Even so, it is not exactly unheard-of for political considerations to influence a decision on illegal state-aid.
EU's vigorous enforcement of rules against state-aid and monopolies and coming deregulation in fields such as telecoms.
The second plan is to extend state-aid rules to cover tax breaks offered as inducements to companies to relocate.
The single market and the EU's competition and state-aid rules are under attack as national governments look for ways to protect jobs.
It is hard to enforce policies limiting state-aid without a member state's backing, says Stephen Kinsella, a lawyer in Herbert Smith's Brussels office.
In other countries subsidies helped to kick-start demand, but Britain's system of conversion grants was badly run, and eventually fell foul of European state-aid rules.
Spain's government for months argued with Brussels, ultimately unsuccessfully, to allow for some flexibility on state-aid rules that require investors share the burden with taxpayers.
The ultimate cure for the state-aid addicts does not lie in tinkering with procedures or in giving the commission more power or, indeed, in Brussels at all.
This is partly because the combined bank is obliged under European state-aid rules to shrink its balance-sheet in return for the help it has received from the government.
The European Competition Commission, led by state-aid-busting "Nickel" Neelie Kroes, would not comment on the recent bailouts by the Fed of American International Group, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and any future ones that may come around for Wall Street firms.
With one hand, Brown signed legislation letting undocumented college students apply for state-sponsored financial aid.
The main areas in which firms tend to want to lobby the commission competition policy, state aid, anti-dumping actions, product and market regulation are ones where decisions usually involve a pragmatic mixing of economic, political and legal arguments.
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The publicly traded firm is the latest recipient of state aid under the so-called First Five program.
The commission's hardest-fought cases against state aid are also in France and Germany.
As the chief policeman for unfair state aid in the 27-country EU, he will also play a decisive role in the overhaul of troubled Spanish banks and the setting up of a new, powerful banking supervisor for the euro zone.
The legislation also permanently ties the implementation of a state-approved evaluation system with annual education aid increases.
The Commission report noted Croatian progress in areas such as anti-trust, mergers and state aid, including privatisation of shipyards.
When the crisis first struck, the commission's competition regulators relaxed their rules on state aid to allow the bail-out of banks and to help firms that suddenly faced a dearth of credit.
That would be particularly true if, as seems likely, such a state were to prove to be yet another radical, Islamist and irredentist Arab state -- one able and willing to aid and abet terrorist operations from its soil.
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What was widely praised as a bold, far-sighted solution to the state's infrastructure problems is in fact little more than a Band-Aid.
And car purchases are financed mostly by small non-banks, an awkward channel for state aid.
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"It is absolutely essential that no state aid is given before it is authorised - if it is authorised - by the European Commission, " Mr Monti said after meetings with Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and Finance Minister Hans Eichel.
Since the United States abhors state-sponsored terrorism, it should suspend military and economic aid to Israel until the provisions of the Oslo accord are advanced.
"It's still sort of a Band-Aid, stopgap measure, to keep state regulators at bay until they can come up with a new framework, " agrees Passmore.
He expected the summit to discuss the question of outside security forces entering Afghanistan, but Washington first wanted Afghans to try to "get rid of the bandits" threatening aid efforts in the war-ravaged state.
Tax-exemption is an astonishingly inefficient way to aid state and local governments precisely because only a fraction of the buyers are in the top tax bracket.
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For example, in every state, you need a license to be a barber, a hearing-aid fitter or a pest-control worker.
One was the phasing out of special tax-breaks for southern manufacturers, which broke European Union rules on state aid.
Grants to replace personal property and help meet medical, dental, funeral, transportation and other serious disaster-related needs not covered by insurance or other federal, state and charitable aid programs.
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While Merkel elsewhere distances herself from the idea of state aid for big, flailing businesses, her election rival, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, lauds the Magna-Opel deal on and supports aid for Arcandor too.
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