Wednesday, July 1, 2026 — Evening Edition

José Azcona, a Liberal Party engineer and former congressman, contends that the government's plan to split the state power utility into three private-market companies would effectively privatize the electricity market and drive up costs for poor consumers, though he says ENEE can be salvaged without outright privatization.

President Nasry Asfura asked US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to help protect tens of thousands of Hondurans whose Temporary Protected Status may end, warning of family separation, lost jobs, and disrupted schooling.

Also reported by: TuNota (Canal 5 / TSI), Cancillería / SRECI (X), Radio América Honduras

Through its US embassy, the Honduran Foreign Ministry published an updated June 2026 guide to Temporary Protected Status, spelling out requirements, procedures, rights, protections, and support resources for Honduran TPS holders and applicants.

Marvin Ponce alleged Wednesday that five Liberal Party lawmakers are demanding bribes for their votes on energy reforms meant to curb electricity theft and break the state utility into three separate entities.

Former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernández, pardoned by Trump in December 2025, could face a new US investigation into the 2022 murder of Said Lobo, son of former president Porfirio Lobo, with possible charges of conspiracy and murder of a US citizen that carry life imprisonment or the death penalty.

A member of Congress proposed reopening enrollment in an expired microbusiness tax-incentive program, tying new benefits to companies boosting jobs by at least 20% and adding safeguards against fraud and duplicate claims.

An attorney for former president Juan Orlando Hernández said he will call on technical consultants to rebut money-laundering accusations at an August 3 hearing, when Hernández is set to appear before a judge.

Honduras's electricity regulator approved a third rate increase for 2026, taking effect July 1 and expected to raise bills 5–10% through September, pushing year-to-date increases to nearly 15% amid above-target inflation and a depreciating lempira.

Also reported by: El Libertador, TuNota (Canal 5 / TSI), Infobae – Honduras, Radio HRN

Honduran agricultural production fell 3.6% in the first quarter of 2026, erasing 2025's gains, driven mainly by lower grain and coffee harvests.

Honduras's coffee price slipped 0.8% year-over-year to $3.07 per kilogram in July, though the country remains among the world's top five coffee exporters and the crop supports thousands of farming families.

Transport operators say urban bus fares will stay at 13 lempiras despite recent fuel-price drops, citing other operating costs and a government subsidy that is three months behind.

Also reported by: Radio América Honduras

Honduras's net foreign reserves have grown by $1.124 billion since January 27, the Central Bank reported, with import coverage holding steady at 6.6 months.

Central Bank President Roberto Lagos said Honduras must ready monetary and fiscal measures in line with IMF recommendations to contain inflation, while watching how fuel prices work through the economy; he said no immediate rate change is needed given US Federal Reserve policy.

State utility ENEE will cut power on July 2 to multiple areas of Choluteca, Valle, and Francisco Morazán departments from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. for scheduled network maintenance and upgrades.

Also reported by: Once Noticias, Radio HRN

Congress authorized three contracts to build and oversee water-supply infrastructure in Comayagüela (Tegucigalpa) and Apacilagua (Choluteca), with funding secured through 2026 and beyond.

Also reported by: Radio América Honduras

The Municipal Water and Sanitation Agency (UMAPS) has issued a schedule for Tegucigalpa limiting drinking-water delivery to one day a week per sector, with times varying by neighborhood from July 1–5.

Pavel Espinal, former deputy director of Honduras's aviation authority, accuses Toncontín Airport concessionaire Palmerola International Airport of neglecting runway repairs and questions how $3.6 million approved for the work was used, pointing to pilot complaints about deteriorating conditions.

Darling Hércules, a mother of three from Choloma, died after being bitten by a fer-de-lance (barba amarilla), one of Honduras's most venomous snakes; authorities say the circumstances remain under investigation.

Also reported by: Radio HRN

A court in San Pedro Sula convicted three people of human trafficking, forced labor, aggravated assault, and the illegal adoption of four children they forced to collect scrap under threats and in chains in Puerto Cortés, with each facing up to 37 years in prison.

José Enrique Amaya, 29, was arrested in Yoro after police found he had staged his own kidnapping, using tomato paste to fake wounds, to demand 600,000 lempiras (about $24,000) from his sister in the United States.

A man identified as Ernesto Vaca was killed when a motorcycle struck him on a main street in the Ramón Amaya neighborhood of Comayagüela, Tegucigalpa.

An explosion at a home-based fireworks and powder-products operation in Copán killed two people—a woman and a 4-year-old child—and left three others with severe burns; authorities said high temperatures and a possible lack of safety measures likely contributed, though the investigation continues.