CHAPTER VI

INFORMATION EXCHANGE

Information exchange and focal points
Article 69
1
The Member State shall establish an effective exchange of appropriate information and effective cooperation between their national accreditation body or, where applicable, the national authority entrusted with the certification of verifiers, and the competent authority.
2
Where more than one competent authority is designated pursuant to Article 18 of Directive 2003/87/EC in a Member State, the Member State shall authorise one of those competent authorities as the focal point for the exchange of information, for coordinating the cooperation referred to in paragraph 1, and for the activities referred to in this Chapter.

Accreditation work programme and management report
Article 70
1
By 31 December of each year, the national accreditation body shall make available an accreditation work programme to the competent authority of each Member State containing the list of verifiers accredited by that national accreditation body and which have notified it pursuant to Article 76 that they intend to carry out verifications in those Member States. The accreditation work programme shall at least contain the following information in relation to each verifier:
a
the anticipated time and place of the verification;
b
information on activities that the national accreditation body has planned for that verifier, in particular surveillance and reassessment activities;
c
dates of anticipated witnessing audits to be performed by the national accreditation body to assess the verifier including the address and contact details of operators or aircraft operators that will be visited during the witness audit;
d
information on whether the national accreditation body has requested the national accreditation body from the Member State in which the verifier is performing the verification, to carry out surveillance activities.
2
Following the submission of the accreditation work programme in accordance with paragraph 1, the competent authority shall provide the national accreditation body with any relevant information, including any relevant national legislation or guidelines.
3
By 1 June of each year, the national accreditation body shall make available a management report to the competent authority. The management report shall at least contain the following information in relation to each verifier that has been accredited by that national accreditation body:
a
accreditation details of verifiers that were newly accredited by that national accreditation body, including the scope of accreditation for these verifiers;
b
any changes to the scope of accreditation for these verifiers;
c
summarised results of surveillance and reassessment activities carried out by the national accreditation body;
d
summarised results of extraordinary assessments that have taken place, including reasons for initiating such extraordinary assessments;
e
any complaints filed against the verifier since the last management report and the actions taken by the national accreditation body.

Information exchange on administrative measures
Article 71
Where the national accreditation body has imposed administrative measures on the verifier pursuant to Article 53 or where a suspension of the accreditation has been terminated or a decision on appeal has reversed the decision of a national accreditation body to impose administrative measures referred to in Article 53, the national accreditation body shall inform the following parties:
1. the competent authority of the Member State where the verifier is accredited;
2. the competent authority and the national accreditation body of each Member State where the verifier is carrying out verifications.

Information exchange by the competent authority
Article 72
1
The competent authority of the Member State where the verifier is carrying out the verification shall annually communicate to the national accreditation body which has accredited that verifier at least the following:
a
relevant results from checking the operator’s and aircraft operator’s report and the verification reports, in particular of any identified non-compliance of that verifier with this Regulation;
b
the results from the inspection of the operator or aircraft operator where those results are relevant for the national accreditation body concerning the verifier’s accreditation and surveillance or where those results include any identified non-compliance of that verifier with this Regulation;
c
results from the evaluation of the internal verification documentation of that verifier where the competent authority has evaluated the internal verification documentation pursuant to Article 26(3);
d
complaints received by the competent authority concerning that verifier.
2
Where the information referred to in paragraph 1 provides evidence that the competent authority has identified non-compliance of the verifier with this Regulation, the national accreditation body shall consider the communication of that information as a complaint by the competent authority concerning that verifier within the meaning of Article 61.
The national accreditation body shall take appropriate action to address such information and respond to the competent authority within three months from the date of its receipt. The national accreditation body shall inform the competent authority in its response of the action taken by it and, where relevant, the administrative measures imposed on the verifier.

Information exchange on surveillance
Article 73
1
Where the national accreditation body of the Member State in which a verifier is performing a verification has been requested, pursuant to Article 49(5), to carry out surveillance activities, that national accreditation body shall report its findings to the national accreditation body that has accredited the verifier, unless otherwise agreed between both national accreditation bodies.
2
The national accreditation body that has accredited the verifier shall take the findings referred to in paragraph 1 into account when assessing whether the verifier meets the requirements of this Regulation.
3
Where the findings referred to in paragraph 1 show evidence that the verifier is not complying with this Regulation, the national accreditation body that has accredited the verifier shall take appropriate action pursuant to this Regulation and shall inform the national accreditation body that has carried out surveillance activities on:
a
what action has been taken by the national accreditation body that has accredited the verifier;
b
where appropriate, how the findings were resolved by the verifier;
c
where relevant, what administrative measures have been imposed on the verifier.

Information exchange with a Member State where the verifier is established
Article 74
Where a verifier has been granted accreditation by a national accreditation body in a Member State other than the Member State in which the verifier is established, the accreditation work programme and the management report referred to in Article 70, as well as the information referred to in Article 71, shall also be provided to the competent authority of the Member State in which the verifier is established.

Databases of accredited verifiers
Article 75
1
National accreditation bodies, or where applicable, national authorities referred to in Article 54(2), shall set up and manage a database and allow access to that database to other national accreditation bodies, national authorities, verifiers, operators, aircraft operators and competent authorities.
The body recognised under Article 14 of Regulation (EC) No 765/2008 shall facilitate and harmonise access to the databases with a view to enable efficient and cost-effective communication between national accreditation bodies, national authorities, verifiers, operators, aircraft operators and competent authorities, and may reconcile those databases into a single and centralised database.
2
The database referred to in paragraph 1 shall contain at least the following information:
a
name and address of each verifier accredited by that national accreditation body;
b
the Member States in which the verifier is carrying out verification;
c
each verifier’s scope of accreditation;
d
the date on which the accreditation was granted and the due expiry date of the accreditation;
e
any information on administrative measures that have been imposed on the verifier.
The information shall be publicly available.

Notification by verifiers
Article 76
1
For the purposes of enabling the national accreditation body to draft the accreditation work programme and the management report referred to in Article 70, a verifier shall, by 15 November of each year, send the following information to the national accreditation body that has accredited that verifier:
a
the planned time and place of the verifications that the verifier is scheduled to perform;
b
the address and contact details of the operators or aircraft operators whose emissions or tonne-kilometre reports are subject to its verification.
2
Where changes occur in the information referred to in paragraph 1, the verifier shall notify those changes to the accreditation body within a timeframe agreed with that national accreditation body.