Senate Decides on Five Session Deadline for Vote on Welfare Reform

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The five-session deadline, set by the Senate’s bylaws for voting on the Social Welfare reform, began to be counted from yesterday, September 10th. On Tuesday, the chamber floor held an information session to discuss the matter, chaired by Tasso Jereissati, rapporteur for the reform. The senator presided over part of the session and heard presentations from invited guests.

The special secretary of Labor and Social Welfare of the Ministry of Economy, Rogério Marinho, one of the reform’s major articulators from the federal government side, stated that the government projects savings of R$876 billion in ten years, including the changes made in the Constitution and Justice Committee (CCJ) of the Senate last week. Before the reform text reached the CCJ, the projected savings were R$933.5 billion (US$233 billion).

Also in the government’s projections, there will be savings of R$621.3 million in ten years, considering only the social welfare system under the general system. The savings per individual would reach R$8.7 thousand. Among federal employees, the savings in the same period would amount to R$159.8 million, of which R$114,100 would be the savings per individual.

Marinho emphasized that the country does not possess sufficient resources to sustain the current social welfare system, and major areas will suffer the impact of the social welfare deficit. “The increase in our debt is R$40 billion a year, which prevents the State from having resources to invest. There is a shortage of resources for education, health, and public safety, [that is,] for the most impoverished,” the secretary said.

Source: Agência Brasil

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