Ituna Center for Basque Economic Agreement and Fiscal Federalism Studies
About us
The Ituna Center, which was founded in 2007 and specialises in the field of fiscal federalism, is a university research and knowledge diffusion Center with offices in the faculties of Social and Communication Sciences and Economics and Business (University of the Basque Country – UPV/EHU). Other Faculties of the UPV/EHU, including the Faculty Law and Education, also participate in the Center.
The main goal of the Ituna Center is to conduct research and promote scientific production related to the Basque Economic Agreement and the singular tax and financial system in the Basque Country in the context of the currents of international fiscal federalism. The Economic Agreement establishes an asymmetric model of tax and financial arrangements between the Spanish state and the Basque representative institutions, which have deep and extensive tax and financial self-government. Considered from the perspective of comparative Law, the Basque institutions are situated amongst the sub-state authorities with the greatest fiscal power in Europe. In order to achieve its goal, the Ituna Center develops three principal lines of activity:
1. To collect, rationalise, analyse and disseminate academic knowledge on the Economic Agreement and the Basque fiscal system, and more generally on systems of fiscal federalism or fiscal and financial decentralisation. Since its foundation in 2007, the documentation service of the Center has been accumulating and ordering every type of sources of information: press, scientific production and audio-visual resources. It has built up a database containing over 20,000 entries that is available on our website to researchers, institutions, professionals and the general public.
2. The Ituna Center is a meeting point and a referent in the Basque and Spanish University System for researchers interested in working in any field related to the Ituna Center’s main lines of research: the Basque Economic Agreement; the Basque fiscal system and the Spanish system of autonomous funding; fiscal federalism and comparative taxation systems; public institutions and the study of political elites. The Center welcomes, encourages and provides resources for students who wish to carry out Final Projects for Masters Courses and Degree Courses, pre- and post-doctoral researchers, as well as every type of national or international researchers.
3. The Ituna Center stimulates, disseminates and promotes knowledge about the Economic Agreement, the Basque fiscal system and the systems of fiscal federalism or fiscal and financial decentralisation in general, situating the singular Basque case in the currents of international research on fiscal federalism. To this end, the Center has been publishing the Ituna Newsletter periodically since the year 2007. The purpose of the Ituna Newsletter is to act as a megaphone for disseminating academic knowledge, especially around the Basque Economic Agreement and the Basque fiscal system in the context of international fiscal federalism. The Ituna Newsletter is produced by the Center and is accessible to all publics. It combines current news, scientific articles, diffusion articles, information on international taxation systems and information on novelties in the publishing world. In addition, the Center periodically organises scientific meetings and conferences for disseminating knowledge, it participates in and contributes to scientific publications and collaborates with other academic, public and private bodies and institutions. The Ituna Center collaborates and participates in various international research associations and networks on federalismon federalism in general and fiscal federalism in particular.
Research areas
The Ituna Center for Basque Economic Agreement and Fiscal Federalism Studies develops three main research areas:
The Economic Agreement and the Basque Tax System
The Economic Agreement | The Economic Arrangement | The Provincial Tax Authorities | The Basque Tax System: Tax and Budgetary Policy of the Basque Public Sector
Fiscal federalism and comparative tax systems
Theory of Fiscal Federalism: Fiscal and Financial Decentralization | Spanish Regional Financing System | European Union and the Process of European Fiscal and Economic Integration: Analytical Comparison of Tax Systems
Public institutions and the study of political elites
Prosopography or Collective Biography of Actors: Social Groups, Political Elites, and Public Administrators | Analysis and Evolution of Representative Assemblies, Parliaments, and Public Institutions
Networking
Ituna Center collaborates with other entities and institutions to achieve its goal of promoting and disseminating the Basque Economic Agreement and Provincial Tax Authorities. To this end, it produces scientific publications and participates in seminars, conferences, and presentations, contributing to the development of informed public opinion on the Basque Economic Agreement and the Basque Tax System.
Researchers of the Ituna Center for Basque Economic Agreement and Fiscal Federalism Studies
Meet Our Researchers and Collaborators
Ituna Center has a team of permanent researchers and external collaborators. These individuals work towards fulfilling the Center’s goals in line with its research lines. In this way, knowledge of the Basque Economic Agreement and Provincial Tax Authorities, as well as the Basque tax system, is expanded through their scientific output and participation in seminars and a variety of outreach activities. The permanent staff also keep the Center up-to-date by publishing a monthly newsletter, which includes the latest scientific developments as well as the most relevant and current news related to the Basque fiscal system.