one week after having contingent (blocked) BRL 6.739 billion from the General Budget of the Union for 2022, the government announced an additional block of BRL 2.101 billion to preserve the operation of some public services. The measure is contained in a decree issued tonight (29) by President Jair Bolsonaro.
According to the Special Secretariat for the Treasury and Budget, the R$ 2.101 billion will replenish the budget for expenses that, despite not being mandatory, are considered unavoidable and relevant. Among these expenses, there are credits for the Ministry of Education to pay for services, rural insurance and expenses with the agencies of the National Institute of Social Security (INSS).
With the additional blockade, the total amount allocated in the 2022 Budget rose from BRL 12.737 billion to BRL 14.839 billion. In relation to the rapporteur and commission amendments, the total allocation fell from R$ 17.165 billion (amount approved in the Budget) to R$ 9.081 billion, a difference of R$ 8.084 billion.
The Ministry of Economy did not inform whether the new amounts blocked today refer only to amendments by the rapporteur and the commission. The BRL 12.737 billion announced last week refers to what the government has to block to meet the federal spending ceiling. The remaining R$ 2.101 billion refer to the contingency of parliamentary amendments and discretionary funds from other ministries to maintain the execution of public services.
The Special Secretariat for the Treasury and Budget released a spreadsheet detailing the contingency by ministries and federal agencies, but the values only refer to the total blockade for the year, without detailing the contingency of last week. In addition, the contingency of the rapporteur’s and commission’s amendments did not appear detailed by organs, on the grounds that several organs have funds from these amendments, and the value of the allocation of each of them can still undergo some adjustments.
With the additional contingency, the total amount blocked in the third quarter rose from R$6.739 billion to R$8.854 billion. Last week, hours before the contingency was announced, President Jair Bolsonaro had stated, on a visit to a gas station in Brasília, that the extra budget cut could reach R$ 8 billion.
