Judiciary suspends implementation of university funding law

The implementation of the public university funding law, which aimed to grant salary and resource raises for the sector, was suspended after the National Appeals Chamber granted a government request. On Thursday, the court agreed to suspend the effects of the Congress-approved norm until the Supreme Court makes a decision regarding whether the national state has to comply with it or not. The public universities funding law was approved in August 2025, but Milei vetoed it days later on the grounds that it went against his zero deficit goals. In September, both chambers of Congress rejected the veto, and the bill became law. However, Milei has since refused to implement it and suspended its execution through a decree that stated that the law could not become effective until it was established where the funding would come from. In late March, a federal court ordered the government to comply with a segment of the norm that granted a salary raise for university staff, which was considered the most urgent item in the text. Following that, the government filed an extraordinary federal appeal to have the case brought before the Supreme Court of Justice, and have the law suspended in the meantime, which was now accepted by the appeals chamber. The national government ratifies its commitment with granting the right to teach and learn in a framework of sustainability of public accounts and the efficient allocation of state resources, the human capital ministry, in charge of education policy, said in a statement announcing the ruling. A critical situation The ruling favorable to the government comes as public universities are in the middle of a struggle program, including constant strikes since classes began in early April and holding public lectures on the streets instead of classrooms. On Tuesday, public universities across Argentina will carry out a federal universities march to protest the governments decision not to implement the funding law. It will be the fourth time the community takes to the streets to protest Mileis austerity measures affecting public universities since the start of his government. University hospitals Hospitals that depend on public universities are also in the spotlight. Earlier this week, directors of hospitals that depend on the University of Buenos Aires (UBA) denounced that the government has not issued any of the funds that correspond to operation costs of those institutions as stated in the 2026 national budget. The human capital ministry, on the other hand, has said that they have transferred the funds monthly and that what the UBA is requesting is almost 95% of funds destined for university hospitals across the entire country, which the office has yet to decide how to distribute and admits it has not transferred yet. According to fact-checking website Chequeado, in 2024 and 2025 the government transferred 90% of the operation cost funds to university hospitals under the scope of the UBA, meaning that, if they want to maintain the level of resources allocated to them in the past two years, they would have to transfer the total of the available funds to UBA hospitals. UBA vice rector Emiliano Yacobitti questioned the governments decision, saying that they have not yet transferred any of the funds. We are in the fifth month of the year, he stressed during an interview with Infobae. If you prefer to lower taxes on luxury cars and not pay the money assigned to university hospitals in the 2026 budget, that is a political decision; its not about money, he said.