Bill No. 304, presented on July 9, 2025 by legislator Alexandra María Brenes Samaniego of circuit 8-2 and six co-sponsors, including Miguel Ángel Campos Lima, Luis Henrique Duke Walker, Walkiria Aurora Chandler D'Orcy, Roberto José Federico Zúñiga Alvarado, Janine Prado Castaño and Jorge Alberto González López, proposes amending Article 19 and adding Article 19-A to Law 41 of July 20, 2004, the founding statute of the Panamá-Pacífico Special Economic Area (ÁEEPP), established on the grounds of the former Howard Base in the district of Arraiján.

The initiative sets eight requirements for principal and alternate members of the Board of Directors of the ÁEEPP Agency: being a Panamanian over 25 years old, or a foreign resident who complies with immigration regulations; holding a bachelor's or engineering university degree recognized by the University of Panama in Law, Logistics, Economic Sciences, Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, Public Administration or engineering; demonstrating suitability and at least five years of professional experience in public administration or business administration functions; not having been convicted of an intentional crime against public administration or a crime against economic assets; being a person of recognized integrity; having no ties by consanguinity up to the fourth degree or by affinity up to the second degree with the president of the Republic, ministers of State, the administrator, the deputy administrator or the other directors; having no commercial interests in companies that contract with the State; and filing a sworn asset declaration at the beginning and end of the term.

The new Article 19-A also incorporates an express conflict-of-interest clause that prohibits directors from holding an economic stake in companies whose services or obligations are inherent to the functions described in the law itself. The proponent justified the reform by noting that the ÁEEPP currently hosts approximately 415 active companies and generates more than six thousand fixed jobs, figures that reflect the entity's strategic importance and the need to ensure technical and transparent governance.

In the First Reading of April 21, 2026, chaired by legislator Ernesto Cedeño Alvarado as president of the Commerce and Economic Affairs Committee, representatives of the Ministry of Commerce and Industries (MICI), the Panamá Pacífico Agency itself, the Association of Companies of the Panamá Pacífico Area (ADEDAPP), the National Council of Private Enterprise (CONEP) and Panama Legal Group participated. ADEDAPP and CONEP raised technical objections: they argued that the exhaustive list of degrees excludes valuable profiles, such as entrepreneurs without formal degrees or specialists in high technology and aviation, and that the restriction on ties to companies contracting with the State would in practice disqualify a large share of private-sector candidates.

The Agency's deputy administrator, Arturo Bolívar Araúz, requested more time for analysis and improvement proposals, while legislator Brenes replied that interested parties had had since July 2025 to submit contributions. After deliberation, the committee approved the bill article by article with six votes in favor, zero against and zero abstentions, and instructed the drafting of a consolidated text of Law 41 of 2004. The bill moved to Second Reading on April 23, 2026 and remains pending at that stage, in the 2025-2026 legislative period.

From an economic standpoint, the reform does not alter the ÁEEPP's fiscal, labor or immigration incentives regime or the exempted activities, including multimodal logistics, corporate headquarters, high technology, and the aeronautical and film industries, among others, but introduces suitability controls at the management level. The debate underscores a tension present in several of the country's special zones: efficiency in attracting private investment versus the accountability expected of an autonomous entity subject to oversight by the Office of the Comptroller General of the Republic and to the general state budget.