Government starts paying R$ 13 billion in boosted benefits

The Jair Bolsonaro (PL) government starts this Tuesday (9), less than two months before the elections, the payment of boosted social benefits to the population. As of August, the account will exceed BRL 13 billion, of which BRL 12.1 billion will go to Auxílio Brasil of BRL 600, in addition to BRL 624 million to Auxílio Gas of BRL 110.

The amount also considers R$ 381.8 million of resources destined to the payment of the first two installments of the BEm Caminhoneiro (Emergency Benefit for Autonomous Cargo Carriers).

The boosted aid was released after approval of a PEC (proposed amendment to the Constitution) that authorized the expansion of payments above the spending ceiling, trampling tax legislation amid the race for the Planalto Palace.

The total volume of resources from the package of measures, scheduled to last until December, is estimated at R$ 41.25 billion.

With the constitutional amendment, the government resized the country’s main social program, including 2.2 million new families. With this, Auxílio Brasil will transfer R$ 600 to a total of 20.2 million beneficiaries from August to the end of the year.

The payment of the benefit with the additional R$ 200, which would take place from August 18 to 31, according to the initial calendar, was anticipated and will be made between the 9th and 22nd, according to the final number of the NIS (Social Identification Number) ).

Marcelo Neri, director of FGV Social, considers that there has been a major setback with what he calls the “generosity trap”, together with the release of consigned credit for beneficiaries of Auxílio Brasil, and warns of a roller coaster of poverty in the cycle electoral.

“In all federal elections since 1982, without exception, poverty fell in the pre-election year, and in the vast majority of them, there was an increase in poverty after the elections. This is especially strong now”, he points out.

For him, Auxílio Brasil is poorly designed because it does not take into account the size of the families and the level of poverty of the beneficiaries.

“Perhaps it is an advantageous design from an electoral point of view, but it is certainly far from what can be done with the same resources in terms of fighting poverty,” he said.

Voting intentions for Jair Bolsonaro (PL) rose among the so-called vulnerable, those with low incomes and financial instability, according to the latest Datafolha poll, from the end of July. Lula (PT), on the other hand, surpassed the current head of the Planalto in the portion of the population with the highest income and stability.

If previously Bolsonaro lost 57% to 19% among the vulnerable, now the difference in the score has reduced to 54% to 24%. About half of this slice receives Auxílio Brasil or lives with someone benefiting from the income transfer program, which had its value increased from R$400 to R$600 in the period.

Among the benefits released by Bolsonaro on the eve of the elections, there is also the payment of the full value of the 13 kg gas cylinder to 5.6 million families. There will be three installments of R$ 110, in August, October and December, since the benefit is bimonthly. The Auxílio Gás calendar follows the same schedule as the Auxílio Brasil, based on the NIS.

In January 2023, families will once again receive 50% of the average amount calculated by the National Petroleum Agency (ANP). In June this year, 5.7 million low-income families received R$53.

As for assistance to self-employed truck drivers, there will be an accumulated transfer of R$ 2,000 referring to the months of July and August to 190,861 drivers. Starting in September, the amount will be R$ 1,000. In all, six installments will be paid until December.

The total number of beneficiaries is much lower than the number of truck drivers registered by ANTT (National Land Transport Agency). According to the entity, until May 31, there were 872,320 registrations as TAC (Autonomous Cargo Carrier) throughout Brazil.

The Ministry of Labor and Welfare opened a new deadline, from August 15th to 29th, for truck drivers to make a self-declaration, with payment of the first two installments scheduled for September 6th.

“Cargo carriers that meet the requirements after this period will only be entitled to receive from installment three onwards (the payment of a retroactive period is not possible)”, says the ministry in a note.

The release of the benefits continues next Tuesday (16), with the payment of the emergency benefit, which can reach installments of up to R$ 1,000, to eligible taxi drivers. The invoice limit established by the constitutional amendment is R$ 2 billion.

In the first stage of registration, more than 3,000 municipalities provided data on 301,505 drivers. The information will still be analyzed by Dataprev to define who will be entitled to receive the benefit. The second phase of submission of registrations is open, with the start of transfer scheduled from August 30th.