Congress controls at least 30% of the budget of 7 ministries – 02/28/2024 – Power

Congress controls at least 30% of the non-mandatory funds in seven ministries of the Lula (PT) government. The list includes strategic portfolios, such as Health, Justice and Integration.

Deputies and senators have greater power over the discretionary budget for Sports (80% of the total) and Tourism (70%), both commanded by ministers from the center. Discretionary funds are those not committed to salaries and other obligations and that can be used in public works and investments — therefore, they are coveted in municipal election years.

The largest volume of amendments was directed to Health: R$22.1 billion of the R$47.6 billion reserved in the 2024 Budget for individual nominations, state benches and Congressional committees.

Around 40% of the discretionary resources of the department headed by Nísia Trindade are in the hands of Congress. The proportion is similar to that at the end of 2023, but higher than the 23% recorded in 2019.

Even with unprecedented control over the Budget, the president of the Chamber, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), made public complaints from Congress about the pace of execution of the amendments.

“The Union Budget belongs to everyone and not just the Executive, because, if that were the case, the Constitution would not determine the necessary participation of the Legislature in its preparation and final approval”, said Lira at the opening of the legislative year.

Within the value of the amendments there is still R$8.1 billion in so-called special transfers, a modality in which the parliamentarian sends the resource directly to the state or municipality without a specific project.

Political advisor at Inesc (Institute of Socioeconomic Studies), Alessandra Cardoso states that Congress’s power over the budget makes it difficult to implement public policies.

“For amendments, what matters is often not public policy, but how easy it is to transfer resources to that location, to that base. Serving, then, interests that are very localist and also very corporatist”, says Cardoso.

For her, this “often comes into direct conflict with the logic that the public policy and budget planning process itself must establish.”

Around 20% of the Lula government’s total discretionary resources are controlled by Congress. The percentage is lower than 10% in 2019 and reached 27% during the Jair Bolsonaro government.

In December, the president of the PT, federal deputy Gleisi Hoffmann (PR) said, on social media, that there is “a budgetary parliamentarism” when referring to the increase in funds for appointing deputies and senators.

“In a country that needs structuring investments, Parliament investing in the dispersion of resources to meet its interests is irresponsible. It is a usurpation of the functions of the Executive Branch”, he stated.

Newly arrived at the Ministry of Justice, Ricardo Lewandowski found the portfolio under greater control of Congress. The amendments, which took up 14% of discretionary resources last year, account for 37% of the body’s budget in 2024.

Parliamentary appointments in court are mainly aimed at equipping local security forces, for example, with new vehicles, weapons and monitoring systems.

Senator Flávio Bolsonaro (PL-RJ) presented amendments worth R$20.6 million for Justice, the largest transfer from a single parliamentarian to the ministry. The former president’s son ordered the purchase of drones and helmets, in addition to R$10 million worth of rifles for the Rio de Janeiro Military Police.

In ministries with tight budgets, amendments are also relevant. In the Women’s portfolio, 60% of these resources are in the hands of Congress. In a statement, the ministry said that the amendments are in line with the department’s policies.

Other ministries are less attractive to parliamentarians. The Environment received only R$78.2 million in amendments, around 5.7% of the discretionary budget of the body commanded by Marina Silva.

“The shallowest reading is that the environment does not give a vote. It also points out, from the point of view of the municipalities, mainly, how much environmental policy is not a priority or how it is much more made up of environmental activity processes and less linked to investments , purchasing equipment, things that, normally, city councils like”, assesses Inesc’s political advisor.

In January, when referring to the execution of parliamentary amendments, President Lula said that his government established a “democratic relationship” with Congress, while Bolsonaro had no “governance”.

“He had no governance, the National Congress was the one who governed. He didn’t even have the capacity to discuss the Budget. Because he didn’t want to or because it wasn’t part of their logic. What he wanted was for deputies to do what they wanted,” he stated .

Congressmen have gained unprecedented power over the Budget in recent years, but there are several examples of misuse of resources. In 2023, the Sheet showed distortions in the delivery of water tanks in dry regions with amendments directed to Codevasf (Companhia de Desenvolvimento dos Vales do São Francisco and Parnaíba).

The Federal Police are also investigating whether funds indicated by parliamentarians to the same company were diverted. One of the investigations targets the Minister of Communications, Juscelino Filho (União Brasil). The suspicion is that he benefited from money from paving works carried out by a company suspected of corruption. Juscelino denies any wrongdoing.

As of 2015, the implementation of part of the amendments became mandatory, that is, it was no longer a political decision by the government.