As the Dominican Republic’s National Congress prepares to convene its second ordinary legislative session of 2026 this Sunday, August 16, the legislative body confronts a growing public expectation to deliver on long-delayed foundational legal reforms that have sat stagnant in committee for years, even after outgoing leaders hailed the preceding session as a productive success.
The first ordinary legislative session, which wrapped up on July 26, drew praise from Senate President Ricardo de Los Santos and Chamber of Deputies President Alfredo Pacheco, who framed the term’s output as fruitful. Over the course of the session, legislators advanced 416 total legislative initiatives, 122 distinct bills, and enacted 57 new laws. Key pieces of enacted legislation include high-impact institutional reforms such as the Organic Law of Oversight and Control of the National Congress (Law No. 84-25), a updated Penal Code (No. 74-25), a revised Criminal Procedure Code (No. 97-25), the Organic Law of the Ministry of Justice (No. 80-25), the law establishing the new National Intelligence Directorate and regulating the national intelligence system (Law No. 1-26), and the Public Procurement Law (No. 47-25).
For citizen-focused and economic policy, the session delivered updates including the “Alertas RD” National Missing Persons Alert System (Law No. 25-26), legislation to drive economic growth, simplify tax codes and buffer the country against international economic volatility (Law No. 30-26), and an updated framework for real estate rental and eviction processes (Law No. 85-25). Despite this tangible progress, critics and public observers note that a long roster of fundamental, widely awaited legal updates have yet to move past the committee stage, leaving critical gaps in the nation’s legal framework.
Among the stalled priority bills that Dominican society has awaited for years are the long-overdue national Water Code, comprehensive sports legislation, a full reform of the national Labor Code, amendments to the foundational Law 87-01 that established the Dominican Social Security System, and the national School Nutrition Law. The backlog also includes a national Cybersecurity Management law, a complete rewrite of the country’s Civil Code, a updated Code of Civil Procedure, the Energy Efficiency Law, the Nutritional Labeling and Warnings Law, and the landmark Climate Change Law, among dozens of other unaddressed priorities.
When the new session opens this weekend, the legislative agenda will carry over a slate of high-stakes pending initiatives that carry major implications for the country’s long-term development. In addition to the backlogged bills from the previous term, pending legislation includes amendments to the National Police Organic Law (Law No. 590-16), further reforms to the General Health Law and Mental Health Law, and updates to the General Education Law. Lawmakers are also tasked with advancing bills covering public infrastructure security, protection of coastal marine zones and their natural resources, contentious administrative jurisdiction, prevention and elimination of political gender-based violence, prosecution of transnational and domestic criminal organizations, support and protection for crime victims and witnesses, and the previously noted cross-cutting priorities of climate action, sports development, and national cybersecurity. This broad agenda is rounded out by emerging regulatory needs, including disability rights legislation, a national freedom of expression law, and a first-ever regulatory framework for artificial intelligence.
Ahead of the session’s opening, the ruling Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM), which holds an absolute majority in both legislative chambers, has reaffirmed its leadership team, with no changes planned for the chamber governing boards. Pacheco will retain his position as president of the Chamber of Deputies, while de Los Santos will continue leading the Senate, a decision that confirms the party’s confidence in their leadership and institutional experience. In the Senate, the new leadership slate will include Julito Fulcar as vice president, with Guillermo Lama and Aracelys Villanueva serving as secretaries.
As the gavel falls to open the new term, the Dominican Congress faces the clear challenge of building on the previous session’s incremental progress to clear its years-long backlog of transformative reform, delivering the foundational legal updates that Dominican communities and industries have awaited for years.