Spain creates an independent body to watch over budget stability

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

1. The Independent Authority for Fiscal Responsibility (Autoridad Independiente de Responsabilidad Fiscal) is created as a public body with its own legal personality. Its job is to make sure public administrations follow the budget stability principle.
2. It works through reports, opinions and studies, and has access to the financial information of all public administrations. If an administration ignores a report's recommendations, it must explain why and include the report in the case file.
3. The Authority acts with full independence: no one, not even public administrations, can give it instructions.
4. It must issue mandatory reports on the economic forecasts in budgets, the Stability Programme, compliance with debt targets and the spending rule, and draft budgets.
5. It is led by a President appointed by the Council of Ministers for a non-renewable six-year term, with the approval of the Congress of Deputies (Congreso de los Diputados). It is organized into divisions headed by division directors.
6. A fee is created, paid by the State, the Autonomous Communities, local corporations and Social Security, which mainly funds the Authority to guarantee its independence.

Who it affects

• Public administrations (State, Autonomous Communities, local corporations and Social Security): They must provide information to the Authority and pay a fee that funds it.
• The Government: It must request prior reports on economic forecasts, budgets and rebalancing plans.
• The Authority's President and staff: They are subject to strict rules on independence, conflicts of interest and publication of their résumés.

Words worth knowing

Estabilidad presupuestaria (budget stability)

A rule requiring public administrations not to spend more than they take in and to keep their debt under control.

Regla de gasto (spending rule)

A limit on how much public spending can grow each year.

Programa de Estabilidad (Stability Programme)

A document the State sends to the European Union with its plans for revenue, spending and debt.

Informe preceptivo (mandatory report)

A report that must be requested before a decision can be made.

It summarizes the law as published in the BOE. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries