Background on Zacatecas Legislators and Their Recent Actions
The legislative period for Zacatecas’s LXV Legislature, corresponding to the second year of constitutional exercise, concluded on December 15. On the final working day for these legislators—Tuesday, the 16th—four sessions were held: two ordinary, one solemn to install a new magistrate in the Labor Justice Tribunal, and the last to establish the Permanent Committee.
Legislative Achievements and Controversies
Under time pressure, the legislators tackled various issues. They deliberated and approved the state’s Ley de Egresos for fiscal year 2026, along with the income laws of 58 municipalities. They also passed reforms to the Servicio Civil Law, Justicia Administrativa Law, and the Notariado Law.
The Notariado Law received 15 votes from the ruling coalition (Morena-PVEM) and 10 votes against. During the general discussion, no one spoke in favor of the draft. Opponents included Alfredo Femat Bañuelos (PT), Carlos Peña Badillo (PRI), and María Teresa López García (PAN).
Contentious Changes to the Notariado Law
Morenista María Dolores Trejo Calzada proposed two exams for aspiring notaries: one to attain the aspirant category and another distinct exam for obtaining a notary patent. She also suggested granting the executive power to directly appoint two notaries and two notary publics when deemed necessary.
Furthermore, she proposed amending article 66 Ter so that direct appointments only require five years of professional experience post-professional certificate issuance.
The bill was approved with the proposed reservations, which supplement article 66Bis. This article allows for granting a notary patent in Zacatecas and 20 months of post-designation preparation.
Criticism and Concerns from the Notary Community
Jaime Arturo Casas Madero, president of the consultive council of Zacatecas’s Notarios Colegio, was among the first to voice concerns about this reform being “juridically inadmissible.” Ricardo Vargas, a consejo consejero of the Colegio Nacional del Notariado Mexicano, has criticized the “politically motivated exceptions” sanctioned in Zacatecas’s Congress.
The notary community views the decision to abolish the oposition examination as a “historical setback” that undermines societal legal security. They argue that direct executive appointment “degrades public trust, turning it into a political tool that compromises the notary’s autonomy vis-à-vis power.”
These professionals warn that allowing unevaluated individuals to validate legal acts jeopardizes the stability of Zacatecas families’ property and the validity of wills and deeds. They urge Governor David Monreal Ávila to exercise his veto power.
Unnoticed Consequences: The Disappearance of the General Coordination of Ports
Silent Shift in Maritime and Port Authority
Quietly, the General Coordination of Ports was eliminated. Its last head, Rosa Icela Rodríguez, began her tenure in the lopezobradorist cabinet five years ago. This body was removed from the SCT’s organizational chart, and merchant marine now falls under military command.
The new regulation of the Secretaría de Marina established the subsecretaría of Maritime and Port Affairs, with Almirante Gerardo de Jesús Toledo Guzmán as its inaugural head.
