President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said today (27th) that the loss of tax revenue for the states with the reduction in the rates of the Tax on the Circulation of Goods and Services (ICMS) will be the subject of debate with the governors. Lula met with the governors of the 26 states and the Federal District, this morning, at the Planalto Palace, in Brasília, and this is the main subject of the agenda.
“The issue of ICMS is something that has been on your mind since it was approved by the National Congress [em 2022] and it’s something we’re going to have to discuss. We can agree, we can say that you can’t or that you can, but we’re not going to stop discussing any subject with you, ”he said when opening the meeting.
ICMS is a state tax levied on fuel and other essential services. Last year, two complementary laws were approved that reduced the rates for this item, leading to a “brutal drop in the revenue of our states”. revenue losses in state coffers exceeded R$ 33.5 billion.
Complementary Law 194 determines the application of ICMS rates at the floor (17% or 18%) for essential products and services when levied on goods and services related to fuel, natural gas, electricity, communications and public transport. Complementary Law 192, on the other hand, unified the method of calculating ICMS, specifically on fuel, which became per unit of measurement, instead of a percentage of the average price of the product sold at service stations.
One way out is the regulation of a device in Complementary Law 194 that establishes compensation, on the part of the Union, when the loss of revenue of a state exceeds 5% in relation to the 2021 collection. a tax reform, for example, or even by the Federal Supreme Court (STF), which already has actions that question the constitutionality of the two complementary laws.
For Lula, however, Brazil needs to return to normality and public agents need to stop judging politics. “We are to blame for so much judicialization. We lose something in the National Congress, instead of accepting the rule of the democratic game that the majority wins, the minority complies with what is approved, we turn to another instance to see if we can win. It is necessary to stop this method of doing politics because it makes the Judiciary enter into the Legislative Power”, he said.
Investments
This Friday’s meeting between Lula and the governors had been requested by the president himself as a way to relaunch the federative pact in the new mandate. It is the second time that Lula meets with the group. On the 9th of January, governors came to Brasilia in solidarity with members of the three powers after the coup attacks that resulted in the depredation of the National Congress, the Planalto Palace and the STF.
For today, Lula asked the governors to present the priority works and actions in each state and region. The interstate consortia also presented their demands.
According to the president, the federal government does not have the budget it wanted, as it was made by the previous administration, of President Jair Bolsonaro, who “did not put enough money to pay for things that he already had a commitment to pay”. “But you have works that you consider a priority, each governor has a work in his head that is his dream, which is the main work for his state, and we want to share the possibility of sharing the sacrifice of doing a work like this” , said.
For Lula, the National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES) should once again finance works in the states. “The BNDES will once again become a development bank. The money raised by the BNDES must be shared with investments for small and medium-sized companies, large companies, governors and mayors, depending on the quality and importance of the work,” explained Lula.
In the same way, the Bando do Nordeste should also act in the financing of state projects. “If the governor has balanced accounts, he can make a debt. If you can’t, we’re going to have to find a way to help pay off the debt. But if the government has its accounts in order and has the possibility of indebtedness, there is no reason why the federal government, through public banks, should not make it easier for these governors to have access to resources”, said the President of the Republic.
Finally, the president stated that his office and the office of all ministers are open to all governors and mayors and that he would like to be received in the states by his representatives, regardless of party and political differences.
“After you win the elections, you stop being a candidate and become a ruler and you have to have a minimally civilized behavior in relation to the federal entities that share governance so that this country can work”, he said. “We will try to show Brazil that governing in a civilized way is very important so that we can find peace in this country, we need to assure the Brazilian people that the dissemination of hatred is over”, he added.
After the meeting, Lula is going to receive the governors for lunch at the Itamaraty Palace.
