Press Release: State aid: Commission consults on draft Regulation exempting more aid measures from prior notification

On 18 December 2013 the European Commission announced that it is inviting comments from stakeholders on a draft revised version of the General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER). The Regulation exempts unproblematic categories of aid from prior Commission scrutiny, allowing Member States to grant such aid without notifying it to the Commission. The revised draft includes new categories of exempted aid and further simplifies the assessment, reducing the administrative burden for Member States and local public authorities. It will also improve the ex-post control of aid granted under this notification exemption. In light of the feedback received, the Commission will adopt the final Regulation in the second quarter of 2014.

European Commission: RAPID: Memo, MEMO/13/1175: State aid: Transparency and Evaluation in the draft General Block-Exemption Regulation http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEMO-13-1175_en.pdf

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