QCOSTARICA — After four failed attempts to force a vote, the government of Rodrigo Chaves has canceled the low-cost flights to Central America bill.
The Executive Branch decided to cancel the extraordinary sessions of the bill, which was approved in two debates in the Legislative Assembly and vetoed by President Rodrigo Chaves.
After four attempts to have the bill voted on the legislative floor, all unsuccessful, the government decided to set the issue aside for now.
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“No, we cancel it. I’m sure it doesn’t have the votes, and we don’t want it to go to a committee and continue kicking the can down the road,” said the leader of the ruling party, Pilar Cisneros, on Thursday.
Following the approval of the bill in early February, the initiative, which would lower the cost of round-trip tickets to the isthmus countries to $100 and to the Dominican Republic to $120, was vetoed by the president.
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In ordinary sessions, the issue was brought up for discussion twice, with the intention of a majority of legislators to reseal it; However, opposition from the ruling party and Nueva Republica factions, combined with the large number of legislators in the sessions, led to its postponement.
To override a presidential veto and reseal a vetoed bill, 38 votes are required. However, the number of legislators convened in recent weeks has not exceeded 47, making it impossible for those interested in reseal to secure support.
The Executive Branch, in its veto of the bill, argued that it would significantly impact tourism in Costa Rica.
It did so in early May, canceling the entire agenda and leaving only that file on the agenda. However, on that occasion, a lack of quorum suspended the session to analyze the president’s speech and postponed it to the next day, which caused the plan to fail.
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It tried the same strategy last week, canceling the entire agenda and leaving only that item to be discussed.
Since it is a special file, it must be heard before 4 pm, as it is the first part of the session. Last Thursday, legislators countered the government’s strategy by letting the deadline pass without the item being heard.
This week, on Monday, the ruling party presented a motion to extend the first part of the session to discuss the veto file until its final vote.
That motion required 38 votes, but it didn’t get them. On Tuesday, the vote was taken again, and the ruling party’s intention also failed.
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After four failed attempts, the Executive branch decided to cancel the session.
“We’ll see when it’s called again,” Cisneros concluded.
If and when the reseal occurs, one-way flights to and from Costa Rica to Central America destinations would be capped at US$50; US$100 for return flights. Flights to and from the Dominican Republic would be capped at US$60 and US$120.
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