Bizkaia has extended the service committee for the Vice-secretariat of Barakaldo for another year

The Provincial Council of Bizkaia has extended the appointment of official Maria Eloisa García Fernández to the service commission for the Vice-Secretariat of the Barakaldo City Council for another year. Provincial Order 5134/2026, dated September 2, specifies that the duration of the appointment is from September 1, 2026, to August 31, 2027. The decision was published in the Official Gazette of Bizkaia (BOB), issue number 178, on September 17, 2026, in section I, and the official reference is BOB-2026a178-(I-1052).

Who decided and at whose request

The order was signed by the Provincial Deputy for Public Administration and Institutional Relations of the Provincial Council of Bizkaia, Ager Izagirre Loroño, on September 2, in Bilbao. This Provincial Deputy is precisely the competent body for granting service commissions for officials with national capacity in local administration.

The extension was requested by the Barakaldo City Council through a mayoral decree registered in the provincial department on August 28, with registration number G88202602168664E. Two consents were included in the file: the approval of the interested party herself and the consent of the Mayor of Alonsotegi, to ensure compatibility with the duties the official holds in her original municipality.

Characteristics of the service commission

• Holder: Maria Eloisa García Fernández, holder of the secretary-intervention post of the Alonsotegi City Council.
• Position held: Vice-Secretariat of the Barakaldo City Council.
• Duration: From September 1, 2026, to August 31, 2027.
• Previous appointment: Provincial Order 6977/2025, dated November 18, from September 1, 2025, to August 31, 2026.

The order establishes three main conditions. On one hand, the Provincial Deputy may invalidate the appointment at any time upon the proposal of the interested municipal corporation and after hearing the official, or if the official herself so requests. On the other hand, the duration of the service commission may never exceed one year. Finally, the resolution must be notified to the interested party, the city councils of Barakaldo and Alonsotegi, and the Directorate for Relations with Local Administrations and Administrative Registries of the Basque Government.

Why it was extended

The Provincial Council has verified that it was not possible to make any necessary provisional appointment to fill the Vice-Secretariat position of the Barakaldo City Council among officials with national capacity in local administration. This is precisely the condition required by the regulations for an extension to be permitted: that the absence of a provisional appointment has been duly verified in the file.

The legal basis is Article 51 of Royal Decree 128/2018 (of March 16), which regulates the legal regime of officials of national competence in local administration. This regulation allows for an initial one-year term and one further one-year extension, provided that no provisional appointment has been made and the service commission does so at the request of the interested administration and with a favorable report from the original municipality. Likewise, the thirteenth transitional provision of Law 2/2016 (of April 7, on Local Entities of the Basque Country), the fifth additional provision of Royal Decree 1732/94, and Foral Decree 63/2024 (of June 13, approving the regulation of the organic structure of the department) are mentioned.

Appeals and consequences

The resolution is final and exhausts the administrative route; therefore, it may be appealed:

• By interested public administrations: directly before the Chamber of the High Court of Justice of the Basque Autonomous Community, within a period of two months from the day following notification, without the need for a prior request.
• By interested persons: optionally, through an appeal for reconsideration within a period of one month before the body that issued the resolution, or directly before the same court within a period of two months, counting from the day following notification.

This extension ensures the normal functioning of the Barakaldo City Council for another year, avoiding the impact that a vacant position such as the Vice-secretariat usually has on the daily legal and administrative activity of the council. At the same time, it makes clear that the solution is temporary: foral regulations set a one-year limit, and the council must arrange for a permanent supply before that period ends.

Fuente: Boletín Oficial de Bizkaia, núm. 178, 17 de septiembre de 2026, Sección I, pp. 1-3 (official reference: BOB-2026a178-(I-1052)).