Relations between Mexico’s scientific community and the government of Andrés Manuel López Obrador, a left-wing populist, have never been warm. But the debate over a new bill governing Mexican science and technology has brought the acrimony to a boiling point. The government says the new law, which may soon be sent to Mexico’s parliament for a vote, would improve science and technology policymaking and help guarantee sufficient funding and support for research. But a draft presented in December 2020 by María Elena Álvarez-Buylla Roces, head of the National Council of Science and Technology (Conacyt), has met with a barrage of criticism from scientists. They say it would increase Conacyt’s power, deprive the scientific community of a say in future science policy, and limit academic freedom.