A moratorium law created to be challenged, wedged into matters clearly exclusive to the State or competing with the Regions, based on rules in clear contrast with those of the Draghi Decree that the Region itself openly declared it wanted to implement. An evident contradiction, almost desired, a law that, in light of the appeal filed by the State Attorney's Office to the Constitutional Court, seems to have been written with the clear intent of having it challenged.
Moratorium prohibited
For the State Attorneys it is almost a walk in the park to recall the key points of the Sardinian regional law, starting from the contrast on the "moratorium" explicitly prohibited by the Draghi decree. It is in this first passage, reiterated from top to bottom of the state appeal, that the regional law gives a real penalty to the State. In the infamous legislative provision of the "banker of Europe", who became prime minister thanks to the plots of the Palaces of Rome and the powerful, in paragraph six of article 20 of the so-called "Draghi Decree" it is explicitly written: " Pending the identification of suitable areas, moratoria or suspensions of the terms of the authorization procedures cannot be ordered ".
Region and own goal
What does the Sardinian Region do? Instead of proposing a clear, explicit measure, based on the primary competences of the Statute, such as urban planning, for example, it approves a rule that provides for a moratorium, without any concrete effect, for a whopping 18 months. The State's appeal scores an empty net: "The moratorium for 18 months constitutes a certain violation of the general principle that the Region should certainly have respected" .
«Certain violation»
This is one of the key passages of the twenty-eight pages of the appeal in which the Princes of the Court of Palazzo Chigi adopt the definition of "certain violation". In fact, from the first moment the moratorium was proposed, more than one had pointed out that it was clearly a blatant handball in the penalty area. An "own goal" that would certainly have led to a state appeal. After all, talking about the "political" value of the appeal, or rather a decision by Meloni to appeal against the law with the intent of "spiteing" the majority opposed to hers in the Region, means not knowing the reality of the facts: it was a legal "blunder" without appeal, an own goal that even a neophyte of law would have avoided. An epilogue that in Viale Trento they could not have been unaware of, given that the administrative head of the Region, the Secretary General, the Calabrian Saverio Lo Russo, before landing in Sardinia was one of the cornerstones of the office in Palazzo Chigi that dealt with the challenges of regional laws.
Cobblestones & Bureaucrats
After all, even the “cobblestones” of Piazza Colonna in Rome know it: the ones who propose the appeal are always the bureaucratic-legal ganglia of the State. Most of the time, the Council of Ministers, as in this case, when the violations are explicit, complies without a word. In short, the Region has provided a perfect “assist” to the Government, an appeal “served” on a silver platter. The same goes for the second macro reason for the appeal: the “exclusive” competence of the State in matters of community law. Everyone knew that it was necessary to stay away from European provisions, keep them at a distance to avoid incurring community “supremacy”. Instead, no, the Region is getting involved without restraint.
European own goal
The moratorium law, in fact, decides to explicitly recall « the implementation of Directive (EU) 2018/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council, of 1 December 2018, on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources ». Yet another provision that suggests to the State where to “score”, also in this case into an empty net. The judges of the State Attorney's Office write: « Furthermore, since the reference state legislation is of European origin, the violation of Article 117, first paragraph, of the Constitution is also highlighted, according to which "legislative power is exercised by the State and the Regions in compliance with the Constitution, as well as the constraints deriving from the Community system and international obligations ». The hardest blow, however, is the one relating to the provisions on «suitable areas». The Government's challenge makes explicit what, instead, the Region tries in every way to hide: « areas not included among the suitable areas cannot be declared unsuitable for the installation of renewable energy production plants... ».
The farce of suitable areas
The Rome judges make it clear: « This confirms that, pursuant to the aforementioned articles, even the "unsuitable" area is, on closer inspection, compatible with the installation of the aforementioned systems ». In short, the Draghi Decree makes it clear that, even by defining the suitable areas, as the regional law plans to do, implementing the "Pichetto Fratin" decree passed by the Government in June 2024, with the formal agreement of the Sardinian Region, all areas, including the unsuitable ones, may be «compatible» with the installation of blades and panels. If the "macro-blunders" of the regional law are the essential points of the State's challenge, the Government's explicit contradictions do not go unnoticed. First of all, on the statement contained in the appeal with which it is peremptorily stated that «the state regulatory framework does not allow, in a clear manner, prohibitions or moratoria of any kind». While it is true that state legislation openly declares that there cannot be "moratoria", the same cannot be said for "bans". It is false, in fact, to state that the regulatory framework does not allow bans, for the simple reason that it is the Meloni Government itself, with the current legislative framework, that has introduced "urban planning" bans for photovoltaics in agricultural areas.
Distracted robes
State lawyers who, regarding “prohibited bans”, contradict themselves in the space of twenty lines and write: « In confirmation of this, the only ban on installing FER plants currently in force is the one contained in paragraph 1-bis of article 20, introduced by article 5 of decree-law no. 63 of 2024, converted, with amendments, by law 12 July 2024, no. 101 ». And what would this ban be? They write it themselves: « this ban, not present in the original formulation of article 20 in question, is limited to specific types of plants (for the production of electricity from solar sources with ground-mounted modules) located in certain areas (areas classified as agricultural by urban planning) ». A statement that explicitly denies the assumption according to which the State does not allow bans on renewables.
Urban planning regulation
It was, in fact, the Meloni Government itself that introduced an explicit "urban planning ban" on renewable energy. And what is more relevant is the fact that it was the lawyers of Palazzo Chigi themselves who admitted it: the ban falls within the " areas classified as agricultural by urban planning plans ". A reference, that of the "urban planning law", which represents the confirmation that the State has approved, with a decree converted into law, "an urban planning ban" for ground-mounted photovoltaics valid in all "ordinary Regions", but which cannot apply to Sardinia given that, with art. 3 letter " f " of the Statute, it has primary jurisdiction in urban planning matters. The Constitutional Court itself reiterated this, despite the memory lapse of the Palazzo Chigi judges, which, last June 7, ruling in this sense, had established that, in the matter of "renewables", the Sardinia Region could legislate both on "urban planning" and on "civic uses".
Pratobello strengthened
This is a further involuntary state admission of the regulatory potential of the Sardinian Statute that significantly strengthens the “urban planning” approach of the “ Pratobello Law ”. Finally, the State Attorneys “enjoy” also disavowing the part of the moratorium law relating to the alleged blocking of authorization procedures. They do it, precisely, for fun, knowing full well that all state procedures are moving forward and that the regional moratorium is blocking nothing. In this step of the appeal, however, the state “Princes of the Court” stumble into yet another lapse of memory. In the appeal they state: the advanced procedures cannot be stopped and even less the authorizations already issued.
Penalties & forgetful
Too bad that, even in this case, they forget what Parliament approved last year with a law that "annulled" all the authorization procedures and the authorizations issued for wind farms in the areas around Lula's Einstein Telescope project. Of course, there are the Region's own goals, but the appeal increasingly shows an arrogant and forgetful State. The businessmen, the lobbies and the speculators, for now, they're moving forward.
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