To think that all municipalities are made up of mainland is a mistake, since the geography varies from one place to another.
Venezuela has aquatic spaces in maritime, lake or river areas. The aquatic spaces can be in areas where the sea, lakes or rivers predominate without distinction.
This makes it imperative to legislate on this matter. It is appropriate to remember, for example, that there is a permanent transit of vessels that move a good part of the oil production from states such as Zulia and Anzoátegui, which have maritime spaces.
Similarly, the merchant fleet can offer increases over time, which translates into ordering the different aspects that involve the use and exploitation of aquatic spaces. There is also an important biological diversity that must be protected, not only for this generation but for those to come.
Indeed, you can count on a municipality on an island; An example of this are those that make up the Nueva Esparta State, such as: Maneiro, Mariño, among others. There are also them in other types of spaces, as in Puerto Ordaz, Caroní Municipality, Bolívar State; Maracaibo, Maracaibo Municipality, Zulia State, among others.
The Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela contemplates that the legislation on aquatic spaces corresponds to the National Power, for that of the regulatory power, which does not mean that the municipality cannot exercise its powers, which - it is good to remember - also come from the former - as cited in various judgments of the Highest Court; one of the most emblematic cases has been in the telecommunications area.
In this sense, the Decree with the rank, value and force of the Organic Law of Aquatic Spaces (2008) was approved, whose purpose is to regulate the exercise of sovereignty, jurisdiction and control in aquatic spaces, in accordance with national and international law, as well as regulate and control the administration of the aquatic, island and port areas of the Republic. An administrative structure is created consisting of a governing body, currently called the Ministry of Popular Power for Water and Air Transport, and an executing entity called the National Institute of Aquatic Spaces (INEA). This Law contains elements that link it with other matters, such is the case of national security and defense, telecommunications, fishing, aquaculture, economy, taxation, among others.
From the local perspective, a relationship is developed with organized communities, since citizen participation is a cardinal principle of action, since it affects aspects such as taxation, urban planning, tourism, environment, among others, which are municipal powers which Take advantage of this area.
On the other hand, the INEA has facilities where taxpayers who must contribute to the municipality are housed, being the case of the tax on economic activities, urban real estate, vehicles, contributions. It should be remembered that the Republic, like the other public entities, is not subject to local taxes, which is not transferred to contractors or concessionaires, therefore - in exercise of municipal autonomy - they must comply with the rules, by constitutional provision.
On the other hand, there is another normative text, also with a national vision given the regulatory power, such as the Decree with the Rank and Force of Organic Law of Federal Dependencies (DLODF, 2011), which replaces the Organic Law of Federal Dependencies (1938); Its purpose is to establish the foundation of the organization, government, administration, competences and resources. Reproduces the definition dictated by the CRBV.
Due to their own characteristics, they are conceived under a special administration regime, due to demographic, economic, and social conditions, among others, that are not observed in populated centers such as cities. However, it does not have to be removed from the rest of the legal system as it is part of Venezuela, only its particular elements must be taken into consideration.
It creates the figure of the Island Territories as a form of territorial political organization, which can include a federal agency, a group of them or the entire island with its perimeter aquatic space. An example of this is the Miranda Insular Territory, with a law of the same name (2011). Its objective is the creation of the Francisco de Miranda Insular Territory, as well as the establishment of its organization, government, administration, powers and resources.
The Decree with the rank, value and force of the Coastal Zones Law (2001) regulates what is pertinent to establishing the provisions that will govern the administration, use and management of Coastal Zones, in order to their conservation and sustainable use, as an integral part of the space Venezuelan geographic. Coastal zones are understood as the geographic unit of variable width, made up of a land strip, the adjacent aquatic space and its resources, in which the various ecosystems, processes and uses present in the island's continental space are interrelated.
The administration, use and management of the coastal zones will be developed through a dynamic process of integrated management, with the purpose of strengthening institutional capacity, optimizing planning and coordination of concurrent competences among the organs of Public Power, with the active participation of the organized community, in order to achieve greater efficiency in the exercise of the responsibilities that each one has entrusted for conservation and sustainable development.
