than those entitled;
(d)
he/she fails to collect revenue due.
Source: EUR-Lex (Publications Office of the EU), © European Union, reuse permitted under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.
