The Plenary of the Chamber of Deputies is holding extraordinary sessions today to continue voting on pension reform (PEC 6/19). The basic text of the proposal was approved this Wednesday (10) evening, by 379 votes to 131, in the first round. Deputies will still analyze highlights that can change points in the text.
The approved base text is the substitute for deputy Samuel Moreira (PSDB-SP), which increases the time to retire, limits the benefit to the average of all salaries, increases the contribution rates for those earning above the INSS ceiling and establishes transition rules for current employees.
Only one of the highlights presented in the text was voted on yesterday. It was an amendment by deputy Wellington Roberto (PL-PB) who intended to remove teachers from the changes imposed by the PEC, keeping them within the current rules. The amendment was rejected by 265 votes to 184.
In relation to the government's original proposal, capitalization (individual savings) and changes in the retirement of small producers and rural workers were left out.
In the new general rule for civil servants and workers in the private sector who become insured after the reform, only the minimum age is guaranteed in the Constitution. The required contribution time and other conditions will be definitively established by law. Until then, a transitional rule applies.
For all workers who have not yet met the requirements to retire, definitive rules for death pension, pension accumulation and benefit calculation will also depend on future law, but the text also includes transitional rules until this is done.
Highlights
Important points in the text still need to be voted on to identify a definitive rule, such as the transition for police officers and the salary of workers who retire with a minimum contribution of 15 years allowed by the PEC.
Other highlights of the opposition intend to remove from the text rules on pension values, calculation of retirement as a percentage of the average contributions and changes in the toll charged to retire according to the transition rules for current insured people.
Among these topics, the one that shows the most agreement for approval is the one that was negotiated by the women's bench and increases the final retirement salary of women with contribution time above the minimum limit of 15 years. According to the text of the substitute, the increase can only occur for those who exceed 20 years of contribution.
Highlights can be spliced or text. To approve an amendment, its supporters need 308 votes in favor. In the case of the substitute text separated for a separate vote, those who intend to include it again in the final draft of the PEC are the ones who need to guarantee this quorum in favor of the highlighted section.
Approval of current reform text exceeds expectations, says Moody's
The approval of the basic text of the Social Security reform in the first round by the plenary of the Chamber of Deputies, with a forecast of savings of around 1 trillion reais in 10 years, exceeds expectations, said an executive from the risk rating agency Moody's.
“If the approval of this text is confirmed, it will be a very good sign,” Moody's lead analyst for Brazil, Samar Maziad, told Reuters in a telephone interview.
The night before, the Chamber approved the main text of the pension reform by 379 votes to 131. The score was well above the three-fifths required for the approval of a Proposed Amendment to the Constitution (PEC), equivalent to 308 votes.
The approved text can still be changed by amendments to be voted on separately. The expectation was that the Chamber would extend the vote on the reform to vote on all the highlights until dawn and thus conclude the first round, but the president of the House, Rodrigo Maia, preferred to interrupt the vote when he realized that, according to him, the deputies were confused by the proposed changes. Voting continues this Thursday.
Moody's initial forecast was that the final savings from the reform would be up to around 800 billion reais in a decade.
Even so, reforming the pension system alone will not be enough to immediately put the country's economy back on the path to recovery, Samar said.
Moody's forecast is that the Brazilian Gross Domestic Product (GDP) will grow by around 1.2% this year and approximately 2% in 2020.
“For now, the approval of the pension reform supports the current rating (Ba2, with a stable outlook), but we hope that the government will continue with the reform agenda,” said the analyst.
Approved in the first round on Wednesday, the pension reform text still needs to go through a second round of voting in the Chamber plenary, before going to the Senate, where it will also be submitted to two votes.
Post: Marina Carvejani
Author: Aluísio Alves
Source: Notícias Agrícolas
