Legislative Decrees, Decree Laws, and Regulatory Hierarchy in Constitutional Law

Legislative Decrees and Parliamentary Delegation

A Legislative Decree is a rule that emanates from the Government, granted the force of law through delegation by the Parliament.

Key Features of Legislative Decrees

• The Government rules with the force of law.
• Parliament delegates authority via an explicit act of delegation, allowing the Government to dictate these rules, which are called legislative decrees.
• The delegation must be explicit and is subject to time constraints.
• Matters concerning organic law often fall under the scope of legislative decrees.
• The Constitution establishes how the courts control and review legislative decrees.
• Reference is also made to their application in the regional field.

Decree Laws and Autonomous Regions

The dominant doctrinal position holds that Decree Laws are generally not supported as executive orders in the Autonomous Regions.

However, an exceptional case occurred in the 1980s in the Basque Country where a legislative decree was issued during elections. For reasons of political expediency, this decree was not appealed, although, in principle, legal doctrine denies that the decree law is an autonomous source of law in this context.

Autonomous Legislative Decrees

Some statutes have recognized autonomous legislative decrees, such as those established in the Community of Madrid.

The Concept and Hierarchy of Regulations

Definition and Scope

A regulation is a general, written rule that is always subject to the law. Regulations cannot govern areas reserved exclusively for the law.

There are specific matters reserved for the regulatory authority. Only freedom can be limited, as property law is the expression of popular will.

Relationship with the Law

Regulations can be categorized based on their relationship to existing legislation:

• Bases Rules: Their relationship with the law can be considered independent.
• Praeter Legem (Extra-Legal): Used when the law has not regulated the matter at all.
• Executive Regulations (Secundum Legem): Designed to develop or implement existing law.
• Contra Legem (Against the Law): A third, highly exceptional case where regulations contradict the law.

Differentiation by Subject Matter

Regulations can be differentiated based on the matters they regulate and the scope of their application:

1. Administrative Regulations:
   • Regulate administrative organization.
   • Regulate a certain group of people.
   • Establish relations of special supremacy.
2. Legal Regulations:
   • Refer to all citizens.
   • Establish general supremacy.

Ranking of Regulations by Origin

A ranking of regulations can be established based on their originating authority:

• General Administration
• Regional Administrations
• Local Government