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The mayor of Rio Branco, Tião Bocalom, participated this Tuesday (3) in the formal session that marked the resumption of the work of the City Council after the parliamentary recess. Before reading the opening message of the legislative year, the mayor spoke to the press about the legal action taken by the Executive against the increase in the value of individual mandatory parliamentary amendments.
At a press conference, Bocalom was asked about the Direct Action of Unconstitutionality (ADI), with , filed against an amendment unanimously approved by councilors, which changes the value of parliamentary amendments.
The mayor of Rio Branco, Tião Bocalom, participated this Tuesday (3) in the formal session | Photo: Gabriel Paulino/Orna Audiovisual
When commenting on the topic, the mayor stated that the decision is based on what is foreseen in the legislation and the model adopted by the .
“I want to say the following, we work in accordance with the law. I am part of a large group of mayors in Brazil and everyone is very concerned about this situation. Firstly, the National Congress has 2% of the federal government’s net current revenue for the Senate and the Chamber. For the Chamber it is 1.55 and for the Senate 0.45. So, nothing better than repeating what is there today. If a is 1.55, here it also has to be 1.55.”
According to Bocalom, the main discussion among mayors across the country is the loss of investment capacity of municipalities given the increase in resources allocated to the Legislature.
“Our big discussion at the Brazilian level is that, suddenly, the mayors are losing their investment power. Why? Because a large part of the resources are going to the legislature, which has the function of legislating and not executing. So, what we are doing here is simply what is legal.”
The mayor also mentioned that, during his administration, there was a significant increase in the volume of resources allocated to the Rio Branco City Council and parliamentary amendments.
“The councilors don’t have much to complain about the mayor. First of all, their amendments in the past, when I arrived, were worth 50 thousand reais. It is increasing to more than one million reais, 20 times more. The City Council only received 4.1% of the net current revenue. And the law says that it can reach 5%. We reached 5%. That means an increase of more than 15 million every year for the City Council.”
Bocalom also recalled the construction of the municipal Legislature’s own headquarters.
“Rio Branco City Council did not have its own building and was the only Capital Chamber in Brazil that did not have its own building. As soon as I arrived, we talked a lot with Antônio Moraes, then with N Lima, we made the decision that together we could make the City Council building viable. This happened, it is now possible and soon we will be opening it.”
When dealing with the judicialization of the matter, the mayor said that the initiative came from the guidance of the Municipal Attorney General’s Office.
“The city’s Attorney General’s Office is the one who gives me advice on everything I do. I don’t do anything different from what the Attorney General’s Office advises me. And then we are doing everything based on what the Attorney General’s Office is advising. So, when the Attorney General’s Office saw the law, it immediately said, mayor, this law is not correct, we need to change it.”
According to Bocalom, the action does not cause institutional losses and is just a legal discussion.
The mayor also demonstrated concern about the financial reality of municipalities, especially smaller ones.
“As mayor of municipalities in the interior and as president of the Association of Municipalities of the State of Acre, the concern is not only in Acre, but throughout Brazil. There are many small municipalities that cannot have 2% investment of their own resources to be able to make investments throughout the year. Now, imagine that they already have to give 1.55 to the Legislature. How will they be?”
In the end, Bocalom questioned whether, in the future, the municipality will be able to maintain its investment capacity.
“Will the city of Rio Branco have the capacity, in addition to having increased the transfer to the Legislature, from 4.1% to 5%, which is equivalent to more than 15 million, to make the constitutional transfer of 1.55 just for the councilors’ amendments? Will the municipality of Rio Branco bear all this burden? That is the question.”
More about the action
The ADI was filed by the Municipal Attorney General’s Office against the amendment promulgated by the Board of Directors of the Chamber, which changed the regime of individual mandatory parliamentary amendments, those mandatory for execution by the mayor.
According to the Executive, the proposal was not accompanied by technical studies. Data from the Municipal Finance Department (Sefin) indicate that the impact for the 2026 financial year will be an increase of R$13,587,701.64 in mandatory expenses.
It argues that, to accommodate this increase without new sources of revenue, it will be necessary to sacrifice planned investments. An opinion from the Municipal Planning Secretariat (Seplan) points to the need for a cut of more than R$12.3 million in the budget of the Municipal Infrastructure and Urban Mobility Secretariat (Seinfra), which could affect paving, drainage and urban maintenance works.
In the petition sent to the Court of Justice of Acre (TJAC), the Executive maintains that the amendment presents formal defects, as it does not provide the estimate of budgetary and financial impact required by article 113 of the Transitional Constitutional Provisions Act (ADCT) of the Federal Constitution.
The action awaits a decision from the TJAC, which may analyze the request for a precautionary measure to suspend the effects of the amendment before judging the merits.
