At the end of last year, the European Commission issued a report on which country has not done what to transpose European legislation in its country. The report "points the finger" at many countries, including Bulgaria.
What we have not done
Among the first things we are criticized for is that Bulgaria
has not applied the "polluter pays" principle when calculating the waste management fee.
On this occasion, the European Commission is sending a reasoned opinion to Bulgaria (INFR(2023)2064), because we have not correctly applied the "polluter pays" principle under the Waste Framework Directive (Directive 2008/98/EC on waste, as amended by Directive (EU) 2018/851). In order to comply with the “polluter pays” principle on which the Directive is based, the original producer of the waste or the current or previous holders of the waste must bear the costs of its management (including collection, transport, recovery (including sorting) and disposal of waste).
In Bulgaria, the waste management costs that citizens and businesses pay are based largely on the tax assessment of the property, without taking into account relevant parameters such as the amount of municipal waste generated.
A 2019 study found that Bulgaria was the only Member State with such a system. As the system did not meet legal requirements, the Commission sent a letter of formal notice in July 2023. Although Bulgaria amended its legislation to address this issue, the provisions have never entered into force, as their implementation has been postponed successively every year from 2015 to 2025. According to the latest postponement, adopted by law in September 2024, the provisions ensuring compliance with the polluter pays principle will only enter into force in January 2026.
Professional qualifications Another paragraph for which the European Commission found an infringement concerns Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Finland and Sweden. The countries have not complied with the EU criteria on professional qualifications (Directive 2005/36/EC).
These rules make it easier for professionals to provide their services on a temporary and occasional basis in different Member States, while ensuring the protection of consumers and citizens.
By way of exception for professions with implications for public health and safety, Member States may check qualifications before authorising the provision of services. Such prior checks can significantly delay the start of activities and can therefore only be imposed under strict conditions, in particular where the lack of professional qualifications could lead to serious harm to the health or safety of the recipient of the service. The Commission considers that the 22 Member States have imposed unjustified requirements for prior checks for certain professions that do not comply with the conditions under which such checks are permitted and is focusing its enforcement actions on three areas of particular importance, namely construction, transport and business services.
Public procurement The European Commission has decided to open infringement proceedings by sending a letter of formal notice to Bulgaria for non-compliance of national rules with EU public procurement law. The Commission considers that the Bulgarian eGovernment Act, adopted in November 2019, infringes obligations under the Public Procurement Directive (Directive 2014/24/EU). Bulgarian legislation entrusts the provision of electronic eGovernment services used by public administrations to a private company, even though the conditions for direct award of a public contract in exceptional circumstances are not met. The Commission considers that the contracts are in breach of EU public procurement rules and violate the principles of equal treatment and transparency.
Referral to the Court of Justice of the European Union The Commission has decided to refer BULGARIA and CYPRUS to the Court of Justice of the European Union for failing to correctly transpose the Proportionality Test Directive.
The Directive requires Member States to carry out a thorough assessment of the proportionality
of any new national regulation of professions,
before it is adopted. It also aims to prevent the entry into force of unnecessarily restrictive regulation of professions. Member States were required to transpose the Directive into national law by 30 July 2020. According to the Commission, Bulgaria has failed to ensure that the amendments adopted by the National Assembly are subject to a prior proportionality assessment.
In addition, Bulgaria has not put in place a mechanism to guarantee the independence and objectivity of proportionality assessments prepared by professional organisations, for example by reviewing such assessments by supervisory or independent bodies.
Similarly, Cyprus does not ensure that all measures covered by the Directive, in particular those initiated by professional organisations and following legislative amendments, are subject to a prior proportionality assessment. Furthermore, Cyprus has incorrectly applied several of the proportionality assessment criteria set out in the Directive and has not ensured adequate information and participation of stakeholders. The Commission considers that the authorities' efforts so far are insufficient and is therefore referring Bulgaria and Cyprus to the Court of Justice of the European Union.
Hired vehicles
The European Commission has decided to send a reasoned opinion to Bulgaria because the country has not notified the Commission of its national laws transposing the Hired Vehicles Directive (Directive (EU) 2022/738).
The Directive sets minimum standards for the use of vehicles hired without drivers for the carriage of goods.
This could reduce costs and increase flexibility for companies carrying out road freight transport. As Bulgaria did not comply with this requirement, the Commission sent a letter of formal notice in September 2023. The Bulgarian authorities indicated that they are working on transposition measures, but they have not yet been adopted.
Eurovignettes
The European Commission has sent a reasoned opinion to Bulgaria, Greece, Spain, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, and Portugal for failing to transpose the Eurovignette Directive (Directive 1999/62/EC, amended by Directive (EU) 2022/362). The Eurovignette Directive sets out common rules for the imposition of distance-based and time-based user charges, allowing Member States to recover infrastructure costs (construction, operation, maintenance) through tolls and vignettes. The amending Directive (EU) 2022/362 covers passenger cars, city and intercity buses and light heavy goods vehicles. The revised directive also requires Member States to include the environmental costs of air pollution in their charging systems, in order to set charges based on a vehicle's CO2 emissions, with the aim of reducing emissions and promoting cleaner heavy-duty vehicles. The deadline for transposing the directive into national law was 25 March 2024. All eight Member States have not communicated transposition measures.
Digital Services Act
The European Commission has decided to send a letter of formal notice to Bulgaria and a reasoned opinion to Belgium, Spain, the Netherlands and Poland because the countries have not designated or given powers to the national Digital Services Coordinators (DSCs) (note: for Bulgaria this is the Commission for Communications Regulation (CRC)) under the Digital Services Act. By 17 February 2024, Member States had to designate and give powers to the DSCs, which are responsible for monitoring the application and enforcement of the Digital Services Act in relation to service providers established on their territory. The Commission is sending a letter of formal notice to Bulgaria because the country has not given the necessary powers to the designated Digital Services Coordinator to carry out its tasks under the Digital Services Act, including by not setting out the rules on sanctions applicable in case of infringements of the act. The Commission is also sending a reasoned opinion because the CCA has not been defined and given powers (Belgium and Poland), there are no rules on penalties (Poland) and there are no powers given to the CCA (Spain and the Netherlands). Member States have two months to respond and remedy the shortcomings identified by the Commission. In the absence of a satisfactory response, the Commission may decide to send a reasoned opinion to Bulgaria and to refer Belgium, Spain, the Netherlands and Poland to the Court of Justice of the European Union.
What is the Digital Services Act
The Digital Services Act regulates online intermediaries and platforms, such as marketplaces, social networks, content-sharing platforms, app stores and online travel and accommodation platforms. Its main objective is to prevent illegal and harmful activities online and the spread of disinformation. It ensures the safety of consumers, protects fundamental rights and creates a fair and open environment for online platforms.
What are the main objectives of the Digital Services Act?
The Digital Services Act protects consumers and their fundamental rights online by setting clear and proportionate rules. It promotes innovation, growth and competitiveness and facilitates the growth of smaller platforms, SMEs and start-ups. The roles of users, platforms and public authorities are distributed in line with European values, with citizens at the centre.
For citizens - better protection of fundamental rights, more control and choice and easier reporting of illegal content (note - this is relevant after Facebook removed fact-checking), better protection of children online, for example by banning advertising aimed at minors, less exposure to illegal content, more transparency regarding content moderation decisions thanks to the DSA transparency database
For digital service providers - legal certainty, a single set of rules across the EU, easier starting and growing a business in Europe
For business users of digital services - access to pan-European markets through platforms, a level playing field with providers of illegal content content
For society as a whole - stronger democratic control and oversight of systemic platforms, mitigating systemic risks such as manipulation or disinformation
The impact of the Digital Services Act on digital platforms
Which providers are covered?
The Digital Services Act includes rules for online intermediation services that millions of Europeans use every day. The obligations of the different online actors are tailored to their role, size and impact in the online environment.
Very large online platforms and search engines pose particular risks when it comes to the distribution of illegal content and causing harm to society. Special rules are foreseen for platforms reaching more than 10% of the 450 million users in Europe.
Online platforms that bring together sellers and consumers, such as online marketplaces, app stores, collaborative economy platforms and social media platforms. Hosting services, such as "cloud" services and web hosting services (including online platforms). Intermediary services that offer network infrastructure: internet access providers and domain name registrars (including hosting services). All online intermediaries offering their services in the single market, whether established in the EU or outside, must comply with the new rules. Micro and small enterprises have obligations that are proportionate to their capabilities and size, while remaining responsible. Furthermore, even when micro and small enterprises grow significantly, they will benefit from a targeted exemption from a set of obligations during a transitional period of 12 months.
Entry into force of the Digital Services Act
From 17 February 2024, the rules of the Digital Services Act will apply to all platforms. Since the end of August 2023, these rules have already applied to certain platforms with more than 45 million users in the EU (10% of the EU population) - the so-called very large online platforms or very large online search engines.
The Commission will implement the Digital Services Act together with national authorities, which will supervise compliance by platforms established on their territory. The Commission has the primary responsibility for monitoring and enforcing the additional obligations applicable to very large online platforms and very large online search engines, such as measures to mitigate systemic risks.