Tebet will deal with “semi-presidentialism” of the public budget, says congressional power researcher

Senator Simone Tebet (MDB) took over, this Thursday (5), the position of Minister of Planning and Budget. In her inauguration speech, at the Planalto Palace, Tebet stated that her objective is to put Brazilians in the budget without neglecting fiscal responsibility.

In an interview with CNN the planning and budget analyst and IPEA researcher, Leandro Couto, pointed out that the minister’s challenge will be great, especially with regard to the formulation and execution of the budget.

One of the reasons given by him is the recent advance of the Legislative power over the budget, which makes it more difficult for the minister to carry out an evaluation and allocate resources where the portfolio considers it most efficient.

Today, according to Couto, it is already possible to speak of budget semi-presidentialism in Brazil. “The Legislative Power has a much greater influence on allocative decisions than it had in the past”, says the IPEA researcher.

Furthermore, Couto points out that the instability of the budget rules is very great and she will have a great deal of work to fulfill all the promises of the Lula government.

However, the researcher points out that the minister did well in her inauguration speech, as she showed that she recognizes the challenge. “The minister praised the policy by citing MDB ministers, the divergences and by seeking a conciliatory posture, because she knows that she will have to negotiate budget reform processes with Congress.”

2023 budget

Another challenge for Tebet will be working with the 2023 budget, made during the Bolsonaro administration. According to Couto, it came much lower than expected, mainly in terms of social programs.

For the researcher, the intended values ​​should be greater than in 2022, but that is not what happened. So, the minister will have a tight space to manage the resources.

As an example, Couto mentions the values ​​destined to Social Protection. According to him, the Bolsonaro government executed around BRL 330 million in reception services in 2022. For 2023, however, only BRL 16 million was foreseen for the area. “The new government faced several holes and gaps in the public budget”, points out the researcher.

In addition, the researcher mentions the amount of R$ 105 billion destined to Bolsa Família, formerly known as Auxílio Brasil. According to him, the BRL 600 benefit was planned and paid over the past year, but for 2023 the amounts were already promised and predicted by both Lula and Bolsonaro.

Therefore, the amount allocated to it in the 2023 budget should have been much higher than last year, and not lower as it happened. “That’s why the government had to make the Pec. It wasn’t just to fulfill the promises of the incoming government, but to solve the problems left by the previous government”, says Couto.