Cozumel to list tax debtors in credit bureau

Cozumel, Quintana Roo — The Cozumel Municipal Council has approved a proposal from the Municipal Treasury to register taxpayers with prolonged debts in property tax and trash collection services in the Credit Bureau. The official narrative states that “own revenues are indispensable to sustain essential services,” but critics argue this measure represents a financial punishment that harms Cozumel families.

The decision, led by Municipal President José Luis Chacón Méndez, is framed as strengthening revenue collection and promoting fiscal equity. However, the measure has sparked controversy over its potential impact on vulnerable populations and the lack of transparency in municipal spending.

Chacón Méndez stated that “this is not about punishing anyone,” but opponents contend the measure does exactly that—punishing families with limited incomes and perpetuating inequality. The Credit Bureau mechanism can close doors to housing, credit, and opportunities for those listed.

Critics argue that the municipal government is transferring the burden of municipal inefficiency to citizens’ pockets, threatening them with a financial mechanism that could limit their economic opportunities. They claim the measure normalizes punishment as public policy while hiding the lack of transparency in spending and revenue collection.

The official discourse emphasizes fiscal responsibility and equity, but the reality, according to critics, is clear: this is a disguised financial whip that can harm Cozumel families. What is omitted, they say, is the lack of transparency in spending, the simulation in accountability, and the absence of incentives for those who do comply.

The Credit Bureau is not a mechanism of citizen participation but a financial whip that can close doors to housing, credit, and opportunities. Coercion is being normalized as public policy while the precariousness of the most vulnerable sectors is made invisible.

The people of Cozumel do not need financial whips, critics argue, but rather transparency, incentives, and a government that is accountable. Citizens should demand that the municipal government show in clear figures how collected funds are spent and that punishments be replaced with policies of co-responsibility.