The government of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) announced, this Thursday morning (9), a package of economic measures that totals R$50.9 billion in resources and subsidies for initial help in the recovery of Rio Grande do Sul by cause of the rains.
In this first announcement, the government will prioritize aid to families and companies, rural producers and emergency structuring of priority works. The measures will be forwarded to Congress in the afternoon as a provisional measure.
Next week, the government stated that it will make another announcement of measures aimed specifically at the state and municipalities of Rio Grande do Sul, including the public debt with the Union, which is around R$90 billion.
Minister Fernando Haddad, of Finance, stated that the government is forwarding the measures little by little to Congress so that there is no delay in the discussions, and while the needs of Rio Grande do Sul are being investigated.
“Today there is a second important act following the calamity decree, which aims to assist families, companies and municipalities. In the state, we are in negotiations with the government so that, possibly on Monday (13), we will announce a great understanding with the state government to guarantee the material and legal conditions so that the service can be provided as promptly as possible”, he stated.
Shortly after the announcement of all the measures, Lula stated that “what you saw announced here were the first credit measures, and that doesn’t end here. I have been telling ministers that we have to prepare ourselves to see the magnitude of the problems when the water drops and the rivers return to normal, with what was lost in each place, workers, houses, a lot of people lost a lot and we have to take this into account and that’s why the Civil House, the Treasury and other ministries. They’re going to have to work hard this weekend.”
The president stated that Haddad should talk to governor Eduardo Leite (PSDB-RS) on Monday (13) to announce the agreement on the state’s debt with the Union, which is around R$90 billion, on the same day. And he promised measures aimed at individuals for Tuesday (14).
A little earlier this Thursday (9), Leite stated that the losses recorded so far have reached R$19 billion, and promised to detail this first damage by the end of the day.
“I’ve already said three times: there will be no lack of effort from this government. Let’s try to dig up money wherever we have it, […] Let’s find the necessary resources to restore dignity to the people of Rio Grande do Sul. We want to count on the support of deputies, senators, the administrative machinery of the federal government, the Judiciary, to set an example that there is no crisis in this country to overcome Brazilians’ spirits”, added Lula.
The president of the Chamber of Deputies, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), participated in the announcement of the measures and reaffirmed “to the Rio Grande do Sul bench all our efforts to be as attentive as we were on Monday (6)”, in which the calamity decree was voted for the government to quickly respond to the Gaucho government.
Economic measures for RS
See below the measures announced by Haddad in the MP that will be sent to Congress in the afternoon:
Salaried workers: bringing forward the salary bonus from 2024 to May, releasing two additional installments of unemployment insurance, prioritizing the refund of Income Tax to the entire state of RS until June, bringing forward payments for social programs Bolsa Familia and Auxílio-Gás in May.
Construction: non-refundable funding of R$200 million initially for structuring projects for both the state and municipalities. An office will be established to organize, coordinate and expedite works on an urgent basis.
Credit with Union endorsement: credit operations with Union endorsement for states and municipalities, initially for 14 municipalities that already have structured projects – including support from BNDES, at a cost of R$1.8 billion.
Credit lines: investment of R$4.5 billion in the FGO (Operations Guarantee Fund) to leverage credit by R$30 billion. ER$500 million to the FGI (Guarantee Fund for Investments) for emergency credit leverage, to leverage up to R$5 billion in credit granting.
Pronampe: R$1 billion for interest subsidies for Pronampe, aimed at micro and small companies. The program operated during the Covid-19 pandemic and was changed by the current government to be reactivated now.
Pronaf: R$ 1 billion in interest subsidies for medium-sized rural producers and family farming, which will guarantee up to R$ 1 billion for a discount on Pronaf interest and a limit of R$ 4 billion in credits granted, to recover agricultural production capacity.
Tax due: extension of federal and Simples Nacional tax collection deadlines for at least three months, which should benefit 203 thousand companies with an impact of R$4.8 billion.
“We are paving the way, in each specific case, to provide tailored service to the needs of the companies and families involved”, added Haddad.
The injection of resources of around R$50 billion initially, says the minister, will be until a greater overview of the situation is available to plan additional measures. These resources will not harm other social programs that will also remain in force, such as Bolsa Família, Minha Casa Minha Vida, Health, Education, etc.
Launch of donations and demands from municipalities
Also this Thursday (9), Minister Rui Costa, from the Civil House, announced that the Brazilian Air Force will begin in the afternoon to launch donations such as food, medicines and other donations via parachute in places inaccessible by land.
He classified the situation in Rio Grande do Sul as “war”. The state still has at least 131 total or partial blocking points, according to the Federal Highway Police (PRF).
Rui Costa also stated that the government is releasing 100% of the amendments, and that it is also counting on Congress to vote to send instant amendments — called “PIX amendments” –, worth R$ 1.06 billion, most of it concentrated in the Ministry of Health.
The ministry, he says, has already released R$63 billion in emergency actions to municipalities and is currently being processed. “We have already opened the register in health and education so that municipalities can say whether they need to rebuild health posts, upa, or if they just need to re-equip hospitals. You don’t need to present projects, we just want to know if you need it”, he added.
He also stated that the government has also opened a dialogue channel for municipalities to inform housing needs, which must be met through Minha Casa Minha Vida.
Official banks
O Bank of Brazil also announced measures, such as the contribution of R$58 million to support actions in the state, in addition to postponing payments on credit card bills until the following month for those who are unable to pay, suspension of charges and denial of customers, maintenance of lines of credit for individuals and companies, a 180-day grace period for the payment of loans for individuals, exemption from fees for micro and small service companies, simplification of the extension of family farming debts, among others.
O BNDES also announced the structuring of projects for RS with resources contributed by the government, credit guarantees for investments, and a one-year grace period for loans operated with the bank.
And the Box decided to grant resources from the socio-environmental fund of R$ 30 million to compensate for material losses and productive capacity of families, a six-month pause in installments of housing financing and loans for individuals and legal entities, extension of installments of rural credit for investment of up to 12 months and funding for up to 24 months, among others. The bank’s measures total around R$70 billion.
According to the most recent bulletin from the Civil Defense of Rio Grande do Sul, released this Thursday morning (9), the state has already recorded 107 deaths caused by the floods, with one death under investigation.
The agency points out that there are still 136 missing and 374 injured. Last week’s rains affected 425 of the state’s 497 municipalities, with 1.476 million people affected. There are 232.1 thousand people away from home, with 67.5 thousand in shelters and 164.5 thousand homeless in the homes of family and friends.
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