Castilla-La Mancha to Expropriate Land Lacking Social Function

Expropriation of land lacking social function: Page’s new law

Can a regional government seize private property because it deems the owner underutilizes it? In Castilla-La Mancha, this path is now open. An amendment to the Family Farming and Access to Land Law allows the Regional Ministry to declare non-compliance with the "social function" of land use, potentially affecting ownership rights. The rule passed solely with PSOE votes in the final plenary session of the term, reopening debate on compulsory expropriation limits via Article 29.

What Article 29 says about social function

The text does not regulate standard expropriation but an administrative declaration enabling it. The Ministry may declare non-compliance with the social function of land use due to underutilization for specific plots or rural estates. The article references the 1954 Compulsory Expropriation Act, placing the mechanism within existing legal frameworks rather than creating new ambiguities.

When is social function considered unmet? When the estate remains on the underutilized land inventory (Articles 27.5 and 27.6) for two consecutive years. Subsequently, the declaration may affect full ownership or only usufruct rights. The Administration decides case-by-case, applying criteria equally to agricultural, livestock, or recreational properties.

Transfer to Banco de Tierras for 10 to 25 years

Article 29 specifies consequences: trinc proper procedure, it entails temporary transfer of use to the Banco de Tierras for no less than ten and no more than twenty-five years. At the upper limit, a quarter-century exceeds the duration of a typical mortgage.

Procedures trinc general expropriation laws and can be suspended if an agreement with the owner is reached per Article 28. Negotiation exists but starts asymmetrically: the administrative path is already open, shifting the burden of proof regarding compliant land use onto the owner, not the declaring authority.

PP vows to repeal law if it wins regional government

Paco Núñez, PP leader in Castilla-La Mancha, confirmed he will repeal the Family Farming Law upon taking office. His party argues this was the last norm approved by Page’s executive allowing land expropriation, criticizing its passage by PSOE alone. They view the alleged non-compliance with social function as an attack on private property.

Núñez calls the episode extremely serious, asking: «Who is Page’s government to decide if a citizen’s land has little use or no social purpose and take it away?». Legally, critics note that the exact definition of a farm’s social function lacks precision in the text, leaving interpretation to those handling the file.

Córdoba, Jaén, and solar panels: cutting olive trees

This issue enters heated territory. Parallel to the Manchegan law, cases of agricultural land occupied for energy use have mobilized sectors for years. Over 600 hectares of olive groves and 50,000 olive trees are at risk in Córdoba for solar panels; Morente village faces megaplants equivalent to 840 football pitches; and Jaén sees estimates of up to 100,000 olive trees affected in its most productive zone for five photovoltaic plants, alongside tractor protests like Lopera’s.

Some argue the photovoltaic industry serves as an excuse to occupy green or agricultural land for decades, while others recall many movements predate Castilla-La Mancha’s law. All cases share a core question: who decides which land use is socially acceptable?

One detail remains unresolved: what exactly constitutes a farm’s social function? The law does not define it. Neither does the owner required to prove it.