New Bill of Bases and Starting Points for the Freedom of Argentinians
Pubic Law department report | New Bill of Bases and Starting Points for the Freedom of Argentinians
During this week, the new Bill of “Law of Bases and Starting Point for the Freedom of Argentina” (“the New Bill”) will begin to be discussed in the Federal Chamber of Deputies. The New Bill is substantially shorter compared to the original version (“the Original Bill”), having been reduced from 644 to 232 articles.
Among the topics addressed in the New Bill there are the following:
1. Emergency
2. State Reform
3.Existing contracts and settlement agreements
4. Promotion of registered employment
6. Energy
7. Investments
1. Emergency
The New Bill maintains the declaration of public emergency, although now circumscribing it to administrative, economic, financial, and energy matters for a period of one (1) year. It also maintains the delegation of legislative powers to the Federal Executive —in terms of article 76 of the Federal Constitution—, now adding that it must inform the Federal Legislature monthly and in detail about the exercise of the delegated powers and the results obtained.
2. State Reform
Regarding state reform, the New Bases Law Project maintains the chapters referring to:
– Administrative reorganization, empowering the Federal Executive —in summary— to modify, transform, merge, split, or intervene state departments and agencies of the central or decentralized administration, state-owned companies and societies, and trust funds. Certain decentralized agencies are expressly excluded from these powers.
– Privatization of state-owned companies, declaring subject to total or partial privatization the companies and societies of total or majority state ownership listed in Annexes I and II. Among those state-owned companies subject to total privatization are, for example, Aerolíneas Argentinas S.A., Energía Argentina S.A., Radio y Televisión Argentina S.E., Aguas y Saneamiento Argentino S.A., Correo Oficial de la República Argentina S.A., Corredores Viales S.A.
– Modifications to Laws 19,549 (Federal Administrative Procedures Act), 25,164 (National Public Employment Regulation Framework Act), and 24,185 (Collective Labor Agreements Act).
It is worth noting that, compared to the Original Bill, chapters related to regulatory quality policies and administrative simplification, internal control of the administration, the Federal Anti-Corruption Office, and political activity were not included.
3.Existing contracts and settlement agreements
The New Bill authorizes the Federal Executive to decide, for emergency reasons and under certain conditions, the renegotiation or rescission of public works contracts, public works concession contracts, construction or provision of goods and services contracts and their annexes and associated contracts that exceed certain amounts and were entered into before December 10 of 2023. Contracts signed under privatization processes authorized by Law 23,696 and those signed within the framework of activity promotion regimes, investment or production stimulus programs are expressly excluded.
Various modifications are also introduced to Law 17,520, on Public Works Concessions.
Regarding the Original Bill, now there were not included those chapters related to the update of the retirement benefits, retirements and privileged benefits, public credit operations, and bioeconomy.
4. Promotion of registered employment
According to the New Bill employers may regularize existing private sector employment relationships initiated prior to the date of promulgation of the law. For this regularization, a period of ninety (90) days from the entry into force of the regulations issued for this purpose is established.
The regularization may include unregistered employment relationships or inadequately registered employment relationships. The Federal Executive must regulate the effects produced by the regularization of the employment relationships.
5. Labor modernization
Various modifications are introduced to Laws 24,013 (Employment), 20,744 (Labor Contract Law), and 26,727 (Agricultural Labor). Among other legal provisions, the repeal of Laws 14,546 (Traveling Salesmen) and 25,323 (Labor Indemnities) is established
6. Energy
Under Title VIII (‘Energy’), various modifications to Laws 17,319 (Hydrocarbons), 24,076 (Gas Regulatory Framework), and 26,741 (Hydrocarbon Self-Sufficiency, which provided for the expropriation of YPF S.A. and Repsol YPF Gas S.A.) are included.
In addition, the Federal Executive is empowered, on the one hand, to adapt Laws 15,336 (Electricity) and 24,065 (Electricity Regulatory Framework), and, on the other hand, to draft, with the agreement of the provinces, harmonized environmental legislation for the purpose of complying with Article 23 of Law 27,007, which will have as its primary objective the application of the best international environmental management practices to the tasks of exploration, exploitation, and/or transportation of hydrocarbons in order to achieve the development of the activity with adequate environmental care.
The creation of the Federal Regulatory Authority for Gas and Electricity is established, which, once constituted, will replace and assume the functions of the current Federal Electricity Regulatory Authority (ENRE), created by Law 24,065, and the Federal Gas Regulatory Authority (ENARGAS), created by Law 24,076. The Federal Executive is entrusted with issuing all regulations and acts aimed at making effective the creation of the new entity and issuing the corresponding consolidated text of Laws 24,065 and 24,076.
7. Investments
Under Title IX, the creation of the so-called “Incentive Regime for Large Investments” (RIGI) is established, which establishes certain incentives, certainty, legal security, and an efficient system of protection of acquired rights for vehicles holding a single project that meet the requirements provided for herein. In this sense, it is declared —in the terms of Article 75, Clause 18 of the Federal Constitution— that ‘Large Investments’ that qualify and are made under the RIGI are of national interest and are useful and conducive to the prosperity of the country, the advancement and welfare of all provinces, the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, and municipalities. It is added that any national or local rule or de facto measure that limits, restricts, violates, obstructs, or distorts what is established under that title will be null and void and the judiciary must immediately prevent its application.
The New Bill regulated the subjects authorized and the application period of the RIGI (Chapter II); the requirements and conditions for inclusion in the RIGI, the investment plan, and the effects of such inclusion (Chapter III); the tax, customs, and exchange incentives specific to the RIGI (Chapters IV and V); the stability regime of the RIGI and its compatibility with other regimes (Chapter VI); the termination of incentives under the RIGI (Chapter VII); the infractional and recourse regime (Chapter VIII); the creation of the Enforcement Authority (Chapter IX); the jurisdiction and arbitration regime (Chapter X); and the invitation to local jurisdictions to adhere to the regime (Chapter XI).
8. Social Security
Law 27,705, the Provisional Debt Payment Plan, is repealed.
Unlike the Original Bill, provisions aimed at regulating the mobility of retirement benefits or the repeal of privileged pensions and retirements are no longer included in the New Bill.
Finally, in addition to the differences with the Original Bill outlined above, the following subjects are no longer regulated in the New Bill.
1. Security
2. Justice
3. Electoral, Tourism, and Sports
1. Security
The New Bill does not contain any provision regarding security that had been included in the Original Law Project. Those provision were aimed to govern, for example, the organization of demonstrations, attack and resistance to authority, and legitimate defense.
2. Justice
None of the topics that had been included under the title ‘Justice’ in the Original Bill are now regulated in the New Bill. Among the laws that are no longer subject to modification are the following:
– Law 27,423, on Professional Fees of Lawyers, Solicitors, and Judicial Auxiliaries;
– Law 11,723, on Intellectual Property Regime;
– The Civil and Commercial Code, which implies the non-implementation of administrative divorce or succession regimes;
– Law 9667, on Withdrawal of Funds from Judicial Deposit through Judge’s Order;
– Decree-Law 3,003/56, on Universal Trials Registration;
– Decree-Law 16,005/57, on Publication of Legal Notices;
– Decree-Law 6848/63, on Judicial Archives of the City of Buenos Aires;
– Law 26,764, on Judicial Deposits of National and Federal Courts in the Banco de la Nación Argentina;
– Law 17,802, on Real Estate Property Registry; and
– Law 22,315, on the creation of the General Inspection of Justice.
3. Electoral, Tourism, and Sports
Unlike the Original Bill, no provisions on electoral, tourism, and sports matters are included in the New Bill
Juan Antonio Stupenengo