**Primary Article: Voting on the Elimination of Autonomous Bodies Scheduled for Mid-November**
Ricardo Monreal Ávila, the head of the Political Coordination Board in the Chamber of Deputies, announced plans to vote on the dissolution of seven constitutional autonomous bodies between November 11 and 14. This move comes ahead of the presentation of the 2025 Economic Package by the Ministry of Finance.
The targeted organizations include the National Institute for Transparency, Access to Information and Protection of Personal Data (INAI), the Federal Economic Competition Commission (COFECE), the Federal Telecommunications Institute (IFT), the National Council for the Evaluation of Social Development Policy (CONEVAL), the Energy Regulatory Commission (CRE), the National Hydrocarbons Commission (CNH), and the National Commission for the Continuous Improvement of Education (MEJORADU).
Monreal highlighted that on these dates, the session will address constitutional reforms related to animal welfare, mandatory preventive detention, and the extinction of these autonomous bodies to simplify administrative processes. Additional offenses, such as tax fraud and the illegal handling of toxic substances, could be included in the mandatory preventive detention catalog.
President Claudia Sheinbaum supported the proposal to eliminate these bodies, citing corruption issues and believing that transparency can be better managed by the soon-to-be-established Secretariat of Anti-Corruption and Good Governance. Despite discussions with the INAI concerning budget reductions for 2025, Sheinbaum affirmed that these were too late as the proposal for dissolution is already in Congress.
In line with these changes, Raquel Buenrostro, head of the Public Function Secretariat, indicated that once INAI is dissolved, new transparency laws would aim to involve administrative tribunals to ensure objective governance and avoid conflicts of interest. Enhanced digitalization and open data policies are key for the government, aiming for more efficient transparency and accountability.
**Secondary Article: Growing Concerns Over the Future of Mexico’s Transparency Laws**
As the legislative vote on dissolving Mexico’s autonomous bodies nears, concerns mount over how these changes might impact transparency and accountability in governance. With President Sheinbaum’s announcement backing the dissolution, critics argue that centralizing these functions under the new Secretariat of Anti-Corruption and Good Governance could lead to reduced oversight and potential conflicts of interest.
The decision to eliminate entities like the INAI, responsible for ensuring public access to information, has sparked controversy. Opponents argue this could weaken the enforcement of transparency laws and fail to protect citizens’ rights to information. There’s also worry that these changes may lead to larger bureaucratic challenges, further complicating processes meant to maintain government transparency.
To address these concerns, Buenrostro aims to introduce a revised transparency framework involving digital initiatives and administrative tribunals to manage disputes. The goal is to mitigate the risks of corruption while maintaining open channels for public information access. However, until these new structures are in place, uncertainty remains over the practical impacts of these sweeping reforms.