The installation of the mixed commission in the National Congress to analyze the first Provisional Measure (MP) issued by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was postponed to April 11th. MP 1,154/2023 brings the new structure of the Executive Branch, with 31 ministries and six bodies with ministry status linked to the Presidency of the Republic.
The MP deadline has already been extended for another 60 days. It needs to be voted on by the joint committee and by the plenary sessions of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate by June 1st. If this does not happen by the date, it will lose its validity.
The initial forecast for the installation was for next Tuesday (4). The episode unfolds amidst the dispute between the President of the Senate and the National Congress, Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-MG), and the President of the Chamber of Deputies, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), on the resumption of work by the joint committees. who analyze the provisional measures before the vote in plenary.
In March 2020, at the height of the covid-19 pandemic, a joint act by the Chamber and the Senate made the rules for processing provisional measures more flexible, which began to be voted directly by the plenary sessions of the two Houses and no longer pass through the committees, integrated by 13 deputies and 13 senators.
Last week, Pacheco held a meeting of leaders in the Senate and decided that the joint commissions will resume to analyze the MPs sent by the government. According to the president, the rule is foreseen in the Constitution.
On the other hand, Arthur Lira defends a change in the composition of the collegiate bodies. For him, the analysis committees of MPs must have the participation of more deputies in relation to senators, as occurs in others. However, the proposal was not accepted by leaders in the Senate.
The matter was brought before the Federal Supreme Court (STF) through a writ of mandamus filed by Senator Alessandro Vieira (PSDB-SE) against the President of the Chamber. According to the parliamentarian, maintaining the model of direct voting by the plenary gives extraordinary powers to Lira, who, according to Vieira, can define the rapporteurs of the MPs and send the matter to the Senate on the eve of the expiry date.
Other MPs
In addition to the MP on the reorganization of the Esplanade, other measures are in line for voting in the National Congress. They are the ones that deal with the reencumbrance of fuels and the new Bolsa Família.
MPs have the force of law and are sent by the President of the Republic for analysis by the National Congress. The measure is valid for 60 days, and may be extended for an equal period if the vote in the House and Senate has not been completed.
*With information from the Senate Agency
