Overview

• The Chamber of Deputies issued the constitutional declaratory act after receiving approval letters from 25 state legislatures, then forwarded the decree to the Executive.
• The amendment modifies Article 73, Section XXI, subsection a), empowering the Congress of the Union to enact a General Law on the crime of extortion.
• Once the decree is published in the Diario Oficial, the implementation phase begins with Congress drafting the General Law to harmonize state approaches.
• The forthcoming law is intended to standardize the criminal definition, aggravating factors, related offenses, and penalties, establish prosecution de oficio, and set victim-care mechanisms.
• Officials cite rising extortion and economic harm as drivers of the reform, noting about 30 daily incidents in January 2025 and business losses of roughly 124 billion pesos in 2023, while recent reporting to the 089 line has surged since a July strategy launch.