The assessment of the autonomous configuration of transparency in Spain

Especial reference to Andalusia

Abstract

The principle of transparency is, and must be, a consubstantial notion in any advanced democratic society. There is a growing citizen concern about the accountability of public authorities, and about the access to public information. The scenario of political disaffection, which arose especially during the first years of the recent economic crisis, led to a tendency to convert into positive law what had until now been configured as a mere principle of good faith that was presupposed in the actions of public authorities. This is how most of the Autonomous Communities deepened on this issue, with certain differences in terms of the extent of its content and subsequent development.

In this study, there will be a brief review of the configuration of transparency in Spain, both at the state and regional levels, focusing on the implementation of Law 1/2014 of 24 June on Public Transparency in Andalusia, analyzing its effective application four years after its approval. To this end, we will consider the use made of the Andalusian Transparency Website, the number of requests for access to public information received, and we will compare the data obtained at state level, thanks to the information provided by the State Transparency Website.