Comisión Arbitral del País Vasco y control autonómico de constitucionalidad

The Arbitration Committee is shaped as a singular body within the institutional framework of the Basque Autonomous Community. It is chaired by the President of the High Court of Justice, as it is prescribed in the Statute of Autonomy (art. 39), in sort of surprisingly fashion, with no direct reference to the Judiciary, of whom it is not part, its task is to solve the questions and disputes over the competences that might arise among the two levels of power in the Basque Country, the common institutions, Basque Government and Parliament on the one hand, and the Foral institutions of each Historic Territory, on the other hand. The singularity and significance lies on the fact that the use of this Arbitral Committee is compulsory in order to solve those aforementioned disputes, with no other options for settlement, nor even judicial, and its decisions are binding and final, lacking appeal against them. This makes this body very similar to a judicial one with tasks materially jurisdictional and a first level autonomic filter regarding the control of constitutionality. Against this reality, the Council for Statutory Guarantees envisaged by the Catalan Statute of 2006 strove to take on beyond its classic consultative tasks, a true preventive control about statuteness by means of its binding opinions regarding such a broad area as rights acknowledged by the Statute. The Constitutional Court in its judgment 31/2010 has prevented it without taking into account the Arbitration Committee, which in our opinion is arguably very similar to it.