El Caribe gives an overview of what should be the priorities of legislators when they resume work after the Christmas holidays in 2025. Journalist Abed-nego Paulino writes that among the key tasks are the passing of supplementary laws, the electing of the new members of the Chamber of Accounts (that is responsible for auditing government entities) and adjusting laws to comply with Constitutional Court rulings.
In addition to this, senators and deputies will have to review the legislative proposals announced by the Executive Branch that seek to merge ministries and state entities as part of the reforms the government has said will help reduce spending and better manage the public treasury.
Actually, Friday, 20 December 2024 was the last day of work and it is unlikely much will be gotten done until the Congress gets its annual off-time on 12 January 2025. The legislative session does not resume then until 27 February for the session that ends on 26 July.
For the year 2025, lawmakers have the challenge of creating the commission of jurists announced by the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Alfredo Pacheco, entrusted with carrying out the review of the complementary laws demanded by the Constitution and recent rulings of the Constitutional Court.
The El Caribe story explains that around 80 amendments are pending, 70 still from the 2010 Constitution, according to Fuerza del Pueblo (FP) deputy Tobías Crespo last weekend.
Congressmen also need to vote on the recently passed law that brings changes to the National Council of the Magistracy regarding its members. The bill to this intent submitted by senators Ricardo de los Santos (PRM-Sánchez Ramírez) and Omar Fernández (Fuerza del Pueblo-National District) has already been approved in the Senate and is pending second reading by the deputies.
Another legislation complementing the new Constitution is the bill that modifies articles 36, 64 and 81; and articles 66.1 and 66.2 are added to Law 176-07, of the National District and municipalities, regarding the succession of mayors, vice mayors, councilors and municipal directors.
Also pending are amendments regarding the Penal Code, the Civil Procedure Code, Criminal Procedures Code, Commercial Code, Labor Law, Water Law and others.
The special committee of the Chamber of Deputies is reviewing a bill that reforms the Public Procurement Law (Law 340-06). The initiative expires on 12 January 2025. The project authored by former senator Faride Raful was approved in the Senate. If the deputies further amend the bill, it will need to return to the Senate in time to make the 12 January deadline. The update of Law 340-06 is a demand from different sectors, which call for strengthening the regulatory framework for government contracts and demand criminal penalties for those processes that result in irregularities in tenders.
Read more in Spanish:
El Caribe
26 December 2024