In-person property tax and water payments are no longer required 

Jazmín Stengel.- In order to facilitate municipal payments of property tax and Municipal System of Potable Water and Sewerage (SIMAPA), to the  residents of Chapala from any computer, the current administration renewed the agreement that allows it to keep the digital payment platform active.

The electronic payment service will be available this January 24 or 25. Due to new security configurations, it is currently in a testing and trial stage, said Elizabeth Oropeza, director of Social Communication of the City Hall.

At the end of 2020 there were 30,200 urban and 4,600 rural property tax accounts within the municipal limits of Chapala,  

The agreement with BBVA bank was renewed during the course of last week, which now allows the City Hall staff to fine-tune the final details to reactivate the platform that can be found on the official web page www.chapala.gob.mx.

Discounts previously announced in the official government pages will be respected, including 15 percent during the months of January and February, 5 percent in March and April, as well as 50 percent for pensioners, retirees, widows and senior citizens.

The platform was implemented on December 14, 2020, and will be reactivated with the intention of avoiding crowds and facilitating municipal payments to people with coronavirus, disabled or senior citizens, who prefer the digital modality. 

In addition to helping to prevent the possibility of Covid-19 infection, the modernization of this type of system helps to increase collections. 

In 2022 the municipal administration expects to collect revenue of 373,799,144.80 pesos, including  57,258,757 pesos for SIMAPA, according to the Revenue Budget approved in the town council session of August 30, 2021. At that time, the municipal trustee, Isaac Alberto Trejo Gracián, announced the five percent increase, due to the inflation that year after year occurs in all types of products and services.

Translated by Kerry Watson