EU COMPETITION LAW AND POLICY IN THE TOURISM SECTOR 71 j) General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER) – The measure may be exempted from the notification requirement if it is granted in compliance with the conditions of the GBER267. As stated above, there is no specific provision exempting tourism, but certain GBER provisions can be particularly relevant as regards tourism: – Article 14 allowing regional investment aid may apply, provided that the investment takes place in an assisted area, that aid intensities established in the regional aid map are not exceeded and that all the conditions set by the aforementioned article are complied with. Furthermore, Article 13(b) also envisages the schemes specifically aimed at tourism activities268; – Articles 17 through 19 allow for aid to be granted to SMEs (which could in principle cover SMEs active in the tourism sector); – Article 53 allows an exemption for culture and heritage conservation; – Article 55 authorises investment aid for sport and multifunctional recreational infrastructures, including those used for tourism purposes but not extended to hotels and leisure parks269; – Article 56 has a wide scope, which allows investment aid for local infrastructures up to EUR 10 million per project; provided that the thresholds are complied with, it is not necessary for the infrastructure to be used only by the local community or to solely have local impact. Therefore, it can also be used to finance a range of infrastructures relevant to tourism, such as regional airports and ports270. Public funding, offered under the GBER provisions, is restricted to the specific activity and maximum aid levels, as stated in the relevant article, and no additional public assistance can be offered if it exceeds the above mentioned level. Lastly, the Member States are required to publish the nature and value of all the GBER schemes and individual aid exceeding 500,000 €271. k) De minimis – The de minimis regulation allows public funding to a single recipient of up to 200,000 € (by all actors), over a three-year fiscal period, which 267 Commission Regulation (EU) No 651/2014 of 17 June 2014 declaring certain categories of aid compatible with the internal market in application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty, OJ L 187, 26.06.2014, p. 1. 268 State aid decisions by the Commission seem to be predominant about schemes, not regarded as State aid if all its conditions are met. The schemes seem to concern mostly restructuring and SMEs in difficulties. 269 European Commission, General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER) – Frequently Asked Questions (2015); available at: http://ec.europa.eu/competition/state_aid/legislation/practical_guide_gber_en.pdf, point 241. 270 GBER, Articles 56a and 56b. 271 GBER, Article 9(1)(c).
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