Editing Autonomous communities of Spain (section)

==History==
{{Main|History of the territorial organization of Spain|Nationalities and regions of Spain}}

===Background===
[[File:España1757.jpg|thumb|upright=1.6|A map of [[Iberia]] in 1757]]
Spain is a diverse country made up of several different regions with varying economic and social structures, as well as different languages and historical, political and cultural traditions.<ref name=villar>{{cite web|url=http://www.stormingmedia.us/46/4624/A462453.html|last=Villar|first=Fernando P.|title=Nationalism in Spain: Is It a Danger to National Integrity?|publisher=Storming Media, Pentagon Reports|date=June 1998|access-date=3 February 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927225951/http://www.stormingmedia.us/46/4624/A462453.html|archive-date=27 September 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=shabad>{{cite journal|title=Language, Nationalism and Political Conflict in Spain|journal = Comparative Politics|volume = 14|issue = 4|pages = 443–477|last1=Shabad|first1=Goldie|last2=Gunther|first2=Richard|publisher=Comparative Politics Vol 14 No. 4|date=July 1982|jstor = 421632|doi = 10.2307/421632}}</ref> While the entire Spanish territory was united under one crown in 1479, this was not a process of national homogenization or amalgamation. The constituent territories—be they crowns, kingdoms, principalities or dominions—retained much of their former institutional existence,{{sfn|Moreno|2007|loc=}} including limited legislative, judicial or fiscal autonomy. These territories also exhibited a variety of local customs, laws, languages and currencies until the mid 19th century.{{sfn|Moreno|2007|loc=}}

From the 18th century onwards, the [[Spanish royal family|Bourbon kings]] and the government tried to establish a more centralized regime. Leading figures of the [[Spanish Enlightenment]] advocated for the building of a Spanish nation beyond the internal territorial boundaries.{{sfn|Moreno|2007|loc=}} This culminated in 1833, when Spain was [[1833 territorial division of Spain|divided]] into 49 (now 50) [[provinces of Spain|provinces]], which served mostly as transmission belts for policies developed in Madrid.

Spanish history since the late 19th century has been shaped by a dialectical struggle between Spanish nationalism and peripheral nationalisms,{{sfn|Conversi|2002|loc=}}{{sfn|Moreno Fernández|2008|loc=}} mostly in Catalonia and the Basque Country, and to a lesser degree in [[Galicia (Spain)|Galicia]].

In a response to Catalan demands, limited autonomy was granted to the [[Commonwealth of Catalonia]] in 1914, only to be abolished in 1925. It was granted again in 1932 during the [[Second Spanish Republic]], when the [[Generalitat of Catalonia|Generalitat]], Catalonia's mediaeval institution of government, was restored. The constitution of 1931 envisaged a territorial division for all Spain in "autonomous regions", which was never fully attained—only [[Autonomous Region of Catalonia (1931–1939)|Catalonia]], the Basque Country and Galicia had approved "[[Statute of Autonomy|Statutes of Autonomy]]"—the process being thwarted by the [[Spanish Civil War]] that broke out in 1936, and the victory of the rebel Nationalist forces under [[Francisco Franco]].{{sfn|Conversi|2002|loc=}}

[[Francoist Spain|Franco's dictatorial regime]] strongly believed that the only way of preserving the "unity of the Spanish nation" was by ruling Spain as a highly centralized state.{{sfn|Conversi|2002|loc=}} Peripheral nationalism, along with communism and atheism, were regarded by his regime as the main threats.<ref name=frans/> His attempts to fight separatism with heavy-handed but sporadic repression,<ref name=shabad/> and his often severe suppression of language and regional identities<ref name="shabad"/> backfired: the demands for democracy became intertwined with demands for the recognition of a pluralistic vision of Spanish nationhood.{{sfn|Conversi|2002|loc=}}{{sfn|Moreno Fernández|2008|pages=78,79}}

When Franco died in 1975, Spain entered into a phase of [[Spanish transition to democracy|transition to democracy]]. The most difficult task of the newly democratically elected {{Lang|es|[[Cortes Generales]]|italic=no}} (the Spanish Parliament) in 1977 acting as a Constituent Assembly was to transition from Franco's rigid centralism to a more decentralized model{{sfn|Colomer|1998|loc=}} in a way that would satisfy the demands of the peripheral nationalists.<ref name=mundo>{{cite web|url=http://www.elmundo.es/especiales/2005/06/espana/estatutos_autonomia/historia.html|title=Café para Todos|work=La España de las Autonomías. Un Especial de elmundo.es|last=Aparicio|first=Sonia|access-date=29 January 2012}}</ref><ref name=portero>{{Cite book |last=Portero Molina |first=José Antonio |title=El Estado Autonómico: Integración, Solidaridad, Diversidad. |publisher=Instituto Nacional de Administración Pública |year=2005 |isbn=978-8478799770 |editor-last=Vidal Beltrán |editor-first=José María |volume=1 |pages=39–64 |trans-title=The Autonomous State: Integration, Solidarity, Diversity. |chapter=El Estado de las Autonomías en Tiempo de Reformas |trans-chapter=The State of the Autonomies in the time of reforms |oclc=83606618 |editor-last2=García Herrera |editor-first2=Miguel Ángel}}</ref>

The [[Prime Minister of Spain]], [[Adolfo Suárez]], met with [[Josep Tarradellas]], president of the [[Generalitat of Catalonia]] in exile. They agreed to restore the Generalitat and transfer limited powers while the constitution was still being written. Shortly after, the government allowed the creation of "assemblies of members of parliament" made up of deputies and senators of the different territories of Spain, so that they could constitute "pre-autonomic regimes" for their regions as well. {{citation needed|date=December 2015}}

The [[Fathers of the Constitution]] had to strike a balance between the opposing views of Spain—on the one hand, the centralist view inherited from monarchist and nationalist elements of Spanish society,{{sfn|Colomer|1998|loc=}} and on the other hand [[federalism]] and a pluralistic view of Spain as a "nation of nations";<ref name=sinopsis2>{{cite web |url=http://www.congreso.es/consti/constitucion/indice/sinopsis/sinopsis.jsp?art=2&tipo=2|title=Sinópsis artículo 2|work=Constitución española (con sinópsis) |last=Delgado-Ibarren García-Campero|first=Manuel| publisher=[[Congress of Deputies (Spain)|Congress of the Deputies]]|date=June 2005|access-date=28 January 2012}}</ref> between a uniform decentralization of entities with the same powers and an asymmetrical structure that would distinguish the nationalities. Peripheral nationalist parties wanted a multinational state with a federal or confederal model, whereas the governing [[Union of the Democratic Centre (Spain)|Union of the Democratic Centre]] (UCD) and the [[People's Alliance (Spain)|People's Alliance]] (AP) wanted minimum decentralization; the [[Spanish Socialist Workers' Party]] (PSOE) was sympathetic to a federal system.<ref name=frans/>

In the end, the constitution, published and ratified in 1978, found a balance in recognizing the existence of "nationalities and regions" in Spain, within the "indissoluble unity of the Spanish nation". In order to manage the tensions present in the Spanish transition to democracy, the drafters of the current Spanish constitution avoided giving labels such as 'federal' to the territorial arrangements,<ref>[https://foreignpolicy.com/2016/03/18/why-talk-of-federalism-wont-help-peace-in-syria-assad/ Why Talk of Federalism Won't Help Peace in Syria]. ''[[Foreign Policy]]''</ref> while enshrining in the constitution the right to autonomy or self-government of the "nationalities and regions", through a process of asymmetric [[devolution]] of power to the "autonomous communities" that were to be created.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.mreza-mira.net/wp-content/uploads/Devolution-in-Spain-May-2014.pdf |title=Devolution of Powers in Spain |access-date=2016-03-31 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161012014346/http://www.mreza-mira.net/wp-content/uploads/Devolution-in-Spain-May-2014.pdf |archive-date=2016-10-12 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>[http://www.brandeis.edu/departments/politics/researchcircle/publications/docs/chernyha-burgpaper.pdf Devolution and Democracy: Identity, Preferences, and Voting in the Spanish "State of Autonomies"]</ref>

===Constitution of 1978===
{{Main|Spanish Constitution of 1978}}
{{See also|Political divisions of Spain}}
[[File:Primera página de la Constitución española de 1978, con escudo de 1981.jpg|thumb|First page of the Spanish Constitution.]]
The starting point in the territorial organization of Spain was the second article of the constitution,<ref name=perez>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4SnZBb6pIZkC|title=El Funcionamiento del Estado Autonómico|chapter=Desarrollo y Evolución del Estado Autonómico: El Proceso Constituyente y el Consenso Constitucional|trans-title=The Functioning of the Autonomous State|trans-chapter=Development and Evolution of the Autonomous State: The Constituent Process and the Constitutional Consensus|last=Pérez Royo|first=Javier|editor-last=Hernández Lafuente|editor-first=Adolfo|pages=50–67|publisher=Ministerio de Administraciones Públicas|date=December 1999|access-date=7 October 2012|isbn=978-8470886904|language=es}}</ref> which reads:

{{Blockquote|The Constitution is based on the indissoluble unity of the Spanish Nation, the common and indivisible homeland of all Spaniards; it recognizes and guarantees the right to self-government of the nationalities and regions of which it is composed and the solidarity among them all.|Second Article of the Spanish Constitution of 1978}}

The constitution was rather ambiguous on how this was to take place.{{sfn|Colomer|1998|loc=}}<ref name=nunez/> It does not define, detail, or impose the structure of the state;<ref name=portero/><ref name=perez/> it does not tell the difference between "nation" and "nationality"; and it does not specify which are the "nationalities" and which are the "regions", or the territories they comprise.<ref name=perez/><ref name=clavero>{{cite web|url=http://www.fundacioncajamar.es/mediterraneo/revista/me1003.pdf |title=Un balance del Estado de las Autonomías |last=Clavero Arévalo |first=Manuel |work=Colección Mediterráneo Económico, num. 10. |publisher=Fundación Caja Rural Intermediterránea |year=2006 |access-date=7 October 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100409105900/http://www.fundacioncajamar.es/mediterraneo/revista/me1003.pdf |archive-date=April 9, 2010 }}</ref> Rather than imposing, it ''enables'' a process towards a decentralized structure based on the exercise that these "nationalities and regions" would make of the right to self-government that they were granted.<ref name=perez/> As such, the outcome of this exercise was not predictable<ref name=barberia>{{cite news|url=http://sociedad.elpais.com/sociedad/2012/09/30/actualidad/1349028022_631925.html|title=¿Reformamos la Constitución?|last=Barbería|first=José Luis|date=30 September 2012|newspaper=[[El País]]|access-date=23 September 2012}}</ref> and its construction was deliberately open-ended;<ref name=frans>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u8gZklxHTMUC|title=Regionalism after Regionalisation. Spain, France and the United Kingdom|first=Frans|last=Schrijver|publisher=Vossiupers UvA. Amsterdam University Press|date=30 June 2006|isbn=978-9056294281|access-date=14 October 2012}}</ref> the constitution only created a process for an eventual [[devolution]], but it was voluntary in nature: the "nationalities and regions" themselves had the option of choosing to attain self-government or not.<ref name=sinopsis143>{{cite web |url=http://www.congreso.es/consti/constitucion/indice/sinopsis/sinopsis.jsp?art=143&tipo=2|title=Sinópsis artículo 143|work=Constitución española (con sinópsis) |last=Alonso de Antonio|first=José Antonio| publisher=[[Congress of Deputies (Spain)|Congress of the Deputies]]|date=June 2003|access-date=29 January 2012}}</ref>

In order to exercise this right, the constitution established an open process whereby the "nationalities and regions" could be constituted as "autonomous communities". [[provinces of Spain|Provinces]] would serve as the building blocks and constituent parts of the autonomous communities. The 50 provinces were a pre-existing territorial division of the liberal centralizing regime of the 19th century created for purely administrative purposes (and in the 1978 Constitution were defined as groupings of [[municipalities of Spain|municipalities]]). The constitution stipulated that the following could be constituted as autonomous communities:{{sfn|Spanish Constitution|1978|loc=Articles 143-158}}
* Two or more adjacent provinces with common historical, cultural and economic characteristics
* Insular territories
* A single province with a "historical regional identity"

It also allowed for exceptions to the above criteria, in that the Spanish Parliament could:{{sfn|Spanish Constitution|1978|loc=Article 143}}
* authorize, in the nation's interest, the constitution of an autonomous community even if it was a single province without a historical regional identity (which allowed for example, the creation of the [[Community of Madrid]], which had been part of the historical region of [[Castile–La Mancha]]); and to
* authorize or grant autonomy to entities or territories that were not provinces (which allowed for the creation of two autonomous cities, Spanish exclaves in North Africa).

[[File:Parlamento_Vasco.jpg|left|thumb|The [[Basque Parliament]] or the ''Eusko Legebiltzarra'', in session.]]

The constitution also established two "routes" to accede to autonomy. The "fast route" or "fast track",<ref name=nunez/> also called the "exception",<ref name=perez/> was established in article 151, and was implicitly reserved for the three "historical nationalities"<ref name=clavero/><ref name=sinopsisDT2>{{cite web|url=http://www.congreso.es/consti/constitucion/indice/sinopsis/sinopsis.jsp?art=2&tipo=4|title=Sinópsis Disposición Transitoria 2|publisher=[[Congress of Deputies]]|first=José Antonio|last=Alonso de Antonio|date=December 2003|access-date=29 September 2012}}</ref><ref name=brit>"[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-70303/Spain Regional Government]". Spain. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online'' Accessed 10 December 2007</ref>—[[Catalonia]], the [[Basque Country (autonomous community)|Basque Country]] and [[Galicia (Spain)|Galicia]], regions with strong regional identities{{sfn|Keating|2006|p=22}}—in that the very strict requirements to opt for this route were waived for those territories that had approved a "Statute of Autonomy" during the [[Second Spanish Republic]] (1931–1936).<ref name=sinopsisDT2/> Otherwise, the constitution required the approval of three-fourths of the municipalities involved whose population would be at least the majority of the electoral census of each province, and required the ratification through a [[referendum]] with the affirmative vote of the absolute majority of the electoral census of each province (that is, of all registered citizens, not only of those who would vote).

While the constitution was still being drafted, and self-government seemed likely to be granted only to the "historical nationalities", there was a popular outcry in [[Andalusia]], demanding self-government as well, which led to the creation of a quicker process for that region, which eventually self-identified as a "historical nationality" as well. In the end, the right to self-government was extended to any other region that wanted it.{{sfn|Keating|2006|p=22}}

The "slow route" or "slow track",<ref name=nunez/> also called the "norm",<ref name=perez/> was established in Article 143. This route could be taken—via the first transitory disposition—by the "pre-autonomic regimes" that had been constituted in 1978, while the constitution was still being drafted, if approved by two-thirds of all municipalities involved whose population would sum up to at least the majority of the electoral census of each province or insular territory. These communities would assume limited powers ({{langx|es|competencias}}) during a provisional period of 5 years, after which they could assume further powers, upon negotiation with the central government. However, the constitution did not explicitly establish an institutional framework for these communities. They could have established a parliamentary system like the "historical nationalities", or they could have not assumed any legislative powers and simply established mechanisms for the administration of the powers they were granted.<ref name=perez/>

The constitution also explicitly established that the institutional framework for these communities would be a [[parliamentary system]], with a Legislative Assembly elected by [[universal suffrage]], a [[cabinet (government)|cabinet]] or "council of government", a president of such a council, elected by the Assembly, and a High Court of Justice. They were also granted a maximum level of devolved powers.

[[File:Carles_Puigdemont_el_10_d'octubre_de_2017.jpg|right|thumb|The [[Parliament of Catalonia]] or the ''Parlament de Catalunya'', in 2017.]]

While the constitution did not establish how many autonomous communities were to be created, on 31 July 1981, [[Leopoldo Calvo-Sotelo]], then the [[prime minister of Spain]] and [[Felipe González]], leader of the opposition in Parliament, signed the "[[First Autonomic Pacts]]" (''Primeros pactos autonómicos'' in Spanish), in which they agreed to the creation of 17 autonomous communities and two autonomous cities, with the same institutions of government, but different competences.<ref name=pactos>Aparicio, Sonia. [http://www.elmundo.es/especiales/2005/06/espana/estatutos_autonomia/historia2.html Los Pactos Autonómicos]. El Mundo. España</ref> By 1983, all 17 autonomous communities were constituted: [[Andalusia]], [[Aragon]], [[Asturias]], the [[Balearic Islands]], the [[Basque Country (autonomous community)|Basque Country]], the [[Canary Islands]], [[Cantabria]], [[Castile and León]], [[Castile–La Mancha]], [[Catalonia]], the [[Community of Madrid]], [[Extremadura]], [[Galicia (Spain)|Galicia]], [[La Rioja (Spain)|La Rioja]],  [[Navarra]], the [[Region of Murcia]] and the [[Valencian Community]].  The two autonomous cities, [[Ceuta]] and [[Melilla]] were constituted in 1995.

Once the autonomous communities were created, Article 145 prohibits the "federation of autonomous communities".{{sfn|Spanish Constitution|1978|loc=Article 145}} This was understood as any agreement between communities that would produce an alteration to the political and territorial equilibrium that would cause a confrontation between different blocks of communities, an action incompatible with the principle of solidarity and the unity of the nation.<ref name=gonzalez>{{cite web|url=http://congreso.us.es/cidc/Ponencias/federalismo/IgnacioGonzalez.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091222190640/http://congreso.us.es/cidc/Ponencias/federalismo/IgnacioGonzalez.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=22 December 2009|title=La Prohibición de la Federación entre Territorios Autónomos en el Constitucionalismo Español|last=González García|first=Ignacio|publisher=Congreso Iberoamericano de Derecho Constitucional|access-date=20 October 2012}}</ref>

The so-called "additional" and "transitory" dispositions of the constitution allowed for some exceptions to the above-mentioned framework. In terms of territorial organization, the fifth transitory disposition established that the cities of [[Ceuta]] and [[Melilla]], Spanish exclaves located on the northern coast of Africa, could be constituted as "autonomous communities" if the absolute majority of the members of their city councils would agree on such a motion, and with the approval of the Spanish Parliament, which would exercise its prerogatives to grant autonomy to other entities besides provinces.<ref name=transitorias>{{cite web|url=http://www.congreso.es/consti/constitucion/indice/titulos/articulos.jsp?ini=1&fin=9&tipo=4|title=Disposiciones transitorias|work=Constitución española|author=Congreso de los Diputados|year=1978|access-date=22 October 2012}}</ref>

However [[Autonomous communities of Spain#Degree of financial autonomy|one aspect of this asymmetry]] in powers between regions is a cause of friction, namely that the Basque-speaking areas ([[Basque Country (autonomous community)|Basque Country]] and [[Navarra]]) can raise their own taxes and negotiate a transfer to Madrid to pay for common services and hence, unlike the other regions, do not contribute to fiscal equalisation across Spain.{{sfn|Keating|2006|p=22}} These two regions or communities are known as "chartered" territories,{{efn-lr|name=lurraldeak|"Historical territories" or "chartered territories" (in Spanish: ''territorios históricos'' or ''territorios forales'', in Basque: ''lurralde historikoak'' or ''foru lurraldeak'').}}<ref name=adicionales>{{cite web|url=http://www.congreso.es/consti/constitucion/indice/titulos/articulos.jsp?ini=1&fin=4&tipo=3|title=Disposiciones transitorias|work=Constitución española|author=Congreso de los Diputados|year=1978|access-date=22 October 2012}}</ref>
In all other communities, all taxes are levied and collected by or for the central government and then redistributed among all.

===Autonomic pacts===
[[File:Conferencia_de_Presidentes,_17_de_enero_de_2017_-_32219744902.jpg|right|thumb|350px|The Conference of Presidents in 2017, is the meeting between the [[Government of Spain]] or ''Gobierno de la Nación'' and the presidents of the Autonomous communities of Spain.]]

The Statutes of Autonomy of the Basque Country and Catalonia were sanctioned by the Spanish Parliament on 18 December 1979. The position of the party in government, the [[Union of the Democratic Centre (Spain)|Union of the Democratic Centre]] (UCD), was that only the three "historical nationalities" would assume full powers, while the rest would accede to autonomy via article 143, assuming fewer powers and perhaps not even establishing institutions of government.<ref name=rebollo>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Auv9-CI_Mv8C|last=Rebollo|first=Luis Martín|chapter=Consideraciones sobre la Reforma de los Estatutos de Autonomía de las Comunidades Autónomas|editor=Ministerio de Justicia|title=La Reforma Constitucional: XXVI Jornadas de Estudio (27, 28 y 29 de octubre de 2004)|year=2005|access-date=3 November 2012|publisher=Dirección del Servicio Jurídico del Estado|isbn=978-84-7787-815-5}}</ref> This was firmly opposed by the representatives of [[Andalusia]], who demanded for their region the maximum level of powers granted to the "nationalities".<ref name=clavero/><ref>{{cite news |date=9 December 1979 |url=https://elpais.com/diario/1979/12/09/espana/313542004_850215.html |title=El referéndum de iniciativa, barrera no exigida a las nacionalidades históricas |language=es |newspaper=El País |access-date=16 December 2019}}</ref>

After a massive rally in support of autonomy, a referendum was organized for Andalusia to attain autonomy through the strict requirements of article 151, or the "fast route"—with UCD calling for abstention, and the main party in opposition in Parliament, the [[Spanish Socialist Workers' Party]] (PSOE) calling for a vote in favour.<ref name=clavero/> These requirements were not met, as in one of the eight provinces, [[province of Almería|Almería]], votes in favour — although the plurality — did not amount to half of the electoral census as required. Yet, in general, the results of the referendum had been clear and unequivocal.<ref name=perez/>

After several months of discussion, the then prime minister of Spain, [[Adolfo Suárez]] and the [[Leader of the Opposition (Spain)|leader of the opposition]], [[Felipe González]], reached an agreement to resolve the Andalusian issue, whereby the Parliament approved an amendment to the law that regulated referendums, and used a prerogative of article 144c of the constitution, both actions which combined would allow Andalusia to take the fast route. They also agreed that no other region would take the "fast route", but that all regions would establish a parliamentary system with all institutions of government.<ref name=clavero/> This opened a phase that was dubbed as {{lang|es-ES|[[café para todos]]}}, "coffee for all".<ref name=tanja/> This agreement was eventually put into writing in July 1981 in what has been called the "first autonomic pacts".<ref name=nunez>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ogvsITQ0cmwC|chapter=The awakening of peripheral nationalisms and the State of the Autonomous Communities|last=Núñez Seixas|first=Xosé M|author-link=Xosé Manoel Núñez Seixas|editor1-last=Álvarez Junco|editor1-first=José|editor-link=José Álvarez Junco|editor2-last=Schubert|editor2-first=Adrian|title=Spanish History since 1808|publisher=Arnold Publishers|year=2000|access-date=9 October 2008|pages=315–330|isbn=978-0340662298}}</ref>

These "autonomic pacts"{{efn-lr|"Autonomic pacts" or "autonomic agreements" (in Spanish: ''pactos autonómicos'' or ''acuerdos autonómicos'').}} filled in the gap left by the open character of the constitution. Among other things:<ref name=perez/><ref name=acuerdos>{{cite web|url=http://www.idpbarcelona.net/docs/recerca/ccaa/pdf/documentos/acuerd_auton_gob_psoe_1981.pdf|title=Acuerdos Autonómicos firmados por el Gobierno de la Nación y el Partido Socialista Obrero Español el 31 de julio de 1981|date=31 July 1981|access-date=11 October 2012}}</ref>
* They described the final outline of the territorial division of Spain, with the specific number and name of the autonomous communities to be created.
* They restricted the "fast route" to the "historical nationalities" and Andalusia; all the rest had to take the "slow route".
* They established that all autonomous communities would have institutions of government within a parliamentary system.
* They set up a deadline for all the remaining communities to be constituted: 1 February 1983.

[[File:Daoiz o Velarde.jpg|right|thumb|The Spanish Parliament, Congress of Deputies]]

In the end, 17 autonomous communities were created:
* Andalusia, and the three "historical nationalities"—the Basque Country, Catalonia and Galicia—took the "fast route" and immediately assumed the maximum set of powers allowed in the constitution; the rest took the "slow route".
* [[Aragon]], [[Castilla-La Mancha]], [[Castile and León]], [[Extremadura]] and the [[Valencian Community]] acceded to autonomy as communities made up of two or more provinces with common historical, economic and cultural characteristics.
* The [[Balearic Islands]] and the [[Canary Islands]] acceded to autonomy as insular territories, the latter made up of two provinces.
* [[Asturias|Principality of Asturias]], [[Cantabria]], [[La Rioja (Spain)|La Rioja]] and [[Region of Murcia|Murcia]] acceded to autonomy as single provinces with historical identity (also called "uniprovincial" autonomous communities).
* [[Navarre]], as a single province, acceded to autonomy through the recognition, update and improvement of its historical and local "law" (charters; Spanish ''fueros''), and as such, it is known as a "chartered community".
* The province of Madrid, home to the national capital, was removed from Castilla-La Mancha (formerly [[New Castile (Spain)|New Castile]]), to which it previously belonged, and constituted as a single-province autonomous community in the "national interest", the ''[[Community of Madrid]]''.

Special provisions were made for the Valencian Community and the Canary Islands in that, although they took the "slow route", through the subsequent approval of specific organic laws, they were to assume full autonomy in less than 5 years, since they had started a process towards the "fast route" prior to the approval of the "autonomic pacts".

On the other hand, Cantabria and La Rioja, although originally part of [[Old Castile]]—and both originally included in the "pre-autonomic regime" of Castile and León—were granted autonomy as single provinces with historical identity, a move supported by the majority of their populations.{{sfn|Conversi|2002|loc=}}<ref name="clavero"/><ref name=garciaruiz>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7eOCDrlpOC0C|title=Estudios sobre descentralización territorial. El caso particular de Colombia|editor1-last=García Ruíz|editor1-first=José Luis|editor2-last=Girón Reguera|editor2-first=Emilia|chapter=Dos siglos de cuestión territorial: de la España liberal al Estado de las autonomías|last=García Ruíz|first=José Luis|pages=109–126|publisher=Servicio de Publicaciones. Universidad de Cádiz|isbn=978-8498280371|year=2006|access-date=21 October 2012}}</ref> The "autonomic pacts" give both Cantabria and La Rioja the option of being incorporated into Castile and León in the future, and required that the Statutes of Autonomy of all three communities include such a provision.<ref name=acuerdos/> León, a historical kingdom and historical region of Spain, once joined to [[Old Castile]] to form Castile and León, was denied secession to be constituted as an autonomous community on its own right.{{sfn|Moreno Fernández|2008|p=66}}

During the second half of the 1980s, the central government seemed reluctant to transfer all powers to the "slow route" communities.<ref name="mundo" /> After the five years set up by the constitution, all "slow route" communities demanded the maximum transfer guaranteed by the constitution. This led to what has been called the "second autonomic pacts" of 1992, between the then prime minister of Spain [[Felipe González]] from PSOE and the leader of the opposition, [[José María Aznar]] from the newly created [[People's Party (Spain)|People's Party]] (PP), successor to the [[People's Alliance (Spain)|People's Alliance party]]. Through these agreements new powers were transferred, with the reforms to many Statutes of Autonomy of the "slow-route" communities with the aim of equalizing them to the "fast route" communities.<ref name=mundo/> In 1995, the cities of [[Ceuta]] and [[Melilla]] were constituted as "autonomous cities" without legislative powers, but with an autonomous assembly{{clarify|reason=How can an autonomous assembly not have legislative powers?|date=October 2014}} not subordinated to any other province or community.

The creation of the autonomous communities was a diverse process, that started with the constitution, was normalized with the autonomic pacts and was completed with the Statutes of Autonomy.<ref name=perez/> It is, however, an ongoing process; further devolution—or even the return of transferred powers—is always a possibility. This has been evidenced in the 2000s, at the beginning with a wave of approval of new Statutes of Autonomy for many communities, and more recently with many considering the recentralization of some powers in the wake of the economic and financial crisis of 2008. Nonetheless, Spain is now a decentralized country with a structure unlike any other, similar but not equal to a [[federation]],<ref name=perez/> even though in many respects the country can be compared to countries which are undeniably federal.{{sfn|Arbós Marín|2013|page=381}} The unique resulting system is referred to as "Autonomous state", or more precisely "State of Autonomies".{{sfn|Colomer|1998|loc=}}

===Current state of affairs===

With the implementation of the Autonomous Communities, Spain went from being one of the most centralized countries in the [[OECD]] to being one of the most decentralized; in particular, it has been the country where the incomes and outcomes of the decentralized bodies (the Autonomous Communities) has grown the most, leading this rank in Europe by 2015 and being fifth among OECD countries in tax devolution (after Canada, Switzerland, the United States and Austria).<ref>{{cite news|url=http://elpais.com/elpais/2017/03/15/opinion/1489609169_575022.html|title=Cataluña: Por una descentralización creíble|author=Ramon Marimon|newspaper=El País|date=23 March 2017|access-date=24 March 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=http://www.oecd.org/publications/fiscal-federalism-2016-9789264254053-en.htm|title=Fiscal Federalism 2016: Making Decentralization Work|publisher=OCDE}}</ref> By means of the State of Autonomies implemented after the Spanish Constitution of 1978, Spain has been quoted to be "remarkable for the extent of the powers peacefully devolved over the past 30 years" and "an extraordinarily decentralized country", with the central government accounting for just 18% of public spending,<ref name="Mallet">{{cite news|url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/de6c00f0-8c25-11de-b14f-00144feabdc0.html |title=Flimsier footings |last=Mallet |first=Victor |date=18 August 2010 |newspaper=Financial Times |access-date=25 August 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090822075253/http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/de6c00f0-8c25-11de-b14f-00144feabdc0.html |archive-date=22 August 2009 |url-status=live }}{{Registration required}}</ref> 38% by the regional governments, 13% by the local councils, and the remaining 31% by the [[social insurance|social security system]].<ref name="economist.com">{{cite news|url=http://www.economist.com/specialreports/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12501023|title=A survey of Spain: How much is enough?|newspaper=[[The Economist]]|access-date=25 August 2010|date=6 November 2008| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090910071548/http://www.economist.com/specialreports/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12501023| archive-date=10 September 2009| url-status= live}}{{Subscription required}}</ref>

In terms of personnel, by 2010 almost 1,350,000 people or 50.3% of the total [[civil servants]] in Spain were employed by the autonomous communities;<ref>[http://www.mpt.gob.es/servicios/empleo_publico/boletin/boletin/document_es/documento.pdf] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110904064839/http://www.mpt.gob.es/servicios/empleo_publico/boletin/boletin/document_es/documento.pdf|date=4 September 2011}}</ref> city and provincial councils accounted for 23.6% and those employees working for the central administration (police and military included) represented 22.2% of the total.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.elpais.com/articulo/sociedad/funcionario/le/cunda/elpepisoc/20110730elpepisoc_1/Tes |title=Que al funcionario le cunda más &#124; Edición impresa &#124; EL PAÍS |publisher=Elpais.com |date=2011-07-30 |access-date=2012-04-30|newspaper=El País  }}</ref>