Haddad says tax reform could be enacted this year

The Minister of Finance, Fernando Haddad, stated on Wednesday night (8) that tax reform has a chance of being enacted this year. Haddad celebrated the approval of the proposed amendment to the Constitution (PEC) 45/2019 by the Senate. He thanked the senators, who approved the text with a score of 53 to 24. The text will return for a new analysis by the Chamber of Deputies, after undergoing changes.

“Now, the discussion is much easier to have. Is it to incorporate or not [novos pontos] and be able to promulgate. I believe it is possible to enact the tax reform this year, despite the return to the Chamber,” he said.

Haddad gave a rating of “7.5 with honors” for the text of the tax reform. “We are moving from a grade 2 tax system, not to a grade 10 tax system, because there was a lot of discussion to reach this result… This PEC deserves a grade of 7.5, with praise”, he stated. The minister, however , praised the device included by the Senate that will allow the review of special regimes every five years. According to him, the periodic review could make the tax reform reach a score of 10, reported the Brazil Agency.

The text needs 49 votes in favor, in two rounds, to be approved in the Senate. Haddad pointed out that there was polarization in the debate on the topic, which could have resulted in a tight score.

“There was a lot of action on the part of the opposition against reform. In my opinion, this polarized the debate a little, which is a Brazilian issue. The constitutional amendment proposal was not even presented in this government. It has been going on since 2019, but I want to believe that if we put Brazil above this, these disputes, we can even increase this score”, he said.