The boards of directors of the European Radiocommunication Office (ERO) and the European Telecommunications Office (ETO) held a joint meeting last 9-10 December in Copenhagen, meant to be the last such gathering before the entrance into force of the Convention establishing the future European Communications Office (ECO).
The meeting saw approval of the 2009 Budget and the 2009-2011 Financial Plan, a document that envisages maintaining the contribution unit's value in 2009, as has occurred since 2007. It also envisages the possibility that the future ECO may hire an additional expert to handle next year's expected increase in work volume, thus enlarging the staff from 14 to 15 employees. A definitive decision on this subject will nevertheless only be made at the next ECO Council in May 2009.
The Plan advocates maintaining the reduction of net capital (whose total currently stands at 19 million Danish kroner - nearly 2.15 million euros) throughout the 2009-2011 triennium. However, and particularly vis-à-vis the possibility of taking on a new expert, it is very likely that the States' contributions will be increased by 3 percent from 2010 on, in line with the inflation rate. On this subject, the ECO Council in May of next year may nevertheless make a more consolidated decision based on the course of events in the meanwhile.
The joint ERO/ETO Council also studied the financial implications of the ongoing CEPT reorganisation, in a scenario expected to be based on the co-presidency shared by the chairpersons of the Electronic Communications Committee (ECC), the European Committee for Postal Regulation (CERP) and the ITU working group (WG ITU). The rule is based on cost recovery; it was agreed that the ERO will submit to the next extraordinary Assembly in March 2009 the proposal that all 49 States in the organisation support the ERO's costs (currently supported only by the 29 countries that joined the Convention), as well as the costs associated to the presidency. To that end, the possibility of using the mechanisms envisaged in the CEPT agreement in eventual non-compliance situations was noted.
As for the cost recovery calculation method, there were four possible methods, of which the method based on the average cost of salary and general overhead was endorsed. It was considered to be the fairest, in terms of cost distribution, and is believed to ensure the most transparency.
The Ad Hoc Audit group, which has been working for nearly a year and a half to reorganise and adjust the ERO to its future mission, presented an intercalary report urging the ERO to adopt one single scenario from an initial total of four scenarios: ''European Regulator with No Powers at the Level of Spectrum Management and Network Security'', in light of the latest community developments. The strategy for the future ECO Office will be based on this scenario, in terms of relations between CEPT and the European Union. This working group's final report will likewise be presented in May.
The ERO/ETO joint Council also approved the activities Plan for 2009 and was informed that a new joint website is being prepared for all of CEPT, a ''CEPT Portal'' that will combine four major sections: ECO, ECC, CERP and WG ITU. The current ERO content should be transferred to the ECC section. However, the new website will only be launched in May 2009, two months later than planned. It will have new functions and increased security. The software provider was chosen in May 2008 from a limited sample of suppliers.
The Council also advised the ERO of its concerns regarding preparations for the next CEPT Conference, to be held in Montreux on 21-22 October 2009. For the year in which the 50th anniversary of CEPT and the entrance into force of the ECO Convention are celebrated, the ERO proposes a somewhat more ambitious format for this conference, admitting the possibility that the budgeted amount (400,000 Danish kroner) may not be enough. The Council members urged a prudent approach to the issue of increasing the subscription, which they consider a sensitive matter, and defended budget balancing of costs and revenues.
Also approved, per the director's proposal, was an amendment to point 4.3 of the staff rules, which involves an assessment of the director's own performance, a situation that was lacking. In the future, the Council’s chair and deputy chair will have to produce an instrument to register and evaluate the ERO director's performance, for submission to the next Council. The Council also unanimously decided that the director should receive the salary increase under consideration, after completing two years in office and with a performance deemed to be very satisfactory.
The Council was informed of Turkey's request to reduce its contribution unit from ten to one unit.
The next Council has been scheduled for 6-7 May 2009.
