The president of the Senate, Ricardo de los Santos (PRM-Sanchez Ramirez), has emphatically stated that the Dominican Republic currently lacks the economic conditions to authorize the indexing of salaries, effectively dismissing a bill introduced by opposition senator Omar Fernández (Fuerza del Pueblo – National District) aimed at relieving the tax burden on lower-income workers, as reported in Hoy.
The Fernandez proposal, which seeks to index the Income Tax (ISR) for monthly incomes up to RD$52,000, was met with immediate resistance from lawmakers of the ruling Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM). Given the PRM’s absolute majority in the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies, their opposition signals a high probability that the bill will not pass.
Senator De los Santos explained that while Fernández’s proposal “is very well received by society,” the nation’s fiscal reality prevents its immediate implementation. He hinted that the measure might have been feasible had a comprehensive fiscal reform, which was discussed in 2024, been achieved.
“I wish we could free up salaries up to 70 or 80 thousand pesos, but the reality we face with a deficit budget is that there are simply no conditions at this time to do it,” the Senate president asserted.
Fellow ruling party senator Alexis Victoria Yeb (PRM – Maria Trinidad Sanchez) echoed this sentiment, agreeing that while the measure would be “ideal” for easing the tax load on workers, the current economic context does not permit it.
The position taken by the ruling party, which holds the necessary votes to block any legislative initiative, has drawn criticism from the opposition. Opposition Senator Eduard Alexis Espíritusanto (Fuerza del Pueblo – La Romana) rejected the officialist arguments as “pure excuses,” noting that the government routinely takes on loans without seeming to be deterred by the very budget deficit it now cites as a roadblock.
The debate highlights a significant political clash over fiscal policy, with the ruling party prioritizing budget stability over immediate tax relief for workers.
5 November 2025