Institutions of the EEC

The governmental entities created by the Treaty of Rome were entities in name only. They had been created and their responsibilities had been generally articulated. But boxes on an orga­nizational chart must be given life by those who will take up the duty of beginning to per­form the responsibilities assigned to them. The jurisdictional limits of each had to be estab­lished, and then tested one against the other. A pecking order had to be worked out. Bureau­cratic motivations, goals, and energies had to be demonstrated. Results were measured. In the course of starting up a program as ambitious and unique as the European Economic Commu­nity, monumental uncertainties were expected and experienced, but they gradually gave way to a semblance of purpose and order. We will next review these governing entities and their duties, and we will then see how they came together to perform their difficult joint function of pulling together the various disparate Mem­ber States into one cohesive, cooperative, and effective unit.

The Council, composed of representatives appointed from the Member States (one represen­tative from each Member State), has both execu­tive and legislative functions. It is charged with responsibility for ensuring that the objectives of the EC, as an entity, are realized and put into practice. It may issue regulations and directives that are binding on Member States. Regulations are normally adopted based on recommendations of the Commission or Parliament. Work of the Council was compromised, particularly early on, by representatives’ allegiances to their own gov­ernment’s interest, rather than to the collective interests of the EC. National governments still retain some powers not delegated to the EU.

Parliament is composed of elected repre­sentatives from the Member States (754 repre­sentatives elected by citizens of Member States). From the first elections held in 1979, the Parlia­ment has assumed a larger and more powerful role in the EU as a result of the 1992 Maastricht Treaty (amended in the Treaty of Lisbon, signed in 2007 and entered into force on December 1, 2009) and the 1997 Amsterdam Treaty. The European Parliament, through these treaties, has progressed from a consultative body to a true legislative assembly. The Parliament is the only EU body that meets and debates in public, and it enacts the majority of European laws today. The legislative procedure for enacting legisla­tion depends on a “co-decision” process through which the Parliament and the Council are put on an equal footing, and together they enact laws proposed by the Commission. Unlike similar legislative bodies, the Parliament does not pos­sess the right of legislative initiative or the pro­posing of law. The members of Parliament are committed to act on behalf of the EC rather than at the behest of their constituency or their home governments, and sit in political groups instead of national delegations. Examples of European political groups that represent a particular politi­cal allegiance are: (1) European Conservative and Reformists, (2) European People’s Party, and (3) Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe.

The Commission is headquartered in Brus­sels and is composed of 27 representatives appointed by the Member State governments (one commissioner per State). Due to the breadth of its administrative duties, it is the largest of the

EU institutions, employing about half of all EU employees. The Commission is unique in that it is responsible for proposing all legislation to the European Parliament (for co-decision with the Council). The Commissioners all swear an oath of independence, disclaiming any partisan influ­ence from any source, and undertake to protect the interests of the European citizen, not the national citizen.

The Commission is in the nature of a Secre­tariat, or executive body, having primarily execu­tive duties, and its purpose is to see to it that the development of the EC conforms to the require­ments of the Treaty of Rome. It has considerable autonomy in matters of competition, trade policy, and agriculture. It issues recommendations and opinions to the Council with the view to having the Council adopt binding regulations or directives to enforce compliance, specifically with regard to competition issues. The Commission has taken the lead in forcing compliance with the objectives of the Treaty of Rome (e. g., that the EC act as a cohesive force for the common good of the Mem­ber States rather than in their own national inter­ests). The Commission has gradually accrued more power and responsibility since the 1980s, primarily as a result of decisions of the Court of Justice.

The foregoing were the original political institutions of the EEC, and remain as such in the European Union.

The European Court of Justice, although not political, was an original institution of the Treaty of Rome. It sits in Luxembourg and is the highest court in the EC. It is responsible for inter­preting the treaties that established the EU and its predecessors and the laws, regulations, and direc­tives emanating from its institutions.