Background on Andrea Marván and the Cofece
Andrea Marván Saltiel, the current presiding commissioner of Mexico’s Comisión Federal de Competencia Económica (Cofece), has announced that the upcoming new competition authority in Mexico will be “quite comparable” to its United States counterpart, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). This development is expected to facilitate the review process under the Mexico-United States-Canada Agreement (T-MEC).
Upcoming Reforms to Mexico’s Competition Laws
In June, a special session of the Mexican Congress is set to discuss reforms to the Federal Economic Competition Law (LFCE) to comply with a constitutional reform from December 2024. This reform aims to reorganize state functions and replace several autonomous constitutional bodies, including Cofece and the Federal Institute of Telecommunications (IFT).
These bodies will transfer their functions to newly created, sector-specific agencies within the federal public administration (APF).
Key Features of the New Competition Authority
Marván Saltiel praised the federal executive’s initiative, which proposes a new competition authority called the National Antimonopolies Commission. This body will inherit essential attributes from Cofece and resemble the FTC, maintaining crucial elements such as a collegiate governance structure, separation of investigative and sanctioning authorities, and technical independence.
However, there is one caveat: the new organization will have a Plenum of only five commissioners instead of the previous seven.
Marván clarified that having five commissioners is common globally, as seen in the FTC’s structure.
Ensuring Independence and Compliance with T-MEC
The new LFCE establishes that the National Antimonopolies Commission will be a decentralized body under the APF, situated within the Ministry of Economy but with a special regime that, according to Marván, safeguards the agency’s independence.
Marván emphasized that this reform not only amends the competition law but also modifies the law governing semi-autonomous entities and creates a special regime for this decentralized organ.
“This will allow the Commission to continue making technical, collegiate, and independent decisions within the APF structure,” she stated.
Key Questions and Answers
- What changes are being proposed to Mexico’s competition authority? The new competition authority will be called the National Antimonopolies Commission and will have five commissioners, similar to the FTC. It will maintain essential features like collegiate governance and technical independence.
- Why is this change significant? This reform aims to align Mexico’s competition authority more closely with the United States’ FTC, which will facilitate the review process under the T-MEC scheduled for 2026.
- How will the new authority ensure independence? The new LFCE establishes a special regime for the National Antimonopolies Commission, which is decentralized under the APF but maintains decision-making independence.
