The Government carries out the first official procedure for the budgets and separates them from the management of the Personal Income Tax (IRPF).

BarcelonaWith the convening of the Fiscal and Financial Policy Council, the Catalan Government believes that the discussions it has with the Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC) regarding the proposed new regional financing are now entering their final stages. The Catalan executive aims to have the 2026 budget approved in the first quarter of the year and, despite facing a challenging timeline, is preparing to open negotiations with its parliamentary partners, ERC and Comuns, once the Minister of Economy, Alícia Romero, returns from the Fiscal and Financial Policy Council meeting. There has not yet been a formal meeting, explained spokesperson and Minister of Territory, Silvia Paneque, but the Government wants to move forward. For this reason, Romero has already sent the draft of the law on fiscal and financial measures for 2026, known as the accompanying law, to the Catalan Economic and Social Council (CTESC). It's a procedural step that must be completed before the budget can be approved by the executive council, which the government hopes to do once it has reached an agreement with ERC and Comuns. Romero made the announcement in an interview this Tuesday on TV3, where he explained that the CTESC, which must issue an opinion on the draft budget, has had the document since Monday. However, the Republicans continue to insist that if there are no "concrete details" allowing Catalonia to manage its own taxes, starting with personal income tax (IRPF), they will not sit down to negotiate the budget. The Catalan government is willing to continue working in this direction—in February, ERC will submit its proposal to the Congress for a vote to make this possible—but it is separating this from the budget negotiations, which it wants to begin "as soon as possible."

Furthermore, the Catalan Socialists do not want to tie their fate to that of the regional financing proposal in Congress, which does not have the necessary votes to pass. Together, they oppose it, along with the PP and Vox, and some voices within Sumar and the BNG are also reluctant. "It's not in the Government's hands," Paneque stated. The spokesperson also ruled out any moves from the Catalan Government to try to bridge the gap with Together, beyond the meeting that Romero and the Minister of the Presidency, Albert Dalmau, already held with the parliamentary groups on Friday. For now, socialists and republicans are pressuring the regional council members to join the pact. And, at the same time, they are extending a hand to them so they can negotiate and not veto the proposal's passage through Congress.

In any case, if the Catalan government wants to have the budget approved in the first quarter, as President Salvador Illa has stated, it will have to negotiate against the clock. The time a budget was approved in less time, from when it left the executive council until it received the green light from Parliament, was in 2023, with a record processing time of 37 days under the leadership of the then Minister of Economy, Natàlia Mas. The previous budget, led by Minister Jaume Giró, was approved after a 45-day process. The Comuns are conditioning the start of negotiations on the application of the sanctions regime of the housing law and on a follow-up meeting regarding the agreements, which has not yet been scheduled.

The measures of the law

Romero also outlined some of the measures included in the accompanying legislation, the first drafted by the Ministry of Economy since the PSC came to power—in 2025, the Catalan government failed to pass a budget due to a lack of support. The draft law eliminates 19 fees "that had a very small revenue impact," according to the Ministry of Economy. One of these fees was the one paid by fishermen's guilds for occupying public space in areas such as viewing stands. The legislation also includes various measures to facilitate access to housing and eliminates the Catalan Sports Council.