The building is completely empty. The negotiations did not reach a successful conclusion / Nicholas Brekovic
After several days of hectic negotiations – which continued yesterday with great tension – last night, by the time the report was prepared for the press, the ruling party and the opposition had not reached an agreement in the governorate’s House of Representatives to discuss the financing law. They voted for a new interim quarter to continue meeting this morning.
Despite successive concessions made by the government of Axel Kiselov, which needed to obtain a debt worth $3,685 million, the long and tense negotiations continued until dawn.
Although there is an agreement on the establishment of a municipal finance fund, and an agreement on who will be filled by the opposition in the positions to be created on the Board of Directors of Banco Provincia, the final text has not been drafted. This has generated doubts, especially among extremists, regarding the fixed amount that the provincial government will give to municipalities, which is equivalent to 8% of the debt.
With a budget of 43 billion pesos for expenses – with 58% going to salaries and another 18% to cover regional pensions – and without help from Javier Miley’s government, there was little room to finance business and cover central administration expenses over the following year.
Not to mention the amortization of two external debts that expire in 2026, amounting to nearly a billion dollars.
“We are not willing to face debt maturities that we did not originally assume with resources taken from health or education, a matter we would be forced to do if we did not have the regulations. The Legislature must decide in the interest of avoiding further suffering, in the interest of the economic and social system of our county,” the governor said Monday.
Discussions
Discussions took place between the ruling party and a sector of the opposition in the break room of the parliament session yesterday, which was called for three o’clock in the afternoon. Which started last night shortly before the end of the day.
When negotiations resumed approximately nine hours later, the two opposition issues that had hindered the negotiations had been almost resolved: the distribution of fixed funds to municipalities and positions on the board of directors of the Bank of the Province of Buenos Aires (BAPRO).
By then, the governor’s negotiators – Rep.-elect Mariano Cascalares and Sen.-elect but Infrastructure Minister Gabriel Katopoudis – had nearly exhausted their cell phone batteries.
The Emergency and Municipal Investment Enhancement Fund, financed by 8% of debt ($360 billion), was finalized an hour before the parliamentary session. It will consist of a fixed amount of $350 billion (the government on Tuesday offered $245 billion and the remaining $110 billion is tied up in debt) to be distributed in 5 installments: 3 in 2026 and 2 in 2027.
They will be distributed using the individual distribution factor, an indicator that determines how co-participation funds and other transfers are distributed among the municipalities of the province of Buenos Aires.
But this promise was not put on paper, which prevented the financing law from being discussed before midnight.
Another issue that took many hours of discussion was negotiating the Banco Provincia charges. Finally, hours later, it was agreed with the opposition to expand the Board of Directors to 9 directors (there are currently 8) and to create 5 trustee positions, with a voice but no vote in the collective body. All high salaries.
Six of the directors correspond to the ruling party (kicillofismo, La Cámpora and masismo) and three are from the opposition (Monzo Marcelo Dalito, Matias Ranzini of the PRO Party and libertarian Fernando Rosas. Radical Fernando Pérez (son of the famous Quilmeno leader Carlos Pérez Grecia) will exchange the director’s place every year with Dalito.
Intermediate quarter and fight with Santiago Basalia
At 11:50 p.m., MP Facundo Tignanelli (UxP) requested a new recess at 1:30 a.m. the next day, which the body agreed to.
But first there was a discussion between the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, Alexis Guerrera, and the Mayor, Santiago Passalia, who came down to the building with the intention of taking a seat (see separate). Guerrera refused Nicolino’s request.