Brazil leads spending on courts among 53 countries – 01/24/2024 – Market

Spending by the Brazilian public authorities on the courts of Justice, including the remuneration of magistrates and civil servants, consumes the equivalent of 1.6% of GDP (Gross Domestic Product), a record among 53 countries analyzed by the National Treasury and four times the international average (0.4% of GDP).

The unprecedented comparison, published this Wednesday (24) by the Ministry of Finance, considers data from 2021, the most recent available for the countries analyzed.

In 2022, spending on courts remained at 1.6% of GDP. The expenses also include the Public Ministry.

In absolute values, the bill reached R$ 159.7 billion (in December 2022 values), of which R$ 131.3 billion was directed to the payment of remunerations and contributions to magistrates and civil servants — the equivalent of 82.2 % of total.

To give you an idea, the value is greater than the R$113 billion spent in 2022 on the Auxílio Brasil program, which served 21.6 million families that year in December. This year, the Budget reserves R$168.6 billion for social policy, renamed Bolsa Família.

The Treasury report also points out that the amount allocated to the courts of justice represents more than half of the entire amount allocated to public order and security.

The Treasury report also points out that the amount allocated to the courts of justice represents more than half of the entire amount allocated to public order and security.

The amount is still higher than spending on police services in Brazil (R$114 billion), in a context in which the country is experiencing a public security crisis.

The expenses of other countries with courts of Justice are not classified by type and, therefore, the Treasury is unable to make a more detailed comparison to find out whether the proportion of personnel expenses in Brazil differs from the international scenario.

But the cost of the Justice system in Brazil has been the target of constant criticism from different segments of society, in particular because of the payment of a series of additional payments that circumvent the salary ceiling for civil servants, the so-called extra payments.

The ceiling for federal employees is currently R$41,650.92, and the limits applied in states and municipalities are below that. Even so, decisions that create additional installments, generally outside the ceiling, are common in the Judiciary and the Public Ministry.

The list includes aid and benefits for excess service (measured in number of cases) and for accumulation of administrative functions, among others.

Judges also have 60 days of vacation per year, double what is guaranteed to other workers (30 days).

According to the Treasury document, the biggest expenditure comes from state courts, with R$92.1 billion in 2022. Next are the federal courts, with R$63.8 billion, which includes the Labor Court, Federal Court and higher courts, such as the STJ (Superior Court of Justice) and the STF (Supreme Federal Court).

In July 2021, the Chamber approved a bill that combats super salaries in the public service. The proposal has the support of the Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) government, but is stalled in the Senate.

The president of the House, Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-MG), has stated that he is in favor of the proposal, as long as the Senate advances in the processing of the PEC (proposed amendment to the Constitution) for the five-year period, which grants additional remuneration to judges, prosecutors and defenders.

In practice, as shown by Sheetthe approval of the PEC became a bargaining instrument in exchange for the approval of the project that targets super wages.

The main point of the proposal is to recover a benefit that was extinguished in 2006 and which provides for the granting of an additional 5% of salary for every five years of service — each employee could accumulate up to seven increases. The amount would be free from the salary cap and would be granted to those who are already in their careers and to those who are already retired.

Furthermore, the text also assures members of the Judiciary and the Public Prosecutor’s Office that their previous legal activity (in law, for example) can be used for the purposes of counting practice time.

The Lula government is against the PEC, as the measure could have a cascading effect on other careers and also on states and municipalities, nullifying any savings obtained with the regulation of the salary cap.

A study released by the CLP (Public Leadership Center) states that regulating the salary cap for civil servants could generate savings of R$3.9 billion per year. The figure considers employees from the Union, states and municipalities who receive funds above the limit.

The five-year PEC could generate an additional cost of R$4.5 billion for the Union, states and municipalities, according to calculations made by government technicians last year.

An eventual extension of the benefit to all careers would increase annual spending to R$10 billion in the three spheres.

In recent months, the Lula government has tried to dialogue with Pacheco about the possibility of putting forward the proposal that combats super salaries, but without triggering the resumption of the five-year PEC.

The articulation occurs in a context in which the Executive is required to present an administrative reform and contain the growth of spending.

On Monday (22), Minister Fernando Haddad (Finance) signaled that the other Powers need to participate in the debate.

In an interview with TV Cultura’s Roda Viva program, he said he was in favor of starting a discussion about spending, but stressed that it should start “upstairs”.

“I think it would be good practice for us to discuss the three Powers, what we can do”, stated the minister.