COURSE ON THE SPANISH LOCAL ADMINISTRATION
Students become familiar with Spanish Local Administrative Law
at the same time they progress in language skills.
The program adapts to the needs and interests of the students.
A specialist who has worked as a Secretary and an Inspector gives
the course. BRIEF
DESCRIPTION OF THE SPANISH LOCAL ADMINISTRATION Types
of Local Entities in Spain
The Fundamental Provisions of the Local Administration are different
from: -
Local
Territorial Entities: Municipality,
Province and Island The
Municipality (Municipio), the Basic Local Entity. Provinces
(Provincia) group the municipalities and provide services to
the Town Councils, especially to the smaller ones.
Their existence is mandatory according to the Constitution and
the need for its existence is at times debatable.
Some Autonomous Communities believe that the County is a better
system. -
Local
Entities: Entities in the
territorial scope of Municipalities, Counties (Comarca), Metropolitan
Areas (Area Metropolitana) and Commonwealths (Mancomunidad). Among
the different types of municipality associations, the Commonwealth used
most. It is highly versatile
with regard to its purpose, creation and suppression. A
County must be created under Law.
It is used very little due to its limitations with regard to
its creation and the impossibility of deleting its Council. Metropolitan
Areas are designed for large cities and other municipalities within
their area of influence. Their
use is not very extended either.
At present, they only exist in Valencia and Barcelona. Town
Councils (Ayuntamientos) govern the Municipalities and Provincial
Councils (Diputaciones) the
Provinces. Competencies
Town Councils are obligated to exercise certain competencies
depending on their population: -
Up
to 5,000 inhabitants: public
lighting, cemetery, waste collection, road cleaning, supply of household
drinking water, sewerage, access to town hubs, paving of public roads,
and animal and beverage control -
From
5,000 to 20,000 inhabitants: also
public parks, libraries, markets and waste treatment -
From
20,000 to 50,000 inhabitants:
also civil protection, social services, fire prevention and extinction,
and sport centers for public use -
Town
Council with 50,000 inhabitants:
collective passenger transport and environmental protection Nevertheless,
Town Councils are amply authorized to exercise their competencies. The State and Autonomous Communities can delegate further competencies
to them.
Provincial Councils exercise competencies of cooperation
and coordination with the Municipalities. Organization
The following organisms exist in all the Spanish Town Councils: a.-
The Mayor (Alcalde).
Chairman of the Town Council, manages the Municipal Administration
and has the greatest amount of competencies. b.-
The Plenary (El Pleno).
Made up of the Mayor and all the Council Members.
They hold the most important competencies of the Town Council.
They elect and substitute the Mayor. c.-
Deputy Mayors (Tenientes de Alcalde) are Council Members who
substitute the Mayor in case of vacancy or absence. d.-
The Local Governing Board (Junta de Gobierno Local).
Assists the Mayor in the exercise of his competencies.
The Mayor can delegate competencies in it.
Other complementary organisms may exist, among which the Information
Boards (Comisiones Informativas) are to be highlighted, which
inform about the issues known to the Plenary.
The organization of the Provincial Councils is identical, with
changes in the names: Chairman
of the Council (Presidente de la Diputación), Vice Chairmen (Vicepresidente
de la Diputación), Government Plenary and Board.
The Council Members are elected for a term of four years. The Council Members elect the Mayor from among their Council
Seat. Personnel
at the Service of the Local Entities a.-
They can hire personnel in the labor system, just as any
company. b.-
On the other hand, the most important jobs are carried out by
civil servants. b.1.-
Local Administration Civil Services with Authorization on the National
Level. They are selected
by the State and can change Local Entity. They
are the following: -
Secretary
(Secretario): Exercises
the duties of notarization affidavits for administrative documents and
mandatory advice. This
office must exist in all Town Councils. -
Inspector
(Interventor): Carries
out the duties of economic-financial control, and advice on economic,
accounting, etc. matters. This
office must exist in all Town Councils. -
Treasurer
(Tesorero): Runs
the head office for revenue collection services.
Handles and controls funds. The
same person carries out the duties of Secretary and Inspector in small
municipalities. b.2.-
Other civil servants. They
are differentiated from those who carry out administrative tasks and
the others. They are divided
into several categories. The
Town Council selects them. The
different aspects of civil servants come under a special system, such
as admission, salaries, responsibilities and the sanctioning system. Revenue Municipalities
obtain their main revenue from taxes:
the Real Estate Tax (IBI – Impuesto de Bienes Inmuebles) and
the tax on Motor Vehicles (IVTM – Impuesto sobre Vehículos de Tracción
Mecánica). They may also
establish taxes on Construction, Installations and works (ICO – Impuesto
sobre Construcciones, Instalaciones y Obras), and on the increase of
the value of urban land (Impuesto sobre el Incremento del Valor de los
Bienes de Naturaleza Urbana). Recently,
the Tax on Economic Activities (IAE – Impuesto de Actividades Económicas)
was modified, drastically reducing the persons to whom it is applicable. They
also collect fees (tasas) for services (water, garbage collection, sewerage,
etc.) An
important part of revenue is the assignment the State makes of part
of its tax revenue to the Municipalities. The
reception of subsidies, wealth revenues and loan operations complete
the revenue system of the Town Councils. If
you would like to receive more information, please feel free to contact
us. We are always glad
to exchange points of view with public employees from other countries. © 2002
Página principal: www.aula-sf.com. links
básicos de la Administración Local Española. Registro
de Entidades Locales del Ministerio de Administraciones Públicas: www.dgal.map.es/cgi-bin/webapb/webdriver?MIval=reel
www.map.es/internet/ayuntam.htm Revistas
jurídicas: Revista jurídica “el Consultor de los Ayuntamientos”. www.elconsultor.es Revista de Estudios Locales (CUNAL) www.revistacunal.com Portales de la Administración Local: Colegio de Secretarios, Interventores y Tesoreros de la Administración Local de Madrid:
Página web para el Secretario e interventor interino: http://usuarios.lycos.es/secretariosinterinos/ Federación Española de Municipios y Provincias (Federation of Spanish Municipalities and Provincies) : www.femp.es |
© 2002
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