The Government approved on Thursday, by emergency ordinance, the temporary suspension of the contracting procedure for projects financed by the 2021-2027 Cohesion Policy, until the approval of the state budget law for 2026.
"Currently, local public authorities have used their own funds to develop the technical documentation of the projects, but cannot finalize their contracting. The main reason is the impossibility of submitting the necessary documents to certify the lack of debts to the local budget and the state budget, as well as the impossibility of approving budgetary commitments without an approved budget. In addition, project calls are closed and have exceeded the budget allocations, which prevents their reopening," informs a statement from the Executive.
In order to eliminate legal ambiguities, the emergency ordinance introduces terminological clarifications. The term "document" in the Applicant's Guide will be replaced by "individual administrative act", a term established by administrative legislation, which clearly defines legal acts issued by public authorities, establishing specific rights and obligations.
"The suspension of the contracting procedure will last until the approval of the 2026 state budget and the clarification of the necessary budgetary allocations. After the budget enters into force, the authorities will be able to resume contracting projects, with a maximum period of 30 days for submitting outstanding documents. This measure aims to ensure a clear legal, financial and administrative framework, prevent the rejection of eligible applications and guarantee transparent, non-discriminatory and simplified access to non-reimbursable European funds. Failure to adopt this solution would lead to the risk of losing funds and delays in the implementation of investments provided for by the 2021-2027 Cohesion Policy," the press release explains.
Also, following consultations with the European Commission, the regulatory act introduces sampling-based checks of compliance with public procurement procedures and those carried out by private beneficiaries, based on risk analyses.
"The institutional attributions and sampling methodology will be clarified. This regulation ensures a clear and predictable framework for the selection of samples and the proportional application of checks, depending on the level of risk, in order to make the control activity more efficient. The possibility of carrying out checks based on a risk analysis, established by instructions issued by the reform and/or investment coordinators and approved by the national coordinator, allows the adaptation of checks to the specifics of each reform or investment, the concentration of administrative resources on high-risk requests, but also the reduction of the average duration of checking transfer requests," the press release states.
The new regulations contribute to accelerating the payment process to beneficiaries and ensuring a more efficient use of human resources, without affecting the functioning of the PNRR management and control system, the cited source specifies.
Comentează