Argentina lawmakers have approved Milei's sweeping reform bill but much negotiating remains

1 of 10 |

Signs with a message that read in Spanish: “let it now be a law”, are attached to lawmakers’ desks at the end of a session where a bill promoted by Argentine President Javier Milei was approved in general by the lower house of Congress, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Friday, Feb. 2, 2024. The bill, that includes a broad range of economic, administrative, criminal and environmental reforms, must now be debated article by article and will then be sent to the Senate. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

2 of 10 |

Lawmakers attend a debate for a bill promoted by Argentine President Javier Milei at the National Congress, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Friday, Feb. 2, 2024. The bill includes a broad range of economic, administrative, criminal and environmental reforms. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

3 of 10 |

Anti-government protesters scuffle with police outside Congress after a bill promoted by Argentine President Javier Milei was approved in general by the lower house of Congress, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Friday, Feb. 2, 2024. The bill, that includes a broad range of economic, administrative, criminal and environmental reforms, must now be debated article by article and will then be sent to the Senate. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

4 of 10 |

An anti-government protester rallies outside Congress after a bill promoted by Argentine President Javier Milei was approved in general by the lower house of Congress, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Friday, Feb. 2, 2024. The bill, that includes a broad range of economic, administrative, criminal and environmental reforms, must now be debated article by article and will then be sent to the Senate. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

5 of 10 |

Police deploy outside Congress where a bill promoted by Argentine President Javier Milei was approved in general by the lower house of Congress, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Friday, Feb. 2, 2024. The bill, that includes a broad range of economic, administrative, criminal and environmental reforms, must now be debated article by article and will then be sent to the Senate.

6 of 10 |

Police guard Congress after a bill promoted by Argentine President Javier Milei was approved in general by the lower house of Congress, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Friday, Feb. 2, 2024. The bill, that includes a broad range of economic, administrative, criminal and environmental reforms, must now be debated article by article and will then be sent to the Senate. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

7 of 10 |

A legislator pumps his fist as he exits the Congress building after a bill promoted by Argentine President Javier Milei was approved in general by the lower house of Congress, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Friday, Feb. 2, 2024. The bill, that includes a broad range of economic, administrative, criminal and environmental reforms, must now be debated article by article and will then be sent to the Senate. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

8 of 10 |

Police guard Congress where the lower house approved a bill promoted by Argentine President Javier Milei, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Friday, Feb. 2, 2024. The bill, that includes a broad range of economic, administrative, criminal and environmental reforms, must now be debated article by article and will then be sent to the Senate. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

9 of 10 |

People react to the effects of tear gas fired by police, outside Congress after a bill promoted by Argentine President Javier Milei was approved in general by the lower house of Congress, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Friday, Feb. 2, 2024. The bill, that includes a broad range of economic, administrative, criminal and environmental reforms, must now be debated article by article and will then be sent to the Senate. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

10 of 10 |

Anti-government protester rally outside Congress after a bill promoted by Argentine President Javier Milei was approved in general by the lower house of Congress, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Friday, Feb. 2, 2024. The bill, that includes a broad range of economic, administrative, criminal and environmental reforms, must now be debated article by article and will then be sent to the Senate. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Argentina’s Chamber of Deputies on Friday approved in general terms a reform bill proposed by libertarian President Javier Milei to deregulate the economy, overcoming a hurdle for the sweeping initiative after three days of heated debate.

But the fine print of the omnibus bill’s more than 300 articles, including economic, administrative, criminal and environmental changes, is still subject to negotiations in the lower house. The initiative must also be approved by the Senate.

On Friday, lower house lawmakers approved Milei’s initiative with 144 votes in favor and 109 against. The house goes into recess until Tuesday, when the deputies will begin negotiating the individual articles in the bill.

Milei thanked opposition leaders who supported the initiative, saying “they understood the historical context and chose to end the privileges of the caste and the corporate republic, in favor of the people, who have been impoverished and are hungry.”

While they approved the omnibus legislation in general terms, some lawmakers have expressed reservations about articles relating to the privatization of state companies and the delegation of legislative powers to the president. Other articles in the bill aim to lift state controls over the economy, reform the administrative, health and education sectors, and raise public service and utility rates.

Students protest for more public university funding and against austerity measures proposed by President Javier Milei, featured on the sign, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tuesday, April 23, 2024. The posters read in Spanish "With fascism, there are no rights," center, and "Why so much fear to educate the people?," right, and "Defending the university is defending the country," left. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

With public universities under threat, massive protests against austerity shake Argentina

Leonardo Favio Correa carries yerba mate to a truck in Andresito, in Argentina’s northeast Misiones Province, Wednesday, April 17, 2024. Beneath the earthy drink’s mythical quality is grueling work, first performed by Indigenous tribes on Jesuit settlements in what is now Paraguay and today by low-paid laborers known as “tareferos,” in the steamy grasslands of Argentina’s northeast Misiones Province, center of the world's maté production. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

AP PHOTOS: In northeastern Argentina, yerba mate is more than the national drink, it’s a way of life

A police officer stands guard on a street in Rosario, Argentina, Monday, April 8, 2024. President Javier Milei has promised to prosecute gang members as terrorists and change the law to allow the army into crime-ridden streets for the first time since Argentina's brutal military dictatorship ended in 1983. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

An unprecedented wave of narco-violence is stunning an Argentina city

Pushing the initiative through legislature has tested the negotiating capacity of Milei, an economist with little previous political experience who took office Dec. 10. His Freedom Advances party is the third strongest in Congress and lacks the seats to impose his agenda alone.

The president, who describes as a libertarian and anarcho-capitalist, has promised to drastically reduce state spending to shore up a government budget deficit that he says is fueling inflation, which finished 2023 at 211%.

Since his inauguration, Milei has devalued Argentina’s currency by 50%, cut transport and energy subsidies, and said his government won’t renew contracts for more than 5,000 state employees hired before he took office.

The measures and proposals have stirred protests in Buenos Aires, Argentina’s capital. Last week, the president faced a one-day general strike organized by the biggest union.

Argentina lawmakers have approved Milei’s sweeping reform bill but much negotiating remains