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It identified that it did not follow uniform criteria to analyze the requests for technical cooperation agreements (ACT), which allow the collection of tuition of entities directly on benefits of retirees and pensioners.
According to the audit, while some associations were able to approve only generic statements, others had to deliver an extensive volume of documents to obtain the same type of agreement.
“It was also observed that the analysis of the Board of Benefits and Relationship with the Citizen, responsible for these analyzes, was based on defined documents based on criteria that are not uniform, as verified when compared processes of celebration of distinct entities,” says the report.
Such agreements are at the center of the findings, which investigates improper discounts on the payrolls of retirees and pensioners, and resulted in the operation without discount in April this year.
The CGU analyzed several criteria necessary for partnerships between public agencies and civil society organizations, such as material conditions, appropriate facilities, technical and operational capacity, among others.
Some of the examples cited by the controllership were those regarding the requirements of at least three years of existence for the celebration of partnerships with the Union, as well as prior experience for the accomplishment of the object.
Of the 12 cases examined by the audit, in 11 the verification of the entity’s legitimacy to request the celebration of ACT occurred by confirmation whether or not there is a prediction, in the statute, that the proponent has a nature of a retirees representative or pensioners.
As for the prior experience, only in one process was this requirement verified in the technical analysis of the agency’s benefit board.
Other requirements such as facilities, material conditions, technical capacity and associate list validation were also evaluated in the audit.
Union General Comptroller (CGU) pointed out failures in the Ministry of Health’s process monitoring
According to CGU, in letters sent to some of the entities that wanted to enter into agreement, the INSS requests the proof that the entity has technical capacity, suggesting the sending of documents related to the administrative organization, personal, balance sheet, revenues of the last year, website, reports of activities with proof of actions developed.
In the “checklist” used by the INSS, in turn, there is mention that the entity could cumulatively present, demonstration of administrative structure, containing minimally room with computers, room with the affiliation files and location of meetings of the entity’s assemblies.
In addition, they should demonstrate the existence of an administrative team and assistance to the member, signed work card or employee contract and report with photos of the physical facilities of their headquarters, among other documents.
“It is noteworthy, however, that the crafts sent to the applicants and the checklists used did not have a standardized list regarding the documents indicated for operational capacity assessment,” says the CGU.
What was found, in fact, is that INSS assessments regarding the operational capacity of the entities were based on “declaratory information or collected from the applicants’ websites”, as well as documents or photographs of physical structure and personnel to perform their activities.
The CGU also states that there is no uniformity as to the criterion used to consider valid documentation to certify the adequacy of the entity’s technical and operational capacity to celebrate ACT.
“There are documents that were considered, in the analysis of Dirben [Diretoria de Benefícios]only for one or two entities, as there are also entities where only a few documents were considered, contrasting with the analysis of requirements of other entities, in which a larger volume of documents was analyzed, ”concludes the controllership.
Defense
During the audit, the INSS was consulted by the CGU, stating that it already had several improvement measures regarding ACTs being implemented with the purpose of remedy irregularities, and reimburses the beneficiaries that were affected by improper discounts.
According to the controllership report, in response, the INSS had already stated that it began an institutional process of revision and robustness of the flow and controls of associative discounts to improve management.
The INSS also pointed out that the policyholders advised on the verification of possible associative monthly discounts through the benefit extract. If an unauthorized discount was identified, he said it would be possible to request the immediate blockage of discounts.
“Thus, it is verified that, in the scope of the INSS, amid the receipt of recommendations and/or determinations of control of the CGU and the Federal Court of Audit (TCU), the municipality was already adopting initial measures aimed at improving the situation.”
One of the examples that have been worked on, according to the INSS, is the implementation of a tool, along with Dataprev, which requires confirmation, via my INSS, of the term of adhesion to discounts.
The INSS also stated that there is no provision for the celebration of new Acts or even reestablishing the suspended agreements, and not what will be the terms that will be addressed to formalize the agreements.
The agency also points out that it should only celebrate new agreements after the completion of the ongoing findings, “especially with regard to reimbursement to injured beneficiaries. There will be no restoration to entities that cause damage to beneficiaries and the INSS.”
The INSS also cites the implementation of a series of procedures for investigating irregularities in the ACTs, as well as proceedings adopted on a disciplinary basis, in addition to the establishment of 12 Administrative Responsibility Processes (PARS), later invited by CGU.
“It is underway, in the INSS Corregedoria, disciplinary administrative proceeding instituted in the face of the servants of this municipality, noting that the servants involved were preventively removed,” he said.
Finally, he concluded by emphasizing the fact that the returns to retirees and pensioners who had their benefits discounted irregularly already started, whose first payment was in July this year.
