The Commission of Finance, Budgets, Interior and Public Administration of the Courts of Aragon has analyzed this Monday a non-binding proposal aimed at expressing its "rejection of the Aragon Government's intention to stop offering the current service of liquidation offices in twenty-five small and medium-sized municipalities in Aragon". The initiative, defended by the PSOE, did not prosper, receiving the opposing vote of PP and Vox and the abstention of IU.
The socialist deputy Óscar Galeano defended the text, in which he expressed his concern about the fact that "the Aragon Government will not renew the agreement that allows the operation of the twenty-five liquidation offices in different municipalities of the Autonomous Community", offices that, as he recalled, "will stop providing their services on June 30, 2026", according to the plans of the Aragonese Executive.
During his speech, Galeano stressed that "these offices represent a very useful instrument for managing, liquidating and collecting taxes in small and medium-sized municipalities". In his opinion, the regional government's decision "would eliminate a service of closeness and proximity, forcing residents to travel to provincial capitals or the headquarters of territorial delegations", which, he lamented, "would mean a clear detriment to both local employment and territorial cohesion".
The PSOE representative described the measure as "another blow to rural areas" and considered that it shows "the Azcón Government's lack of interest in maintaining the pulse of small municipalities and in guaranteeing equal access to public services". The Executive's forecast affects the liquidation offices located in Albarracín, Alcañiz, Aliaga, Ateca, Barbastro, Belchite, Benabarre, Boltaña, Borja, Calamocha, Calatayud, Caspe, Castellote, Daroca, Ejea de los Caballeros, Fraga, Híjar, Jaca, La Almunia, Mora de Rubielos, Pina de Ebro, Sabiñánigo, Sariñena, Tamarite de Litera and Tarazona.
The socialist group has warned that the closure of these facilities will force numerous residents, especially the elderly, citizens with fewer resources, or those with difficulties accessing digital means, to travel to provincial capitals or territorial delegations to carry out tax procedures related to inheritances, donations, sales transactions, and other similar matters. In this regard, Galeano has argued that "these offices are neither a duplication nor a luxury. They are a public service of proximity, a guarantee of equality, and an essential tool to combat the digital and territorial divide."
From the PP, deputy Lorena Tabanera has replied that "we are facing a deprivatization of a public service." She has insisted that "no service will be closed" and has added that "up to thirty more municipalities that do not now have liquidation offices will have them with the OCAS."
In the same vein, Vox parliamentarian Juan Vidal has defended the position of the regional government and explained that "we are trying to expand to more points in Aragon, from twenty-five to fifty points." According to him, "the Government of Aragon has expanded the service through the regional and agricultural offices," which implies that "the network is expanded with more than thirty municipalities."
For his part, Jaime Angós, from CHA, has criticized that, with this restructuring, "rural citizens are forced to travel more kilometers and face more difficulties to interact with the Administration." He recalled that "it is a useful, consolidated, close network that had been operating for decades."
As for Izquierda Unida, Marta Abengochea has justified her group's abstention by pointing out that "we cannot accept any cuts in the provision of public services" and, at the same time, has pointed out that "we also do not believe that this system is adequate" because "liquidating taxes is a public service" that is now "done in an outsourced manner."