title: Commission Implementing Directive (EU) 2019/69 of 16 January 2019 laying down technical specifications for alarm and signal weapons under Council Directive 91/477/EEC on control of the acquisition and possession of weapons (Text with EEA relevance.)

text:
                  17.1.2019

                  EN

                  Official Journal of the European Union

                  L 15/22

         COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING DIRECTIVE (EU) 2019/69
         of 16 January 2019
         laying down technical specifications for alarm and signal weapons under Council Directive 91/477/EEC on control of the acquisition and possession of weapons
         (Text with EEA relevance)
         THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,
         Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,
         Having regard to Council Directive 91/477/EEC of 18 June 1991 on control of the acquisition and possession of weapons (1), and in particular Article 10a(3) thereof,
         Whereas:

                     (1)

                     Annex I to Directive 91/477/EEC provides that objects which correspond to the definition of a firearm set out in that Directive are not included in that definition if they are designed for alarm, signalling or life-saving purposes and can only be used for the stated purpose.

                     (2)

                     Some devices designed for alarm, signalling or life-saving purposes that are currently available on the market can be easily converted to firearms using ordinary tools. Therefore, in order to count as an alarm and signal weapon for the purposes of Directive 91/477/EEC and to avoid the controls that apply to firearms under that Directive, devices should be such that they cannot be modified through the use of ordinary tools either to expel or to become capable of being converted to expel a shot, bullet or projectile by the action of a combustible propellant.

                     (3)

                     The specification described in recital (2) should form part of a package of technical specifications aimed cumulatively at ensuring that a device is not capable of being converted to expel a shot, bullet or projectile by the action of a combustible propellant. In particular, as the barrel of a device is critical for the conversion of such devices into firearms, the barrel should be such that it cannot be removed or modified without making the whole device inoperable. In addition, irremovable barriers should be inserted in the barrel, and the cartridge chamber and barrel should be offset, tilted or staggered in such a way as to prevent ammunition from being loaded in and fired from the device.

                     (4)

                     In order to ensure that the technical specifications for alarm and signal weapons are suitable for the wide variety of alarm and signal weapons that currently exist, the specifications laid down by this Directive should take into account commonly accepted international standards and values for cartridges and chambers for alarm and signal weapons, in particular Table VIII of the Tables of Dimensions of Cartridges and Chambers (TDCC) established by the Permanent International Commission for the Proof of Small Arms (C.I.P.).

                     (5)

                     To deter alarm and signal weapons from being easily converted into firearms, Member States should ensure that weapons manufactured in or imported into the Union are subject to checks in order to determine their compliance with the technical specifications laid down by this Directive. The checks could, for example, involve checking different models or types of device, or individual devices, or both.

                     (6)

                     Member States should be required to provide each other, on request, with information about the results of the checks carried out by them on alarm and signal weapons. In order to facilitate that exchange of information, Member States should be required to designate at least one national focal point capable of providing the information to other Member States.

                     (7)

                     With a view to facilitating the carrying out of checks on alarm and signal weapons, Member States should be required to cooperate with each other in the carrying out of such checks.

                     (8)

                     This Directive is without prejudice to Article 3 of Directive 91/477/EEC.

                     (9)

                     In accordance with the Joint Political Declaration of 28 September 2011 of Member States and the Commission on explanatory documents (2), Member States have undertaken to accompany, in justified cases, the notification of their transposition measures with one or more documents explaining the relationship between the components of a directive and the corresponding parts of national transposition instruments.

                     (10)

                     The measures provided for in this Directive are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee established by Article 13b(1) of Directive 91/477/EEC,

               HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:

            Article 1
            Technical specifications
            Member States shall ensure that, in order not to be considered a firearm under Directive 91/477/EEC, devices with a cartridge holder which are designed to fire only blanks, irritants, other active substances or pyrotechnic signalling rounds are required to comply at all times with the technical specifications set out in the Annex to this Directive.

            Article 2
            Checking compliance with the technical specifications

               1.   Member States shall ensure that devices of a kind referred to in Article 1 are subject to checks in order to determine their compliance with the technical specifications set out in the Annex.

               2.   Member States shall cooperate with each other in carrying out the checks referred to in paragraph 1.

            Article 3
            Exchange of information
            Upon request, a Member State shall provide another Member State with the results of the checks carried out by it in accordance with Article 2. For these purposes, each Member State shall designate at least one national focal point to provide such results, and shall communicate the contact details of the national focal point to the Commission.

            Article 4
            Transposition provisions

               1.   Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive by 17 January 2020 at the latest. They shall immediately inform the Commission thereof.
               When Member States adopt those measures, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or be accompanied by such a reference on the occasion of their official publication. The methods of making such reference shall be laid down by Member States.

               2.   Member States shall communicate to the Commission the text of the main provisions of national law which they adopt in the field covered by this Directive.

            Article 5
            Entry into force
            This Directive shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

            Article 6
            Addressees
            This Directive is addressed to the Member States.

            Done at Brussels, 16 January 2019.

                  For the Commission

                  The President

               Jean-Claude JUNCKER

            (1)  OJ L 256, 13.9.1991, p. 51

            (2)  OJ C 369, 17.12.2011, p. 14.

            ANNEX

               Technical specifications for devices referred to in Article 1

                        1.

                        The devices are such that they meet the following requirements:

                                    (a)

                                    they are capable of shooting pyrotechnic signalling rounds only if an adaptor at the muzzle is attached;

                                    (b)

                                    they have a durable device within the device that prevents the firing of cartridges loaded with single or multiple solid shots, solid bullets or solid projectiles;

                                    (c)

                                    they are designed for a cartridge listed in, and complying with the dimensions and other standards referred to in, Table VIII of the Tables of Dimensions of Cartridges and Chambers (TDCC) established by the Permanent International Commission for the Proof of Small Arms (C.I.P.), as that Table applies in the version in effect at the time of adoption of this Directive.

                        2.

                        The devices are not capable of being modified through the use of ordinary tools to expel, or to become capable of being converted to expel, a shot, bullet or projectile by the action of a combustible propellant.

                        3.

                        All essential components of the devices are such that they cannot be fitted or used as essential components of firearms.

                        4.

                        Barrels of the devices are not capable of being removed or modified without significantly damaging or destroying the device.

                        5.

                        In the case of devices with a barrel not exceeding 30 centimetres or whose overall length does not exceed 60 centimetres, the device incorporates irremovable barriers along the full length of the barrel such that a shot, bullet or projectile is not able to pass through the barrel by the action of a combustible propellant, and such that any free space left at the muzzle is no more than 1 cm in length.

                        6.

                        In the case of devices not falling within point 5, the device incorporates irremovable barriers on at least one third of the barrel length such that a shot, bullet or projectile is not able to pass through the barrel by the action of a combustible propellant, and such that any free space left at the muzzle is no more than 1 cm in length.

                        7.

                        In all cases, whether the device falls within point 5 or point 6, the first barrier in the barrel is placed as close as possible after the chamber of the device while allowing the expulsion of gases through exit holes.

                        8.

                        For devices designed to fire only blanks, the barriers referred to in point 5 or point 6 wholly block the barrel apart from one or more exit holes for gas pressure. In addition, the barriers wholly block the barrel in such a way that no gas can be fired from the front of the device.

                        9.

                        All barriers are permanent and incapable of being knocked out without destroying the chamber or barrel of the device.
                        For devices designed to fire only blanks, the barriers are wholly made of a material which is resistant to being cut, drilled, bored or ground (or any similar process) and which has a minimum hardness of 700 HV 30 (according to the Vickers hardness test).
                        For devices not covered by the second subparagraph of this point, the barriers are made of a material which is resistant to being cut, drilled, bored or ground (or any similar process) and which has a minimum hardness of 610 HV 30. The barrel may have a channel along its axis to enable the irritants or other active substances to be expelled from the device.
                        In either case, the barriers are such that they prevent occurrence of the following:

                                    (a)

                                    creation or enlargement of a hole in the barrel along its axis;

                                    (b)

                                    removal of the barrel, except where the frame and chamber area of the device is rendered useless as a result of the removal, or where the integrity of the device is so compromised that it cannot be used to form the basis of a firearm without significant repair or addition.

                        10.

                        The cartridge chamber and barrel are both offset or tilted or staggered in such a way as to prevent ammunition from being loaded in and fired from the device. In addition, in the case of revolver-type devices:

                                    (a)

                                    the cylinder chamber front openings are narrowed to ensure that bullets are blocked in the chamber;

                                    (b)

                                    those openings are offset to the chamber.


title: Commission Implementing Directive (EU) 2019/1813 of 29 October 2019 amending Implementing Directive 2014/96/EU on the requirements for the labelling, sealing and packaging of fruit plant propagating material and fruit plants intended for fruit production, falling within the scope of Council Directive 2008/90/EC as regards the colour of the label for certified categories of propagating material and fruit plants and the content of the supplier’s document

text:
                  30.10.2019

                  EN

                  Official Journal of the European Union

                  L 278/7

         COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING DIRECTIVE (EU) 2019/1813
         of 29 October 2019
         amending Implementing Directive 2014/96/EU on the requirements for the labelling, sealing and packaging of fruit plant propagating material and fruit plants intended for fruit production, falling within the scope of Council Directive 2008/90/EC as regards the colour of the label for certified categories of propagating material and fruit plants and the content of the supplier’s document
         THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,
         Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,
         Having regard to Council Directive 2008/90/EC of 29 September 2008 on the marketing of fruit plant propagating material and fruit plants intended for fruit production (1), and in particular Article 9(1) thereof,
         Whereas:

                     (1)

                     Commission Implementing Directive 2014/96/EU (2) sets out the requirements for the labelling of fruit plant propagating material and fruit plants intended for fruit production to ensure the identity and traceability of that propagating material and those fruit plants during marketing.

                     (2)

                     Pursuant to that Directive, the use of coloured labels for fruit plant propagating material and fruit plants of the pre-basic, basic and certified categories was to be reviewed by the Commission by 1 January 2019.

                     (3)

                     A survey conducted by the Commission showed that a majority of Member States are in favour of the mandatory use of a coloured label for the pre-basic, basic and certified categories of propagating material and fruit plants. The survey also indicated that several Member States market Conformitas Agraria Communitatis (‘CAC’) material with a yellow supplier’s document in the form of a label affixed to the CAC material.

                     (4)

                     In order to take into account the existing practice in the Member States, and to ensure a clear distinction between the supplier’s document for CAC material and the official labels for pre-basic, basic and certified material, the colour of the CAC label should be yellow when the supplier’s document is affixed to the CAC material. No special colour should be prescribed for the supplier’s document when it is not affixed to the CAC material because in such a case there is no risk of confusion with any other label or document.

                     (5)

                     Implementing Directive 2014/96/EU does not prescribe a specific colour for the supplier’s document when it is affixed to the CAC material in the form of a label. Certain Member States currently use a colour other than yellow for those labels. In order to avoid any disruption of trade, Member States should be allowed to authorise, for a transitional period, CAC material to which labels in a colour other than yellow are affixed, to be marketed in their own territory, where those coloured labels were already in use up to 1 April 2020.

                     (6)

                     Moreover, experience has shown that the content of the supplier’s document could be simplified to ensure more flexibility for the marketing of CAC material in each Member State. When the supplier’s document contains less information it is easier for the supplier to reduce the size of that document so that it can be affixed to the CAC material to be marketed. For this reason, providing information about the quantity of CAC material marketed and the Member State where the CAC material was produced, where it is different from the Member State in which the supplier’s document has been prepared, should be optional.

                     (7)

                     Having regard to the changes that need to be made to the labelling requirements for fruit plant propagating material and fruit plants of all marketing categories, as well as to the requirements for the supplier’s document, it is appropriate to amend Implementing Directive 2014/96/EU.

                     (8)

                     In order to allow the competent authorities and the suppliers adequate time to adapt to the new requirements, this Directive should apply from 1 April 2020.

                     (9)

                     The measures provided for in this Directive are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed, section Propagating Material and Plants of Fruit Genera and Species,

               HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:

            Article 1
            Amendments to Implementing Directive 2014/96/EU
            Implementing Directive 2014/96/EU is amended as follows:

                        (1)

                        In Article 2, paragraph 4 is replaced by the following:

                                    ‘4.

                                    The colour of the label shall be:

                                                (a)

                                                white with a diagonal violet stripe for pre-basic-material;

                                                (b)

                                                white for basic material;

                                                (c)

                                                blue for certified material.’;

                        (2)

                        Article 5 is replaced by the following:

                           ‘Article 5
                           Supplier’s document for CAC material

                              1.   Member States shall ensure that CAC material is marketed with a document prepared by the supplier in compliance with paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 (‘the supplier’s document’).
                              Member States shall ensure that the supplier’s document does not resemble the accompanying document referred to in Article 3, so as to avoid any possible confusion between those two documents.

                              2.   The supplier’s document shall contain at least the following information:

                                          (a)

                                          the indication ‘EU rules and standards’;

                                          (b)

                                          the name of the Member State where the document has been prepared, or the respective code;

                                          (c)

                                          the responsible official body or the respective code;

                                          (d)

                                          the name of the supplier or its registration number/code issued by the responsible official body;

                                          (e)

                                          the individual serial number, week number or batch number;

                                          (f)

                                          the botanical name;

                                          (g)

                                          the indication “CAC material”;

                                          (h)

                                          the denomination of the variety and, where appropriate, the clone. In the case of rootstocks not belonging to a variety: the name of the species or the interspecific hybrid concerned. For grafted fruit plants, such information shall be given for the rootstock and the top-graft. For varieties for which an application for official registration or for a plant variety right is pending, such information shall indicate: “proposed denomination” and “application pending”;

                                          (i)

                                          the date of issue of the document.

                              3.   Where it is affixed to the CAC material, the colour of the supplier’s document shall be yellow.

                              4.   The supplier’s document shall be indelibly printed in one of the official languages of the Union, clearly visible and legible.’

            Article 2
            Transposition

               1.   Member States shall adopt and publish, by 31 March 2020, the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive. They shall immediately communicate the text of those provisions to the Commission.
               They shall apply those provisions from 1 April 2020.
               When Member States adopt those provisions, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or be accompanied by such a reference on the occasion of their official publication. Member States shall determine how such reference is to be made.

               2.   Member States shall communicate to the Commission the text of the main provisions of national law which they adopt in the field covered by this Directive.

            Article 3
            Transitional measures

               1.   Member States may, until 30 June 2021, allow Conformitas Agraria Communitatis (‘CAC’) material to which labels in a colour other than yellow are affixed, to be marketed in their own territory, where those coloured labels were already in use up to 1 April 2020.

               2.   Member States shall ensure that, when marketed, fruit plant propagating material and fruit plants which qualify as CAC material shall be identified by a reference to this Article in the supplier’s document when used as a label.

            Article 4
            Entry into force
            This Directive shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

            Article 5
            Addressees
            This Directive is addressed to the Member States.

            Done at Brussels, 29 October 2019.

                  For the Commission

               Vytenis ANDRIUKAITIS

                  Member of the Commission

            (1)  OJ L 267, 8.10.2008, p. 8.

            (2)  Commission Implementing Directive 2014/96/EU of 15 October 2014 on the requirements for the labelling, sealing and packaging of fruit plant propagating material and fruit plants intended for fruit production, falling within the scope of Council Directive 2008/90/EC (OJ L 298, 16.10.2014, p. 12).