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Original article: Se les quemaron las cartas: García Ruminot adelanta ajustes a la megarreforma de Kast y Quiroz sale a apagar el incendio en el Senado

The Minister of the General Secretariat of the Presidency (Segpres), José García Ruminot, prematurely unveiled adjustments that the government is considering to rescue the economic tax mega-reform championed by José Antonio Kast, igniting a storm in the Senate that his counterpart in finance, Jorge Quiroz, had to rush to quell, especially as the votes to pass the controversial project are not yet assured.

The misstep occurred when García Ruminot acknowledged, in a podcast with La Tercera, that the fiscal situation requires the ultra-right administration to implement changes to the so-called «super-rich law», which includes disputed measures such as reducing the first category tax from 27% to 23%, eliminating the capital gains tax on stock market profits, introducing a tax credit for formal employment, and establishing a 25-year tax stability clause for investments over $50 million.

During the discussion, the state secretary not only referred to general adjustments but also detailed specific formulas: he proposed reducing the tax stability for companies from 25 to 20 years and reviewing the multi-million dollar employment credit included in the legislative text. What was intended as a gesture of transparency turned into an issue of timing and substance.

According to reports from La Tercera and El Mostrador, officials from La Moneda acknowledged that there was never any intention to unveil the adjustments before the crucial Senate stage, where the government needs to gather support. Among those the government hopes to persuade are independent Karim Bianchi and PPD’s Pedro Araya, two votes that could shift the balance but now hold an advantage: they are aware of the changes that Kast’s administration is willing to offer.

Thus, less than 24 hours later, Treasury Minister Jorge Quiroz stepped in with a fire extinguisher. The architect of the mega-reform avoided publicly confirming his colleague’s proposals, opting instead to lower the tone with a statement that sounded like a veiled correction: «It could be that or other things, or nothing at all,» he replied when asked by reporters about the adjustments hinted at by the Segpres.

These remarks from the head of the finance ministry came shortly after the release of the latest Public Finance Report, a document that the Treasury had to disclose after several delays and which revealed debt projections that could exceed 46% of GDP by the end of the decade.

This episode unfolded during a difficult time for La Moneda, amid criticism over repeated delays in the publication of the fiscal report and a controversy triggered by a presumed inconsistency inherited from the previous government amounting to nearly $10 billion in debt projections, which led former Finance Minister Nicolás Grau to defend his latest Public Finance Report (IFP), stating that it has «no calculation errors.»

Additionally, a recent study by Data Influye, conducted by Tú Influyes, revealed that 66% of citizens do not believe José Kast’s claims and reject the notion that the mega-reform his government is pushing will revive Chile’s economy.

Cards Were Burned Prematurely

Simultaneously, the lack of coordination between the two ministers became evident just as the government attempts to streamline its economic narrative, and in this context, García Ruminot sought to repair the situation and spoke again, but adopted a notably more measured tone, simply stating that the Executive is open to «listening and incorporating ideas.»

However, the attempt to extinguish the flames was short-lived. On the same day, an internal memo from the government began circulating, confirming exactly the adjustments that the Segpres minister had previously hinted at: trimming the tax stability clause and modifying the employment credit, reported El Mostrador.

Thus, while the Treasury tries to convince that there is still room to reorganize fiscal accounts and salvage the reform, the government faces a more immediate problem: it must negotiate with less leeway, devoid of the surprise factor, and with the opposition scrutinizing every move from the front row. The cards are no longer on the table: they were burned prematurely.

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