Cantabria announces grants for audiovisual infrastructure to combat depopulation

The Ministry of Development, Housing, Territorial Planning and Environment of the Government of Cantabria has published the call for grants destined for audiovisual infrastructures in the community’s municipalities, with criteria of technological neutrality and special emphasis on towns at risk of depopulation. The call, corresponding to the year 2026, is detailed in the extract of the Resolution of August 21, 2026, by Minister Roberto Media Sainz, published in the Official Gazette of Cantabria number 166, of August 28, 2026, with reference CVE-2026-6752.

The grants will be awarded on a competitive basis and are financed through the budget allocation 04.04.453C.761 “Telecommunications White Zones ‒ Conecta Cantabria” of the General Budgets of the Autonomous Community of Cantabria for 2026, for a maximum amount of 450,000 euros. The extract is published in accordance with articles 17.3.b and 20.8.a of the General Grants Law 38/2003, of November 17, and its full text can be consulted in the National Grants Database (identifier BDNS 926002).

Regulatory Framework and Beneficiaries

The regulatory bases for these grants are set out in Order FOM/8/2026, of July 29, which processes the regulatory bases for grants destined for audiovisual infrastructures in the municipalities of Cantabria, published in BOC number 152, of August 10, 2026.

• All city councils of the Autonomous Community of Cantabria may be beneficiaries, according to article 5 of the Order of Bases.
• Entities in which any of the circumstances of section 2 of article 12 of the Grants Law of Cantabria 10/2006, of July 17, occur are excluded.
• The obligations regime of article 13 of the aforementioned regional law applies to the beneficiaries.

Submission of Applications

The deadline for submitting applications and their complementary documentation will be one month from the day following the publication of the extract of the call in the Official Gazette of Cantabria. The application forms will be available on the Institutional Portal of the Government of Cantabria, in the “citizen services 012” section, “grants and subsidies”, and on the electronic office (sede.cantabria.es).

• The application, signed by the legal representative of the entity, shall be addressed to the head of the Ministry of Development, Housing, Territorial Planning, and Environment.
• Submission must be made mandatorily via electronic means, and all actions for which the subsidy is requested may be included in a single application.
• The submission of the standardized form authorizes the General Directorate of Transport and Communications to obtain certificates from the State Tax Administration Agency (A.E.A.T.), the Cantabrian Tax Administration Agency, and the General Treasury of the Social Security to verify that the applicant is up to date with their obligations.
• If the entity does not grant said authorization, it must provide the accrediting certificates or a responsible declaration of being up to date, signed by the general auditor or secretary-auditor of the City Council.

Relevance for rural municipalities

The call represents a direct boost to Cantabrian city councils, especially those with smaller populations, by financing audiovisual infrastructures with technological neutrality criteria that do not restrict the choice of technology. By prioritizing areas at risk of depopulation, the measure seeks to retain the population and improve connectivity and services in rural areas, a strategic objective for the territorial cohesion of Cantabria.

Source: Official Gazette of Cantabria, no. 166, August 28, 2026, section 6. Subsidies and Grants, pp. 41121-41122 (official reference: CVE-2026-6752).