The courts have halted Luis Caputo’s ruling prohibiting the charging of municipal taxes on electricity and gas bills

Point for the mayors in the fight with the Minister of Economy, Luis Caputo, for the collection of additional fees on utility bills. The federal judge of Campana, Adrián González Charvay, issued a ruling precautionary measure suspending the application of Resolution 267/2024 of the National Government, which prevents municipalities from including municipal taxes on electricity or gas bills.

The cause that led to this resolution was initiated by the mayor of Pilar, Federico Achával and for the moment, the suspension will apply only in that district and until the issue is resolved underlying issue. This is: If a decision of the Ministry of Economy can be above a rule of the Buenos Aires Legislature which had enabled this collection mechanism.

The file that entered the federal courts of Campana was processed in the Civil Secretariat of that jurisdiction. According to the municipality, the legal action seeks to “guarantee the municipality’s capacity to collect taxes, and with it the viability of the public lighting system the operation of public buildings and the maintenance of the surveillance system and inspection of the gas networks of the Pilar Party”.

The lawyers of the municipality considered that the resolution imposed by the Secretariat of Industry and Commerce of the Nation caused a “irreparable burden on the constitutional rights of the municipality.”

The reaction to the courts by the mayors of Greater Buenos Aires was an expected action. In a meeting they held a week ago, they stated that the impossibility of including the lighting fee in the bill of the service provider would leave the cities of Greater Buenos Aires as “a wolf’s mouth”. And that could generate more insecurity.

Caputo maintains a dispute with the municipal administrations because he claims that the inclusion of “non-specific” items to the service that is charged, makes tickets more expensive which already have very high increases due to the gradual removal of subsidies applied by the Government.

The ruling of the Federal Court of Campana maintains that the resolution of the Economy “has not measured the consequences and the individual rights that it violates, such as the right to life, health, physical integrity.” The resolution of the Secretariat of Industry and Commerce is also considered a interference in the local sphere, violating autonomy of the municipality in its collection capacity, an axis that could be key in the legal dispute between the Nation and the municipalities.

Judge González Charvay, after evaluating the arguments presented, concluded that “The precautionary measure does not affect the national public treasury” and that the suspension of the regulations would guarantee the municipality’s ability to collect taxes, thus allowing the maintenance of vital services such as public lighting and security.

The interim precautionary resolution will remain in effect until the merits of the legal dispute are resolved. The Ministry of Economy must submit a report within three days, while the Secretariat of Industry and Commerce will have five days to provide a detailed study on the matter. The ruling also requires the plaintiff to provide a sworn bond before the order is issued.

The magistrate describes in the document the provincial regulations (law 10,740) and the municipal ordinances that support the incorporation of the fee for “public lighting services” on the Edenor bill. And a contribution for maintenance of the gas connection systems that appears on the distributor’s invoice NaturgyGaswhich operates in the district.

The judge assessed that Pilar makes -from that collection- a one-time benefit, that is one of the requirements for the establishment of a “municipal tax”.

“The Constitution of the Province of Buenos Aires authorizes municipalities to issue ordinances and regulations, within the powers conferred upon them, and to vote annually on their budget and the resources to finance it,” states the resolution signed by Judge González Charvay.

Caputo appealed to a chapter of the Consumer Protection Law to impose the restriction. “We want to make it clear to the residents that these increases in services are not caused by the national government, but by the mayors,” argued the minister. Although the bills arrive with amounts of $80, $100 or $150 thousand pesos and the communal “burden” is $2 or $3 thousand. The minister showed a settlement of the municipality of the Coast to use as an example.

Caputo’s decision had another administrative observation. The Buenos Aires Energy Control Agency (Oceba) had anticipated that in the Province the distribution companies were enabled to include concepts other than electricity in the monthly settlements.

The Province regulates contracts with the companies Eden (northern Buenos Aires); Edes (south); Edea (municipalities on the coast and Mar del Plata) and Edelap (capital of Buenos Aires and the region). In addition, there are some 200 electric cooperatives that operate in cities and towns in the interior of Buenos Aires. In all of them, the collection of fees was permitted. The clarification is also a tug-of-war between Axel Kicillof and the Government of Javier Milei.

“Furthermore, there is a law from the provincial legislature that enables the collection of the lighting fee through distribution companies. A ministerial resolution cannot be above a law,” said Diego Rozengardt, president of Oceba.

If Oceba allows charging fees in companies concessioned by the Province and the Justice stops the resolution in the firms of national jurisdiction (Edenor and Edesur) then Caputo’s measure remains abstract. “It cannot be applied to any user from Buenos Aires,” admits a lawyer consulted by Clarion.