Budgets
The figure, the first step toward finalizing the budget, does not include the new funding model, which would contribute approximately 4,700 million euros
The Catalan Government will raise the spending cap for the 2027 budget to 43,191 million euros, representing a 4.9% increase over the previous year—about 2,000 million more. The figure is expected to be approved this Tuesday at the Executive Council meeting. The spending cap is a first step toward finalizing next year’s budget and provides a basis for the regional ministries to define and prioritize their expenditures.
The calculation does not include the new funding model, which was finalized last week in Madrid by the Council on Fiscal and Financial Policy. It could be incorporated at a later date, as the new model must first be approved by Congress, and it would provide approximately 4,700 million euros for Catalonia.
As the Minister of Economy and Finance, Alícia Romero, explained on TV3, the increase in spending “is significant” and is primarily due to the rise in revenue. The forecast for non-finalist non-financial revenue is 43,873 million, an 8.7% increase—or 3,528 million euros—compared to the previous year. This figure is based on contributions and settlements under the current financing model, as well as projections for tax revenue and other sources. It is based on the forecast that the Catalan economy will grow by 1.8%.
The increase is consistent with the spending rule, officials say
The 4.9% increase is compatible with compliance with the 4% spending rule set for 2027, the regional government states in a press release, since a large part of the increase comes from the greater resources allocated to departments and debt financing—items “that are excluded from the calculation of the spending rule.” The authorized deficit is expected to be 0.1 percentage points, equivalent to 354 million euros, in line with what was approved last July by the Council of Ministers.
The spending cap “is an important step in drawing up the budget,” Romero noted, and once approved, it will allow for the allocation of budget items to begin. Without going into detail, “the priorities are clear: housing, transportation, infrastructure, public services, and the economy,” he said regarding future budget allocations.
“It is our responsibility to have a budget every year,” Romero noted. The regional government has been in contact with ERC and Comuns to move the budget forward when the time comes.