Understanding Competencies in Spanish Law
Principle of Supplementary State Law
Principle in art. 149 of the EC: State law will, in any case, be supplementary to the right of the regions. This is because it is a more comprehensive law that contains rules that give systematic unity and coherence to the legal system.
Concept of a Database
The content of the bases is nothing other than the management that requires legislative general interest in relation to a subject. This requirement, in fact, is not contained in the EC and also has no fixed content. Instead, it often depends on different political, economic, health, or ecological factors.
The Concept of Exclusive Competence
Exclusive powers are those in which an entity brings together all the possible powers on the same subject, as in art. 149.1 EC, matters of international relations, justice, nationality, etc. However, some understand that exclusivity is predicated on the existence of two criteria: either when an entity brings together the full power over the matter or when retaining all the powers of the same quality on it, such as legislation or execution. Some even argue that exclusive jurisdiction exists when a power is held exclusively on one subject (e.g., exclusive jurisdiction over the basic rules on the implementing legislation).
The Concept of Shared Competence
Shared competences occur when certain powers correspond to one entity and the remainder to another. Although in these cases, it could also be noted that the issue is shared. Art. 149 of the CE includes, in this sense, both the allocation of the basic law of the State, corresponding to policy development and implementation of the Autonomous Communities, and the attribution of legislation to the state, leaving only the execution in the hands of the autonomous regions. For example, as provided in Art. 149.1 EC: Legislation on weights and measures, bases, and coordination of the overall planning of economic activity, civil law, etc., corresponding to the state. It is understood, therefore, that other powers can be assumed by the Autonomous Communities.
The Concept of Concurrent Jurisdiction
State and Autonomous Region in legislative order functionally attend to a subject. That is when the State is responsible for basic law and the Autonomous Region for legislative development and implementation. There is concurrent jurisdiction when the State and the Autonomous Region have the same functional competence on the same matter, i.e., when the two local authorities concur in the same field of law material.
However, sometimes the exercise by the state of its core competence extends beyond the legislative function, leaving the Autonomous Region to exercise a function of simple regulatory or enforcement of state regulation.
The Spanish Constitution gives the State the basic legislation and the autonomous community development law. In this sense, it can be argued that concurrent jurisdiction actually defines two areas of exclusive competence: one for the State to establish the basis and another for the Autonomous Region to set the standard for development and implementation based on that foundation.