Browse Honduras Daily Stories

An anticorruption council and civil-society coalition submitted a package of 87 electoral reforms covering constitutional changes, election administration, political financing, and electoral crimes, including runoff elections, citizen poll observers, and early voting for disabled voters.

Ten civil-society organizations presented Congress with 87 proposed electoral reforms on September 21, including a presidential runoff system, citizen oversight of polling stations, and changes to campaign finance law, though lawmakers anticipate difficulty passing several measures.

Congress has sent proposed criminal-code reforms to the Supreme Court that would allow police to arrest suspected gang and cartel members and search homes without judicial warrants in high-risk zones, with prosecutors validating the actions afterward.

Congress passed sweeping legislation naming three criminal organizations as terrorist groups and imposing strict isolation, technology bans, and severe movement restrictions on inmates convicted of terrorism or gang membership.

The National Party announced its lawmakers will vote against a proposed electoral second round, effectively stalling the measure in Congress despite social pressure and support from several sectors.

Congress is reviewing the Part-Time Employment Law following concerns from business and labor groups, preparing a security-focused criminal-code package, and has begun analyzing the 2027 national budget.

Congress President Tomás Zambrano instructed the Labor Committee to expedite a review of the Part-Time Employment Law, approved in March, to address employer and worker concerns and ensure the law effectively generates jobs for young people.

Honduras's newly approved Energy Justice Law, passed by Congress on August 31 with 78 votes, has not yet been published in the official gazette and cannot take effect until the President signs or vetoes it; business groups say swift implementation is critical to address the country's electricity crisis.

Congressman Sabillón said the National Congress is expected to approve a cybersecurity law within the coming days.

Dante Mossi, former BCIE president, called on Congress to review how the government has spent 2026 funds and clarify priorities before approving the 455-billion-lempira (about $18.2 billion) 2027 budget, citing concerns over electricity costs, health-sector management, and diesel inflation.

The president of Congress announced that lawmakers will resume debate on controversial reforms to Honduras's electricity sector on Tuesday, with party caucuses still negotiating points of disagreement ahead of the planned third and final vote.

Congress approved a temporary reform allowing former employees of certain government programs to seek settlements with the state for outstanding wage claims, with payments spread over up to 18 months if budgets permit.

Honduras's National Congress voted 98–0 to investigate and dismantle clandestine abortion services operating on social media, approving a motion by Congress president Tomás Zambrano despite criticism from women's-rights groups.

Congress approved reforms to elder-care law adding free annual medical checkups, home care, active-aging programs, a non-contributory pension for impoverished seniors, and tax incentives for employers hiring workers over 60.

Congress began briefing all five political caucuses and mayors' associations on a proposed investment law designed to attract capital for hospitals, ports, infrastructure, and other projects by guaranteeing legal security and property rights.

The National Congress unanimously approved a motion requiring the Public Prosecutor's office and police to report to lawmakers on how they handle complaints of sexual assault, rape, and harassment of children in schools, citing numerous reports of abuse.

Honduras's National Congress approved two cross-border electricity contracts to buy 80 megawatts—50 from Panama and 30 from Nicaragua—at 8 cents per kilowatt-hour to help address the national power deficit.

The Association of Petroleum Product Distributors (Ahdippe) called on lawmakers to more carefully analyze energy-system reform proposals, citing concerns about technical losses, ENEE debt recovery, and accountability before the bill advances.

President Nasry Asfura called on lawmakers to pass reforms to the Electricity Sector Law to address the state power utility ENEE's monthly losses of approximately 1.2 billion lempiras (about $48 million), which he said strain the government's capacity to fund health, education, and infrastructure.

The Patriotic Solidarity Coalition has called on Congress to strengthen a bipartisan electric-sector reform bill before passage, arguing it must address structural causes of the ENEE crisis—including arrears, technical losses, and governance failures—while guaranteeing state control of the system.

Honduras's power utility ENEE loses more than L17 billion (about $680 million) annually to technical inefficiencies and electricity theft, representing 35% of total output; Congress is advancing reforms to reorganize ENEE into subsidiary units for generation, transmission, and distribution, strengthen the regulatory commission, and establish an independent market operator.

The National Congress unanimously approved a motion directing its Family Commission to coordinate with prosecutors, police, and health regulators to investigate clandestine organizations that openly promote abortion services via social media and digital platforms, despite abortion being constitutionally banned and criminalized in Honduras.

Congressman Antonio Rivera Callejas says Congress will vote to extend by three to five months the deadline for the CNE electoral board to seat its third full board member, allowing it to meet quorum with a substitute member in the interim.

The Liberal Party's congressional delegation will present next week an alternative to the governing party's proposed reforms to the electricity sector, focusing on two disputed articles while seeking to rescue the state utility without privatization.

The opposition Liberal Party says it will back planned overhaul of Honduras's electric sector only if the government explicitly guarantees that the state-owned ENEE will not be privatized and public assets will not be pledged as collateral.

Congressman Arnold Burgos says the government lacks 13 votes from the opposition Liberal Party to pass reforms to Honduras's electricity sector, while denying plans to privatize the state utility ENEE.

Lawmakers passed a decree to restructure agricultural debt and forgive arrears, with PROGRANO president Dulio Medina urging the president to sign it to help grain producers regain access to credit and ensure the nation's planting season.

Congressman Marco Antonio Midence says passage of a law requiring centralized registration of beneficial owners would help Honduras comply with international anti-money-laundering standards and remove it from the Financial Action Task Force gray list.

Members of Congress have modified the content of at least three already-approved laws by using parliamentary reconsiderations and amendments to session records—a practice legal analysts say violates the Legislative Organic Law and echoes a 2018 corruption case.

Civil-society groups proposed a conditional two-round presidential system requiring a second ballot if no candidate wins 45% of valid votes or leads the runner-up by at least ten points, but the National Congress's Electoral Affairs Committee confirmed insufficient votes to advance the constitutional amendment needed for the 2029 elections.