政府采购法律与政策(三):欧盟

欧盟成员国之间实现了货物自由流通、服务和工程项目的自由提供和建造

一.介绍：

公共采购是根据《欧盟运行条约》普遍的、基本的自由原则派生出来的，该条约是里斯本条约的修订；也就是说，公共采购保障欧盟37国范围内的货物自由流通、自由提供服务以及建造的自由。在实践中，处于同一个单一市场内的欧盟成员国在授予公共合同时，不得给予来自其他成员国的公司以歧视待遇；各国有义务在同等待遇、非歧视、互相认可、比例适当和透明等原则的基础上与之签订合同。公共采购领域已经有一些指导条令来规范，还需要各成员国进一步付诸实施。2004年，经过长期谈判，欧盟改革了其公共采购法，原因是欧盟法院的一项判例法以及采纳的两项指令法案，这些指令代替了先前的指令法案。

在欧盟框架内，跨境采购的发生有两种途径：直接跨境采购和间接跨境采购。直接跨境采购是指在一国本土营业的公司受邀参加投标并赢得源自另一个欧盟成员国的招标并签订合同；而间接跨境采购发生在一国公司通过分支机构参与他国合同竞标时。

欧盟有关公共采购的法律体系也适用于WTO政府采购协议（GPA）的签署方。为了达成授予合同的目的，成员国要求应用“在实施政府采购协议（GPA）时，给予双方关系国与给予第三国经济运营者（包括合同授予方、供应商以及服务提供者）一样优惠的境遇”原则。依照政府采购协议（GPA），欧盟成员国还要保证他们各国的采购实体（政府机关和公共部门等）不会基于外国附加资本或者外资比例，而给予本国任何供应商低于其本国供应商的优惠待遇；进一步地，欧盟成员国还必须保证其采购实体不会基于目前提供货物或者服务的生产国的考虑，而歧视某国供应商，只要该生产国是GPA成员国。

2002年，根据欧盟委员会的预测，欧盟境内的公共采购总额（由政府和公共事业部门采购的货物、服务和公共工程）接近欧盟GDP总量的16%，约15，000亿欧元，根据当时1欧元大约兑换1.399美元的汇率，相当于20，990亿美元。公共采购的价值总量在欧盟各成员国之间各不相同，意大利公共采购价值占GDP11%、荷兰公共采购价值占21.5%，各国占比不等。

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二.公共采购立法

2004年通过的两部公共采购基本指令，内容如下：
(1)欧盟2004/18号指令，关于协调授予公共工程合同、公共供应合同和公共服务合同的采购指令，以及
(2)欧盟2004/17号指令，关于水、能源、交通和邮政服务部门实体协调采购程序的指令。

授予公共合同的必须遵守的原则是平等待遇、非歧视和透明。授予标准方面，两个指令是相同的。合同授予机关（实体）--也就是国家、地区或地方政府，或者根据公共法律进行行政治理的实体--被要求须：或者基于最具有经济优势-包括质量、价格、技术优点、环保特征、价格有效性以及交货数据等，或者仅仅基于最低价格，授予投标者公共合同。

A.欧盟2004/18号指令

1.指令的适用范围

欧盟2004/18号指令适用于该指令没有排除在外的公共合同，其价值约相当于或超过如下门槛（不包括增值税VAT）：
a)除下文第2款标明各项外，12.5万欧元以上的公共供应和服务合同；关于国防领域合同授予机关授予的公共供应合同，指令仅适用于附录V所列产品涉及的合同；以及
)19.3万欧元以上的(a)除附录IV所列之外的合同授予机关（也即中央政府机关）授予的公共供应和服务合同；(b)附录IV所列国防领域机关所授予的公共供应合同，但不涉及附录V所列有国防有关的产品；以及(c)合同授予机关授予的公共服务合同，内容为附录IIA中目录8或者目录5（有关电信服务）所列服务项目；以及
c)484.5万欧元以上的公共工程合同。

2.排除范围

欧盟2004/18号指令不适用于以下合同：
欧盟2004/17号指令中规定的水、能源、交通和邮政服务部门履行采购程序授予的公共合同（请见下文第二部分(B)）；
公共电信网络和服务；
保密合同以及需要特殊安全措施的合同；
由两个成员国以及一个或几个第三国缔结的国际条约约束的公共合同；
根据国际条约规定，和驻军有关的公共合同；以及
国际组织根据国际程序达成的合同。

3.特别例外

欧盟2004/18号指令不适用于以下公共服务合同：
土地或不动产的购置或租赁；
用于广播节目之材料的购置、开发和生产；
雇佣合同；

仲裁和调解服务；
与保险产品有关的出售、购买和转让，相关的金融服务；
服务特许；以及
基于专属权基础授予的服务合同。

4.合同保留

当被庇护的就业项目其雇员大多数都是残疾人时，成员国可以保留相应权利，参与公共合同授予程序以庇护残疾人就业或者授予此类合同。

5.国防采购

当某些特定的工程合同、供应合同和服务合同的授予机关或实体涉及国防和安全领域时，协调其合同授予程序的国防采购受欧盟2009/81号指令约束，以及受2004/17和2004/18号指令修订版的约束。

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B.欧盟2004/17号指令

欧盟2004/17号指令适用于合同估价不低于以下门槛价的合同：(a)38.7万欧元以上的供应和服务合同；和(b)484.5万欧元以上的工程合同。

1.该指令范围之外的合同

欧盟2004/17号指令不适用于以下情况：
由涉及天然气、供热、电力、水利、交通服务和港口服务的合同授予实体授予的工程和服务特许合同，以及石油、天然气、煤炭及其他固体燃料的开发开采，港口和航空港建设等；

以向第三方再出售或转让为目的的合同授予；
合同授予的目的不外乎或者是为了寻求在第三国开展合同业务；
秘密合同或需要特别安全措施的合同；以及
依照国际条约授予的合同；以及
授予附属单位或合资企业的合同。

2.源自第三国产品的投标

拥有源自欧盟以外第三国产品的投标者应当遵守欧盟2004/17号指令第58章载明的特别条款。根据本章规定，如果投标者所提供产品中含有欧盟尚未与之签署双边或多边协定的第三国生产的产品，不能保证欧盟公司相应有效地进入该国市场时，这些投标者的相应第三国产品将被拒之门外，正如欧盟海关条例所规定的：“超过总值50%的产品等同于整个投标”。

C.低于必要门槛价的合同

低于两个指令都载明的门槛价的那些合同应当遵守源自《欧盟条约》的一般性原则。以下公共合同全部或部分处于两个指令的管辖范围之外：
低于应用两个指令的门槛价的合同--也就是根据欧盟2004/18号指令第7章和欧盟2004/18号指令第16章规定提供的门槛价；
欧盟2004/18号指令附录II（B）和欧盟2004/17号指令附录XVII（B）中所列的服务合同；以及
服务特许合同；

以上公共合同的授予受一系列标准的制约，这些标准是欧盟法院根据欧盟条约基本准则和条例做出的判例。因此，基于国别的平等待遇和非歧视的原则在合同授予过程中需要一些透明度。欧盟法院坚持“一贯保证任何一个潜在投标者的利益，一定程度的公告效率，保证服务市场的开放性竞争，以及监督程序的公平”。

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三.公共采购指令带来的经济利益

2004年，欧盟委员会发布了欧盟市场公共采购功能报告。该报告指出，自1970年代就开始采用的欧盟公共采购指令明显提高了市场竞争和透明度，而且通过邀请他国投标和一定门槛之上的合同授予等增加了跨境经济活动。

报告还认为，直接跨境采购活动比例仍嫌较低，只占招投标总量的大约3%。间接跨境采购的份额--也就是外国公司通过他们的本地分支代理公司赢得的投标--比例较高，约占招投标总额的近30%。欧盟条令的应用还带来了如下好处：

各国、地区和地方政府为供应物、工程和服务所付价格降低了大约30%；以及

欧盟内部竞争力提高，公共机关为成员国之间货物贸易所付价格微乎其微。例如，在欧盟各国之间发生的小铁路钢铁贸易，出口价格比从1988-1992年间的21%，降到了1998-2002年间的7%强。

（本文资料由高级外国法律专家特丽莎·帕帕德米特里奥提供）

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附原文：

Government Procurement Law and Policy: European Union

I. Introduction

Public procurement is subject to the general, basic freedoms enshrined in the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, as amended by the Lisbon Treaty; that is, free movement of goods, freedom to provide services, and freedom of establishment within the territories of the twenty-seven EU Member States.  In practice, EU Member States within the single market may not discriminate in awarding public contracts against firms from other EU Members; they are obliged to treat contracts based on the principles of equal treatment, nondiscrimination, mutual recognition, proportionality, and transparency.  Public procurement has been regulated by a number of Directives, which require further implementation by the Member States.  In 2004, following a lengthy debate, the European Union (EU) reformed the rules on public procurement in light of case law of the Court of the European Union and adopted two Directives, the so-called Public Procurement Directives, which replaced prior directives.

Within the EU framework, cross-border procurement occurs in two ways; Direct cross-border procurement and indirect cross-border procurement.  Direct cross-border procurement occurs when firms that operate from their home market bid and win contracts for invitations to tender initiated in another EU Member; while indirect cross-border procurement takes places when firms bid for contracts through subsidiaries.[1]

The EU legal regime on public procurement also applies to signatories to the WTO Agreement on Government Procurement.[2]  For the purposes of the award of contracts, Member States are required to apply “in their relations conditions as favorable as those which they grant to economic operators (the term includes contractors, suppliers and service providers) of third countries in implementation of the Agreement on Government Procurement (AGP).”[3]  Pursuant to the AGP, EU Members are also required to ensure that their entities do not treat a locally established supplier less favorably than another locally established supplier based on the degree of foreign affiliation or ownership; moreover, EU Members must also ensure that their entities do not discriminate against locally established suppliers on the grounds of the country of production of the good and services being supplied, if the country of production is a party to the AGP.[4]

In 2002, pursuant to the European Commission’s estimates, the total public procurement in the EU-that is, the purchase of goods, services and public works by governments and public utilities-was close to 16% of the Union’s GDP or €1,500 billion (US$2,099 billion at the current exchange rate of €1 to approximately US$1.399).[5]  The value of public procurement varies among the EU Member States from 11% in Italy to 21.5% in the Netherlands.[6]

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II. Public Procurement Legislation

The two basic public procurement Directives, which were adopted in 2004, are as follows:

(1)   Directive 2004/18/EC on the coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts;[7] and,

(2)   Directive 2004/17/EC on coordinating the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors.[8]

The principles governing the award of public contracts are equal treatment, nondiscrimination, and transparency.  As for the award criteria, these are the same in both Directives.  Contracting authorities-that is, State, regional, or local authorities, or bodies governed by public law-are required to award public contracts on the basis of either the bid that is most economically advantageous in terms of quality, price, technical merit, environmental characteristics, cost-effectiveness, and delivery date, or the lowest price only.[9]

A. Directive 2004/18/EC

1. Scope of Directive

Directive 2004/18/EC applies to public contracts that are not excluded from the scope of the Directive and that have a value exclusive of value-added tax (VAT) estimated to be equal to or greater than the following thresholds:[10]

a)   Euro 125.000 for public supply and service contracts, other than those covered by point (2)?, directly below; in the case of public supply contracts awarded by contracting authorities in the field of defense, this applies only to contracts involving products listed in Annex V; and

)   Euro 193.000 for (a) public supply and service contracts awarded by contracting authorities other than those listed in Annex IV; (that is, central government authorities); (b) public supply contracts awarded by contracting authorities listed in Annex IV operating in the field of defense, where these contracts involve products not covered by Annex V (related to defense); and (c) for public service contracts awarded by any contracting authority in respect of the services listed in Category 8 of Annex IIA or Category 5 (telecommunications services); and,

c)   Euro 4,845,000 for public works contracts.[11]

2. Excluded Contracts

Directive 2004/18/EC does not apply to the following contracts:

Public contracts for procurement procedures operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors regulated under Directive 2004/17/EC (see Part II(B), below);

Public telecommunications networks or services;[12]

Secret contracts and contracts that require special security measures;[13]

Public contracts governed by an international agreement between a Member State and one or more third states;[14]

Public contracts concluded on the basis of an international agreement relating to the stationing of troops; and,

Those contracts pursuant to the international procedure of an international organization.[15]

3.      Specific Exclusions

Directive 2004/18/EC does not apply to public service contracts for:

The acquisition or rental of land, or immovable property;

The acquisition, development, production, of program material intended for broadcasting;

Employment contracts;

Arbitration and conciliation services;

Financial services related to the sale, purchase, or transfer of securities;

Service concessions; and

Service contracts awarded on the basis of an exclusive right.[16]

4. Reserved Contracts

Member States may reserve the right to participate in public contract award procedures to sheltered workshops or provide for such contracts to be performed within the context of sheltered employment programs where most employees are handicapped.[17]

5. Defense Procurement

Defense procurement is governed by Directive 2009/81/EC on the coordination of procedures for the award of certain work contracts, supply contracts, and service contracts by contracting authorities or entities in the fields of defense and security, and amending Directives 2004/17/EC and 2004/18/EC.[18]

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B. Directive 2004/17/EC

Directive 2004/17/EC applies to contracts that have a value estimated to be no less than the following thresholds: (a) €387.000 in the case of supply and service contracts; and (b) €4,845,000 in the case of works contracts.[19]

1. Contracts Outside the Scope of the Directive

Directive 2004/17/EC does not apply in the following cases:

Works and service concessions that are awarded by contracting entities involved in gas, heat, electricity, water, transport services, and postal services, and exploration for, or extraction of, oil, gas, coal, or other solid fuels, as well as ports and airports;[20]

Contracts awarded for the purpose of resale or lease to third parties;[21]

Contracts awarded for purposes other than the pursuit of an activity covered or for the pursuit of such an activity in a third country;[22]

Contracts that are secret or require special security measures;[23]

Contracts awarded pursuant to international rules;[24] and

Contracts awarded to an affiliated undertaking, or to a joint venture.[25]

2. Tenders with Products Originating in Third Countries

Tenders that comprise products originating in third countries outside the European Union are subject to special rules provided for in Article 58 of Directive 2004/17/EC.  Under this Article, tenders that cover products originating in third countries with whom the EU has not concluded a bilateral or a multilateral agreement and that ensure comparable and effective access for Community companies to the markets of those third countries may be rejected where the proportion of products originating in third countries, as determined by the Community Customs Code, “exceeds 50% of the total value of the products constituting the tender.”[26]

C. Contracts Below the Required Threshold

Certain contracts below the thresholds prescribed by both Directives are subject to the general rules deriving from the EC Treaty.  The following public contracts remain wholly or partially outside the scope of the Directives:

Contracts below the thresholds for application of the directives-that is, those provided by Article 7 of Directive 2004/18/EC and Article 16 of Directive 2004/17/EC;

Contracts for services listed in Annex II B to Directive 2004/18/EC and in Annex XVII B to Directive 2004/17/EC; and,

Awards of services concessions.

Award of the above public contracts is governed by a number of standards, as developed by the Court of the European Union based on the rules and principles of the EC Treaty.  Consequently, the principle of equal treatment and nondiscrimination on grounds of nationality require some transparency in the award procedure.  The Court has held that it “consists in ensuring, for the benefit of any potential tenderer, a degree of advertising sufficient to enable the services market to be opened up to competition and the impartiality of the procedures to be reviewed.”[27]

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III. Economic Benefits Derived from Directives on Public Procurement

In 2004, the European Commission issued a report on the functioning of public procurement markets in the EU.[28]  The report states that the EU directives on public procurement adopted in the 1970s have contributed considerably to improving competition and transparency and also to increasing cross-border activity through the requirement of invitations to tender and contract award notices above a certain threshold.[29]  The report also suggests that direct cross-border procurement remains low, at approximately 3% of the total number of bids.  The rate of indirect cross-border public procurement-that is, bids won by foreign firms through their local subsidiaries-is higher, constituting close to 30% of the total bids.  Application of the EU rules also contributed to:

Reducing prices paid by national, regional and local authorities for supplies, works, and services by around 30%; and

Increasing intra-EU competition and prices paid by public authorities for goods traded between Member States have been less.  For example, regarding small iron and steel rails traded between EU countries, export prices dropped from around 21% in 1988-92 to over 7% in 1998-2002.[30]

Prepared by Theresa Papademetriou

Senior Foreign Law Specialist