Mayors warn Hacienda over mining patent discounts

Antofagasta’s mayors went to Chile’s Finance Ministry and asked it to stop budget discounts tied to mining-patent payment errors. (df.cl) The delegation came from the Association of Municipalities of the Antofagasta Region, led by San Pedro de Atacama mayor Justo Zuleta. They said Treasury is seeking to recover money that communes received in excess in 2023 and 2024. (df.cl) (radarbiobio.cl) Those recoveries would be applied as progressive discounts on municipal transfers in 2026 and potentially 2027, according to the mayors and regional officials. Zuleta said the money had already been spent on local services and community projects. (munispa.cl) (cooperativa.cl) The fight is also about how Chile shares mining-patent revenue. Regional authorities say Law 21.420 set an annual US$80 million ceiling on the amount distributed to regions and municipalities. (munispa.cl) (bcn.cl) Under that system, revenue above the cap goes to the national Treasury instead of staying in mining regions. Antofagasta officials say that weakens the link between copper production and local public spending. (munispa.cl) (timeline.cl) Governor Ricardo Díaz and Antofagasta mayor Sacha Razmilic have backed the campaign for a new formula in Santiago. Their argument is that the country’s biggest mining region should not receive less while absorbing the industry’s local costs. (munispa.cl) (radarbiobio.cl) The mayors’ latest proposal includes a technical working group with Hacienda and a review of the distribution cap. They also warned that higher fuel costs could add more pressure to 2026 municipal budgets. (df.cl) Treasury’s underlying claim is that earlier transfers exceeded what the law allowed after a distribution error. The mayors are not disputing that an adjustment exists; they are disputing the timing and the hit to already-committed local budgets. (munispa.cl) (df.cl) For now, the region’s ask is narrow and immediate: freeze the discounts, sit down with Hacienda, and recalculate how mining-patent money reaches the communes that produce it. (df.cl)