Service stations do not show gasoline and diesel prices with higher ICMS

One day after it took effect, the new rule that obliges gas stations to compare the prices of fuel sold before and after the reduction of ICMS (Import on the Circulation of Goods and Services) has not yet had a practical effect.

This Friday (8), most of the establishments in the city of São Paulo visited by the report had not adapted to the legislation.

The measure went into effect on Thursday (7), with the publication of a decree signed by President Jair Bolsonaro (PL). From now on, stations are required to display two prices: the current value of fuel and what was charged on June 22 – the day before the law that imposed a 17% ceiling on ICMS.

In addition to making the comparison, establishments still need to show the cost corresponding to the taxes levied on the final price of the product. According to the text, the information must be displayed “in a correct, clear, precise, ostensible and legible manner”. The decree is valid until December 31, 2022.

According to the Civil House, it will be the responsibility of the ANP (National Agency for Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels) and the consumer protection agencies to supervise and guide the gas station owners on the measure.

By means of a note, the folder informed that, at first, the inspection will have an orientation character. “After that, the punishments provided for in the Consumer Protection Code (CDC) or in Law 9,847/99 may be applied”.

The legislation cited by the Civil House provides for administrative sanctions and a fine, which can reach R$ 5 million for companies in the fuel supply sector that present irregularities. Sought, the ANP did not inform how the inspections will be.

Executive director of Procon-SP, Guilherme Farid informed that the agency will carry out guidance actions in the State. He defended the measure created by the government, as a way to help consumers identify the places that are passing on the tax reduction.

“Procon will inspect and guide the stations so that they display, within the establishment, the values ​​prior to the reduction [do ICMS] and the values ​​after the reduction, so that the population can verify who is passing on the ICMS discount to the consumer in the pump price”.

Posts still not suitable

The Autoposto Gigante do Pêssego, in Vila Jacui (east zone of São Paulo), is one of those that still does not show the price comparison required by the decree. According to the manager César Porto, the place should be regularized soon. “The board was responsible for providing a panel and the forecast is to be ready in five days”.

In São Miguel Paulista, also on the east side, Samuel Lopes de Carvalho, manager of Autoposto Desportivo, says that the owners of the establishment only learned about the new requirement this Friday. They still intend to regularize themselves, segn. “We are looking for some material to show the price before and after.”

The report covered 15 other establishments in the South and East zones of the capital of São Paulo, which also did not show the information board comparing prices.

The only one to show the fuel price comparison was the Peach CNG, which adapted a panel installed in 2021.

José Alberto Gouveia, president of Sincopetro, a union that represents gas stations in São Paulo, says that, after the decree was published, the entity prepared a model table to guide resellers on how to display the information.

The document began to be distributed this Friday. In it, there is a comparison of the amounts charged by state and federal taxes levied on fuels – such as ICMS, Pis/Cofins and Cide (Contribution for Intervention in the Economic Domain) – currently and on June 22nd. The table still has a gap for the owner of the gas station to fill in the final price of fuel.

Gouveia says he is advising the owners of the dealerships to respect the decree, but says he does not see any use in applying the measure to the consumer.

“It won’t have any practical effect. There is already a table very similar to this one, which shows the taxes, fixed at the stations, but does not arouse the interest of the driver. He is worried about looking at the price at the pump”.

Since March 2021, fuel dealers have started to display a panel with estimated values ​​of ICMS and federal taxes levied on fuels.

Gouveia also highlights that the measure and inspection will not influence the price of fuel at dealerships, since it is a free market. “Who influences the price is the consumer himself, who chooses the product and the place where he wants to supply”.