12 Mar Disappearance of the National Institute for Transparency, Access to Information and Personal Data Protection
Pursuant to the decree published in the Federal Official Gazette on December 20th, 2024 that amends, adds and repeals several provisions of the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States, regarding organizational simplification of the Mexican government (the “Decree”), the President of Mexico ordered to dissolve the following government organizations: National Council for the Evaluation of Social Development Policy (“CONEVAL”, by its acronym in Spanish), the Federal Economic Competition Commission (“COFECE”, by its acronym in Spanish), the Federal Telecommunications Institute (“IFT”, by its acronym in Spanish), the National Commission for the Continuous Improvement of Education (“MEJOREDU”, by its acronym in Spanish), the Energy Regulatory Commission (“CRE”, by its acronym in Spanish), the National Hydrocarbons Commission (“CNH”, by its acronym in Spanish) and among them, the National Institute for Transparency, Access to Information and Protection of Personal Data (“INAI”, by its acronym in Spanish).
The purpose of the Decree is to improve efficiency, optimize resources and reduce expenses allocated to those autonomous constitutional bodies, and for redirecting such funds to different organizations. Regarding the INAI, its resources will be redirected to the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit and to the Ministry of Anti-corruption and Good Governance (the “Ministry”).
In addition, on December 28th, 2024 the government published the amendment of several provisions of the Organic Law of the Federal Public Administration to determine that the Ministry will assume the authorities previously held by the INAI. The Ministry will carry out some of the activities entrusted to INAI regarding the information held by the federal government; as it is expected, the state and municipal authorities will issue the corresponding local regulations.
Furthermore, the Decree establishes that Mexico´s Federal Congress will have a period of ninety calendar days from its entry into force on December 23, 2024, to implement amendments to the applicable laws, as necessary to give effects to this governmental restructure. As a result, the Federal Law of Transparency and Access to Public Information will be repealed, the Organic Law of the Federal Public Administration will be amended, and three laws will be issued; which, although they already existed in Mexican legislation, they are being enacted to reflect the approved constitutional reforms. Therefore, the secondary legislation will consist of the following:
- General Law of Transparency and Access to Public Information (“LGTAIP”);
- General Law for the Protection of Personal Data in Possession of Obligated Subjects (“LGPDPPSO”);
- Federal Law for the Protection of Personal Data in Possession of Private Parties (“LFPDPPP”);
- Amendments to the Organic Law of the Federal Public Administration (“LOAPF Amendments”).
Regarding the amendments to the LFPDPPP, the main changes are the following:
1. The law would be amended to:
a. Use inclusive language,
b. Standardize rules, principles, bases and procedures, and
c. Standardize mechanisms for the protection of personal data held by private parties.
2. The Ministry of Anti-corruption and Good Governance shall be the authority that protects personal data held by individuals, therefore:
a. The resolutions issued by this Ministry may be challenged through review procedures and, ultimately, by filing for amparo, which will now be filed before specialized judges in the matter, as determined by the Federal Judiciary,
b. These review procedures may also be filed against the authorities comprising the transparency institutions, both at the state and municipal levels, which will also be analyzed by the Ministry.
3. Self-regulation schemes:
The proposal sets forth that individuals or legal entities may agree among themselves or with/through civil or governmental organizations, both national and foreign, the applicable binding self-regulatory structures in this area. These mechanisms aim to assess their effectiveness in data protection, as well as the consequences and corrective actions to be taken in case of non-compliance.
In accordance with the above amendments, the Mexican Senate published on February 20th, 2025, the draft decree initiative (the “Draft Decree”) seeking to amend the LGTAIP, LGPDPPSO and the LFPDPPP, as well as Section XV of Article 37 of the Organic Law of the Federal Public Administration.
As a result of the above, the operation of the Ministry under the authority of the Federal Executive (President) is questioned by many, particularly regarding the handling of public information and access to it. However, for companies and citizens, it is anticipated that regulations related to the protection of personal data will not undergo significant changes, and that Mexico will continue to align with international best practices to ensure information security and the protection of individuals’ personal data.
The members of the Personal Data Protection area of Cuesta Campos have the experience to advise our clients in any matter related to the application of this reform. In case of doubts or comments, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Contact
Mauricio Castillo
mcastillo@cuestacampos.com
Héctor Valladares
hvalladares@cuestacampos.com
Fionna Folino
ffolino@cuestacampos.com
THE ABOVE IS PROVIDED AS GENERAL INFORMATION PREPARED BY PROFESSIONALS WITH REGARD TO THE SUBJECT MATTER. THIS DOCUMENT ONLY REFERS TO THE APPLICABLE LAW IN MEXICO. WHILE EVERY EFFORT HAS BEEN MADE TO ENSURE ACCURACY, NO RESPONSIBILITY CAN BE ACCEPTED FOR ERRORS OR OMISSIONS. THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN SHOULD NOT BE RELIED ON AS LEGAL, ACCOUNTING OR PROFESSIONAL ADVICE BEING RENDERED.