Bolsonaro says PL will guide vote against tax reform in the Chamber

Former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL) said, this Tuesday morning (4), that his party will guide the bench in the Chamber of Deputies to vote for the total rejection of the Proposed Amendment to the Constitution (PEC) of the tax reform, which is under discussion and has generated questions mainly from governors and entities of the productive sector.

In a message on social media, Bolsonaro said that the guidance will be given to the 99 deputies on the bench by the leader of the PL in the Chamber, Altineu Côrtes (RJ). For the former president, the proposal formulated by the government of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) will increase the collection of taxes, mainly on the basic food basket.

“PT tax reform: a punch in the stomach of the poorest. […] In this current proposal, the PT absurdly increases taxes on the basic food basket (rice, sugar, oil, potatoes, beans, flour, etc.), creates a selective tax for soft drinks, sugary products, meat and alcoholic beverages, among others” , he said.

Deputy Altineu Côrtes did not comment on the party’s orientation and the ex-president’s statement.

Bolsonaro also stated that the PEC removes the investment capacity of the states and “subtracts resources from the municipalities”. “Add to this the specter of PIX taxation and inheritance tax, which we are radically against”, he added.

The affirmation of a drop in resources is due to the creation of the Value Added Tax (VAT), which unites five taxes into just one, but which is being discussed to be divided into two for federal management and for states and municipalities. The president of the Chamber of Deputies, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), has been meeting with governors and parliamentarians to manage to articulate a final text that is consensus.

Among the alternatives is the creation of the Regional Development Fund to compensate for possible losses in ICMS collection by producing states, at a cost of R$ 40 to R$ 75 billion until the end of the transition period, in principle for the year 2029.

Bolsonaro government exemptions

Still in the publication, the former president said that the current “PT tax reform” goes against what he did throughout his government, such as exemptions from taxes such as the IPI, exemption from taxes on fuel and imported products.

“Even with such reductions, [a] month, we broke a record in revenue and ended 2022 with a primary surplus. Also in 22 we reduced public spending, we had lower inflation than the United States and higher growth than China, ”he said.

Bolsonaro also said, in the same post, that unemployment fell and reached the mark of “almost 100 million Brazilians working” and that there was a “significant reduction in the poverty rate, which reached the lowest level in the historical series”.

“If it had a minimum of coherence, the current government should maintain our economic policy that worked: less taxes, more collection”, he added.