EL FINANÇAMENT DELS GOVERNS LOCALS EN EL NOU ESTATUT D'AUTONOMIA DE CATALUNYA

Abstract

This article explores from a legal perspective whether the 2006 Catalan Statutehas opened new channels for introducing innovations on the financing systemof the local governments. First of all, the article describes how the Spanishlaw and the Constitutional Court have specified three basic constitutionalprinciples that should structure the financing system of the local governments:the principles of autonomy, sufficiency of resources and of financialpower. Secondly, it evaluates whether the provisions established in the CatalanStatute could be considered as legally preeminent to the Spanish frameworklegislation on the matter; thirdly it analyses the Catalan Statute’s ratherambiguous regulation of the local government finances. The conclusion isthat although the Catalan Statute aims at providing the Catalan governmentwith a larger capacity for establishing and regulating local taxes, and for warranting,together with central government, the local governments’ sufficiencyof resources, there are important gaps that have not yet been considered.In any case and although the consideration of some key issues hasbeen postponed after a further approval of a Catalan law on local finances,the question on the margin of innovation on the financing of the local governmentsintroduced by the new Catalan Statute, would be largely settledwhen the Spanish Constitutional Court would rule about the constitutionalappeal the Partido Popular put against the 2006 Catalan Statute.

Keywords

• financing system
• local governments
• treasury
• dues
• participations
• transfers