In Spain, astatute of autonomy[i] is the basic institutional, quasi-constitutional law of anautonomous community or autonomous city.[1] The process ofdevolution after thetransition to democracy (1979) created 17autonomous communities and 2autonomous cities, each having its own Statute of Autonomy. The two autonomous cities areCeuta andMelilla, both on the north coast of Africa.
These statutes define the institutional framework within a region and the powersSpanish:competencias of the region, within the limits of the Constitution. Powers fall into four broad categories: those exclusive to the State; those where the State legislates and the autonomous communities implement this legislation; those where the State defines framework legislation and the regions add detailed legislation and are responsible for execution; and finally those powers that are exclusive the autonomous communities.[2]
Statutes of autonomy are defined in the Spanish Constitution.[3] Statutes of autonomy are part of the legal system of the State, but how they are drafted and approved is distinct from other laws. Initially drafted by an assembly made up of members ofProvincial Council wishing to become an autonomous community, they are then submitted to the Spanish Parliament as a bill and passed into law.
To modify or replace a statute of autonomy, the process is according to provisions in the existing statute but is initiated and drafted by the parliament of the autonomous community and require a strong majority to pass (e.g., two-thirds in Catalonia or three-fifths in Murcia). They must then be approved by Spanish Parliament as anorganic law, which requires an absolute majority voting in favour in the Congress of Deputies.[4]
As the Constitution had not set clearly defined methods for power sharing, particularly over shared jurisdiction or powers, there had been major conflict because the real power of an autonomous community depended upon how far the State wanted to legislate.[5] Since 1982, the PSOE and later the PP pursued policies to temper enthusiasm for devolution and instead sought to harmonise the powers devolved to all autonomous communities. This was interpreted by the 'historic nationalities' of Catalonia and the Basque Country as the re-imposition of centralist control from Madrid particularly after a landmark ruling of the Constitutional Court upheld the prerogative of the central government to use 'Basic (ie framework) Laws' to encroach upon devolved jurisdictional powers to promote and protect 'the national interest' of the Spanish state.[6][7]
Consequently, from about 2004, there was a wave of reform of statutes aimed at updating and resolving conflicts.[4] On 18 June 2006,Catalonia approved byreferendum a highly innovative but controversialnew statute that was seen as the leading model of reform, with such elements as a full charter of rights and a detailed chapter on the judiciary.[4] This triggered and influenced reform of several other statutes which have been modified including those of Valencia (2006), Balearic Islands (2007), Andalucía (2007), Aragón (2007), Castile and León (2007), Navarra (2010), and Extremadura (2011), all agreed by the national parliament and the two main Spanish parties.[8]
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