The European Commission
The European Commission is the driving force and executive body of the European Union's
government branches. The Commission proposes legislation, policies, and programs of action. It is
responsible for implementing the decisions of Parliament and the Council. In this, the Commission
is a body with powers of initiative, implementation, management and control. It is the guardian of
the Treaties and the embodiment of the interests of the Community. The Commissioners, serving
elected five year terms, are assisted by an administration made up of directorates-general and
specialized departments.
EU Commission Websites
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Main Page for the European Commission A site of
major news headlines, current prominent political legislation, and access to profiles.
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General Report on the Activities of the
European Union A compulsory publication produced annually by the Secretariat General. Provides
an overview of EU activities over a given year.
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Bulletin of the European Union A monthly
publication of the activities of the Commission and other EU institutions.
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COMdocs Working documents of the Commission divided
into four categories. Commission activities such as legislative proposals, communications with
other institutions, and reports are recorded in these documents. Available in the
Register of the European
Commission (select COM in the drop-down "Type" list).
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C Documents Official
documents falling under the Commission's sole responsibly, relating to internal administration,
comitology decisions, or decisions in certain areas of focus. (Search by selecting C in drop-down
"Type" list.)
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SECdocs Documents
designed for informative, background information prepared by the Commission's
Secretariat-General.
More simply stated these documents cannot be classified as either C or COM series. (Search by
selecting SEC in drop-down "Type" list.)
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Directorates-General and Services The Commission's
staff is organized into 36 departments, known as "Directorates-General" (DGs). Each DG is
responsible for a particular policy area and is headed by a Director-General who is answerable to
one of the commissioners. It is the DGs that actually devise and draft the Commission's legislative
proposals, but these proposals become official only when "adopted" by the College at its weekly
meeting
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Press releases Press releases from
the Commission, updated daily.
More information on European
Commission documents (from Europa)
