Mexico tax reform falters ahead of deadline
By Miguel Angel Gutierrez
MEXICO CITY, Aug 28 (Reuters) - Mexico's government and opposition lawmakers are very unlikely to agree to a deal on a long-awaited tax reform in time for it to be included in the 2008 budget, legislators said on Tuesday.
Last week, ruling party lawmakers said they were on the verge of an agreement with key opposition legislators to pass a reform to boost government income and reduce the country's dependence on oil revenues.
Lawmakers must sign off on the package before Sept. 8 for it to take effect in next year's budget and Calderon needs support from the opposition to help it pass.
But legislators said on Tuesday there was still no timetable to push the bill through the committee stage and vote on it in the lower house.
"It would be almost impossible to push it through (the committee) next week," said Horacio Garza, a secretary on the committee and a member of the opposition Institutional Revolution Party, or PRI. "It won't be before the 8th."
The PRI unveiled a series of minor changes last week that it wants to make to President Felipe Calderon's fiscal reform bill, which in its original form would boost tax revenues by 2.8 percentage points of gross domestic product.
A legislative source told Reuters that some PRI legislators are now insisting on more money for state governors and greater supervision of where new funds are spent.
Once the finance committee signs off on the agreement, it must be voted on in the lower house. From there the bill would be sent to the Senate, where it would have to be approved in committee before being put to a broad vote.
Any change made by the Senate would force the bill back to the lower house.
"Everything indicates it won't be put through this week," David Figueroa, secretary of the finance committee and ruling National Action Party legislator, told Reuters.
Expectations of an imminent deal have fueled recent optimism in Mexico's financial markets.
Finance Minister Agustin Carstens said two weeks ago that very few issues remained to be ironed out in talks with Congress to overhaul Mexico's tax laws.
Calderon wants to increase government revenues to pay for better schools and roads and make the country more competitive.
