Amnesty PEC passes through Senate committee and goes to plenary

THE CCJ (Senate Constitution and Justice Committee) approved this Wednesday (Aug 14, 2024) the project to forgive fines million-dollar electoral penalties applied to political parties that failed to comply with rules in past elections. The text became known as the “amnesty PEC” and is now before the House plenary. With its approval, congressmen will benefit the very parties for which they were elected.

The vote was symbolic, when there is no record on the panel of each senator’s vote. Of the 27 senators who registered their presence at the session, two signaled with their hands that they were against the project: Alessandro Vieira (MDB-SE) and Oriovisto Guimarães (Podemos-PR). Not everyone was present at the time of voting.

Senate CCJ panel shows senators who registered their presence at the session that approved the Amnesty PEC. Not all were present at the symbolic vote

There is still no forecast for analysis in the plenary. The president of the Senate, Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-MG), had said that he would not rush the project, but opened up the possibility of hearing from the bench leaders.

Congressmen in favor of the proposal argue that the rules for complying with quotas in the 2022 elections were established just a few months before the election and, therefore, there was not enough time for the parties to adapt.

The PEC allows parties to renegotiate their tax debts in up to 180 months. For social security debts, the term is 60 months.

“We established the same forms of Refis that are made for companies. Interest and fines are waived, but not the principal. The party will pay the principal with monetary correction. So, we understand that it is a reasonable situation that will, let’s say, clear the area for the parties so that they can fulfill their obligations from now on.”said the rapporteur of the proposal, Marcelo Castro (MDB-PI), which maintained the text approved by the Chamber in July.

UNDERSTAND THE AMNESTY PEC

According to the approved text, the amount not used to fulfill racial quotas in the 2022 elections must finance the candidacy of black and brown people. The rule is valid from 2026 and in the 4 subsequent elections. The allocation of 30% of funds for black candidates in this year’s municipal elections.

The proposal also establishes a tax recovery program to regularize the parties’ debts. With the tax relief program, the parties will be able to pay the original outstanding amounts without interest and accumulated fines, with monetary correction in up to 180 months.

In practice, the parties will be able to use the funds to which they are entitled to pay off their debts, without incurring interest or fines for non-payment of debt in the past. The argument is that the parties need to “avoid the accumulation of debts that become unpayable”.

FINANCIAL IMPACT

There is still no official data from Congress or the PGFN (National Treasury Attorney General’s Office) on the amount to be forgiven. The Party Transparency movement had estimated it at R$23 billion before the changes made by the deputies.

In July, a survey of the Poder360 showed that political parties have at least R$378 million registered in the federal government’s active debt. These debts may be forgiven or refinanced under favorable conditions if the PEC is approved by the Senate. The data is based on information from the PGFN in March.