ECSC budget for 1996
Acting on a proposal from Mr. Erkki Liikanen, the Commissioner responsible for budget and administration, the European Commission adopted on 23 May 1995 the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) draft operating budget for 1996. The budget totals ECU 241 million, which is far lower than the budget in 1995 when it was ECU 331 million. The ECSC is expected to expire at the conclusion of its 50-year term in July 2002, and therefore the rate of the levies has, since 1991, been in gradual decline. It has been decided to continue this tendency in 1996, thereby reducing the rate from 0.21% to 0.19%. Of the total ECU 241 million, ECU 126 million (52%) is proposed for social aids to co-finance special schemes of the Member States in favour of coal and steel workers who have lost their jobs. From the social aids, the redeployment aid remains the largest item with ECU 80 million; 20,850 steelworkers should receive traditional redeployment aid in 1996. The number of recipients in the coal industry will be 9,300. Social measures in connection with the restructuring of the steel industry total ECU 20 million and social measures in connection with the restructuring of the coal industry total ECU 21 million. The allocation for research aids is ECU 69 million. Research aids will be concentrated on effective protection of the environment, increasing public awareness of the role of coal as an energy source, improving the competitiveness of coal and for the rational use of the Community resources. ECU 50 million are for interest relief grants to subsidize job-creating investment in the relevant regions.