EUROPEAN COMMISSION EUROPEAN ANTI-FRAUD OFFICE (OLAF) Investigations & Operations II Unit B3 Customs II CALL FOR PROPOSALS Technical Assistance for the prevention, detection and investigation of cigarette smuggling 1 Introduction The mission of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) is to protect the interests of the European Union, to fight fraud, corruption and any other irregular activity, including misconduct within the European institutions. In pursuing this mission in an accountable, transparent and cost-effective manner, OLAF aims to provide a quality service to the citizens of Europe. OLAF achieves its mission by conducting, in full independence, internal and external investigations. The Office also organises close and regular cooperation between the competent authorities of the Member States and in third countries in order to coordinate their investigative activities linked to the protection of the EU's financial interests, being the EU's revenue, expenditure and assets. OLAF contributes to the design of the anti-fraud strategy of the European Union and takes the necessary initiatives to strengthen the relevant legislation. OLAF provides Member States and Accession Countries with the necessary support and technical know-how to help them in their anti-fraud activities, and cooperates closely with International Organisations with parallel interests. Where the legal basis so allows, countries included in the Stabilisation and Association Process, the European Neighbourhood Policy and certain countries with which the EU has concluded an agreement for mutual assistance in customs matters, may also participate. The HERCULE II Programme is an EU action Programme to promote activities in the field of the protection of the EU's financial interests for the period 2007-2013. The overall objective of this Programme is to provide technical support and expertise to the competent law enforcement authorities and to support their anti-fraud activities through training measures, promoting exchanges of specialised staff and the holding of seminars and conferences to reinforce the protection of the EU's financial interests. The smuggling of cigarettes into the EU results in significant financial losses to the EU budget as well as to the finances of the Member States. Those losses are currently estimated to be 10 billion annually. This call for proposals is an expression of OLAF s determination to support activities which will facilitate investigative and operational activities in the fight against cigarette smuggling. This call for proposals relates to the Grant Programme Technical Assistance for Law Enforcement Agencies Combating Fraud, as adopted by the Commission in OLAF s Annual Work Programme for 2011 under item 24. 0201 of the Budget of the European Union Grant
Programme for Anti-Fraud Measures as part of the HERCULE II Programme and is for the purchase of equipment used in the prevention, detection and investigation of the smuggling of illicit consignments of tobacco products. Equipment which may be eligible for financial support includes, but is not limited to, scanning equipment, audio-visual equipment, tool-kits, endoscopes, analytical software and hardware and scientific instruments for the analysis of tobacco. Equipment used for covert operations is not covered by this call for proposals. This call for proposals is directed at national law enforcement agencies such as customs, police and border services and other specialised agencies in the Member States, which have the legal authority, and are active, in combating cigarette smuggling. 2 Supported actions A grant of up to 50% of the purchase price of equipment for use by law enforcement agencies for the detection of illicit consignments of tobacco products. Please note that no payments can be made for any equipment purchased or ordered prior to the date on which a grant was awarded. Please be aware that a letter informing a grant applicant that their application has been accepted by the Commission is not a grant award. A grant is only considered awarded following the signature of a grant agreement by the Commission and the grant recipient. 3 Eligibility Criteria 3.1 Applications must a) Be submitted by a national law enforcement agency such as customs, police or border services or other specialised agency in the Member States, which have the legal authority, and are active, in combating cigarette smuggling. b) Be submitted by Friday 25 th November 2011, using the appropriate form, duly completed and accompanied by the required supporting documents (see point 7.1). 3.2 Exclusion Criteria Applicants shall be excluded from participation in this call for proposals if: a) They are bankrupt or being wound up, are having their affairs administered by the courts, have entered into an arrangement with creditors, have suspended business activities, are the subject of proceedings concerning those matters, or are in any analogous situation arising from a similar procedure provided for in national legislation or regulations; b) They have been convicted of an offence concerning their professional conduct by a judgment which has the force of res judicata; c) They have been guilty of grave professional misconduct proven by any means which the contracting authority can justify; d) They have not fulfilled obligations relating to the payment of social security contributions or the payment of taxes in accordance with the legal provisions of the country in which they are established or with those of the country of the contracting authority;
e) They have been the subject of a judgment which has the force of res judicata for fraud, corruption, involvement in a criminal organisation or any other illegal activity detrimental to the EU's financial interests; f) Following another procurement procedure or grant award procedure financed by the EU budget, they have been declared to be in serious breach of contract for failure to comply with their contractual obligations; g) They are subject to a conflict of interest. There is a conflict of interest where the applicant and a person who is a player in the implementation of the EU budget or an internal auditor share interests which compromise the impartial and objective exercise of the person s functions; h) They commit misrepresentation in supplying the information required by OLAF as a condition of participation in the call for proposals or fail to supply this information. Applicants must declare on their honour that they are not in one of the situations listed above. Administrative or financial penalties may be imposed on applicants who are excluded on the basis of the above criteria or who make false declarations in providing the information required in connection with their participation in this call for proposals. 4 Selection and Award Criteria The European Anti-Fraud Office will establish an Evaluation Committee tasked with examining grant requests. It will decide on whether it is appropriate to award a grant and the amount to be awarded in accordance with the following criteria: Selection criteria Applicants must have the legal competence, as well as the financial and operational capacity, to carry out the subsidised activity and to display legal and moral integrity; Award criteria 1) Consistency of the proposal with OLAF s objectives for combating fraud and, in particular, preventing and detecting the flow of illicit tobacco products into the EU; 2) Suitability of the proposed equipment in the location where it will be deployed 3) Technical quality and performance of the proposed equipment to meet the needs expressed by the grant applicant 4) The quantity of equivalent or similar equipment already deployed in the Member State applying for the grant. Priority may be given to those law enforcement agencies which do not have or which are considered not to have sufficient, equipment to combat cigarette smuggling. 5 Financial conditions 5.1 General conditions
a) The total amount available for projects within the scope of this call for proposals is defined in article 24. 0201 of the 2011 budget of the EU ( Grant Programme for Anti-Fraud Measures ), subject to the annual availability of appropriations. The estimated amount for this action is approximately 2.1 million. b) OLAF s financial contribution takes the form of a grant, subject to the principle of cofinancing. It shall not exceed 50% of the total eligible expenditure of the equipment including delivery and when necessary, installation costs. c) The total amount of the grant will be calculated according to the number and quality of the projects, as well as the cost/effectiveness ratio of the corresponding budgets. d) The grants are given for specific actions and confer no automatic obligation on OLAF for cofinancing in subsequent years. e) Applicants will not be permitted to include in their budgets expenditure incurred prior to, or after, the period specified in the grant agreement. 5.2 Eligible expenditure The following direct costs are eligible: Up to 50% of the total purchase price of equipment used in the prevention, detection and investigation of the smuggling of illicit consignments of tobacco products. including delivery costs and, where necessary, the installation costs. Where implementation of the action requires the award of procurement contracts by the beneficiary, the contract shall be awarded according to national procurement rules and the EU tendering directives and in compliance with the principles of transparency and equal treatment for potential contractors. The applicant organisation will take all necessary precautions to avoid any conflict of interests in the tendering procedures. 5.3 Non-eligible costs The following costs shall not be considered eligible: Return on capital; Debt and debt service charges; Provisions for losses or potential future liabilities; Other interest owed; Doubtful debts; Exchange losses; VAT, unless the beneficiary can show that he is unable to recover it according to the applicable national legislation. VAT paid by public bodies is not en eligible cost.; Costs declared by the beneficiary in connection with another action or work programme benefiting from EU financing; Contributions in kind; Excessive or reckless expenditure; Any equipment not approved for by the Evaluation Committee. In the event that the grant recipient purchases scanning equipment from the People's Republic of China, the European Commission will not pay any part of anti-dumping duties imposed by Council Implementing Regulation (EU) No. 510/2010 of 14 June 2010 imposing a definitive
anti-duping duty and collecting definitively the provisional duty imposed on imports of certain cargo scanning systems originating in the People's Republic of China (OJL 150 of 16 th June 2010). The rate of the definitive anti-dumping duty applicable to the net, free-at- Unionfrontier price, before duty, of the products described in paragraph 1 of Regulation 510/2010 shall be 34 %. 6 Notification and Grant Payment Procedure a) Those applicants submitting requests will be informed of OLAF s decision within two weeks of the final assessment of the evaluation committee. b) If OLAF awards a grant, it will send the recipient a grant agreement specifying eligible costs, the amount of the grant in Euro, the percentage of OLAF co-financing and the conditions for payment and utilisation. c) Within the framework of this agreement, the authorised representative of the applicant organisation must undertake to provide proof of the proper use of the grant and to permit OLAF to verify the use of the grant during the validity of the contract as well as for a period of five years from the date of payment of the balance. This may lead, where appropriate, to recovery decisions by the Commission.1 d) The beneficiaries undertake to carry out the project as it was presented in the grant application. No modification to the project is permitted without the prior written approval of OLAF. e) An amount equivalent to 50% of the grant will be paid within 30 days of the date when the last of the two parties signs the agreement. The balance will be paid within 30 days following receipt and approval of the final invoice for the equipment benefiting from a grant accompanied by proof of payment. f) Expenditure on items not mentioned in OLAF s financial contribution will automatically be borne by the recipient. The same applies to expenditure on items not mentioned in the grant agreement signed between OLAF and the beneficiary. g) If actual costs are lower than the grant agreement, OLAF will make the final payment pro rata the actual eligible expenditure by applying the co-financing rate defined in the grant agreement. In appropriate cases, OLAF will issue a recovery order in respect of that part of the budget that is paid out but has not been used or evidenced. h) Where actual costs eligible for the grant do exceed the grant amount defined in the agreement, the excess will automatically be borne by the recipient. i) The Court of Auditors shall have the same rights as OLAF, notably right of access to sites and premises where the action is carried out and to all the information, including information in electronic format, needed in order to conduct checks and audits. j) The grant may not have the purpose or effect of producing a profit for the beneficiary. 7 Administrative Procedures 7.1 Applications Supporting Documents
Only application forms comprising all the documents in bullet points (a) to (e) below, received before the deadline, duly completed, signed and accompanied by the required supporting documents, can be considered: a) The grant application form, duly completed, dated, signed. b) A detailed technical description and the cost of the equipment for which a grant is requested. c) A pro-forma invoice for the equipment for which a grant is requested, or the official price list of the supplier of the equipment for which a grant is requested. d) A detailed statement explaining the need for the equipment for which a grant is requested, including an inventory of equivalent or similar equipment currently deployed by the national law enforcement agency requesting a grant, e) A declaration by which the grant applicant agrees to provide the awarding authority with a report 12 months after the date on which the grant was awarded and 24 months after the date on which the grant was awarded, stating when the equipment became operational, how many controls have been performed during the reporting period using the equipment and how many seizures have been made during the reporting period as a result of using the equipment. f) Where applicable, a sworn statement in which the applicant certifies that he is in none of the situations described at point 3.2 (exclusion criteria) as stated in Section 4 of the Grant Application Form. 7.2 Submission Applications for funding must be submitted with all the documents required in bullet points (a) to (f) above, signed by the person empowered to enter into a legal commitment on behalf the applicant organisation. The requests (original and one copy) must be sent by post to the following mail address: European Commission European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) For the attention of Unit D6 B-1049 Brussels Belgium The envelope should prominently display the words: Application for OLAF Technical Assistance Grant Programme Cigarettes 2011. A copy of the dossier may also be sent by electronic mail to the following mailbox: OLAF-FMB-HER-II-CIGARETTES-D6@ec.europa.eu 7.3 Timetable The deadline for the submission of grant applications for the 2011 call for proposals is Friday 25 th November 2011. The postmark will be considered as proof of respect of the deadlines. No applications will be considered after the deadline.
8 Complaints to the European Ombudsman At all stages of the administrative handling of grant files, whenever persons or bodies involved consider that they are the victim of maladministration, they may, independently of any other avenue of appeal, make a complaint before the European Ombudsman in accordance with Article 195 1 of the EC Treaty and under the conditions contained in the European Parliament decision dated 9th March 1994 with regard to the statute and the general conditions governing the exercising of the functions of the Ombudsman, published in the Official Journal of the European Communities L 113 dated 4th May 1994 9 Protection of Personal Data Application forms will be handled electronically. Data of a personal character (name, address ) will be processed according to the Provisions of Regulation (EC) N 45/2001 of the European Parliament and the Council on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the EU Institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data. Applicants may, up on request, obtain the communication of their personal data and correct or complete any inaccurate or incomplete personal data. Should any applicant have any queries concerning the processing of his personal data, he / she may address these to OLAF. At any time applicants have the right to recourse to the European Data Protection Supervisor, with regards to the processing of his / her personal data.