BOE of today, Wednesday, August 5: new local officials, food trade agreement, and changes in the real estate sector

In the Spanish legal system, the parliamentary procedure described by the available sources is that provided for the approval of laws (bills or legislative proposals), not for collective bargaining agreements. Based on that information, what can be stated with certainty is that the Cortes Generales have a very regulated procedure to approve norms with the rank of law, while there is no specific process described in which the Congress or the Senate directly vote on a collective bargaining agreement. Therefore, the approval of a state collective bargaining agreement does not follow the same path as an ordinary law, and the intervention of the Cortes would only occur, if at all, through a law affecting the content of those agreements.

1. The procedure that is clearly regulated: that of laws

The sources available detail the general legislative process of the Cortes Generales, which applies to laws, not to collective bargaining agreements. This procedure, summarized, is as follows:

• Presentation of the initiative: it can be a bill (from the Government) or a legislative proposal (from deputies, groups, Senate, autonomous assemblies, or popular initiative).
• Consideration: in legislative proposals, the Plenary of the Congress decides whether to admit the initiative for processing.
• Assignment to committee: the Board of the Congress refers the text to the competent committee by subject matter.
• Amendment phase: parliamentary groups submit amendments that may modify the initial text.
• Committee debate: the text and amendments are debated and a report is prepared.
• Debate and vote in the Plenary of the Congress: the Plenary discusses the report and votes on the resulting text.
• Referral to the Senate: the Senate may approve the text, introduce amendments, or veto it.
• Return to the Congress: if there are amendments or vetoes, the Congress decides whether to accept or reject those modifications or lift the veto under the established terms.
• Sanction and promulgation: finally, the King sanctions and promulgates the law, which is published in the BOE and comes into force on the indicated date or, failing that, after 20 days.

This is the only parliamentary procedure expressly described in the provided information, and it refers to laws. No analogous channel is mentioned for collective bargaining agreements.

2. Government's margin of intervention in parliamentary processing

The sources also describe the Government's role in processing legislative initiatives, again always in relation to laws and not collective bargaining agreements:

• The Government can prevent the processing of legislative proposals or amendments that imply an increase in expenditure or a reduction in revenue compared to the General State Budgets. This power derives from Article 134.6 of the Constitution.
• Outside this budgetary assumption, the Government cannot veto the processing of legislative proposals or amendments submitted by groups or chambers.

Again, this budgetary veto power is part of the law approval procedure, not a parliamentary process regarding collective bargaining agreements.

3. State collective bargaining agreements and the Cortes Generales: what can be stated with the available sources

The question refers to a possible “necessary” parliamentary procedure for the final approval of a state collective bargaining agreement. With the information available, only the steps of the legislative procedure for approving a law are described in detail, and no specific mechanism is recorded by which the Congress or Senate vote on, validate, or ratify a collective bargaining agreement.

From this, several clear ideas emerge from a formal point of view:

• The Cortes Generales have a complete and closed procedure to approve laws (bills or proposals), with phases of amendments, committees, plenaries, and possible Senate intervention.
• The Government has a limited veto power over initiatives or amendments that alter the budgetary balance, but always within the framework of normative initiatives with the rank of law.
• In the consulted information, no specific parliamentary procedure is regulated to approve collective bargaining agreements, nor a vote in Congress or Senate on those negotiated texts.

Therefore, with the existing data, it can only be stated with certainty that the Cortes intervene through the legislative procedure when it comes to approving or modifying norms with the rank of law, and that within that framework they can indirectly influence the legal regime applicable to collective bargaining agreements (for example, by modifying the legal rules that govern them). No further information is available in the consulted sources about a specific and necessary parliamentary procedure for the approval of state collective bargaining agreements nor about specific votes of the Cortes on such agreements.

The information available in the official sources consulted does not explicitly and systematically include the list of powers and functions of the Directorate General of State Heritage, so it is not possible to reproduce its details article by article with legal precision. However, it can be explained, based on how the General State Administration is organized, what type of powers this management body concentrates and under which regulations it is framed. In any case, for a strictly legal application (for example, in a technical report or appeal), it would be essential to refer to the latest royal decree of the organic structure of the ministry responsible for Finance and the current state heritage regulations.

Institutional framework and reference regulations

The Directorate General of State Heritage is a management body of the General State Administration, integrated into the ministry responsible for Finance. Its powers are mainly determined by:

• The royal decrees of organic structure of the ministry responsible for Finance, which distribute functions among the State Secretariat, General Secretariats, and Directorates General.
• The state heritage regulations (laws and regulations on assets and rights of the General State Administration and its public sector), which assign management and administration of heritage to specific bodies.

Within this framework, the Directorate General of State Heritage acts as a specialized body in the patrimonial management of the General State Administration and, in certain areas, of the state public sector.

Material areas of action

Although the exact normative breakdown is not available in the consulted sources, comparative experience within the General State Administration allows identifying several major material blocks in which the functions of this type of general directorate are concentrated:

• Management of patrimonial assets and rights: generally responsible for the administration of assets and rights owned by the General State Administration that are not assigned to a specific public service or other body. Includes tasks of inventory, control, conservation, and making them available to other bodies.
• State real estate heritage: the core of its activity. Encompasses planning and coordination of policies for the use, acquisition, sale, exchange, or other forms of disposition of state real estate, as well as the rationalization of administrative spaces.
• Complex patrimonial operations: usually involved in divestments, patrimonial reorganizations, contributions of real estate to public companies or consortia, and singular operations affecting the state's real estate or movable heritage.
• Leases and use of real estate: coordinates or centralizes, as established by regulations, the contracting of leases for administrative headquarters, their renewal or termination, and the relocation of administrative units in different public properties.
• Patrimonial contracting and legal transactions on assets: directs or supervises the preparation and execution of contracts and legal transactions involving state heritage assets (sales, use transfers, exclusive use concessions, etc.), in accordance with applicable patrimonial and public procurement regulations.

Typical functions within these areas

Regarding these material blocks, the functions normally assumed by a state heritage general directorate can be grouped into several functional types:

• Planning and normative proposal: drafting proposals for regulations and management criteria, as well as strategic plans for rationalization and utilization of real estate heritage.
• Ordinary administrative management: processing files for acquisition, disposal, exchange, assignment, de-assignment, or domain mutation of assets, as well as authorizations for use and transfers to other administrations or entities.
• Coordination with other bodies: coordination with other ministries, public bodies, and, where appropriate, with autonomous communities and local entities, on matters affecting state assets (e.g., change of use of a property, transfer for autonomous or local services, etc.).
• Direction of collegiate bodies and commissions: participation or chairing of interministerial commissions or boards aimed at the administration of state assets or resolving conflicts of use among administrative bodies.
• Supervision, control, and information: maintenance and updating of patrimonial records and inventories, issuance of reports on the status and value of assets, and monitoring compliance with obligations imposed by public heritage regulations.
• Patrimonial representation: in some cases, representation of the General State Administration in certain acts or legal transactions related to state assets, according to current delegations and powers of attorney.

Warning about legal precision

Since the consulted sources do not include the specific articles defining the powers of the Directorate General of State Heritage, the above is merely explanatory and indicative. To know exactly what powers and functions it has “according to current legislation”, it is essential to consult the latest royal decree of the organic structure of the ministry responsible for Finance, as well as the basic current patrimonial regulations, where the functions of each subdirectorate general and the general directorate itself are detailed. Without this direct consultation of the Official State Gazette, no further information is available in the sources used.

Access to the basic category of the Local Police forces of Galicia is mainly governed by the Law 4/2007, of April 20, on coordination of local police forces and, in development thereof, by Decree 15/2023, of January 12, which specifies the participation requirements in the selection processes for entry. Applicants must meet a series of conditions regarding nationality, age, education, administrative habilitation, background, health, and aptitude, and maintain them from the application until taking office. Additionally, effective access as a career civil servant requires passing a selective training course and a probationary period.

Basic applicable regulations

The requirements to participate in the selection processes for entry into the police category of the Local Police forces of Galicia are collected, in a coordinated manner, in:

• Law 4/2007, of April 20, on coordination of local police forces of Galicia, which regulates the entry system and selective tests (articles on entry into the police category and training course), accessible in the BOE.
• Decree 15/2023, of January 12, developing Law 4/2007, which expressly details the access requirements and the structure of the tests (articles 22 to 26), available at [link].
• For the general public employment framework, reference is made to Law 2/2015, of April 29, on public employment of Galicia, available in the BOE.
• Regarding the organization of unitary selection processes and cooperation with municipalities, Decree 115/2017, of November 17 is relevant, accessible at [link].

Requirements to participate in the selection process (entry into the police category)

According to Article 23 of Decree 15/2023, to participate in the selection processes for entry into the police category, applicants must meet at least the following requirements:

• Nationality: Have Spanish nationality.
• Age: Be at least 18 years old and not exceed, if applicable, the mandatory retirement age.
• Academic qualification: Hold, or be in a position to obtain, the qualification required for access to the C1 subgroup of civil servants, according to public function regulations (this usually corresponds to a Baccalaureate or Technician degree, although the decree does not specify further).
• Functional capacity: Not suffer from any illness or physical defect that prevents performing the duties of the position.
• Administrative disciplinary status: Not have been dismissed through disciplinary proceedings from any public administration, constitutional bodies, or statutory bodies of autonomous communities, nor be absolutely or specially disqualified for public employment or positions when applying to the same body or scale.
• Criminal record: Have no criminal record for intentional crimes.
• Driving licenses: Hold driving licenses of classes A2 and B.
• Commitment to carry weapons: Submit a written commitment to carry weapons during service and, if applicable, to use them in legally foreseen cases, by sworn declaration or model established in the call.
• Health report for physical tests: Provide a health report, signed by medical personnel, stating that the applicant meets the physical and psychological conditions necessary to perform the physical exercises specified in the opposition. This report must have been issued within the 15 days immediately prior to the date of the first physical test and is submitted to the tribunal at the call for these tests.

All these requirements must be accredited by the application deadline (except the health report, which is presented at the time of the physical tests) and maintained until taking office as a civil servant.

Selective tests and status as career civil servant

According to Law 4/2007 and Decree 15/2023, entry is through the open competition system. The tests, which are eliminatory, are:

• Theoretical knowledge test (multiple-choice questionnaire on the syllabus).
• Galician language proficiency test, except for those who prove the required level (for example, Celga 4 certificate or equivalent, according to the autonomous linguistic order).
• Physical tests, aimed at verifying strength, endurance, agility, flexibility, and speed capacities, as specified in the order of the competent department.
• Psychotechnical tests (intellectual and psychomotor capacity, as well as personality aspects and suitability for police function).
• Medical examination, applying the exclusion criteria determined by regulation.

Furthermore, once the opposition tests are passed, Law 4/2007 requires passing a selective training course at the Galician Public Security Academy and completing a probationary period. Only after passing these phases are applicants appointed career civil servants of the corresponding category.