2022 discharge: European Chemicals Agency (ECHA)

The European Parliament decided to grant discharge to the Executive Director of the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) for the financial year 2022 and to approve the closure of the accounts for that year.

Noting that the Court of Auditors has stated that it has obtained reasonable assurance that the Agency's annual accounts for the financial year 2022 are reliable and that the underlying transactions are legal and regular, Parliament adopted, by 531 votes to 48 with 24 abstentions, a resolution containing a series of recommendations which form an integral part of the discharge decision and which complement the general recommendations contained in the resolution on the performance, financial management and control of EU agencies.

Agency’s financial statements

The Agency's final budget for the financial year 2022 was EUR 114 777 691 representing an increase of 5.83 % compared to 2021.

Budgetary and financial management

Budget monitoring efforts during the financial year 2022 resulted in a budget implementation rate of current year commitment appropriations of 98.61 %, representing a slight decrease of 0.23 % compared to 2021 and that the current year payment appropriations execution rate was 85.06 %, representing a decrease of 1.17 % in comparison to 2021.

The resolution called on the Commission to present the promised 2020 proposal to strengthen the governance of the Agency and increase the sustainability of its financing model.

Parliament noted with satisfaction that in 2022, for the first time since the final registration deadline in 2018, the Agency's fee income has increased, while reliance on the Union to finance its operations has slightly decreased.

Other observations

Parliament also made a series of observations concerning performance, staff policy, internal control and animal testing.

In particular, it noted that:

- the Agency implemented 93 % of the Work Programme and achieved 151 of the 162 specific actions and outputs planned for 2022, with 8 actions still 'in progress' as planned;

- the Agency faced some challenges in 2022, including an inefficient authorisation system, identified in 2021, with a growing number of applications for hexavalent chromium set to continue into 2023, straining the opinion-making capacity of scientific committees, and a lack of experienced members;

- on 31 December 2022, the establishment plan was 98.07 % executed, with 458 temporary agents appointed out of 467 temporary agents authorised under the Union budget (same number of authorised posts as in 2021);

- the Agency introduced a new electronic tool for collecting and reviewing the annual declarations of interest of the external experts contributing to the Agency’s work, providing further assurance to the process;

- the Agency has continued its efforts to phase out animal testing in Europe to the extent possible under the current regulatory framework. The phasing out process should be accelerated. The Agency is also collaborating with the Commission and other stakeholders to support the Commission in developing a roadmap towards the full replacement of animal testing for chemicals.