The government (PT) paid R$1.5 billion in parliamentary amendments until the first week of February, the highest amount released in the same period in a historical series that began in 2016.
The record payment takes place in the year in the country and under Planalto’s promise to accelerate the release of resources indicated by deputies and senators. The amount is still more than double the R$634.53 million paid last year — the values are updated for inflation.
Until then, the largest volume in the series had been in 2021, when around R$770 million was disbursed.
The survey considered data from , the Budget Consultancy portal, on amounts paid in amendments from January 1st to February 6th. All the money disbursed in the period comes from indications presented in previous years and which were recorded as remains to be paid.
Government members claim that the record release is the result of an effort to improve relations with the . Last year, the PT administration was the target of complaints within its own base due to the poor execution of Legislative resources.
The government’s situation only improved after Planalto promised that it would execute the 2025 amendments by December. Around 97% of the amount was committed, which accelerated the payment of the previous year’s nominations to 2026.
The pace of release of amendments is also influenced by factors such as the execution schedule of a work — as it progresses, more funds are released to pay off what has already been built. Furthermore, several transfers have become targets of actions at the (Federal Supreme Court) in recent years, and with the presentation of more transparent data and work plans.
For this year, with elections in October, the LDO (Budget Guidelines Law) determines that the federal government pays 65% of individual and state bench amendments by the end of June. It was a way that congressmen found to force Planalto to irrigate its bases before the election.
In the case of an amendment intended for a work whose release took place before the electoral period, the Executive can continue paying even after, as the process has already started.
The inclusion of the device in this year’s Budget occurred against the will of the But the payment schedule for amendments ended up being maintained due to Planalto’s desire to avoid triggering a new crisis with Congress.
Since 2015, parliamentarians have promoted profound changes, including in the Constitution, to expand the control and volume of amendments. Today, individual and state bench nominations are mandatory, that is, mandatory payment.
Congress’s progress on the Budget became clear from 2020 onwards, when there was a jump from R$18.3 billion to R$48.6 billion in committed amendments, considering values updated for inflation. The increase was driven by the so-called rapporteur’s amendments, which the STF would declare unconstitutional in 2022.
The increase in amendments also increases the stock of pledged amounts that need to be paid off in the following years. The 2026 Budget has more than R$35.4 billion in funds in this situation, called remainders to be paid.
In recent years, the government has encountered greater obstacles to accelerating the release of funds in the first few months, as Congress took longer to approve the Budget, limiting the amount that could initially be spent. The 2026 Budget passed the Legislature in December, while the previous year’s law was only approved at the end of March.
In January, the Minister of Institutional Relations, (PT), said that the government would comply with the determination to accelerate the payment of amendments before the electoral period. “We agreed to have this payment device for tax amendments that are fund-to-fund transfers by June,” stated Lula’s political coordinator.
Despite this, Planalto has not yet started releasing the 2026 amendments. Until February 6th, the government dedicated itself to disbursing the transfers blocked in previous years. Around R$1 billion of the paid amount is from amendments from 2025, R$180 million is from 2024 and R$103 million was indicated in 2023.
The amendments consumed around 22% of the 2025 discretionary budget. This is the amount that is not stamped with obligations, such as payment of salaries, and can be applied to investments and the funding of public policies. In the case of the Ministry of Tourism, almost 80% of the discretionary resource was implemented through amendments.
In 2026, the amendments should still account for more than a third of the budget of five ministries, with control reaching 68.7% of Tourism’s discretionary resources.
