The Constitutional Court deemed the question of constitutionality of the entire law on the differentiated autonomy of ordinary regions (n. 86 of 2024) to be “unfounded”, instead considering specific provisions of the same legislative text to be “illegitimate”. The Council makes this known.
“It is up to Parliament, in the exercise of its discretion, to fill the gaps resulting from the acceptance of some of the issues raised by the appellants, in compliance with constitutional principles, so as to ensure the full functionality of the law”. This is what is explained in the note from the Constitutional Court on the subject of Autonomy. “The Court remains competent to examine the constitutionality of individual differentiation laws, should they be challenged through a principal appeal from other regions or through an incidental appeal”.
The distribution of legislative and administrative functions between the State and the Regions “must not” correspond to the need for a distribution of powers between the different segments of the political system” but must take place “in function of the common good of society and the protection of guaranteed rights by our Constitution.” It is, therefore, “the constitutional principle of subsidiarity that regulates the distribution of functions between the State and the regions”. The Consulta underlines that Autonomy “must be functional to improve the efficiency of the public apparatus, to ensure greater political responsibility and to better respond to the expectations and needs of citizens”.
Do not change the tax rates
The Consulta has identified the unconstitutionality of the “possibility of modifying, by inter-ministerial decree, the rates of revenue sharing of state taxesforeseen to finance the transferred functions, in the event of a discrepancy between the expenditure requirement and the trend of the same revenue; on the basis of this provision, the inefficient regions could be rewarded, which – after having obtained from the State the resources aimed at carrying out the transferred functions – are not able to ensure the complete fulfillment of the same functions with those resources”.
