People wait in line to receive food aid distributed by Central Unica das Favelas CUFA - a Brazilian non-governmental organisation, amid the coronavirus disease COVID-19 outbreak at the slum of Brasilandia in Sao Paulo, Brazil May 13, 2021. BRASILIA, Oct.18 - CONCLUSION - The government is considering combining pandemic relief payments and Bolsa Familia welfare programs into a monthly stipend of 300 reais $54.42 next year, according to an Economy Minister official with direct knowledge of the matter
The Government is weighing that option due to budget constraints resistance in Congress to its proposed tax reform, said the source on Monday requesting anonymity to discuss confidential policy debates.
The preservation of soon-to-elapse pandemic relief is critical for far-right, far-right President Jair Bolsonaro as he looks at his diminuting re-election chances in 2022 because of his giving of COVID - 19, while a tight fiscal situation restricts his ability to spend.
Economy Minister Paulo Guedes had banked on a bill for federal government debts that went through to delay outlays, which would have allowed him to fund a new stipend called Auxilio Brasil without exceeding the spending ceiling.
He also insisted on the need to approve tax reform, which provides for the taxation of dividends for the first time in Brazil. But while it passed the lower chamber, the Senate has not even got round to discussing the tax bill.
Earlier in the same day Bolsonaro said that God willing his government should resolve the issue this week and fix the details of the extension of the emergency aid stipend.
The current emergency aid pays between 150 and 375 reais per month to the people affected by Bolsa Familia and other vulnerable Brazilians, but this month will be the last installment in the first installment.
The extension of the stipend is considered vital to help people who were left unprotected by the coronavirus pandemic and have lost purchasing power due to inflation. It is also seen as a tool to boost Bolsonaro's popularity going into an election year.
The emergency assistance is aimed at taking care of more than 45 million people, a larger number than those who qualify for Bolsa Familia, which benefits 14 million families.