Diputación de València language requirement upheld by Hacienda tribunal

The Central Administrative Tribunal of Contractual Resources, an entity under the Ministry of Finance, has upheld the Diputación de València's requirement for C2-level Valencian language proficiency in its public contracts. The decision follows a legal challenge by Eurovertice Consultores, a firm based in Murcia, which argued that the linguistic requirement was disproportionate and discriminatory for a 1.2 million euro contract.

The contract involves technical assistance and management for the Office of Technical Assistance for European Projects. The tribunal ruled that requiring C2 proficiency is a proportional measure, as the role involves drafting publications and communicating in Valencian to align with the institution's linguistic normalization plans.

However, the tribunal did annul other aspects of the tender. The challenge also questioned specific educational requirements—such as degrees in journalism, audiovisual communication, economics, and geography—as well as territorial presence criteria involving offices in Brussels and Valencia. Consequently, the Diputación de València has been forced to cancel the current tender and must rewrite the contract specifications.