Open space in the PEC dos Precatórios is fair, but numbers can be discussed, says the reporter

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The leader of the government in the Senate and rapporteur of the PEC dos Precatórios in the Committee on Constitution and Justice of the House, Fernando Bezerra (MDB-PE), said this Thursday (11) that he will seek to convince the senators that the fiscal ceiling opened by the proposal is not excessive, but that it is open to “discussing” the numbers.

Bezerra was officially appointed on Wednesday (10) the rapporteur of the PEC of Precatórios in the CCJ of the Senate, one day after his approval in the Chamber of Deputies.

The proposal defaults on the Union’s judicial debts and has become a priority for the Executive to guarantee the payment of Brazil Aid of R$ 400 from December until the end of 2022, the year in which Bolsonaro is expected to run for re-election, in addition to making room for other expenses federal agencies. Under the proposal, around R$90 billion should be released for expenses next year.

Despite having advanced relatively quickly in the Chamber of Deputies, the proposal is facing great resistance in the Senate. The senators pressed for the analysis to be more detailed, first going through the CCJ of the House, before going to the plenary.

One of the focuses of resistance is precisely the space for spending opened up with the PEC, which would grant President Jair Bolsonaro a large spending capacity in an election year.

In an interview with Globonews, Bezerra repeated what he has been talking about about the R$91.6 billion space that could be opened. Said it is “fair, proper and necessary”. However, he stated that he will “debate” the issue with the other senators. The day before, in an interview with journalists, Bezerra had already stated that he did not rule out any “improvement”.

“Some senators suggest that the ideal fiscal space would be between R$75 billion and R$80 billion. We are going to discuss this. This is because of these R$80 billion, approximately will be consumed in order to pay for the new Auxílio Brasil. This is because no poor family in Brazil will no longer receive at least R$400,” he said during an interview with the network.

The government leader has been asserting that another R$ 24 billion will be earmarked for social security benefits and continued benefits, and another R$ 6 billion will be earmarked for correction of mandatory expenses and correction of constitutional minimums.

“So R$ 80 billion is no longer discussed. It’s math […] the space needed will never be less than R$80 billion,” he said.

Bezerra stated that the approximately R$ 11 billion additional could be used to cover investment expenses that would have been sacrificed, such as construction of houses, roads and water works

“Our work over the next few weeks is to show that the fiscal space that is being opened is fair, adequate and necessary. It is evident that we are open to discussing these numbers,” he said.

“The government is interested in us approving the PEC with responsibility. There is no interest in approving an excessive space, or unnecessary space”, he added

Senators even presented their own Constitutional Amendment Proposals. Senator José Aníbal (PSDB-SP) presented a PEC in which it would be possible to ensure fiscal space of R$ 76 billion in the budget. Bezerra stated that he is going to meet with Aníbal to discuss the issue, to “listen to the proposals and that the government have the opportunity to explain the entire text that came out of the Chamber of Deputies,” he said.

The date compromises the government’s initial forecast, which intended to see the proposal approved in Congress by the 20th. Leaders are now working with the “deadline” of December 2nd.

In this case, the proposal would go to the plenary during the concerted effort to carry out official hearings, on November 30th, December 1st and 2nd. The government considers that the concentrated effort would be beneficial by providing a quorum for the approval of the PEC.

As Folha showed, the government is already working with an MP that provides for the payment of R$ 400 for any delay in the Senate vote.

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