LatinNews Daily - 05 August 2026

*Chile’s senate has approved the final article of President José Antonio Kast’s flagship mega reform, known as the ‘reconstruction and economic and social development’ bill. This was the final congressional hurdle for the bill, all but one article of which cleared the lower chamber on 21 July. The article in question then went to a bicameral commission, which produced a compromise version. Yesterday the senate voted to approve the formula presented by the commission, with 27 votes in favour to 22 against and one abstention. The article establishes that the treasury will contribute Cl$110bn (US$120m) to a common municipal fund and another Cl$80bn directly to municipal governments to compensate for the fact that the reform exempts over 65s from paying property tax. Compensation to municipalities will be subject to two requirements: being up to date with the submission of information to the government’s budget directorate (Dipres) regarding their human resources and reducing permit processing times by at least 30% when comparing processing times between 2023 and 2025. While the reform has now cleared congress, it is expected to face further delays to implementation as Kast plans to veto some articles added by the left-wing opposition, while aspects of the reform are also being challenged through the country’s constitutional court.

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