Kast's Big Beautiful Bill

CHILE - In Brief 23 Apr 2026 by Robert Funk

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President José Antonio Kast has framed his National Reconstruction Plan as a response to the three crises he claims Chile is facing: economic, political and security. Kast knows that of the three, it is security that has been uppermost in the electorate’s mind. Yet the Plan appears to be centered on the first two, aiming to restore economic growth, and implementing a major overhaul of the state. Broadly speaking the plan consists of speeding up rebuilding homes and infrastructure in areas affected by wildfires (USD 450m); tax breaks and restructuring aimed at boosting investment and growth, including bringing corporate tax down to 23% and a capital repatriation plan; reducing fiscal expenditure; encouraging new construction; and cutting red tape and facilitating permits. Many of the tax cuts will be gradual. Essentially, then, the Plan, which began its legislative journey on Wednesday, brings together all of Kast’s main campaign promises under the umbrella of one ‘Big Beautiful Bill’. At its core, however, the plan relies on a familiar – rather Reaganesque – proposition: growth will return if the state gets out of the way. Tax and spending cuts will, the government is confident, coax investors back towards Chile. After years of political uncertainty, low growth, and security concerns, business confidence has wavered. The same is true for the public at large: those who believe that the economy is stuck or regressing jumped from 56% to 82% after the Iran-related increase in gas prices. Critics argue that the Plan is driven less by evidence than by ideology. The assumption that lower taxes will necessarily translate into higher investment and job creation is iffy at best....