MEXICO · PUBLIC FINANCES
Federal auditors flagged payments to dead workers on Puebla state’s education payroll, the Mexican daily Publimetro’s Puebla edition said on 2 November 2026. On Friday, 30 October 2026, the Auditoría Superior de la Federación (ASF), Mexico’s federal audit office, presented the second batch of its Cuenta Pública 2025 audits, the review of the government’s 2025 public accounts, La Crónica de Hoy, a Mexico City daily, said.
Mexico’s states run schools and health clinics with federal money, which is why audits of that money matter to anyone doing business there. The same audit cycle produced an ASF criminal complaint on 16 October 2026, which we covered in our Nuevo León report.
Key Facts
- Puebla Auditors flagged over 39.1 million pesos (about US$2.1 million) in Puebla’s education payroll for 2025.
- Dead payees 903,562 pesos (about US$48,600) went to 22 workers who died during 2025.
- Nationwide More than 9 billion pesos (about US$484 million) still need explaining across all three levels of government.
- Complaints ASF head Aureliano Hernández says the ASF filed 40 criminal complaints in his first six months.
- Power Index Mexico ranks 2nd of 14 in The Rio Times Latin America Power Index, with 70.8 points (November 2026 edition).
Federal auditors flagged payments to dead workers in Puebla’s education payroll, and a refund of part of it has been reported.
What the Auditors Found in Puebla
The ASF examined the FONE, the Fondo de Aportaciones para la Nómina Educativa y Gasto Operativo, a federal fund for state education payrolls and operating costs. It also reviewed the federal and state payroll of Puebla’s education ministry for 2025, Publimetro said.
The auditors flagged possible irregularities of more than 39.1 million pesos (about US$2.1 million), according to Publimetro. We convert pesos at 18.59 per US$, the market rate on 13 November 2026.
Per death records in Health Ministry databases, 903,562 pesos (about US$48,600) went to 22 workers who died during 2025, Publimetro said. It added that the report shows 981,143 pesos (about US$52,800) returned to the federal Treasury for this item.
A further 1,924,511 pesos (about US$103,500) went to 20 workers whose death records date from years before 2025, with no proof of where the money came from. On the state payroll, 21,938 pesos (about US$1,180) went to five workers with death records, Publimetro said.
In Plain English
The ASF is Mexico’s federal audit office and presents its reports to the Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of Congress. Its Cuenta Pública reports review how public bodies spent money in 2025, and it refers cases to prosecutors, who decide whether anyone is charged.
The FONE is a federal fund for state education payrolls and operating costs. SEP Puebla is the state education ministry that runs that payroll.
Other flagged items include 15,685,209 pesos (about US$844,000) paid to 168 workers while on unpaid leave. Publimetro also listed 7,619,551 pesos (about US$410,000) for nine workers of the Sindicato Nacional de Trabajadores de la Educación (SNTE), Mexico’s national teachers’ union, with no proven link to teaching.
Publimetro’s account adds 6,554,802 pesos (about US$352,600) for 19 workers who held elected office, with no proven teaching work. It also lists 4,054,216 pesos (about US$218,000) for eight workers in posts at geographically incompatible workplaces.
The last items are 257,379 pesos (about US$13,800) paid to 21 workers after their termination date, 369,993 pesos (about US$19,900) to three workers holding posts in different states with incompatible locations, and 1,323,417 pesos (about US$71,200) to 22 state-payroll workers on unpaid leave. Publimetro describes the whole sum as possible irregularities, not proven fraud.
Where the Wider Audit Stands
The ASF found more than 9 billion pesos (about US$484 million) still to be explained across federal, state and municipal government, La Crónica de Hoy and UnoTV, a Mexican news site, reported. Aureliano Hernández, the ASF’s head, presented the batch to the Chamber of Deputies.
Of that, 5.2 billion pesos (about US$280 million) sits with 42 municipalities that did not show where the money went, UnoTV said. Another 2.327 billion pesos (about US$125 million) concerns the Fondo Especial para Financiamientos Agropecuarios, a farm-credit fund, and the Autoridad Educativa Federal, the federal education authority for Mexico City.
State governments account for 1.2 billion pesos (about US$65 million), mainly in health and education, according to UnoTV. Hernández said the ASF filed 40 criminal complaints with the anti-corruption prosecutor in his first six months in office, both outlets reported.
Why Payroll Audits Matter
Mexico’s audit office finds and refers cases, and prosecutors decide whether anyone is charged. That split makes a flagged payment the start of a process, not its end.
Publimetro says the death records were taken from Health Ministry databases. In Puebla that check produced two sets of dead-payee findings, one for 2025 deaths and one for earlier years.
What This Means for You
Mexico’s states run schools and health clinics with federal money, so audits like this show how closely that money is tracked. For US firms and exporters operating in Mexico, public-spending integrity is part of the local business climate.
Our Mexico coverage follows the country’s public finances, and the Latin America Power Map shows who holds power across the region. Both give context for audit stories like this one.
What Is Not Known
We could not check the ASF’s own report text against the press accounts, and each state’s individual report holds the full detail. Publimetro’s account lists 981,143 pesos returned for the dead-worker item, more than the 903,562 pesos flagged for 2025 deaths, and the gap is unexplained.
Observed payments are findings to be explained, not proof of fraud, and no criminal charges over the Puebla payroll are known. Findings in other states and any nationwide count of dead payees are not covered here.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the ASF?
The Auditoría Superior de la Federación is Mexico’s federal audit office, which presents its reports to the lower house of Congress. It checks how federal, state and local bodies spent public money.
Does the audit prove fraud?
No, the ASF flags possible irregularities that must be explained. No criminal charges over the Puebla payroll are known.
Was any money returned?
Publimetro says the report shows 981,143 pesos (about US$52,800) returned to the federal Treasury for the dead-worker item. Whether other flagged amounts were refunded is not known.
Sources: Auditoría Superior de la Federación, second batch of Cuenta Pública 2025 reports, presented 30 October 2026, as described by the outlets below (the ASF site could not be opened); RT, peso rate of 13 November 2026; La Crónica de Hoy, 30 October 2026; UnoTV, report on the 30 October 2026 presentation; Publimetro (Puebla edition), 2 November 2026.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated AI newsroom. Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief. The Rio Times also runs Ask Rio Times, which answers from 100,000+ of our own articles, the daily Latin America Power Map, and prediction-market odds on elections and markets.. How we use AI · Report an error