The Subsidiarity Monitoring Network (SMN) was launched in April 2007. Its members include Parliaments and Governments of regions with legislative powers, local and regional authorities without legislative powers and local government associations in the European Union. It is also open to CoR national delegations and chambers of national parliaments.
The Network was set up to facilitate the exchange of information between local and regional authorities in the European Union and the Union level regarding various documents and legislative and political proposals from the European Commission which, once adopted, will have a direct impact on these authorities and the policies for which they are responsible.
It aims at:
Enabling local and regional authorities to be active in monitoring the implementation of the subsidiarity and proportionality principles;
- Raising awareness as regards the practical implementation of the subsidiarity and proportionality principles;
- Keeping CoR rapporteurs and members informed about contributions regarding subsidiarity and proportionality from a representative network of local and regional stakeholders;
- Identifying measures for better law-making, cutting red tape and increasing the acceptance of EU policies by EU citizens;
- Acting as a laboratory for the identification and exchange of best practices and experience between local and regional authorities on the application of the subsidiarity principle and the decentralised implementation of EU policies at the local level. More on Action Plan
The network is thus intended to act as an access point enabling all of its partners not only to obtain information but also to express their views, within the EU legislative process but also ahead of this process.
More on Impact Assessments
In addition to all the documents relating to the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality, you will find on this site a description of the application of these principles at the various stages of the legislative procedure, together with the necessary tools to make your contribution to the network in the form of observations, ideas and opinions.
Your opinion matters to the CoR and is extremely valuable since the Committee can more effectively represent the interests of local and regional authorities in the legislative process of the European Union by improving the information available.
How does the network operate?
In practice, the network operates through its website. Network partners are free to submit their assessments of all political or legislative documents which are the subject of a CoR opinion (
open consultations). In addition, they can be invited by a CoR rapporteur drafting an opinion on an EU initiative to give their views, whether on subsidiarity and proportionality aspects or on specific subjects (
targeted consultations).
Network partners can make their contributions to the subsidiarity and proportionality checks of documents submitted to them by using a
standard assessment grid or tailored questionnaires. All of the contributions are accessible on the network website. A summary report of the contributions is forwarded to rapporteurs and the relevant CoR commissions to serve as input for political debate within the commissions and during plenary sessions.
Standard assessment grid available in all EU official languages
Additionally the input of the Subsidiarity Monitoring Network can be sought in the upstream stages of the decision-making process in the framework of
impact assessment consultations, whereby quantitative and qualitative data provided by local and regional authorities can help assess the territorial impact of selected EU legislative and policy proposals and can be used by the European Commission in the preparation of its impact assessments.
Finally, in addition to its consultative activities, the network can serve as a laboratory for the exchange of experience and best practice in subsidiarity, the implementation of EU policies at the regional and local level and better regulation as seen from a local and regional perspective. In this regard, the first
Action Plan for the Subsidiarity Monitoring Network has been launched in 2009 and has resulted in the set up of 5 working groups in 2010. Discussions within partners' working groups will produce position papers, which can serve as input to rapporteurs in the preparation of their opinions. They will be presented in the
Subsidiarity Conference/Assises de la Subsidiarité.
