The governor of Rio de Janeiro, Claudio Castro, asked the population to denounce stations that refuse to lower fuel prices. The appeal was made this Monday (4), two days after the ICMS reduction on gasoline and alcohol came into effect, from 32% to 18%. As a result, 45 stations that did not lower prices were fined, with fines that can reach R$500,000.
“Rio de Janeiro was one of the few that took to the streets to inspect and the state has made a great fiscal and financial effort so that the population does not lose purchasing power. I reinforce that the consumer himself can and should help in the inspection, denouncing those stations that do not reduce the value of fuel. This decrease in the pump has everything to generate an increase in consumption. We have to reduce profit margins and gain in quantity”, said the governor, in a press conference at Palácio Guanabara.
During the morning, the teams spread across the five regions of the state and found establishments with unreducing prices, which reduced the value of just one product and even stations where employees exchanged price ranges when they saw the arrival of Procon State inspectors and State Departments for Consumer Defense and Finance. Stations without information on the tax plate and establishment with expired product were also found, which resulted in the manager being taken to the Consumer Police Station (Decon).
The 45 stations caught without reducing the fuel values were fined and will have 15 days to present a defense. The fine is calculated according to the irregularity found in the action and the company’s revenue. It can be applied at the end of an administrative process and the value of the punishment can reach R$ 12 million. The operation will continue during the week inspecting stations across the state.
With the rate going to 18%, the government expects a reduction in the price of gasoline of up to R$ 1.19 at the pump, reducing the average value of a liter to R$ 6.61.
Complaint
According to the state government, the citizen will be able to indicate the posts that do not comply with the decision through the three channels of Procon-RJ: the application, the organ website and an exclusive line for reporting via WhatsApp (21) 98104-5445.
At the press conference, the governor said that inspection and punishment are supported by the consumer protection law, as the reduction of ICMS is a resource that does not enter the state’s cash, in favor of directly benefiting the citizen.
“There is no pricing. There is not even a change in the profit margin of stations, distributors and refineries. That’s why we understand that we have every right to inspect and fine, so that there is no excessive advantage on the part of these entrepreneurs vis-à-vis the final consumer. So this violates consumer rights, which gives us full possibility, even if it is a free market. It is a reduction in the tax burden, which one has the obligation to pass on to the consumer”, Castro maintained.
