1. Senate approves elimination of trusts

With 65 votes in favor and 51 against, the Senate approved the elimination of 109 public funds and trusts, arguing that they are opaque instruments and even give rise to acts of corruption. With this reform proposal, the government will raise MXN $68.4 billion (USD $3.28 billion).

The legislators of the Morena party assured that this change will not leave the scientific, artistic or any other sector without support, and reiterated that President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is fulfilling another of his proposals.

Expansión: El Senado concreta la eliminación de 109 fondos y fideicomisos

2. PRI sweeps elections in Coahuila and Hidalgo

Last weekend, elections to determine new municipal deputies and presidents in the states of Coahuila and Hidalgo saw a sweep of both states by the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI).

According to the National Electoral Institute’s (INE) Preliminary Electoral Results Program, the PRI obtained 49.31% of the votes in Coahuila, whereas in Hidalgo it won in 32 of the 84 municipalities of the entity. For its part, the INE has begun the district and municipal computations, which will reveal the election’s final results.

24 Horas: Inicia cómputo de elecciones del domingo en Coahuila e Hidalgo.

3. Alfonso Durazo leaves the Ministry of Public Security and Citizen Protection

Alfonso Durazo, Minister of Public Security and Citizen Protection presented his resignation in order to seek to the governorship of Sonora in the 2021 elections, under the Morena party banner.

After 22 months in office, the former Minister reported on the fact that the first two years of the current administration were the most violent in Mexico, with a record of more than 63,000 intentional homicides and more than 1,700 femicides. During the presentation of his last security report, the former Secretary acknowledged that there was an increase in criminal acts of up to 1%.

Expansión: Durazo se va de Seguridad perfilando los dos años más violentos de México.

4. Frictions between private initiative and government

After Iberdrola’s investment of more than USD $5 billion was confirmed at the beginning of the year, the company announced that it will not continue to invest in Mexico if investor confidence is not guaranteed. For his part, President López Obrador said he understood the discontent of some companies because preference is being given to state-owned companies, but noted that they will not give in on this issue and will defend the public interest.

At the National Meeting of Regional Directors of BBVA Mexico, the Minister of Finance and Public Credit, Arturo Herrera, called on commercial banks to assume greater risk and grant more credit to their customers and use the liquidity facilities provided by the Bank of Mexico, in order to help the population face the economic ravages of the pandemic.

Expansión: Iberdrola dice que no invertirá más en México y AMLO le responde esto.
Milenio: Herrera pide a bancos prestar más y asumir riesgos por crisis.

5. SAT seizes Interjet’s assets for alleged non-payment of taxes

After months of negotiations, the Tax Administration System (SAT) seized bank accounts, cars and brands of ABC Airlines, Interjet’s legal name, for non-payment of taxes of MXN $2.95 billion (USD $141.2 million).

Lourdes del Ángel Palacios, Decentralized Administrator of SAT Collection, was tasked with requesting 20 seizures against airlines for their alleged refusal to pay their workers, value-added tax and fines between 2017 and 2019. Interjet is considered the second most important airline in Mexico in terms of both domestic and international passenger volume.

Forbes: SAT embarga a Interjet cuentas bancarias, automóviles y marcas.