Malgrat de Mar initially approves the Local Police weaponry regulations

The Plenary of the Malgrat de Mar City Council, in its session on September 17, 2026, initially approved the Regulation on weaponry, equipment, use of force, and welfare of the officers of the Malgrat de Mar Local Police. The agreement was published in the Official Gazette of the Province of Barcelona on October 1, 2026, with the reference CVE 202610146685 and a length of 44 pages, and was signed by the mayor Sònia Viñolas Mollfulleda on September 21. The text is subject to public consultation for 30 days for the submission of claims, suggestions, and allegations.

The file, identified with the code B1102026000005 within the section of non-fiscal municipal ordinances and regulations, develops state and Catalan regulations regarding weapons and local police. The regulation is structured into 11 titles and 144 articles, with five annexes, and repeals all instructions, service orders, and internal criteria that contradict its content. The regulation is specifically framed within Law 16/1991, on the local police of Catalonia, and Decree 219/1996, the weaponry regulation for local police.

One month for allegations and final approval

The public consultation period begins the day after the last of the planned publications: the Official Gazette of the Province, the Official Gazette of the Generalitat de Catalunya, a daily written communication medium, the corporation’s notice board, and the municipal website. If no allegation, claim, or suggestion is presented, the approval will become final without the need for an express agreement.

The regulation sets its entry into force fifteen days after full publication in the provincial gazette and provides for an ordinary review at least every four years. The municipal agreement also mandates the transmission of a full and authentic copy of the definitively approved ordinance to the Sub-Delegation of the Government in Barcelona and the Department of the Vice Presidency and Digital Policies and Territory.

Weaponry and equipment

The regulatory firearm of the force is the 9 mm Parabellum semi-automatic pistol determined by the Prefecture. The equipment is classified into five groups:

• Firearms.
• Control and defense means: energy conduction device, anesthetic shotgun, rigid, semi-rigid, and expandable police batons, approved defense spray, and pepper spray.
• Restraint and containment means: metallic and semi-rigid handcuffs, police zip ties, containment straps, and detainee protection helmets.
• Auxiliary means: multi-use knife, tactical flashlight, and cut-resistant gloves.
• Protection equipment: bulletproof and anti-trauma vests and reflective elements.

Firearms must be mandatorily deposited in the armories of the police facilities when officers finish their service, and home custody is prohibited except in exceptional cases expressly authorized. The implementation of body-worn cameras is regulated through a specific protocol of the Prefecture.

Use of force and protection of officers

The use of force is defined as an exceptional resource, which may only be used when necessary, legal, and proportionate, and must simultaneously respect the principles of legality, necessity, congruence, opportunity, proportionality, responsibility, and minimum essential intervention. De-escalation constitutes a professional obligation when circumstances permit, and the first annex includes a guiding matrix for police response.

The Prefecture may agree to the precautionary withdrawal of weaponry, on a preventive and non-disciplinary basis, for reasons such as a judicial resolution, a disciplinary proceeding, the temporary loss of psychophysical fitness, temporary incapacity, incompatible consumption of alcohol or substances, or participation in critical incidents. The text incorporates a critical incidents protocol and a professional well-being and psychological assistance program, with voluntary participation and without professional prejudice for the officers who use it.

Control, supervision, and deadlines

Any action involving the use of force, coercive means, operational display of the firearm, or activation of the conducted energy device must be documented in a specific report. The regulation creates a police incident analysis commission and a Monitoring Committee of a consultative nature, composed at minimum of the Prefecture, an operational command, a person responsible for training, one for occupational risk prevention, and a workers’ representative, which will meet at least once a year.

The application deadlines are:

• Six months to adapt operational procedures and internal instructions.
• Twelve months to offer the specific psychological support and professional well-being service.
• The deadline determined by the Prefecture to update training certifications.

The regulation directly affects the daily operation of the local police force and, therefore, the citizen security of Malgrat de Mar: it establishes for the first time in a regulated manner the possession of weapons, the equipment means, and the limits of the use of force. Residents and interested entities have 30 days from the last publication to submit allegations to the text before it becomes final.

Fuente: Official Gazette of the Province of Barcelona, October 1, 2026, Local Administration, pp. 1-44 (official reference: CVE 202610146685).