Rapporteur of the proposal that limits ICMS says that states will propose up to 8 changes

The rapporteur of the proposal that limits state taxes on fuel, energy and telecommunications, Senator Fernando Bezerra Coelho (MDB-PE), said this Tuesday (31) that it is possible to make “improvements” in the text that was approved by the Chamber of Deputies.

Bezerra also said that he heard from the finance secretaries of the states that they will send up to eight proposals for improvements to the text on Wednesday (1st).

The senator from Pernambuco, former government leader in the Senate, was chosen as rapporteur for the proposal approved in the Chamber of Deputies, sponsored by the president of the House, deputy Arthur Lira (PP-AL), to try to lower fuel prices.

On Wednesday (25), the Chamber approved a complementary bill that classifies fuels, natural gas, electricity, communications and public transport as essential goods and services. With this, it would be worth understanding the STF (Supreme Federal Court) that limits the incidence of the tax to a range of 17% to 18% on these items.

The House’s final proposal included compensation to states in the event of lost revenue. For indebted entities, the Union will deduct from the value of the installments of the debt contracts the collection losses greater than 5% in relation to 2021. The deduction goes until December 31, 2022 or until the debt runs out.

States in a tax recovery regime will have their revenue losses fully compensated. Debt-free states are left without compensation.

Bezerra had a virtual meeting with representatives of Comsefaz (National Committee of Secretaries of Finance, Finance, Revenue or Taxation of the States) to discuss the process of the proposal in the Senate. The states are concerned about its approval, as happened in the Chamber, citing an impact of up to R$ 83 billion per year.

State secretaries pointed out at the meeting that the proposal raises concerns regarding compliance with the Fiscal Responsibility Law. They said that the reduction in revenue would impact, for example, social funds to fight poverty.

“It’s basically six to eight concerns. They’re going to have it forwarded until tomorrow [quarta-feira] in the afternoon. We are going to make an assessment with our consultants here in the Federal Senate and we will meet again on Thursday at 2:30 pm,” Bezerra told reporters.

“We will honor the decisions that were made by the Chamber of Deputies, but we understand that it is possible to make improvements”, he added.

The emedebista senator also said that he hopes to have his report ready as early as next week and that the Senate is preparing to vote on the matter “as soon as possible”, because of the repercussions on the economy.

Representatives of the states will also meet on Thursday (2) with the minister of the Federal Supreme Court André Mendonça. The magistrate suspended on the 13th, in an injunction (provisional), clauses of a rule contrary to the law that established a single ICMS rate on diesel oil for all states, in reais per liter, charged only at the production stage.

Mendonça responded to a request from President Jair Bolsonaro (PL), presented through the AGU (Advocacy-General of the Union), which was trying to guarantee the reduction of ICMS on fuel provided for in a law passed by Congress in March, but the target of maneuver by the states to maintain the collection.

Under pressure, state finance secretaries have indicated that they can compromise and reduce diesel taxation while buying time to discuss projects with the greatest potential for damage to state finances.

Senators point out that this gesture of goodwill can facilitate an agreement. However, Senate President Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-MG) rules out that the proposal that limits state taxes will be shelved.