By 312 votes in favor and 144 against, the plenary of the Chamber of Deputies approved at dawn this Thursday (4), in the first round, the basic text of rapporteur Hugo Motta (Republicans-PB), of the Proposed Amendment to the Constitution (PEC) 23/21. Known as the PEC dos Precatórios, it limits the amount of annual expenses with precatório, corrects their values exclusively by the Selic rate and changes the way to calculate the spending ceiling.
To conclude the vote on the matter, deputies need to analyze and vote on the highlights presented by the parties, which can still change parts of the proposal. The session could take place later today.
According to the approved basic text, the precatories for the payment of debts of the Union related to the former Fund for the Maintenance and Development of Elementary Education and the Valorization of Teaching (Fundef), current Fund for the Maintenance and Development of Basic Education and Enhancement Education Professionals (Fundeb), must be paid in three years, with 40% in the first year, 30% in the second and 30% in the third year.
Precatório are government debts with a final court decision, which may be related to tax, salary or any other cause in which the public power is defeated.
The wording approved today includes the text of the special commission according to which the limit on expenditure on court orders will be valid until the end of the spending cap regime (2036). For next year, this limit will be found by applying the accumulated IPCA to the amount paid in 2016 (R$ 19.6 billion). The estimate is that the ceiling will be almost R$ 40 billion in 2022. According to current rules, government data indicate a payment with precatório of R$ 89 billion in 2022, compared to R$ 54.7 billion in 2021.
According to the special secretary of the Treasury and Budget, Esteves Colnago, around R$ 50 billion should go to the Auxílio Brasil program and R$ 24 billion to adjust the benefits linked to the minimum wage.
*With information from the news agency Câmara de Notícias