Obejo approves the creation of its Civil Protection Volunteer Group

The Plenary of the Obejo City Council approved in an ordinary session on September 15, 2026, the creation of the Municipal Group of Civil Protection Volunteers of Obejo and the regulation governing it, further requesting its registration in the Registry of Local Civil Protection Volunteering Groups of the Autonomous Community of Andalusia. The agreement is published in the Official Gazette of the Province of Córdoba number 184, dated September 23, 2026, pages 13837 to 13850, with the official reference BOP-A-2026-3166 (announcement GEX 2026/879). The full text of the regulation is subject to public consultation for thirty days for the submission of claims and suggestions.

An altruistic group dependent on the City Council

The regulation, structured into seven chapters and 32 articles, defines the group as an altruistic organization that is organically and functionally dependent on the local entity and whose purpose is the voluntary participation of citizens in civil protection tasks. Its functions focus on prevention, rescue, and rehabilitation efforts in the face of emergencies, in accordance with the local civil protection plan.

The regulation is based on Law 2/2002, of November 11, on Emergency Management in Andalusia, and Decree 197/2024, of September 3, which establishes the volunteering insignia. The regulation reminds that voluntary action may not replace paid activities nor exempt Andalusian administrations from guaranteeing services recognized as rights.

Requirements, training, and command structure

To join the group, it will be necessary to meet a series of conditions:

• Be of legal age and have full legal capacity.
• Not be disqualified from exercising public functions by a final judgment.
• Not have been expelled from a group by a final administrative resolution.
• Not suffer from an illness or disability that prevents the exercise of functions.
• Pass the basic training course, with a minimum of 45 hours.

This training will include, at a minimum, Civil Protection in Andalusia, First Aid, Firefighting and Rescue, Telecommunications, and Social Action with a gender perspective, and will be taught by the Public Security School of Andalusia or by entities with courses approved by it.

The Head of the Group will be appointed and dismissed by the Mayor from among the members who have completed continuous training; the Deputy Head, the Unit Heads, and the Section Heads will be appointed by the mayor upon the proposal of the head of the group. The administrative structure is organized into management departments and, functionally, into teams, groups, sections, and units.

Disciplinary regime: from warning to expulsion

Infractions are classified as minor, serious, and very serious, and are sanctioned by resolution of the Mayor’s Office, following the processing of the procedure in accordance with Law 39/2015 and Law 40/2015. Minor offenses are punished with a warning or suspension of up to six months; serious offenses, with suspension from six months to one year; and very serious offenses, with suspension of more than one year and less than three, or with permanent expulsion.

Very serious conduct includes discrimination, claiming payments for services provided, physical aggression, the consumption of alcohol or drugs during service, and fraud or misappropriation of assets. Volunteer status is suspended, among other cases, for ten unjustified absences from meetings, workshops, or exercises.

Uniformity, vehicles, and insignia

Uniformity shall adhere to the international civil protection colors, blue and orange, with the insignia on the chest and the inscriptions “PROTECCIÓN CIVIL” and “VOLUNTARIADO” on the back. In operational support, orange shall predominate, and five-centimeter gray reflective bands shall be worn.

The group’s vehicles shall be white, may be adapted to the European “Battenburg” regulations, and shall be labeled with the inscription “PROTECCIÓN CIVIL” in Arial Narrow font, in blue or orange, with an orange reflective checkerboard around the perimeter. The use of the uniform is prohibited outside of official duties and must be returned to the City Council upon termination of volunteer status.

Procedures and entry into force

The regulation will enter into force once published in full in the Official Gazette of the Province of Córdoba and after the periods set forth in article 65.2 of Law 7/1985, of April 2, regulating the Bases of the Local Regime. An administrative appeal may be filed against the agreement before the Contentious-Administrative Chamber of the High Court of Justice of Andalusia based in Seville within two months from the day following publication. The announcement was signed in Obejo on September 17, 2026, by the Mayor, Pedro López Molero.

The creation of the group provides Obejo with its own emergency volunteer device, with a clear framework of rights, duties, and sanctions, and now opens a period for allegations in which residents and groups can influence the final text before it enters into force.

Source: Official Gazette of the Province of Córdoba, no. 184, September 23, 2026, Local Administration, pp. 13837-13850 (official reference: BOP-A-2026-3166).