Peñíscola approves the regulation of its internal whistleblowing channel.

The Peñíscola City Council has given final approval to the Regulation Governing the Internal Information System, which introduces an internal complaints mailbox for reporting, anonymously or with identification, possible serious or very serious criminal or administrative offences. The text, agreed by the municipal Plenary, is published in the Official Gazette of the Province of Castellón number 97, of 13 August 2026, with reference 03668-2026-U, and will enter into force fifteen business days after its full publication.

The regulation complies with Law 2/2023, of 20 February, regulating the protection of persons who report regulatory infringements and the fight against corruption, which transposes Directive (EU) 2019/1937 and requires all public sector entities to have an internal information system. The Plenary agreed to the initial approval on 21 May 2026 and, after the public information procedure of 30 business days (from 5 June to 17 July), in which no claims or suggestions were submitted, the regulation was declared final in accordance with article 70.2 of Law 7/1985, of 2 April.

For the external channel, the City Council signed on 18 February 2026 a collaboration protocol with the Agency for the Prevention and Fight against Fraud and Corruption of the Valencian Community (Decree No. 2026000161), which acts as the external complaints mailbox for the Valencian public sector.

An anonymous, telematic and two-way mailbox

The internal mailbox, integrated into the system and accessible from the City Council website, allows communications to be submitted in writing and by telematic means, with guarantees of security, confidentiality and data protection:

• Each communication receives an alphanumeric code with which the reporting person can access the system and interact with the person responsible.
• An acknowledgement of receipt must be issued within seven calendar days.
• The maximum response period is three months, extendable by up to an additional three months in cases of special complexity.
• The reporting person may provide an address or email address to receive notifications.

Who can report

The personal scope of application extends to municipal public employees, those working for contractors, subcontractors or suppliers of the City Council, volunteers, interns and persons undergoing training, as well as those who no longer maintain an employment or civil service relationship or who started one during a staff selection process.

Guarantees and procedure

The Mayor’s Office will designate the person responsible for the system, a collegiate body with an odd number of members that will act independently and whose appointment will be communicated to the Agency for Fraud Prevention and Control. The regulation provides for a restricted-access record book and protection of reporting persons against retaliation, with respect for the presumption of innocence of the persons affected:

• If criminal indications arise from the information, the file is sent to the Public Prosecutor’s Office or, if it affects the financial interests of the European Union, to the European Public Prosecutor’s Office.
• False, bad-faith, or abusive communications may give rise to civil, criminal, or administrative liability.
• The decisions of the person responsible are not appealable in administrative or contentious-administrative proceedings.
• The information management procedure will be reviewed at least once every three years.

With this tool, signed by Mayor Andrés Martínez Castellà on 21 July 2026, Peñíscola complies with a legal obligation and provides employees, contractors, and residents with a safe and confidential channel to alert of irregularities in municipal management, complementary to the external mailbox of the Valencian Agency.

Source: Official Gazette of the Province of Castellón, No. 97, 13 August 2026, Local Administration section (official reference: 03668-2026-U).