Low-Tech, innovation and state aid: the Austrian case

This paper reviews a considerable number of cases concerning the application of State aid rules to the EU banking sector. The relevance of the financial crisis which hit the lending industry in the ?90s determined the Commission to a significant number of State aid reviews of national measures in support of the sector. Following the deep restructuring of the lending industry in the EU and the complete liberalisation of the financial services market, State aid to support the banking sector has become less frequent. However, State intervention has not disappeared but takes more complex forms. The Commission tackles now State intervention both in the form of capital injections and guarantees granted to restructure individual banks or an entire banking sector. The Commission also investigates fiscal advantages, guarantees and tax preferences conferred on a limited number of banks for distributing savings products. EU Member States appear engaged in a new regulatory race to the bottom in the form of preferential tax regimes for financial holdings compared to more "traditional" and direct forms of State aid to national banks and financial intermediaries involving rescue and restructuring assistance to ailing national champions, or granting of State guarantees to the national banks. We expect that in the near future the Commission will increasingly monitor the existing preferential tax regimes to eliminate possible competition distortions resulting from State aid and will also ensure that capital injections and other forms of public support to public financial institutions are immune from State intervention.

State Aid in the Lending Sector

Based on the research and review of existing literature, this paper finds that the effects of government public policies (including fiscal policies and tax policies) on enterprise innovation can be roughly divided in to the following three categories. Firstly, the government's public policies are encouraging enterprise innovation. When companies are stimulated by public subsidies or tax incentives, they will increase investment in R & D and innovation. Secondly, the government's public policy has inhibited enterprise innovation. When enterprises receive the public subsidies from the government or enjoy the related tax incentives, they often do not increase the investment in research and innovation, but simply reduce the investment on R & D. Thirdly, there is no significant or non-linear relationship between government public policy and enterprise innovation. There is no significant correlation or complex non-linear relationship between whether enterprises increase their investment in R & D innovation and the government's public subsidies and other policies. At the same time, the author found that most of the existing research samples are large enterprises in developed countries. Furthermore, there is a lack of relevant research on small and medium-sized enterprises in developing countries. SMEs account for the vast majority of the whole enterprises, so it is meaningful to study the impact of government subsidies and tax incentives on SMEs' innovation.

The relationship between international investment law (IIL) and EU law is not without problems as evidenced by the Achmea ruling. These tensions have become more evident in the Micula case in which the commission resorted to the state aid rules in order to attack arbitration awards arising from intra-EU Bilateral investment treaties (BITs) (deeming its enforcement as state aid). Despite its two rulings relating to the Micula saga, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has not yet validated (or not) the application of state aid rules to the enforcement of intra-EU awards. Hopefully, the upcoming general court’s judgment shall rule on the merits of the Micula case thereby dispelling doubts. Nevertheless, it is foreseeable that further clarifying judgments will be required concerning the recognition and enforcement of intra-EU awards in non-EU jurisdictions. This article reviews the current situation to show that, while state aid rules could adequately prevent the enforcement of an intra-EU award within EU borders, they lack effectiveness for blocking enforcement beyond its borders. Arbitration award, intra-EU BIT, State aid, Tax benefit repeal, Damages, Award recognition, Award enforcement, Public policy, Micula, Achmea, ICSID Convention, New York Convention.

We examine the effects of local public policies aimed at stimulating the private sector by means of subsidies. Our goal is that of understanding. the level of coherence between publicly stated goals of the regional policy-maker, the actual shape of the subsidies, and their effects at firm level. The relevance of this goal stems from two considerations. First, the design of public policies aiming at stimulating private entrepreneurial activity is a central issue in the literature, but empirical findings do not provide a clear cut interpretation of their impact. Second, in Italy, local industrial policies have been growing in importance in recent years. In order to address these problems, the analysis uses a new dataset including the whole population of firms in the Italian province of Trentino and detailing the effects of the two main regional laws regulating subsidies of the last 15 years. At a methodological level, we use the propensity score matching approach in order to disentangle the effects of policies on firms' productivity, profitability, and growth. Results show that aid policies, in general, have the ability to modify entrepreneurial decision-making about investments. From a policy perspective, local public aid seems to be able to foster growth, however this does not translate into a better economic performance. Moreover, from the comparison of the two laws we can conclude that policy design matters: results are more significant whenever goals are clearly incorporated into the provisions of the law, especially when linked to a sound model for the expected outcomes.

Since the end of the eighties in most European countries many transportation services underwent a process of deregulation. In Italy, this process has been particularly strong in the domestic air transport market, one of the largest in Europe. The end of state monopoly on the national routes and the development of local airports produced new entry, lower average prices and passengers increase. Still many obstacles to competition remain. The presence of a domestic monopolist operating with public subsidies and the rules governing slots allocation have been the main factors hampering the full play of competition and induced accommodating strategies among the players. A comparison with other major European domestic markets shows higher prices in Italy even controlling for service quality. This shows that the full effects of deregulation cannot be obtained only by eliminating regulation barriers on the main market. It is necessary to create efficient allocative mechanisms on the related slots market. Another important condition is a full consistency of public policies, which at the moment are giving wrong signals to the agents by promoting competition and at the same time are keeping on protecting rents.

Виконання зобов’язань Україною як члена Енергетичного Співтовариства передбачає зменшення державного втручання, одночасно із забезпеченням доступу до надійних, стійких, сучасних джерел енергії. Положеннями Третього та Четвертого енергетичних пакетів визначено ряд заходів державної допомоги (чи державної підтримки), серед яких: підтримка у питаннях підвищення енергоефективності; заборона відключення вразливих споживачів від електроенергії у критичні моменти; стимулювання до інвестування у нові види виробництва енергії, що походить з відновлюваних джерел; залучення кінцевих споживачів повноцінно брати участь у енергетичному ринку й управляти власним енергоспоживанням.
 Метою статті є аналіз існуючих механізмів державної допомоги в Україні у різних секторах енергетики і визначення на цій основі шляхів зменшення державного втручання в умовах трансформування системи управління енергетичним сектором.
 Науковою новизною є сформовані за результатами дослідження пропозиції для створення правових умов розвитку ринкових механізмів з одночасним зменшенням державного втручання у різних секторах енергетики.
 Висновок. Трансформування системи управління енергетичним сектором в Україні супроводжується зменшенням державної допомоги в окремих секторах енергетики одночасно із фрагментарним впровадженням ринкових механізмів. У результаті аналізу існуючих механізмів державної підтримки в Україні у різних секторах енергетики з’ясовано проблемні питання їх функціонування і визначено пріоритети зменшення державного втручання у зазначену сферу. Можна стверджувати, що задля усунення прогалин функціонування механізмів державної допомоги в різних секторах енергетики для України актуальними є: впровадження енергоефективних заходів на промислових і комунальних підприємствах, запровадження державного стимулювання побутових споживачів до виробництва енергії з відновлюваних джерел; розширення можливостей споживача впливати на власне енергоспоживання; надійний захист вразливих споживачів енергоресурсів через посилення адресності соціальної підтримки.

A Competition Policy Lesson in Times of Crisis: State Aid Control by the European Commission (in Spanish)

O Brasil elevou sua taxa de aprisionamento em aproximadamente 200% nos últimos 20 anos. O presente trabalho tem dois objetivos: primeiro, o de caracterizar o sistema carcerário do Brasil por estado, a partir da análise de indicadores fornecidos pelo Ministério da Justiça e Departamento Penitenciário Nacional – DEPEN. Segundo traçar o perfil socioespacial das unidades prisionais do Estado do Maranhão com base nos dados do Tribunal de Justiça e Secretaria Estadual de Administração Penitenciária - SEAP. Em consonância com outros estudos, nossos resultados apontam para o “buraco negro” que se tornou o sistema prisional brasileiro. Já no Maranhão, o aumento progressivo da população carcerária deve-se mais a uma política de repressão e criminalização à pobreza, do que a uma política capaz de reduzir as ocorrências criminais letais ou não letais.

The Brazilian population aging in recent decades has led to the creation and implementation of public policies aimed at guaranteeing the social rights of the elderly. The need to implement strategies that provide autonomy, social integration and quality of life for this age group has become increasingly urgent. This study aimed to describe the socio-economic, familial and health profiles of the elderly who participate in a companionship group in the municipality of Sinop-MT. Data collection were performed through a multiple choice questionnaire Brazil Old Age Schedule (BOAS). This is a cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach. The sample consisted of 49 elderly participants of the elderly companionship group. Data collection was performed from April 20 to May 20, 2017. The results indicated that 27 (55.10%) were women, 28 (57.14%) widowers, 37 (75.50%) had finished primary school, 32 (65.30%) were retired and 22 (89%) had income between two and three minimum wages per month. 29 (59.1%) reported never feeling lonely and 46 (93.8%) did not feel depressed. 77.55% (n = 38) reported living alone and being solely responsible for household income; 75.51% (n = 37) said they were satisfied with the family relationship. (61.22%) evaluated their health as good, 81.63% (n = 40), had a confirmed diagnosis of disease, 69.38% (n = 34) reported using at least one medication and 79.59% (n = 39) reported excellent willingness to perform activities. With the purpose of obtaining subsidies that make possible the local planning of the actions directed to this population, through this study it is concluded that the participation of the elderly in companionship groups promotes a more active life and the inclusion of these individuals in social activities, so that the same ones exchange experiences, broaden their means of conviviality, improve their self-esteem and enjoy a quality old age.

Increased work requirements in new welfare reform legislation may further increase the demand for child care in the United States. Consequently, this article focuses on (1) the relationship between child care and self-sufficiency, particularly among low-income mothers; (2) factors affecting the demand for and availability, cost, and quality of child care that parents use; and (3) the part played by public subsidies in the availability, cost, and quality of child care. Low-income mothers' ability to achieve self-sufficiency depends on the availability of reliable child care, for they want the same types of care that middle-class mothers want. The federal government has played an important part in making child care available and affordable and also contributes to its quality. Much of the funding, however, has gone to middle-income or poor nonemployed parents. Child care for working poor and working-class parents is the important missing piece.

Factors Influencing German House Owners' Preferences on Energy Retrofits

Factors Influencing German House Owners’ Preferences on Energy Retrofits

This chapter examines the relationship between public procurement and State aid. The symbiotic relation of public procurement with State aid regulation reveals the commonality of features inherent to the notion of public sector. This notion, in its incarnations, is pivotal for the applicability of both public procurement and State aid regulation. The symbiosis of the two regimes also reveals the flexibility embedded in the public procurement acquis, which is translated as discretion conferred to contracting authorities to introduce public policy considerations in dispersing public services. In parallel to the flexibility of public procurement, State aid regulation projects flexibility either as regional development considerations, or as part of a national EU-wide industrial policy. On the other hand, the conceptual interrelation of public procurement with the financing of services of general interest reveals the policy and jurisprudence links between public procurement and State aid, which show that the two regimes are mutually exclusive.

This article intends to launch a discussion on the possibilities of introducing more sustainability into the rules on granting State aid. State aid law constitutes a crucial part of the internal market regulation. In principle, granting public support to companies is prohibited in the European Union (EU) as such state intervention distorts competition. In some cases, however, aid may be allowed if it pursues a legitimate public policy objective such as research, regional development, transport or environmental protection. In 2017, the EU Member States spent EUR 116.2 billion, i.e., 0.76% of GDP, on State aid at the EU level. While aid to the environment and energy saving promotes sustainability, the question is whether other types of aid also do so. This article provides a brief explanation of the rationale behind State aid control, explains how ‘good aid’ may be approved by the European Commission or EFTA Surveillance Authority (ESA) before it is granted by the Member States and proposes taking a closer look at the current guidelines for granting aid in the transport sector. This sector has a serious impact on the environment and human well-being, while it is heavily subsidised by the state.