Weekly Report - 17 February 2011 (WR-11-07)

President Felipe Calderón has decreed a key tax reform ahead of the upcoming 2012 presidential elections. The tax reform, which Calderón decreed on 14 February, is aimed at providing tax breaks for tuition payments made at the elementary and higher levels of education. It is the first such initiative to be adopted by the current Partido Acción Nacional (PAN) government in advance of the elections. While it is intended to garner support among the general population by easing the effects of inflation through indirectly increasing household income, there are indications that the reform may backfire as it was met with furious protests by the powerful public education sector.