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Building a federal state: phases and moments of Spanish regional (de)centralization

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 November 2018

Ainhoa Novo Arbona Open the ORCID record for Ainhoa Novo Arbona [Opens in a new window] ,
Sergio Pérez Castaños Open the ORCID record for Sergio Pérez Castaños [Opens in a new window]  and
Jonatan García Rabadán Open the ORCID record for Jonatan García Rabadán [Opens in a new window]
Ainhoa Novo Arbona
Affiliation:
Department of Private Law, University of Burgos, Burgos, Spain
Sergio Pérez Castaños*
Affiliation:
Department of Private Law, University of Burgos, Burgos, Spain
Jonatan García Rabadán
Affiliation:
Department of Private Law, University of Burgos, Burgos, Spain
*
*Corresponding author. E-mail: spcastanos@ubu.es
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Abstract

Two main elements characterize a country as federal and the development of its federal system. The first one is directly connected to competences and how regions may or may not have powers over public policies. The second one focuses on the fiscal arena, and how regions generate their own income and share it with the central government. This paper describes from a historical point of view the different phases that the Spanish federal process has followed since its beginning in 1978 up to the last reform in 2016. These phases are related to the composition of both the regional and the national governments. It is therefore is important to investigate the connection between changes in these compositions and how they may have affected the phases of decentralization. Employing the new institutionalism paradigm and seeking for critical junctures in the different moments, we show how national governments are more important in shaping this process than regional ones.

Keywords

fiscal federalismpolitical decentralizationregionsfederalismdecentralizationSpain
Type
Research Article
Information
Italian Political Science Review / Rivista Italiana di Scienza Politica , Volume 49 , Issue 3 , November 2019 , pp. 263 - 277
Copyright
Copyright © Società Italiana di Scienza Politica 2018 

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