ISSN 2184-8793 ISSNe 2975-9056 allowed within the scope of protecting an interest of a public nature23. The Court of Justice allowed for the conditioning of the practice of the profession of guide on passing a qualification exam but did not accept that this could in any way constitute a possible limitation on the number of operators. The Court, in fact, recognized the right to assess competence to the extent that individual states could identify sites of particular interest for which professional guides were necessary, but always and only within the scope of protecting an interest of a public nature. Italy, convinced of the need to protect its heritage, entrusted the task of identifying sites requiring the presence of a specialized guide to the Regions with the Presidential Decree of December 13, 199524. Unfortunately, the number of sites then identified by the Italian Regions was deemed excessive by the European Commission, to the extent that in 2003, it sent a letter of formal notice and immediately thereafter, in 2004, initiated a new infringement procedure with a reasoned opinion25. According to the Commission, the abundance of sites hindered the movement of professions disproportionately to the objective to be protected, violating Article 49 of the EC Treaty. To resolve the infringement procedure, the Italian State enacted Legislative Decree No. 7/2007 (converted into Law No. 40/2007), known as Bersani bis. This decree aimed at liberalizing the sector, prescribing that individuals authorized in another Member State could operate in the Italian territory without the need for additional authorizations or qualifications. However, the same decree simultaneously preserved the "prior verification of linguistic knowledge and knowledge of the territory". These provisions generated several problems: on one hand, it proved quite challenging for the Regions to devise systems for verifying linguistic knowledge and territorial understanding that did not result in excessively restrictive measures; on the other hand, as Italian guides still retained the previous territorialbased authorization, a kind of "reverse discrimination" emerged, to the detriment of Italian operators26 . Once again, the European Commission raised concerns with the EU Pilot case 4277/12/Mark, alleging a breach of the provisions outlined in the Services Directive, 2006/123/EC, specifically Article 10, paragraph 4. This was because Italian national legislation stipulated that the authorization for the practice of the profession of tour guide was valid only at a regional or provincial level. To prevent the initiation of a new infringement procedure, the Commission requested that internal tour guides be allowed to operate throughout the national territory, ensuring they are not subject to unequal treatment compared to professionals from other Member States. Thus with art.3 paragraph 1 of the European law of 2013, L 97/201327, Provisions relating to the freedom to provide and stable exercise of the tourist guide activity by citizens of the European Union (EU Pilot Case 4277/12/MARK), is established the principle according to which the qualification for the profession of 23 Refer to the Court of Justice of the European Communities judgment of February 26, 1991, Case C-180/89, "The general interest related to the enhancement of historical heritage and the best possible dissemination of knowledge about the artistic and cultural heritage of a country can constitute an overriding requirement justifying a restriction on the free provision of services". 24 The judgment of February 26, 1991, has been incorporated into the Decree of the President of the Republic of December 13, 1995 (Act of guidance and coordination on tourist guides), which establishes, in Article 2: "for the purpose of better enjoying the cultural value of the national historical and artistic heritage," tourist guides must obtain specific authorization. The "sites that can only be explained to visitors by specialized guides" were then defined, based on this decree, by the Regions through Regional Resolutions (1996). 25 The sites identified in 1995 were around 2,540, many of which corresponded to those declared UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and, above all, included entire urban areas, thus encompassing an equally high number of truly specific sites. 26 Words are from L. Righi, Tourism professions (Le professioni turistiche), cit., 248-249. Refer extensively to the Author. 27 Law No. 97 of August 6, 2013: Provisions for fulfilling obligations arising from Italy's membership in the European Union - (European Law 2013). Art. 3 : Provisions regarding the free provision and stable exercise of the tourist guide activity by citizens of the European Union - EU Pilot Case 4277/12/Mark. 1. Authorization for the profession of tourist guide is valid throughout the national territory. For the stable exercise of the tourist guide activity in Italy, the recognition, under Legislative Decree No. 206 of November 9, 2007, of the professional qualification obtained by a citizen of the European Union in another Member State is effective throughout the national territory. 2. Without prejudice to what is provided for by Legislative Decree No. 206 of November 9, 2007, European Union citizens authorized to carry out the tourist guide activity within the legal system of another Member State operate under the regime of free provision of services without the need for any authorization or approval, whether general or specific. 3.By Decree of the Minister for Cultural Heritage and Activities, heard by the Unified Conference, to be adopted within ninety days from the entry into force of this law, sites of particular historical, artistic, or archaeological interest requiring specific authorization are identified".
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