Spain’s Territorial Organization: Municipalities, Provinces, and Autonomous Communities
Territorial Organization of Spain
According to the Constitution, the Spanish territory is organized into municipalities, provinces, and autonomous communities. Municipalities and provincial administrative units have a long history.
Municipal Administration
Municipalities are the most basic administrative and territorial units of the State. A municipality is governed by the local administration, which is best suited to solve local problems quickly and effectively. The city administration’s authority extends to the territory within the Council’s jurisdiction. The capital of the municipality is the town where the City Council has its headquarters. Local municipalities obtain sufficient resources to perform their functions through taxes and other funds collected through the State and its Autonomous Communities.
Provincial Administration
Provinces are territories formed by grouping several municipalities. This administration is a territorial division and a local entity. Its functions include:
- Serving as a constituency of the state.
- Serving as a territorial division of the peripheral administration of the central government, represented by the Sub-Delegate of the Government.
- Providing a local range to cooperate with the municipalities.
Members of the Provincial Council are chosen from among the elected mayors, and the President of the Council is elected by the elected members.
State of Autonomy
Models of Territorial Organization
There are two main models of territorial organization of state power:
- The centralized model: a single center has the authority to decide the state’s policy in all fields.
- The decentralized model: supports the existence of multiple centers of political decision.
The centralist model prevailed in Spain from the beginning of the seventeenth century until the Constitution of 1978. After this year, Spain adopted the State of Autonomies, a politically decentralized state formed by different autonomous communities. The Constitution recognizes regions with diverse languages, cultures, and traditions.
Spain and Autonomous Communities
The Constitution states that Spain is a unitary, not a centralist, state. The Constitution reserves the power to the State to decide policy in several areas, where only the State can set targets and provide the means to achieve them. This occurs in international relations, the monetary system, and the armed forces. The Constitution also provides that the Autonomous Communities, through their statutes of autonomy, can assume responsibilities in areas such as agriculture and urban planning. The Constitutional Court is responsible for resolving conflicts that may arise between the State and the autonomous communities regarding the division of powers.
Map of the State of Autonomy
There are 17 autonomous communities and 2 cities with a special regime: Ceuta and Melilla. They have their own bodies or institutions of self-government:
- A Parliament: elected by the citizens of the Community every four years, responsible for enacting laws and controlling the President and the Government.
- A President: elected by the members of the Parliament.
- A Government: responsible for setting policies to be followed.
- A Government formed by a group of organs whose function is to dictate the policies implemented by the Government.