BOGOTA (Reuters) -The Colombian government on Monday presented a tax reform bill to Congress to raise 26.3 trillion pesos ($6.54 billion), intended to finance the government’s 2026 spending, Finance Minister German Avila said.
The government is facing a severe fiscal crunch a year out from legislative and presidential elections scheduled for next August.
The upcoming campaign season, according to analysts and politicians, threatens the tax reform’s prospects in Congress, where President Gustavo Petro’s government has limited support.
The reform amount disclosed on Monday is higher than the 19 trillion pesos ($4.73 billion) that the Finance Ministry announced in June during the presentation of Colombia’s Medium-Term Fiscal Framework.
Avila noted that in addition to shoring up funds for next year, the initiative seeks to guarantee fiscal stability in 2027.
Petro warned in July that if the tax reform is not approved by Congress, the government would finance the budget with more debt.
(1 dollar = 4,018.41 pesos)
(Reporting by Carlos Vargas; Writing by Brendan O’Boyle; Editing by Julia Symmes Cobb and Natalia Siniawski)
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