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Europa decentraal is the local and regional authorities’ premier institute for queries concerning European law and legislation.

Why Europa decentraal?

Knowledge on the correct application of European law and policy is increasingly important. A substantial part of European legislation finds its way to the desks of streetlevel government officials. However, it is often difficult for employees of municipalities, provinces and district water boards to find the right information on European law and policies. Therefore, the representative organisations of local and regional authorities in the Netherlands established Europa decentraal in order to sufficiently provide them with the appropriate and relevant information on European policy.

Europa cecentraal is unique among providers of European information because it specialises in issues relevant for local and regional authorities, providing information on European legislation, case law, and the transposition into Dutch legislation.

 

What do we do?

Europa decentraal keeps local and regional government employees informed about European issues, such as state aid, public procurement, the environment, GDPR, employment and social policy, culture and education and the freedom of movement.

Website
Our website is an essential component of our service, providing a source of European news and useful information for employees of lower local and regional governments.

Helpdesk
Regional and local authorities can contact us with questions about EU related topics through our digital form and by phone.

Newsletter
Every week we distribute a newsletter with the latest EU news and best practices.

Presentations and Events
We organise events and give presentations to inform and advice employees of regional and local authorities.

How are we organised?

Europa decentraal is the place of choice for local and regional government officials to address their questions on European issues.  Besides its own in-house expertise, Europa decentraal can also fall back on an extensive network of partners from the world of science and the government.

Europa decentraal also has an advisory council, which is made up of local and regional government officials. This council informs Europa decentraal about the consequences of European legislation and regulation in day-to-day practice. Also, the council identifiers which challenges government organisations encounter with regard to European policy. This helps us with adjusting our service to the needs of its recipients.

In addition, Europa decentraal maintains a variety of formal and informal contacts with ministries, representatives of local and regional authorities in Brussels and other organisations working in the field. In short, Europa decentraal is embedded in a network of expertise.

 

Contact

Europa decentraal’s primary focus is on the employees of Dutch local and regional authorities. However, we highly value the exchange of expertise and best practices with our counterparts abroad.

Furthermore, we are often asked by international counterparts to give a presentation on our products and services. Please click here to find an example.

Should you have any questions or would you like to get in touch please feel free to contact us via +31 (0)70 – 338 1090.

 

Judgment of the month: state aid

A final declaratory judgment by the national court may be overruled if the European state aid rules apply. In the event this judgment prevents the application of the ‘stand-still’ principle enshrined in Article 108 TFEU, measures must be taken to still make the execution of the European state aid regulations possible. In this case, the European Court of Justice deals with the effectiveness of the principle of res judicata.

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Practical question public procurement

Our province’s current public transport contract with a bus company is about to expire and we would like to enter into a new agreement. We know that the new European concession directive will be implemented in the Netherlands at short notice. Are our Provincial services for public (bus) transport obliged to start a public procurement procedure on the basis of a concession?

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