Judgment_paragraph 6 · Commission of the European Communities v Council of the European Union (C-27/04)

6Sections 2 and 3 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1467/97 of 7 July 1997 on speeding up and clarifying the implementation of the excessive deficit procedure (OJ 1997 L 209, p. 6) provide as follows:‘Section 2Speeding up the excessive deficit procedureArticle 3...3. The Council shall decide on the existence of an excessive deficit in accordance with Article [104(6)], within three months of the reporting dates established in Article 4(2) and (3) of Regulation (EC) No 3605/93. When it decides, in accordance with Article [104(6)], that an excessive deficit exists, the Council shall at the same time make recommendations to the Member State concerned in accordance with Article [104(7)].4. The Council recommendation made in accordance with Article [104(7)] shall establish a deadline of four months at the most for effective action to be taken by the Member State concerned. The Council recommendation shall also establish a deadline for the correction of the excessive deficit, which should be completed in the year following its identification unless there are special circumstances.Article 41.Any Council decision to make public its recommendations, where it is established that no effective action has been taken in accordance with Article [104(8)], shall be taken immediately after the expiry of the deadline set in accordance with Article 3(4) of this Regulation....Article 5Any Council decision to give notice to the participating Member State concerned to take measures for the deficit reduction in accordance with Article [104(9)] shall be taken within one month of the Council decision establishing that no effective action has been taken in accordance with Article [104(8)].Article 6Where the conditions to apply Article [104(H)] are met, the Council shall impose sanctions in accordance with Article [104(11)]. Any such decision shall be taken no later than two months after the Council decision giving notice to the participating Member State concerned to take measures in accordance with Article [104(9)].Article 7If a participating Member State fails to act in compliance with the successive decisions of the Council in accordance with Article [104(7) and (9)], the decision of the Council to impose sanctions, in accordance with paragraph 11 of Article [104], shall be taken within ten months of the reporting dates pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 3605/93 as referred to in Article 3(3) of this Regulation. An expedited procedure shall be used in the case of a deliberately planned deficit which the Council decides is excessive....Section 3Abeyance and monitoringArticle 91.The excessive deficit procedure shall be held in abeyance:— if the Member State concerned acts in compliance with recommendations made in accordance with Article [104(7)],— if the participating Member State concerned acts in compliance with notices given in accordance with Article [104(9)].2.The period during which the procedure is held in abeyance shall be included neither in the ten month period referred to in Article 7 nor in the two month period referred to in Article 6 of this Regulation....’