Bolsonaro must veto proposal that provides free luggage on flights

President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) must veto the return of free luggage on national and international flights.

The proposal to ban the charge for checking baggage is part of a provisional measure passed in Congress at the end of May.

The deadline for sanction or presidential veto is this Tuesday (14). Parliamentarians will still analyze whether to maintain or revoke Bolsonaro’s decision.

According to Sheet found, more than one portfolio was against the change, notably the Ministry of Infrastructure.

Among the justifications, there is an understanding in the government that the return to free luggage harms competition and inhibits the entry of new companies in the sector.

The device that provides for the end of the charge for checking luggage weighing up to 23 kg on domestic flights and a suitcase weighing up to 30 kg on international flights had been included by deputies in the provisional measure. In the Senate, the item was approved separately from the main text.

The charge for checked bags was authorized in 2016, through a resolution by Anac (National Civil Aviation Agency).

Three years later, Congress had already dropped the charge for checking baggage weighing up to 23 kilograms on aircraft with up to 31 seats. Bolsonaro, however, barred the device and parliamentarians maintained the veto.

The provisional measure alters other sections regarding air transport. It eliminates the need for airline concession contracts, allows the construction of airfields without prior authorization and authorizes companies to bar undisciplined passengers for a period of up to one year.

The identification data of passengers who commit very serious acts may be shared by those who offered the service with other providers.

The text of the provisional measure also revokes the obligation to revalidate grants to companies every five years and simplifies the authorization for foreign companies to operate and with the requirement of CNPJ and branch in Brazilian territory. It also puts an end to the requirement that there be prior authorization for the construction of aerodromes

The MP also establishes that, if there is a crime in which one of the crew of the aircraft needs to be detained, the aeronautical authority, in addition to informing the police or the competent judicial authority, must take the measures that allow the flight to proceed.