Around 70 municipalities are under embargo in Honduras

While the municipalities face embargoes exceeding 1.2 billion lempiras, the organization demanded respect for the legal limit that establishes a ceiling of 40% for judicial withholdings. It warned that in several cases the resolutions allow the total embargo of state transfers, which leaves them without resources even for the payment of salaries.

The Amhon detailed that the million-dollar embargoes affect the operability of more than a dozen municipalities and put at risk the continuity of key projects for the population. It affirmed that, if the current mechanisms are not reviewed nor urgent measures are adopted, the negative impact on the municipalities may grow in the coming months and generate greater difficulties for thousands of Hondurans who depend directly on the municipalities for essential services. According to association data, around 70 municipalities are under embargo due to different lawsuits, a situation that has caused delays or cancellation of infrastructure works, suspension of social programs and postponement of payments to municipal employees.

The Honduran municipalities are currently facing the withholding of funds for an amount that exceeds 1.2 billion lempiras, a figure that compromises the financial viability of more than a dozen municipalities. The president of Amhon, Nelson Castellanos, specified that in at least 12 municipalities the embargoes originate in labor demands and administrative processes inherited from previous administrations, mainly due to dismissals made by outgoing mayors that resulted in judicial rulings against the municipalities.

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The impact is reflected in services such as infrastructure maintenance, payroll payments, solid waste collection, and the execution of small community projects. Castellanos expressed the seriousness of the situation: “Behind a mayor, there is a people who suffer the consequences of a degree of irresponsibility”, emphasizing that the damages directly affect thousands of citizens. The president of the Amhon denounced that, in some cases, the embargoes have reached 100% of the transfers that the municipalities receive from the Central Government, despite the fact that the current regulations establish a ceiling of 40%. According to Castellanos, this situation leaves the administrations without operational capacity and jeopardizes the fulfillment of basic functions.

The labor lawsuits that motivate these embargoes are usually related to liabilities inherited from previous municipal corporations. Many elected mayors assume functions in the midst of advanced judicial processes due to external decisions, which complicates the planning and financial sanitation of local governments. The Amhon currently accompanies several mayors who, upon assuming their positions, were already facing lawsuits and accumulated debts.

Castellanos pointed out that the main problem is the execution of the embargoes, not the fulfillment of the sentences or the respect for labor rights. The association requests a comprehensive analysis of the judicial processes and the creation of clear rules to prevent the new municipal corporations from dragging sanctions derived from administrative irregularities of their predecessors. The suspension of social programs and infrastructure works affects thousands of citizens due to the lack of municipal funds. (Photo: social networks) The institution suggests more legal advice, stricter controls on hiring and firing, and schemes to avoid the accumulation of unsustainable labor liabilities. The mayor of Ojos de Agua, Xiomara Ulloa, explained that, in addition to the withholdings due to lawsuits, the municipalities face debts for transfers not received in the last year. “We are left with a debt from last year in terms of the 2025 budget and now we are in those demands so that what is owed to us can be paid and we can respond to our population,” Ulloa pointed out. For small and rural municipalities, where local tax collection is low, state transfers represent the main source of operating income. When these funds are partially or totally withheld, the municipalities must suspend projects, delay payments, and reduce or interrupt basic services.

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Faced with the resource blockade, municipalities in different regions of the country have had to suspend paving projects, improvements in community centers, and maintenance work on rural roads. Social support programs have also been interrupted and, in some cases, municipal employees reported delays in receiving their salaries. Meanwhile, Amhon reiterates its call to urgently review both the embargoes and the delays in transfers. The association considers that compliance with the legal limit of 40% is essential to avoid a total paralysis of local governments.