The Multilevel Financial Controls Exercised by the European Institutions and the Spanish Central Government Over Local Governments and Administrations. New Trends and Perspectives in the Study of Local Autonomy and the Control of Public Deficit and Debt

The aim of the paper is to analyze the new scenario of multilevel relations of budget control and supervision established between the Spanish central government on one hand, and the local administrations of Spain on the other hand, in the context of policies on control of public deficit and debt. Since the approval of the constitutional reform (article 135 Spanish Constitution), the new Local Act develops several different and more restrictive controls to the capacity of local administrations and governments related to their autonomy on budget management and public financial accountability. We try to expose, therefore, how the new context of policies on austerity and public deficit is affecting to the local autonomy as constitutional principle, and the structural consequences of this public program on the local democracy, local budget management and public control of local policies.