Restructuring in the states lacks more effective actions – 05/12/2023 – Market

At least 19 states are in the process of or in preparation for administrative reforms. The measures aim, mainly, at the restructuring of secretariats and the reallocation of positions. For specialists, however, effective changes need to be broader, involving profound actions in the medium and long term.

Even the term “administrative reform” used by some administrations sounds exaggerated, as in most cases it is a matter of readjusting the organization chart, which generally ends up occurring at the beginning of each government in the states.

“Increasing or decreasing the number of secretariats is a government adjustment, it is not a reform of the State. It is an adjustment to the governance that the chief executive needs to command his priorities. He is not thinking about a concept of what would be important for the government to deliver for its citizen”, says Cibele Franzese, undergraduate and graduate professor in public administration at FGV.

“Thinking about a State reform means thinking about the structure of a more efficient or effective State. Thinking that the decision taken today to open a public tender, for example, generates an impact on the payroll for a hundred years from now.”

For Felipe Drumond, specialist in government management and consultant at the República.org institute, there is a great diversity in the states, some with a good level of professionalism, holding public tenders, creating careers, but many others still have an agenda that comes from before of the Constitution.

“The basis of the Brazilian public service is stable, permanent staff, and all of them must be provided through public competition. But we still have several states that have many temporary and commissioned staff, which may have been provided by some selection, but not by public tender”, says Drumond.

According to specialists in public management, administrative reform is necessary to have a state that is more efficient and responsive to citizens, who today demand more quality public services.

Minas Gerais sanctioned a law this week with changes in the structure of the state government. The Romeu Zema (Novo) management created two secretariats —Civil House and Communication—, increasing the administrative structure to 14 folders. According to Luísa Barreto, Secretary of Planning and Management of Minas Gerais (Seplag), the changes are treated as a reorganization.

“It is a law that brings about a change in the government’s internal structures based on what we understand there is a need for improvement, in order to have a management that is more focused on what we need and must deliver in this second term.”

According to the secretary, the main change with the new law is the transfer of the traffic department, which was linked to the Civil Police, to Seplag. The goal is to streamline services related to the issue and strengthen public safety by releasing civilian police officers who were in administrative roles within the corporation.

The reform carried out in Minas does not highlight actions involving changes in the career of civil servants, such as an increase in staff or remuneration tables. According to the secretary, the state cannot make any changes that imply an increase in personnel expenses due to the fact that Minas Gerais faces restrictions arising from the Fiscal Responsibility Law.

“We bring a reorganization of positions, ensuring that they are better allocated within the secretariats, eventually meeting some more specific needs.”

Rio Grande do Sul also started a change in its structure of government in this second administration of Eduardo Leite (PSDB). There was an increase in secretariats, from 25 to 27. But there is also a preparation for a 5.1% reduction in the number of vacancies in the public service, which would go from 4,961 to 4,708. This restructuring is aimed at commission positions and rewarded functions.

Another point highlighted in the state is the creation of a single remuneration table, “with 13 levels and clear and objective attributions for all positions”. The goal is to put an end to disparity, as today there are 322 titles for positions and functions and 288 different salaries in the state.

In São Paulo, the Tarcísio de Freitas administration (Republicans) has among its main agendas a broader administrative reform. In a recent interview with the Panel, Sheet, Arthur Lima, secretary of the Civil House, stated that there should be a rationalization in the structure of the positions. Today there are around one hundred hierarchical levels in the state.

In a note, the government of São Paulo says it has “created a working group to carry out studies for an administrative reform. It promises to listen to groups representing the categories of public servants in São Paulo”.

The state of Rio de Janeiro has not prepared anything concrete about administrative reform, although Governor Cláudio Castro (PL) considered the idea last year. However, in January, upon assuming his second term, he made changes to government secretariats, extinguishing six folders and creating another five.

Felipe Drumond assesses that what has happened in the states are managerial, organizational measures, changing the way something is managed, but it is not reforming the essence, discussing professionalization.

Another point highlighted by Drumond is the waiting of some states for an initiative from the federal government. “They think that a federal reform would help to have more strength to do a local reform.”