Court declares Milei decree halting university funding 'unconstitutional,' orders immediate application

Argentina’s courts have dealt President Javier Milei’s government a fresh setback in its funding dispute with state universities, after a federal judge ordered the government to implement a law it had sought to suspend.

Judge Martín Cormick, of Federal Administrative Litigation Court No. 11, ruled last Tuesday that an emergency decree issued by President Milei (Decree 759/2025) was “unconstitutional” because it conditioned the implementation of the University Financing Law. 

Cormick ordered the government to put the law into effect and implement it immediately.

The judge said in a ruling that the government could not simultaneously promulgate a law and then suspend its application after Congress had insisted on its approval with a two-thirds majority in both chambers, as established by Article 83 of the Constitution when the Executive Branch vetoes a norm. 

Cormick argued that the government's move effectively amounted to a “covert veto.” Although the law had been promulgated, its implementation was blocked through Article 5 of Law 24,629, which states that legislation requiring public spending must identify the corresponding funding in the Budget.

The dispute dates back to last year, when the Milei government vetoed Law 27,795 for Financing University Education and Restoring Teacher Pay through Decree 647/2025. 

The law, approved by Congress, provides for the updating of budgets of national universities and measures to improve the pay of teaching and non-academic staff, as well as funding for operating costs, scholarships, infrastructure and other needs across the university system.

Teaching and non-academic unions have been demanding higher salaries and increased state university funding. The latest court ruling also comes amid new stoppages as unions seek to force the government to comply with Law 27,795.

The conflict also has a new date marked in the calendar – the fifth Federal University March, called by FSUN (Frente Sindical de Universidades Nacionales), CIN (Consejo Interuniversitario Nacional) and FUA (Federación Universitaria Argentina), is scheduled for October 15.

The demonstration will demand implementation of the law, including measures to restore the purchasing power of teaching and non-academic staff, as well as increased funding for universities.

The protest comes as Congress debates the government's proposed 2027 Budget, adding another point of pressure on the administration over its approach to public university funding.