Today, questions remain over Brazil’s overdue 2021 budget. Foreign companies to find it easier to purchase Brazilian land. Government gives more information on vaccination plan
The 2021 budget imbroglio continues
Congress is scheduled to vote today on the Budgetary Directives Law (LDO), which sets the government’s fiscal priorities for the following year. But members of the opposition to President Jair Bolsonaro intend to obstruct the sitting and delay any potential decision, arguing that the LDO cannot be appraised before lawmakers assess a series of presidential vetoes clogging up the docket — some of which have been pending since last year.
Why it matters. Regardless of what happens today, Brazil will not approve the 2021 federal budget before the beginning of next year. The LDO, however, is the crucial first step in this process; failing to approve it before the start of 2021 would throw Brazil into uncharted waters and greatly increase the risk of a government shutdown.
- Without the LDO, the president would have to make all public spending decisions through provisional decrees — but such expenses are not limited by the federal spending cap, which would spark investors’ distrust in government solvency.
- If the LDO passes, but not...