European Commission (EC)
The EC is a supranational body of the EU with, amongst other things, the sole right (= sole right of initiative) to submit new legislative proposals to the two legislators (Council and EP) for adoption.
It has representations/field offices in all 27 EU Member States. The Commission consists of the College of Commissioners from the 27 Member States. The 27 Commissioners decide within the framework of the so-called Commission College; it makes joint decisions on the political and strategic direction of the Commission. The college is re-named every five years.
The seat of the EC is in Brussels (some offices have been set up in Luxembourg). Since 2012, EU citizens (in addition to Council, EP, European Council or Member States) have been able to call on the EC to take action, and so the European Citizens' Initiative was created.
The members of the EC are nominated by the Member States and confirmed by the EP. Similar to the national division of responsibilities, the EC is divided into so-called Directorates-General (DGs), where the competences of one Commissioner may cover more than thirty DGs.
Relevant for the Federal Ministry of Labour and Economy are the DG CONNECT (DG Communication Networks, Content and Technologies), DG GROW (DG Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs) and DG EMPL (Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion). All EC projects are undergoing a process involving the involvement of experts and high-level representatives from the Member States. Over time, an almost unmanageable number of groupings has been established.