What it is
Bill to make it easier for town councils to run public services directly
It is a members’ bill. Introduced by parliamentary groups, the Senate, regional governments or citizens. It was introduced on 27 October 2022. Introduced by: Grupo Parlamentario Confederal de Unidas Podemos-En Comú Podem-Galicia en Común.
Official title: Private member's bill amending Law 9/2017, of 8 November, on public sector contracts.
Source: Congreso de los Diputados, file 122/000263· updated 11 Nov
Automatic summary, not yet reviewed
- The bill would give local councils more freedom to decide how to manage local public services, simplifying current procedures, which it calls overly bureaucratic. It argues that most municipalities already run these services without following the procedures set out in the law.
- It would amend Article 284 of the public sector contracts law to clarify when the Administration can award a service concession and what must be established before doing so.
- It would add new grounds for ending a concession contract, such as collecting improper fees, failing to make declared investments, hiding information from the Administration, or not keeping separate accounts for the service.
- It would set out how to calculate compensation for the concession holder when the contract ends for reasons attributable to the Administration, and add the early recovery of the service for direct management on public interest grounds as a ground for termination.
Who it affects
- Town councils and other local entities: They would have more room to decide whether to run their services directly or through a concession.
- Companies holding public service concessions: They would face more information and accounting duties, and could lose the contract for new breaches.
- Citizens who use local public services: The goal is to guarantee quality, safety and affordable prices for services.
Words worth knowing
- Concesión de servicios (service concession)
- A contract under which a private company runs a public service (such as water or waste collection) for a period of time, charging users.
- Rescate del servicio (service recovery)
- When the Administration takes back a service early from the company running it, to manage it itself.
- Contabilidad diferenciada (separate accounting)
- Keeping the accounts of the concessioned service separate from the company's other accounts.
- Concesionario (concession holder)
- The company that has been awarded the contract to run the public service.
It summarizes the text as it was introduced. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries
Where it stands
How far did it get?
It took 2 of 7 steps. It reached Admitted, and today it is unfinished.
- Introduced27 October 2022Someone registers the text in the Congreso.
- Admitted2 November 2022The Bureau of the Congreso accepts it and, for a members’ bill, the plenary decides whether to consider it.
- Amendmentsnot reachedGroups propose changes.
- Committeenot reachedA committee goes through the text in detail.
- Plenarynot reachedAll 350 deputies vote.
- Senatenot reachedThe Senate can pass it, amend it or veto it.
- BOEnot reachedIt is published in the Official State Gazette (BOE) and comes into force.
See the 6 official steps on a timeline
Was there a plenary vote?
We have no plenary vote linked to this law in the Congreso’s data.
What happens next
What happens now?
The legislature ended before it finished. To go on, someone would have to introduce it again in the new Cortes.
It has not been presented again yet.
Sources
Where does all this come from?
- Congreso de los Diputados, file 122/000263
Official title, type, author, dates and stage.
Retrieved 11 November 2026
- The data comes from the open files of the Congreso, the Senate and the BOE, unaltered.
- Each deputy’s province is the one of their seat on the day of the vote.
- We only say “passed” or “rejected” when the majority needed is certain; otherwise we say which side had more votes.