Senate committee approves PL that regulates carbon emissions reduction market

The Economic Affairs Committee (CAE) of the Senate approved this Tuesday (29), a bill that regulates the Brazilian Market for Reducing Emissions (MBRE) of gases that cause the greenhouse effect.

The text now goes on to be analyzed by the House Environment Committee (CMA) and, if approved, goes straight to discussion in the Chamber of Deputies.

This market, provided for in a 2009 law, is one of the instruments of the National Policy on Climate Change. According to the legislation, the MBRE will be operated on commodity and futures exchanges, stock exchanges and organized over-the-counter entities, authorized by the Securities and Exchange Commission (CVM), where securities representing greenhouse gas emissions will be traded. certified avoidance.

In May of this year, the Bolsonaro government issued a decree to regulate the carbon market. There is an assessment, however, that a law to substantiate and provide for more details about the instrument is necessary.

In his opinion, the text’s rapporteur, Tasso Jereissati (PSDB-CE), stated that the merit of the proposal is “unquestionable”, considering the predicted climate change scenarios, which include a decrease in rainfall in the main agricultural producing regions in the Center -South and increase in natural disasters such as floods and droughts. “It is fundamental to adopt measures that induce activities and projects with lower carbon emissions”, he said.

The approved text was prepared by the rapporteur from four projects presented by senators on the subject. According to him, the new proposal provides for a broader organization of the carbon credits market, with the management of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as its main axis.

For this purpose, the institution of the Brazilian GHG Emissions Management System (SBGE-GEE) was proposed, within which the national plan for the allocation of GHG Emission Rights (DEGEE) will be established.

The plan will establish the percentages of financial assets based on verified reductions and removals (RVE) that can be used in association with the emission rights to prove the achievement of the goals stipulated for each sector and for their companies.

Some definitions will be up to the Executive Power to regulate, such as the progressively “more challenging” reduction targets to be required from the sectors subject to the obligation to reduce emissions, and the proportion of effort by each sector to comply with the country’s international commitments . That is, the federal government will need to define which sectors fall within the rules and will need to comply with an emissions ceiling.

The management of the SBGE-GEE will be under the responsibility of a federal agency, which will define the organization and operation of the system, also through regulation.

The text determines that the accreditation and disqualification of methodologies for measuring emissions and for capturing, removing or reducing greenhouse gases will be one of the fundamental competences of the SBGE-GEE.

The rapporteur partially accepted Senator Roberto Rocha’s amendment (PTB-MA), to provide for the existence of consultative instances with the federal body responsible for managing the SBGE-GEE and the possibility of independent audits of declarations of greenhouse gas emissions. He also accepted an amendment to make it clear that agricultural and forestry activities are not part of the regulated market.

As for taxation, the text set the income tax rate on gains at 15%, leaving the paying source responsible for its withholding and collection when there is intermediation.