Improving relationships between citizens and the Spain s Administrations.

Transcription

1 Improving relationships between citizens and the Spain s Administrations. Experiences on co-operation and technologic basis. In the past quarter century, Spain has experienced a profound transformation of its governance structures that continues yet today. The democratic Constitution of 1978 accelerated and consolidated a process of social and economic transformation. Within this broad context of governance, institutions have been extensively reshaped. One of the Key policies driving this process has been the remould of Spain s legal and administrative framework. In particular, its remarkable experience in reconciling a highly centralised state with growing regional demands and the modernisation of the public sector had immense impacts on the administration, which had to be recreated, while a constellation of public administrations emerged in the autonomous communities and municipalities. Citizens in Spain connect with more over than Public Administrations (settled in three levels: State Administration, Autonomous Communities and local Entities), each one with different formalities, institutions and regulatory framework. Benefits of decentralisation are quite appreciated, but in general terms relations between citizens and Administrations appear as more complex, due to difficulties of ordinary people in knowing which one has the competence in each case. As a result, a main strategic goal of State s General Administration is the launching of tools allowing citizens to connect the different Public Administrations through a single way. That s what has been named as onestop-shop program, which happens to be a wide sum of actions based on two principles: Co-operation between the three administrative levels (state, autonomous communities and local entities). Intensive use of information technologies for communication. The Public Administrations Ministry (Ministerio de Administraciones Públicas) plays a central role in the implementation of the above mentioned targets, as far as it has got competencies on administrative simplification and 1

2 relationships with territorial Administrations (Autonomous Communities and Local Authorities). In particular, the Administrative Procedures and Public Management Unit is in charge of the design, definition and enforcement of Simplification Programmes, concerning legal and management aspects. ONE-STOP-SHOP PROGRAM VENTANILLA ÚNICA ONE-STOP-SHOP FOR BUSINESS Ventanilla Única Empresarial GPS PUBLIC SERVICES GUIDE STRUCTURE OF THE PROGRAMM Nearly four years ago, in the first months of 1996, the major of a little village in Almería sent a long complaint to the Public Administrations Minister. In it, he explained that there weren t any state offices where residents in that village could deliver papers or manage any affair concerning the State General Administration. As a consequence, people should travel near 100 Kilometres to the province capital each time they had to solve basic administrative problems (unemployment subsidies, traffic certificates,and..). The described scene is the same as in other 4000 little towns all over Spain. The Public Administration Minister signed a covenant with the mentioned village, in order to allow the local authority offices to receive and manage those papers concerning the State Administration. At present more than 1000 towns there are 8000 in Spain and 10 over 17 Autonomous Communities are involved in the project. Legal Basis of the project. 2

3 The way to solve the above-mentioned problem difficulties for residents in small towns to connect with the State Administration was indicated by a 1992 Law, the Public Administrations Legal Regime and Administrative Procedure Law. It contains a provision (article b) according to which local entities citizens to address to the State Administration or the Autonomous Administration units provided that a covenant is signed for that purpose could use offices. The Ministers Council took the 1996 February 23rd Decision, allowing local entities to sign covenants with central Government. But those covenants only solved half the problem. Citizens of local entities could already connect with State Administration, but still had the same problems in their relations with Autonomous Communities Administrations. Regarding that problem, only one year later, the Ministers Council made the 1997 April 4 th Decision. Such Decision opened a new period in the developing process of the one-stop-shop project. It provided a new procedure according to which the State Administration and the Autonomous Communities signed a covenant and later local entities accept its provisions. The Decision settled three main objectives:!"intensive use of information technologies for communication between Public Administrations. The goal is to achieve that any document delivered by citizens in any Public Administration could be received in another on line.!"database sharing between Public Administrations, so citizens could get information about any Administration activities.!" Electronic management. Simplification of bureaucratic works, regarding to the possibility of electronic management. 21 junio mayo mayo mayo junio julio mayo julio Novbre junio 1998 Gráfico 2 MINISTERIO DE ADMINISTRACIONES Secretaría de PÚBLICAS Estado para la Administración Pública 3

4 Public Services Guide As a product of the project, the administrative procedures and public management unit maintains the Public Services Guide (GPS). The GPS is an advanced database that contains full information about general explanation; status and documentary requirements, legal basis, etc. as regards the 400 most demanded public services of the State Administration. It s also got forms and full legal regulations. The GPS is widely diffused by using three ways: Internet. Open access for everybody. From home, citizens can get the forms and all the concerning information ( Information offices. The GPS is also available in the Public information Offices, for all those who cant access to the Internet. Citizen s Attention Points. Finally, Information Boxes installed in towns where no Information offices are available are providing the GPS. 4

5 Concrete practices: the one-stop-shop for business start The reason for this project Entrepreneurial activity is one of the most effective levers for economic growth and, therefore, for job creation. In order to give an account of this project, it is necessary to bear in mind the economic policy of the Spanish Government, whose main target is to provide a suitable environment for job creation. Talking about employment means talking about enterprises, particularly, those being small and medium-sized. In Spain, SME sector shows a significant presence, as it is composed of 2.7 million enterprises (55.7% of which are selfemployed)**. The Plan for Employment of the Kingdom of Spain includes an specific point concerning the reduction of start-up administrative burdens for business. This is not the only step taken by the Government, as the General Plan for Administrative Simplification, now in progress, is focused on those parts of bureaucratic work affecting citizens life in higher degree and those facing job creation (Royal Decree 670/1999, 23 rd. April) Starting a business in Spain: critical factors To set up an enterprise in Spain involves different formalities affecting three different public administrations: General Administration of the State, the Autonomous Community and the Local Government. Those formalities differ in accordance with the legal form adopted by the new business. To comply with these formalities (or to ask for information) requires from entrepreneurs to go round different public offices more than once, to queue in some cases... These side effects can be minimised, even eliminated in order to make start-up process easier as it is not neutral in terms of cost. Surveys from the General Council of Chambers of Commerce of Spain reveal that 90% of those who decide to set up a new business ignore the red tape to be carried out or the legal form that meets their requirements. The target This project is addressed to foster the establishment of new business by providing those who decide to set up a firm with both information on all business and administrative issues concerned and the quick fulfilment of all administrative formalities in the same office. 5

6 It is not the basic goal but emphasis should be made on this point, as it is the first time that different administrations work side by side in the same office. Obviously, what is behind this fact is not only an issue concerning geography but administrative culture and organisation. At present, six one-stop-shops are already opened, as shown in the following graphic: Place Date Valladolid June Palma de Mallorca November,1999. Santa Cruz de Tenerife December, 1999 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria December, 1999 Madrid February, 2000 Getafe February, 2000 The results could be considered as excellent. The shops have created more than 150 new firms, and about 700 requests of information were attended. Detail of the results will be given at the conference. Structure The office is made up by the following areas: -Reception (in charge of MAP) -Administrative information (MAP) -Business information and guidance (Chamber of Commerce) -Administrative management (civil servants from participating administrations, State, Autonomous Communities and Local Entities.) 6

7 To assemble in the same office personnel from the administrations involved in this programme is already a simplification step as it allows them to share information and to proceed with procedure stages without delay. Notwithstanding, a Procedure Management System (PMS) has been set for the one-stop-shop to allow data transfers among participating administrations. There is little doubt that an intensive use of information technologies is behind this programme. In doing so, it becomes feasible to reduce the bureaucratic burden imposed on citizen in terms of data and information to be given, as he or she is not requested to provide the same data more than once. As a result of this simplification task, previous administrative forms have been turned into one common form for the specific use of this one-stop-shop. ONE-STOP-SHOP FOR BUSINESS START-UP Ventanilla Única Empresarial ONE SINGLE OFFICE Information BUSINESS INFORMATION AND GUIDANCE (Financing, business best ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION AND GUIDANCE (Public subsidies, requirements..) 7

8 Speaker: Ernesto Abati. Director of Administrative Procedures and Public Management Unit (Ministry of Public Administration) 8