San Bartolomé de Tirajana, the most populated municipality in southern Gran Canaria with 53.066 inhabitants, leads the way in terms of delays in submitting its General Accounts to the Special Accounts Commission, according to the latest data aggregated by the Ministry of Finance's Accountability Platform. The entity submitted its accounts on May 31, 2022, but did not complete the Commission's report until March 10, 2023, accumulating a delay of 282 days, the highest in the Canary Islands.
The delay also extends to public exhibition and plenary approval. Public exhibition began on March 15, 2023, and final approval occurred on April 27, 2023, resulting in a deviation of 208 days from the planned legal schedule. This behavior places San Bartolomé de Tirajana alongside other municipalities with compliance issues, such as Valsequillo de Gran Canaria and Teror, which recorded delays of 181 and 180 days, respectively.
The data broken down by population strata show a clear pattern: municipalities with more than 50.000 inhabitants have the greatest difficulty meeting the legal deadlines for accountability, with only 11,1% submitting their General Accounts before June 1. In contrast, municipalities with fewer than 5.000 inhabitants are more successful in complying, with 40,7% of entities doing so within the established deadline.
The accounting process involves several phases: an initial review by the Special Accounts Commission, followed by a 15-day public exhibition, during which complaints or objections can be filed. Only then are the accounts submitted for approval by the full council, usually before October 1. However, San Bartolomé de Tirajana and other municipalities demonstrate that administrative and organizational difficulties can significantly delay the entire cycle.
In terms of compliance, the population stratum that most approves the General Account on time is that of municipalities with fewer than 5.000 inhabitants, with 74,1%, followed by those between 20.001 and 50.000 inhabitants, with 71,4%. San Bartolomé de Tirajana, as a municipality with more than 50.000 inhabitants, reflects that size and administrative complexity are critical factors in the efficiency of municipal economic control.
The report highlights the need to strengthen management and internal control mechanisms in larger municipalities, where delays not only affect transparency but can also have implications for budget planning and local government oversight. For a tourist- and economically significant municipality like San Bartolomé de Tirajana, timely accountability is especially crucial to ensure the confidence of investors, administrations, and citizens.
