On the night of June 25, the Chamber of Deputies passed a bill modifying the Knowledge Economy Law with 246 votes in favor and two against. The text, which was sent to Congress by the Executive Branch and endorsed by the opposition, is expected to be approved in the near future.

During the meeting, the chairman of the Communications Committee, Pablo Carro (Frente de Todos), explained that the bill was aimed at “defining a State policy”, adding that  “what we are looking for with this promotion regime is to double the number of jobs in ten years. (…) There are vital industries in the Argentine economy: in addition to the agro-export industry and the automotive industry, there are Argentina’s exports from the knowledge economy”, he added.

“This bill is in line with what the president says when he talks about a new social contract, precisely because of the way the discussion was carried out. We have listened to all the actors involved, and come up with a bill that is a fair response to the requests being made across the board, and we have accepted modifications suggested by the opposition in order to reach a consensus,” he said.

Karina Banfi (UCR), deputy and vice-president of the committee, also stressed the importance of having achieved a unified text and said: “the draft was insufficient, but at the end of the day we were able to reach an agreement.”

The Knowledge Economy Bill was passed in 2019 during Mauricio Macri’s administration, creating a regime to promote software development, audiovisual production, biotechnology, biochemistry, agricultural industry and robotics, among other areas. However, when his government took office, Alberto Fernández suspended the regulations involved.

The modifications include new requirements for training on how to access the companies’ register, employer and tax benefits, and transitional clauses aimed at providing greater facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Teleworking

During the same session, the bill regulating teleworking was passed, with 241 votes in favor, one against and 29 abstentions. It establishes workers’ rights to digital disconnection, flexible hours for those obliged to perform care-related activities, the employer’s obligation to ensure the correct working conditions, and compensation for expenditure on telecommunications services.