CPO 3101 Exam 1

Main Types of Secondary Acts

Regulations, directives, decisions, recommendations, and opinions

The Luxembourg Compromise

Represented a considerable blow to European integration. Funding of the budget would continue to be done by national contributions. Governments would retain their right to veto proposals.

The Convergence Criteria

Required member states to have a budget deficit of less than 3% of GDP and a public debt ratio less than 60% of GDP.

The British Budget Rebate

It became apparent in 1980, that Britain would become the largest net contributor to the EC. The British government demanded rebate, and were obstructionists until the rest of the council bypassed their veto power.

Responsibilities of the European Commission

Proposing laws to the EP and Council Helping members states implement EU legislation Managing the EU budget and allocating funding Ensuring the EU law is complied with the ECJ Representing the EU outside Europe

Responsibilities of the European Council

Providing strategic direction to the EU by defining political priorities Discussing current global developments and issuing important foreign policy statements Negotiation key treaty provisions

Intergovernmentalism

Said that integration was a self-contained process, but was influenced internationally. That governments were particularly powerful because they had sovereignty, and that integration wouldn't necessarily spill over.

The Council of the EU

Consists of ministers from each member state. The Council meets in a variety of formations depending on the subject under consideration.

Composition of the European Council

Consists of the heads of states or governments of each member states.

European Atomic Energy Community

Created a specialized market for nuclear energy within the European Community.

The Treaty of Paris

Created a supranational body, the High Authority, along with the Council of Ministers, Common Assembly, and Court of Justice. It laid the institutional framework for future EU institutions.

European Economic Community

Created by the Treaty of Rome. Committed its six founding members to: the free movement of goods, the elimination of customs duties, a common external tariff, establishment of common agricultural trade, transport and competition policies

The Treaties of Rome

Created the European economic community.

The Ordinary Legislative Procedure

Default decision making procedure. The Treaty of Maastricht introduced the co-decision procedure and the Lisbon Treaty renamed it as OLP. The OLP denotes the use of QMV in the Council combined with co-decision between the Council and EP.

Sources of EU Law

Derives from Primary Acts and Secondary Legislative and Executive Acts

Economic and Monetary Union

Details were established in 1995. The European Central Bank would be in Frankfurt. New currency would be called the Euro. Convergence criteria would have to be met precisely: Budget deficit less than 3% of GDP and a public debt ratio less than 60% of GDP. Initially, a large # of members states had difficulties meeting the convergence criteria. The single currency came into existence in 1999, but ran into difficulties

The Treaty of Brussels

1948 Agreement between Belgium, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and the UK, as an expansion of their previous defense pledge

Theory

A logically consistent set of statements that explains a phenomenon of interest

New Institutionalism

A reaction to behavioral approaches. Argued that analysts had lost sight of the importance of institutions. They further agued that institutions matter in understanding EU politics.

Functionalism

A theory of how to overcome nationalism and achieve world peace. The plan was to create a set of separate international functional agencies each having control over a certain aspect of human life. The governments would slowly relinquish control to these agencies.

The Marshall Plan

An US economic aid plan to help rebuild Europe after the destruction caused by World War II. The money was distributed by the Organization for European Economic Cooperation.

The Lisbon Treaty

Announced by German to create a constitutional treaty. Propose to amend existing treaties into 1 treaty. Majority of the Constitutional Treaty was kept. Allowed governments to avoid ratification by referendum. Went into effect in December 2009.

The Schuman Declaration

France was worried about the emergence of the new Federal Republic of Germany. It proposed the creation of the European Coal and Steel Community and represented a decisive first step towards European unity. Attempted to make war between France and Germany impossible. It also invited other states to participate and involved a surrender of sovereignty over coal and steel industries.

Functional-Federalism

Believed in the creation of supranational institutions to build a genuine economic community.

The European Council

Brings together the heads of states or governments of the member states.

Veto of British Applications

Charles de Gaulle decided multiple times to reject the bids for British application into the European Community

Decision-Making in the European Commission

College meets at least once a week. They make decisions typically through consensus. The commissioners are expected to show support for any directive or policy that comes out of the commission, even if they were losing side of the vote.

Historical Institutionalism

Emphasizes that political relationships have to be viewed over time and that decisions are shaped by pre-existing institutional relationships.

Sociological Institutionalism

Emphasizes the argument that the behavior of actors is shaped by norms and values. It contained three features: Institutions have a deep effect on the preferences and identity, that institutions have a broader definition, and sees institutions as being created and developed because they form social legitimacy

Rational Choice Institutionalism

Focuses on constraints and cost/benefit analysis. It said that the activities of interest groups reflect the procedures that prevail for the passage of legislation, the access points that are available, and the relationships with decision makers. It also utilizes principal-agent theory to explain the ways in which supranational actors might obtain a degree of autonomy from national governments.

The Pleven Plan

France proposed the creation of a European Defense Community to check Germany.

The Southern Enlargements

Greece became the 10th member in 1981, and Spain and Portugal became members 1986

Jacque Delors

He played a crucial role in the negotiation of the 1983 realignment of currencies within the exchange rate mechanism of the EMS.

Federalism

Implies a clear transfer of all political authority. Proposed a complete break from national states to a creation of federal Europe.

Transparency and Accountability of Commission

In February 1994, they unveiled a "transparency package" increase transparency: Public documents: utilizing public hearings, information seminars, and consultation more often in the initiation of legislation. And to draft legislation to national parliaments for review before the legislation is addressed in the Council

Jurisdiction of the ECJ

Infringement deicisions, judicial review, Preliminary national case rulings

The Single European Act

Introduced Qualified Majority Voting, increased the legislative powers of the EP in areas where QMV applied. It incorporated European political cooperation into a treaty text for the first time. It incorporated in the Preamble a reiteration of the objective of an economic and monetary union. It incorporated in the Preamble a commitment by the members states to transform relations as a whole among their states into a European Union.

Composition of the European Commission

Led by the College of Commissioners. Comprised of: The President, 7 Vice-Presidents, 20 Commissioners.

The Maastricht Treaty

Made a commitment to adopt a single currency. Created a 3-pillar structure known as the EU with new areas of cooperation. (The European Community, Common Foreign and Security Policy, and Justice and Home Affairs). Strengthened the powers of the European Parliament. Introduction of the concept of European citizenship.

Composition of the EU Parliament

Made up of 751 elected members. Seats are allocated based on population.

Composition of the Council of the EU

Made up of ministers from each member state, they meet regarding specific topics.

The European Parliament

Main legislative body within the EU

Qualified Majority Voting

Main system of voting in the European Parliament

Responsibilities of the Council of the EU

Negotiates and Adopts the legislative acts with the EP Adopts the EU budget together with the EP Develops the EU's foreign and security policy, based on the European Council's guidelines.

Composition of the ECJ

One judge per member state and 11 advocates generals, and each serves a renewable 6 year term.

Theories of Interest-Groups Politics

Pluralist model, Corporatist model, neo-pluralist

Policy Drift

Policy Drift is the difference between what the intent of the policy is and how it is actually enacted by agents. The principle wants the task carried out in a certain way that is reflective of their ideal policy preferences. The agent's ideal point may be different because of personal preferences, influences of other actors like lobbyists, or their incompetence.

Principal Agent Framework

Political Scientists use the principal agent framework to study the delegation of responsibilities to specific actors. The principles holds the executive power and delegates some level of power or discretion to an agent who is charged with using that power to carry out the task.

Responsibilities of the European Parliament

Powers over Budget: Sharing powers for confirming the EU budget Powers over the Legislation: Sharing powers with the Council EP for adopting new legislation Powers over other EU institutions: Approving the appointment of the Commission president and all of the commission

The Constitutional Treaty

Prepare ground for European Constitution. In the 2000s, the French and Dutch people rejected the Treaty. After this, they abandoned the idea.

Current Presidents of the EU Institutions

President of the European Council-Donald Tusk President of the European Commission-Jean-Claude Juncker President of the European Parliament-Antonio Tajani

Main types of general principles

Principles of Legislative and Administrative Legality Economic Freedoms Fundamental Human Rights Political Rights

The Fouchet Plan

Proposed a confederation of states with a Council of Minsters, a Consultative Assembly of seconded national parliamentarians, and a commission. However, unlike the Commissions of the EEC and Euratom, this Commission would not be a supranational body with independent powers, but would consist of officials from national Foreign Ministries.

The Delors Report

Proposed an integrated version of education. Proposed a three-stage process towards creating a monetary union that would lead to a single currency. 1. Free movement of capital within the EC. 2. Coordination of national monetary policy and narrowing margins of fluctuation for exchange rates. 3. Formation of irrevocably fixed exchange rates and grant full monetary authority to the ECB

The Copenhagen Criteria

Stability of democratic institutions, functioning market economy and the capacity to deal with competitive pressure and market forces, the ability to take on the obligations of membership, including adherence to the goals of political, and economic union.

Neofunctionalism

Suggested that integration, once started, would undermine sovereignty. It said that the concept of the state is more complex than realists suggest, the activities of interest groups and bureaucratic actors are not confined to the domestic political arena. It also said that non-state actors are important in international politics, and that European integration is advanced through spillover pressures.

The Fourth Enlargement

Sweden, Austria, and Finland become members of the EU in 1991.

The Comitology System and Committees

The Council designed a system of committees consisted of national government officials with which the commission must work when implementing legislation. Has four types: Advisory, Management, Regulatory, and Regulatory with Scrutiny

Judicial Powers

The ECJ has the power of judicial review of EU legislation. The ECJ can review the legality of acts. Any member state, the Council, the Commission, and the EP can bring together an action to ECJ based upon infringement.

The Budgetary Procedure

The European Council sets the multi-annual budgetary envelope which frames annual budget negotiations The Commission draws up an annual budget draft, which is considered by the Council of Ministers and then sent to the EP If the EP approves the Council's position, the budget is approved. If the EP amends the Council's position, the draft budget goes back to the council If the Council accepts the EP's changes, the budget is approved. If the Council rejects the amendments, a Conciliation Committee is convened to reach an agreement. If an agreement is achieved in the Conciliation Committee, the budget is approved, otherwise the Commission has to present a new proposal

The First Enlargement

The entry of UK, Ireland, and Denmark into the EC

The Seventh Enlargement

The admission of Croatia into the EU

The Sixth Enlargement

The admission of Romania and Bulgaria

The Fifth Enlargement

The admission of countries in central and eastern Europe.

The European Commission

The most supranational of the EU's institutions, the Commission performs executive and bureaucratic functions within the EU.

Police-Patrol Mechanism

The principal can employ monitoring devices or specify the delegated tasks in order to ensure agents are doing what they are supposed to be doing.

Fire-Alarm Mechanism

The principal can rely on affected groups, or individual citizens to pull the fire alarm when policies are not being implemented or enforced in the ways they should be

European Coal and Steel Community

Was the first instance of European integration. This allowed for the pooling of French and German coal and steel resources and took the first step towards a European "federation"

Slowdown in the EU Integration Process

They developed the Genscher-Colombo tried to deal with this slowdown which called for a new European Charter that would supersede Paris and Rome. The meeting at Fountainebleau in 1984 agreed to progress institutional reform and the internal market

Liberal Intergovernmentalism

This assumed states were rational actors. It said that major choices were a reflection of member state preferences. National preferences were reflected in the balance of economic interests.

Special Legislative Procedures

Under the consultation procedure, the Council has to receive the EP's opinion, but it could ignore it. Under the consent procedure, the EP's agreements for a measure to be adopted is required, but the EP cannot amend procedures. These procedures apply to a reduced number of policy areas.

The Empty Chair Crisis

When President De Gaulle of France vetoed Great Britain's application to join the EEC. De Gaulle tried to negotiate with the rest of the member states to let Britain in by trying to convince them to develop a more coherent foreign policy. France's plan did not work and they were forced to use their veto

European Defense Community

Would have pooled together the military resources of France, Germany, Italy, and the Benelux states into a European army.