Puerto Vallarta, Mexico — The business community and tourism sector in Puerto Vallarta have reached a last-minute consensus with municipal authorities over two proposed taxes targeting visitors. The initiatives, introduced by Municipal President Luis Ernesto Munguía González, initially raised concerns among local businesses due to their potential impact on tourism.
The proposed taxes aimed to impose a “cleaning up” contribution on visitors and a special levy on foreign tourists for the use of public and recreational spaces. Following limited initial discussions with business organizations, members of the Puerto Vallarta and Bahía de Banderas Business Coordinating Council and the Advisory Council engaged in more in-depth talks after the municipal session last Saturday.
On Wednesday, two joint committee sessions were convened by the Finance Committee, chaired by Munguía González, scheduled for 1:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. Councilors from the Finance and Tourism commissions attended, along with prominent business leaders such as Fernando Castro Rubio, president of the Association of Entrepreneurs of Bahía de Banderas and Puerto Vallarta (AEBBA), Francisco Gabriel Vizcaíno Rendón, president of Coparmex, and other notable figures like Marcelo Alcaraz, Rosa Limón, Nena Avelar, and Sergio Jaimes.
After a brief wait, the business representatives moved to the office of the General Secretary, where they were joined by Guadalupe Baryari González, president of the Business Coordinating Council, and Jorge Villanueva Hernández, president of the Advisory Council. Municipal officials present included Víctor Bernal Vargas, coordinator of the Green Party faction, Municipal Treasurer Raúl Rodrigo Pérez Hernández, and councilors Arnulfo Ortega Contreras and Christian Bravo Carbajal. Mayor Luis Ernesto Munguía González also joined the closed-door meeting, which lasted about an hour.
Following the meeting, the joint session of the municipal commissions commenced. The proposal to include a special tax in the 2025 Municipal Income Law was read, suggesting that foreign tourists entering Puerto Vallarta by air, sea, or land would be charged 2.5 Units of Measure and Update (UMAs) for the use of public and recreational spaces.
Multiple rounds of discussions took place, with councilors and private sector representatives voicing concerns about collection methods, oversight, and the potential impact on the city’s appeal to tourists. Councilor Arnulfo Ortega Contreras proposed reducing the tax by half to 1.2 UMAs. Additionally, the idea of creating a trust to manage the collected funds was introduced. This trust would focus on the improvement and maintenance of public spaces, particularly in tourist areas, with equal participation from the private sector and the municipal government.
Before the resolution was put to a vote, Municipal Treasurer Pérez Hernández emphasized the importance of securing additional resources to meet the growing demands for improved garbage collection, street maintenance, and tourist infrastructure. He revealed that an agreement had been reached between private sector representatives and authorities, leading to the decision to set aside the initial proposal for a sanitation tax.
The resolution was endorsed by a majority of the councilors present and is set to be presented at the next ordinary session of the City Council.
