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On Thursday (07/07), due to an insufficient quorum, Federal Chamber President Arthur Lira decided to postpone the vote on the Constitutional Amendment Proposal (PEC) that creates social benefits for the poor and for some professional categories. The vote will happen on next Tuesday (12/07).
A Defeat?
According to political commentators, the postponement is interpreted by the opposition as a defeat for the Government. The central authorities were trying to conclude the vote on this matter before the end of this week, in order to try to make it possible to start paying benefits by August 1st.
Extra Payroll
According to media sources, the political wing of the Bolsonaro government wants to create an extra payroll to pay, still this month, the additional R$ 200 of Auxílio Brasil. The amount is provided by the Constitutional Amendment Proposal that creates social benefits. The objective of this decision would be to allow the benefits to have an electoral impact. Nonetheless, technicians from the economic area warn that this measure may be illegal.
The Decision to Postpone
According to the Constitution, the approval of an amendment requires at least 308 favorable votes. On Thursday (07), the Chamber had 427 out of the 513 federal deputies. For Lira, these numbers could bring a high risk of the amendment being rejected. The opposition has been pressing against the proposal as it considers the text an illegal attempt by the government to boost the pre-campaign for the reelection of President Jair Bolsonaro.
Lawsuit in the Supreme Court (STF)
On Thursday (07/07), Deputy Nereu Crispim entered the Federal Supreme Court with an action to suspend the PEC. However, Minister André Mendonça rejected the request.
State of Emergency
The measures provided for in the PEC should result in an unforeseen expenditure of R$ 41,2 billion and it will require the declaration of a “state of emergency” in the country in order to circumvent the legislation, which prohibits the generation of new expenses in an election year. The proposal was nicknamed “PEC Kamikaze” because the original version was considered “suicidal” since it represented a risk to public accounts.
Investigation at the Federal Audit Court
The Federal Audit Court (TCU) opened an investigation into the proposed amendment. The investigation request was made by the Public Ministry. For Prosecutor Lucas Furtado, the creation of a state of emergency, provided for in the PEC, is a “subterfuge” for the government to boost social programs and escape the limitations imposed by the electoral law.