The amnesty hypothesis returns, but since the last amnesty only a third of the expected has been collected

Maneuver you go, forgiveness you find. The evergreen of every budget law in recent years has also emerged this time as a possible amendment, also in this case signed by the Brothers of Italy, thus displacing the League's camp, which has always been a supporter of a housing irregularity-saving measure. The idea, which at the moment is only a hypothesis, is to reopen the terms of the amnesty, with particular attention to Campania, where the 2003 amnesty wanted by the Berlusconi government was stopped by the then governor Antonio Bassolino. It is the group leader in the Social Affairs Commission of the Chamber, Imma Vietri, who takes the initiative in her name: «With the amendment that I will present, together with the other Campania parliamentarians of Fratelli d'Italia, to the Budget Law, we intend to reopen the terms of the building amnesty launched by the Berlusconi Government in 2003, limited to the abuses carried out by 31 March of the same year, without extending the amnesty to subsequent constructions». And he adds: «We want to overcome an unequal treatment that has penalized Campania for over twenty years, where the amnesty was not implemented by the Region, then led by Antonio Bassolino, unlike what happened in other Italian regions».

The scheme would be similar to the one proposed last year, without success. It would involve intervening on the old requests for the 2003 amnesty, the one provided for by article 32 of law decree 269 of the Berlusconi government. The novelty would aim, first of all, to accelerate the definition of the requests connected to the 2003 amnesty. Also providing for its posthumous modification: the text would lead to the application of the amnesty, only for works completed "by 31 March 2003", also "to properties built in areas subject to relative unbuildability restrictions". It must be remembered, in this regard, that the 2003 amnesty had extremely limited application in the restricted area.

The fact is then recalled that that amnesty was disapplied by the Campania Region (decision examined by the Constitutional Court in 2004). To remedy this shortcoming, "the possibility of reopening the deadlines for submitting new requests" is envisaged. A reopening which, however, does not only concern Campania but the entire national territory.

But among the working hypotheses there is also one which actually refers to the first building amnesty, that of 1985. And it hypothesizes to remedy a long series of illegal works throughout Italy, provided that they were completed by 30 September 2025. The list includes "appurtenant works such as porticoes or canopies built in the absence of or in conflict with the building permit", accessory works such as balconies or loggias, always illegal, but also all renovation and renovation works carried out in non-conformity or in the absence of a permit, provided that they have not led to increases in surface area and volume.

The previous attempt had been supported at the instigation of Edmondo Cirielli, then the center-right candidate for the regional elections in Campania. The initiative brings back to the center of discussion a season which, for municipal offices, has never ended. And which is tempting not only in terms of pre-electoral consensus but also for the state coffers which cry even if the lessons of the past tell a different story.