The Office of the Comptroller General of the Defence () is a department of the

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

that exercises the internal

audit An audit is an "independent examination of financial information of any entity, whether profit oriented or not, irrespective of its size or legal form when such an examination is conducted with a view to express an opinion thereon.” Auditing ...

of the economic and financial management of the Ministry and of the public agencies dependent on it. Likewise, it is responsible for acting as the military notary in the form and conditions established by the laws and for advising in matters of its competence to the superior and directive departments of the Ministry. The Office is integrated in the Undersecretariat of Defence but it reports to the

Comptroller General A comptroller (pronounced either the same as ''controller'' or as ) is a management-level position responsible for supervising the quality of accounting and financial reporting of an organization. A financial comptroller is a senior-level execut ...

. The Office of the Comptroller General is integrated by staff from the Military Audit Corps and it is headed by the Comptroller General of the Defence, who is the official responsible for issuing the necessary instructions to ensure proper coordination and unity of judgment. The current comptroller general is the

divisional general Divisional general is a general officer rank who commands an army division. The rank originates from the French (Revolutionary) System, and is used by a number of countries. The rank is above a brigade general, and normally below an army corps ...

José Luis Gómez Corral, who assumed the office on July 15, 2020.

History

For much of Spain's military history, the different branches of the

Armed Forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

were managed by various

government departments Ministry or department (also less commonly used secretariat, office, or directorate) are designations used by first-level executive bodies in the machinery of governments that manage a specific sector of public administration." Энцикло� ...

. In 1977, the three existing military ministries at that time —

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...

and

Air The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing f ...

— were unified under the

. With this unification, a single audit department is created for the entire Ministry. The process was completed in 1985, when the three military audit corps were also unified.

Organization chart

The Office of the Comptroller General of the Defence (IGD) is structure through two large structures; one central and another decentralized.

Central services

The central structure of the IGD is integrated by: * The Division for Intervention, Supervision and Economic-Fiscal Legal Analysis. This Division coordinates the performance of the comptroller delegations in the superior and directive departments of the Ministry and in its public agencies, with the sole exception of those activities that refer to the exercise of financial control, whose competence is attributed to the Division for Financial Control and Audits. In order to exercise its functions, it has two departments of its own: the Area for Intervention and Control and the Area for Economic-Fiscal Legal Analysis. * The Division for Financial Control and Audits. This division, like the previous one, has coordination tasks on comptroller delegations but in its field of competence. Likewise, the division is also responsible for the audit teams which report to the Comptroller General of the Defense, through the Division Chief. It has two departments: the Audit Area and the Area for Permanent Financial Control and Control of Economic and Budgetary Management. * The Defence Comptrolling General Unit, which is responsible for the study and processing of acts related to the economic and financial management of the Ministry of Defense whose internal control is responsibility of the Office of the Comptroller General of the State.

Decentralized services

The decentralized structure of the Office consists of: * The comptroller delegations in the Ministry's departments and agencies and in the Defence Staff. * The central comptroller delegations in the

and

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an a ...

. * The Peripheral Comptroller Delegations. This are: ** The Territorial Offices of the Comptroller General. ** The comptroller delegations in the units, centers and agencies of the Armed Forces. These Delegated Interventions will be integrated, where appropriate, in the Territorial Offices. ** The comptroller delegations deployed in active operations of the Armed Forces.

Comptroller General of the Defence

The position of Comptroller General of the Defense is carried out by a

of the Military Audit Corps. Due to this, the Comptroller General has preference over the other divisional generales and it is responsible for the general inspection of the Military Audit Corps regarding personnel, salaries, traditions and rewards, without prejudice to the powers of the Under Secretary of Defence and the Director-General for Personnel. The Comptroller General has the rank of director-general.

Secretariat

The Comptroller General has a secretariat as a direct support body, which is responsible for the registration and administrative management of the files and reports that are processed in the IGD; the computer coordination of the IGD; and the functions regarding the military notary.

List of comptrollers general

# Gonzalo Prego Meirás (1977–1980) # Alfredo Boya Saura (1980–1981) # Alfredo Blasco González (1981–1982) # Carlos Ibáñez Muñoz (1982–1984) # Rafael Hitos Amaro (February–November 1984) # José Arribas de Pablo (1984–1987) # Luis Ignacio Sagardia Menéndez (1987–1989) # José Elizondo Martínez (1989–1992) # Antonio Yelo Molina (1992–1996) # Armando Bescós Aznar (1996–1998) # Antonio López Cediel (1998–1999) # Eduardo Esteban Ureta (1999–2001) # Juan Miguel Teijeiro de la Rosa (2001–2004) # Ricardo Martínez Grande (2004–2005) # Antonio Zúñiga Pérez del Molino (2005–2010) # Luis Lloret Gadea (2010–2013) # Ángel Méndez García (2013–2014) # Manuel Leria Mosquera (2014–2017) # Carlos Calavia Pascual (2017–2020) # José Luis Gómez Corral (2020–present)

References

{{authority control Military of Spain 1977 establishments in Spain Military units and formations established in 1977 Government audit Auditing in Spain Government agencies of Spain