63. Regulation of the Federal Minister of Health on the establishment of a specialised agency for animal welfare and animal welfare for the evaluation and labelling of production systems and stables as standard as well as pet accommodation and pet supplies (Fachstellen-/HaltungssystemeVO-FstHVO)

Pursuant to Section 18 (6) and (9) of the German Federal Law on the Protection of Animals (Animal Protection Act), BGBl. I No 118/2004 Art. 2, as last amended by BGBl. I n ° 80/2010, as far as this Regulation is concerned, is prescribed by agreement with the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, the Environment and Water Management:

Scope

§ 1. This Regulation lays down:

1.		the setting up of an animal welfare and animal welfare centre (hereinafter referred to as the 'Fachstelle') for the implementation of assessments
a)			New type of production systems and new technical equipment for livestock production according to § 18 para. 7 TSchG,
b)			Production of holding systems and stables as standard as well as pet supplies and pet supplies in accordance with Section 18 (8) of the TSchG for the purpose of obtaining an animal welfare mark
		and
2.		the design of an animal welfare label; and
3.		the cost support for the use of the specialist office.

Definitions

§ 2. For the purposes of this Regulation, the terms shall be:

1.		Placing on the market: production of and trade in products for use in livestock farming in Austria;
2.		Products: Halting systems, stables, pet supplies, pet shelters and pet supplies, as well as technical equipment;
3.		Systems of preservation (stabling systems): the totality of stables for the keeping of animals, their compliance with the requirements of the 1. the Regulation on the conservation of animals;
4.		Stable equipment: structural, structural or technical equipment or equipment or equipment used in posture systems;
5.		Pet shelters: all parts of the equipment which are intended for the accommodation of animals kept in the household as companions or in the interest of the animal and whose holding requirements are subject to the second animal welfare regulation;
6.		Pet facility: establishment or part of a pet shelter;
7.		Pet supplies: individual parts or appliances used in the holding of pet animals;
8.		Technical equipment: all the individual parts and equipment used in animal husbandry and in the handling of animals, or individual parts and equipment;
9.		New: new systems of impact and technical equipment which were not used for animal husbandry in Austria at the date of entry into force of this Regulation, or which are in their entirety or in respect of one or more of the following: different parts of existing systems or equipment, so that the functional areas for or the use by the animals are changed.

Animal welfare

§ 3. (1) The protection of animals for the designation of production systems and stables as well as pet accommodation and pet supplies as in compliance with the law of animal protection (Section 18 (8) of the TSchG) shall be designed by the specialist body according to § 4.

(2) The model of the animal welfare mark is to be published on the homepage of the specialist office.

(3) The model of the animal welfare mark must include a placeholder for the test number.

(4) When a product is designated with the animal welfare mark, it must be provided with a test number to be issued by the specialist body in order to be able to assign it to a specific product reviewed by the specialist body. It may only be used in connection with the specific product, which has been positively assessed by the specialist office.

Institution of the technical department

§ 4. (1) The specialised office, which has the appropriate staff, is set up at the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, and is subject to the supervision of the Federal Minister of State or the Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs, with the exception of scientific questions. for health.

(2) In this respect, the specialist body shall acquire legal personality insofar as it is entitled, within the framework of the provision of these services, to conclude contracts in its own name and to acquire assets and rights.

(3) The head of the department shall be appointed by the Federal Minister of Health or by the Federal Minister of Health on the basis of a selection procedure to be carried out according to objective criteria.

(4) Insofar as it allows the performance of the technical tasks according to § 18 of the TSchG, the department may also provide services to other natural and legal persons within the scope of their duties.

Role

§ 5. (1) The specialist body shall be responsible for:

1.		the preparation of expert opinions pursuant to section 18 (7) of the TSchG,
2.		the preparation of expert opinions pursuant to section 18 (8) of the TSchG,
3.		the management of a register of tested products,
4.		the establishment of a general, permanent and free-of-charge homepage.

(2) The specialist body shall have an agreement with that person who presents a product for the evaluation of the extent and duration of the examination and the costs incurred. It shall, before processing the application, have the applicant or the applicant informed of the extent, duration and probable costs of the assessment procedure, and the need to carry out a practical test, if any, inform a body according to § 8.

(3) The technical department has guidelines concerning:

1.		Details on the design of the animal welfare label, including the test number,
2.		Details on the conduct of the audit,
3.		Details on the minimum content of the opinion,
4.		the cost rates for the preparation of the expert opinion in accordance with § 9
to work.

Policies

§ 6. The guidelines referred to in § 5 (3) shall be submitted by the technical department within one year from the date of entry into force of this Regulation to the Federal Minister of Health or the Federal Minister of Health for approval, insofar as these farm animals are used for agricultural use. , these are to be approved in agreement with the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management. After the approval, the guidelines must be published immediately on the homepage of the department.

Examination of a product and preparation of an expert opinion

§ 7. (1) Who shall be If you wish to have your product reviewed in accordance with § 18 (7) or (8) of the German TSchG (TSchG), you have to submit an application to the specialist office. Applicant Applicants may only be responsible for the placing on the market or the placing on the market of this product in Austria.

(2) All documents and information necessary for the preparation of an opinion shall be submitted with the application. In any case, the documents and information to be submitted must include:

1.		name or company and address,
2.		proof of the commercial authorization or the power to be placed on the market,
3.		the name of the product (type, brand name) and intended use,
4.		the place of manufacture,
5.		Product information, which makes it possible to check, in particular:
a)			technical specifications and details,
b)			Purpose and scope,
c)			Plans,
d)			Information on the material properties,
e)			Reference holdings (where available),
6.		Opinions, test reports or scientific work already available.
The technical department is entitled to provide additional documents and information at any time for the preparation of the opinion, including the possibly necessary provision of a prototype by the applicant or by the applicant. .

(3) In the event of the need for practical examinations, these shall be made by the applicant or by the applicant in an institution pursuant to Section 8 (1) of this Regulation to their costs or costs. In any case, the facility which carries out the practical test is to be provided with prototypes in the required number. The applicant shall also have to ensure that the necessary structural measures and facilities are provided.

(4) The practical test shall be carried out on the basis of the provisions of the Animal Welding Act and the Regulations based thereon, using scientific methods and criteria, in particular veterinary medicine, ethology, animal husry and animal huskry, and of agricultural construction and of practical experience.

(5) The specialist body shall evaluate the product on the basis of an expert opinion. The evaluation has to say whether the product meets the requirements of the Animal Protection Act or does not comply with the requirements of the animal protection law.

(6) The Head and/or The head and staff of the department shall be obliged to maintain secrecy on all confidential information which they become aware of in the course of their activities.

(7) The specialist body is obliged to provide the necessary information to the authorities responsible for the enforcement of the Animal Protection Act and the Animal Transport Act and to provide the necessary documents to determine the facts of the case. To be made available.

(8) With the express consent of the applicant or the applicant within the meaning of § 4 Z 14 Data Protection Act 2000, the content of the opinions shall be published on the homepage of the specialist office. In addition, the Federal Minister of Health and the Federal Minister for Health, as well as the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, the Environment and the Federal Minister for Agriculture and Forestry, are also responsible for the implementation of the German Federal Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development. Water management of the tested products and the expert opinion.

Facilities for carrying out practical tests

§ 8. (1) The specialist body must publish suitable facilities for conducting practical examinations on the homepage of the department after obtaining the consent of the Federal Minister for Health or the Federal Minister of Health. In the event of the need for a practical test, the applicant or the applicant shall instruage one of these bodies to carry out this examination.

(2) A facility is suitable if it meets the following requirements:

1.		independence from the applicant or the applicant, the manufacturer or the manufacturer,
2.		ensure objectivity and impartiality in the performance of its activities, through the organisation and operation of the institution,
3.		the establishment shall have the necessary expertise in the fields of animal husbandry and animal welfare for the purpose of carrying out the examination;
4.		the facility has the appropriate and adequate staffing and equipment.

(3) The institution which carries out the practical examination shall:

1.		the specialist body must provide the scientific results of the test, which are necessary for the evaluation of the expert opinion, which must be verifiable according to scientific criteria, and documented in a comprehensible way, and shall be kept accordingly,
2.		shall be obliged to cooperate with the specialised agency and shall provide all necessary information to it;
3.		is obligated to secrecy and secrecy; communication to the outside and any publications on projects may only be made after consultation and explicit permission by the specialist office and the applicant or the applicant ,
4.		shall ensure that the animals are monitored accordingly and that the test be discontinued if the welfare of the animals is impaired.

(4) The Head or the head of the institution and the staff responsible for the verification shall be obliged to maintain secrecy on any confidential information which will be known to them in the course of their work.

Cost support for the expert opinion

§ 9. In addition to the costs of the practical examination (Section 7 (3)), the applicant shall also bear the costs of the expert opinion. The costs for the preparation of the opinion shall be determined in accordance with the cost estimates laid down in the guidelines in accordance with § 5 (3) (4) (4) and are to be paid in advance.

Possibility of appeal

§ 10. If the applicant has objections to the expert opinion, the applicant may submit a reasoned notification to the specialist body. The department has to have the product assessed at the expense of the applicant or the applicant by another expert or expert from the specialist office. There is no further possibility to appeal against the expert opinion on the re-evaluation of the report.

General principles

§ 11. (1) The Head of the Head or the Head shall represent the technical department with respect to third parties. The head or the manager shall be responsible, in particular, for the submission of the evaluation.

(2) The head of the department has staff of the Federal Ministry of Health or of the Federal Minister of Health or of the Federal Minister of Health to inspect the books and supporting documents of the technical department as well as in other documents serving to verify the performance of the service-each in the original-in the case of itself or in the case of third parties and the visit on the spot, giving them the necessary information or giving them the necessary information. and provide a suitable information person for this purpose.

(3) All books and supporting documents shall be kept safe and ordered for ten years from the date of submission of the opinion, and suitable image and data carriers may also be used for storage if the complete, orderly, content-identical, Accurate and verifiable reproduction right up to the end of the retention period is guaranteed at all times. The description of the systems, the opinion and the test number shall be kept for 30 years.

(4) The head or head of the department shall observe the principles of legality, economy, economy and expediency.

(5) The head of the department shall be responsible for the supervision of the service and supervision of the specialist staff. It shall ensure the recruitment of the staff necessary for the performance of the tasks of the specialised agency.

Financial Plan

§ 12. The Head or Head of the Unit shall submit in advance, for each subsequent financial year, a financial plan (including the Staff Plan), which shall be subject to the consent provided for in paragraph 4 in the case of budgetary and human resource management. a binding basis. The financial year shall correspond to the calendar year.

(2) In the financial plan, all revenue to be expected in the following year and likely to be paid by the specialist body shall be recorded separately in full (gross). The estimates shall be calculated if it is not possible to estimate the estimates.

(3) The financial plan for the following financial year (including the personnel plan) shall be submitted for approval by the Federal Ministry of Health, together with explanations, by 30 June of the current year. To the extent that this is necessary for the preparation of the federal budget, the technical department has to submit an estimate of the resource requirements before the date mentioned in the first sentence, at the request of the Federal Minister for Health or the Federal Minister for Health.

(4) The financial plan shall be subject to the approval of the Federal Minister for Health or the Federal Minister for Health before its effective date. The consent shall be deemed to have been granted if it does not apply to 31. October of the current year is being denied.

Cost support for the specialist office

§ 13. The Federal Ministry of Health, the Federal Ministry of Health, and the Federal Ministry of Health and the Federal Ministry of Health
320,000, -- € for the year 2012 as well as 250,000, -- € carried for the years 2013 and 2014. The funds will be paid by the Federal Ministry of Health in advance until 31 May of each year on the basis of the estimated amount in the financial plan for the year in question, with due regard to the limits set out above.

Financial statements

§ 14. (1) Until 31 March of the following year, the head of the department shall submit an annual financial statement and an activity report to the Federal Minister for Health or the Federal Minister for Health.

(2) The number of documents must be based on original documents and shall include a demonstrable breakdown of all the revenue and expenditure associated with the professional activity.

(3) With the proof of proper management, the Federal Minister of Health or the Federal Minister of Health has to relieve the head of the head office or the head of the department.

Stöger