Description
On 10 November 1971, following approval by Parliament, the President of the Republic promulgated the law reforming the Statute of Autonomy of Trentino-Alto Adige. This reform, also known as the 'second Statute', establishes a new division of functions and competences that places the two Autonomous Provinces of Bolzano and Trento at the centre, while the Region is entrusted mainly with a control and guiding role.
Starting from the solutions indicated in the final report of the 'Commission of 19' (1964), the reform process received the decisive acceleration at the end of the 1960s. After the darkest years of the terrorist season, which aimed to hinder the achievement of an autonomist solution, the so-called 'South Tyrol Package' was approved with a slim majority by the congress of the Südtiroler Volkspartei in November 1969. A few days later, the Italian and Austrian Foreign Ministers Aldo Moro and Kurt Waldheim came to a final agreement, establishing an 'operational timetable' for the enactment of all implementing regulations for the new autonomy and the closure of the international dispute. This last step will only be taken in June 1992, with the declaration of the closure of the dispute ('acquittal') before the United Nations.
Having obtained parity between the Provinces of Trento and Bolzano, the new autonomous structure was hinged on three poles: the Region and the two Provincial Councils. The latter are entrusted with more and more subjects on which to legislate, thus widening the scope for exercising autonomy. In 2001, a constitutional law intervened on the electoral system, strengthening the role of the two provincial councils to be elected autonomously.
Also of great importance is the role of a joint commission composed of representatives of the State, the Regional Council and the Provincial Councils of Bolzano and Trento. The 'Commission of 12' is in fact called upon to give its opinion on the compatibility of the laws voted in Parliament and in the Region with the provisions of the Constitution and the Statute of Autonomy. Within this body, there is also a special commission that only deals with the implementation of the regulations concerning the Province of Bolzano ('Commission of 6').
With the entry into force of the Statute on 20 January 1972, a season of great transformation began for the Province of Trento. The acquisition of more and more competences led to intense legislative activity and a significant growth of the provincial apparatus.
