Constitutional Court to issue ruling on Government and Senate dispute over inheritance tax | Economy

The conflict between the Government and the Senate over the inheritance and gift tax will be resolved by the Constitutional Court. The court of guarantees admitted to processing the Executive’s challenge against a bill processed by the Senate Bureau last year that repeals legislation relating to the tax. The Treasury believes this decision may violate constitutional and Senate regulations related to budgetary veto power. The admission of the appeal does not affect the processing of the bill presented by the PP. This is the first institutional conflict the Constitutional Court will resolve in this legislature, with another potential challenge from the PP regarding the amnesty law.

The Government’s challenge is based on Article 134.6 of the Constitution, which states that proposals affecting budgetary income require the Government’s consent for processing. The Senate did not obtain this consent before processing the bill to eliminate the inheritance tax. Despite the Government’s warning and legal report, the Senate continued to process the bill, leading to the formal appeal to the Constitutional Court.

The Government argues that eliminating the tax would have a significant impact on state revenue, estimated at 2.8 billion euros. This loss would exceed the budget allocated to scholarships the previous year. The Ministry of Finance’s report also highlighted potential revenue losses and the need to compensate autonomous communities affected by the tax elimination.

The Senate chose to disregard the Government’s objections, prompting the formal appeal to the Constitutional Court. Arguments from both parties will be considered before a resolution is reached.