03 May La Estructura Territorial Española, España Como el Estado de las Autonomías
ALEL and IMLA Working Group Series
(Spanish and English versions below) | (Versiones en español e inglés a continuación)
En 1978, con la aprobación de la Constitución, España se constituye una monarquía parlamentaria y empieza una nueva etapa democrática en nuestro país, después de casi 40 años de dictadura. La Constitución abre paso al estado de las autonomías, reconociendo y garantizando en su Artículo 2 el derecho a la autonomía de las nacionalidades y regiones que integran el estado español, así como la solidaridad entre todas ellas, aceptando el hecho de que España es un estado plurinacional y plurilingüe.
La Constitución no obligaba a la formación de dichas Comunidades Autónomas, sino que reconoce el derecho a su constitución, estableciendo que las provincias limítrofes con características históricas, culturales y económicas comunes, los territorios insulares y las provincias con entidad regional histórica pueden acceder a su autogobierno y constituirse en Comunidades Autónomas a través de la aprobación de su correspondiente Estatuto de Autonomía, que se erige como la norma institucional básica de cada Comunidad.
Conforman el Estado de las Autonomías Español un total de 17 Comunidades Autónomas y dos Ciudades Autónomas, Ceuta y Melilla, que obtuvieron esta condición en 1995 y se encuentran situadas dentro del continente africano. Las Comunidades en España son entes territoriales con autonomía legislativa, económica y de gobierno que emana de la propia Constitución y de los Estatutos de Autonomía aprobados a tal efecto.
La Constitución marca un sistema competencial diferenciado en sus artículos 148 y 149, en virtud del cual se otorga a las Comunidades unas competencias propias en distintas materias, que podrán serán recogidas en sus Estatutos de Autonomía. Esto ha dado lugar a que en el Estado español haya Comunidades que gozan de una más amplia autonomía política en comparación con otras.
Entre las competencias propias y exclusivas del Estado español tienen especial singularidad las llamadas competencias básicas. Éstas permiten al Estado establecer unas normas básicas y comunes para todo el territorio nacional y se constituyen como un paraguas de igualdad para todos los españoles. Las Comunidades pueden desarrollar estas normas básicas gracias a su autonomía legislativa, pero nunca contradecirlas.
La elaboración de esta normativa básica por parte del Estado y su posterior despliegue legislativo a manos de las Comunidades ha dado lugar a diversos conflictos entre Estado y Autonomías, disputas que son resueltas por el Tribunal Constitucional, máximo órgano judicial y supremo interpretador de la Constitución, que define y perfila jurisprudencialmente nuestro sistema competencial
Si se analiza la estructura territorial española, se desprende que no estamos ante un estado federal “stricto sensu”, sino ante una estructura de corte federal. La Constitución permite un determinado grado de descentralización del poder político; España es un estado unitario en cuanto hay un solo pueblo soberano, del que emanan todos sus poderes. Pero, al mismo tiempo, se aproxima al estado federal en el que las Comunidades gozan de capacidad legislativa, aunque carecen de poder constituyente.
La Constitución reconoce autonomía, pero no soberanía a las nacionalidades y regiones que integran el Estado español. Así lo interpreta el propio Tribunal Constitucional: “No es el resultado de un pacto entre instancias territoriales históricas que conserven unos derechos anteriores a la Constitución y superiores a ellas, sino una norma del poder constituyente que se impone con fuerza vinculante general en su ámbito, sin que queden fuera de ella situaciones históricas anteriores.”
España es un país poliédrico en el que conviven identidades nacionales y regionales diversas, con una ordenación territorial compleja y con una gestión no exenta de tensiones. Pero esta es la riqueza cultural, territorial y política de nuestro país, por eso des de la ALEL os invitamos a todos a conocernos, no solo a través de estos artículos, sino animándoos a visitar nuestros pueblos y ciudades.
Barcelona
Celia Guillot Rabanal
Jefa de la Oficina administrativa
y de soporte jurídico
De la Gerencia de Servicios de Espacios Naturales en Diputación de Barcelona
Miembro de ALEL
The Spanish Territorial Structure, Spain As The State Of The Autonomies
In 1978, with the adoption of its Constitution, Spain became a parliamentary monarchy, and a new democratic stage began in our country after almost 40 years of dictatorship. The Constitution opens the way to the “state of autonomies,” recognizing and guaranteeing in its Article 2 the right to autonomy of all nationalities and regions that make up the Spanish state, as well as solidarity between all of them, confirming the fact that Spain is a multinational and multilingual state:
The Constitution is based on the indissoluble unity of the Spanish Nation, the common and indivisible homeland of all Spaniards; it recognizes and guarantees the right to self-government of the nationalities and regions of which it is composed and the solidarity among them all.
The Constitution did not require the formation of said Autonomous Communities, but rather recognizes the right to their formation by combining various of Spain’s 50 provinces. It establishes that neighboring provinces with common historical, cultural and economic characteristics, island territories, and individual provinces with a “historical regional entity” can assert their self-government and become Autonomous Communities upon the approval of their corresponding “Statute of Autonomy,” which acts as the basic institutional foundation of each Community.
The Spanish State of Autonomies is made up of a total of 17 Autonomous Communities and two Autonomous Cities, Ceuta and Melilla, which are located in North Africa and obtained their status in 1995. The Communities are territorial entities with legislative, economic, and governmental autonomy that emanates from the Constitution itself and from their Statutes of Autonomy approved for this purpose. Each Community comprises a number of provinces (except the Community of Madrid, which was formed from a single province) and within each province are numerous municipalities—the basic political entity affording residents the prerogatives of limited local government.
The Constitution establishes a differentiated competence system in its articles 148 and 149, by virtue of which the Communities are granted their own powers in different matters, which may be included in their Statutes of Autonomy. This has led to the fact that in the Spanish State some Communities enjoy broader political autonomy than others.
The Constitution also reserves numerous “exclusive competences” to the Spanish State, including foreign affairs and defense. These allow the State to establish basic and common rules for the entire national territory and serve as an umbrella of equality for all Spaniards. Communities can develop basic norms thanks to their legislative autonomy, but can never contradict the State’s exclusive competencies. Among other things, Communities cannot form alliances or erect barriers to the free flow of people and goods.
The evolution of this basic authority of the State and its subsequent legislative deployment at the hands of the Communities has given rise to various conflicts between the State and Autonomies, disputes that are resolved by the Constitutional Court, the highest judicial body and supreme interpreter of the Constitution, that defines and interprets our jurisdictional system in jurisprudence.
If the Spanish territorial structure is analyzed, it follows that we are not a federal state “in stricto sensu,” but rather a federal court structure. The Constitution allows a certain degree of decentralization of political power; Spain is a unitary state insofar as there is a single sovereign people, from which all its powers emanate. But, at the same time, it is close to the federal state in which the Communities enjoy legislative capacity, although they lack constituent power.
The Constitution recognizes the autonomy, but not the sovereignty, of the nationalities and regions that make up the Spanish State. This is how the Constitutional Court itself interprets it: “It is not the result of a pact between historical territorial instances that preserve rights prior to the Constitution and superior to them, but a norm of the constituent power that is imposed with general binding force in its field, without leaving out previous historical situations.”
Spain is a multifaceted country in which diverse national and regional identities coexist, with complex territorial planning and management that is not without tensions. But this is the cultural, territorial, and political wealth of our country, which is why from the ALEL we invite you all to get to know us, not only through these articles, but also by encouraging you to visit our towns and cities.
Barcelona
Celia Guillot Rabanal
Head of the Administrative and
Legal Support Office
From the Natural Spaces Services Management in Barcelona Provincial Council
ALEL Member
Celia Guillot Rabanal
Celia Guillot Rabanal is the Head of the Administrative and Legal Support Office Barcelona Provincial Council. Celia is responsible for the management and coordination of the Council’s Management of Natural Space Services. Although she began my career specializing in tribunal law, she’s currently specializing in administrative law, local law, and management of protected natural areas. She received my law license from the University of Barcelona. She also received a master’s degree in tax and a diploma, in superior studies, specializing in public law similar to a postgraduate degree in local government from the University of Barcelona. Celia is a member of the Association of Local Legal Entities (ALEL).