Mexican Tax Reforms Will Pass Before Year-End, Says Mexican Central Bank

by Mike Godfrey, Tax-News.com, Washington

21 November 2001

Speaking at a conference organised by the Council of the Americas this week, the Governor of Mexico's Central Bank, Guillermo Ortiz, says he is confident that the Mexican Congress will reach an agreement on the tax reform package before the end of the year.

The tax reform proposals have been disputed in Congress since April and constant disagreements have led to an impasse over the package; but Ortiz believes that the executive branch and legislature will come to some sort of decision within the next few weeks although the package is unlikely to be passed in its original form and will contain certain compromises.

The longer it takes to pass the tax reforms, the more crucial it is that they come into effect. Last month Finance Undersecretary, Augustin Carstens, warned that there will be hard times ahead for Mexico if Congress does not approve the controversial tax reforms. He said: 'If this reform does not take place in the coming months, spending adjustments to keep public debt within established limits could be very important. This adjustment would have serious impact on the country's growth.'

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