On the last 17th, the Committee on Labor, Administration and Civil Service approved the bill which changes the rules for the contracting of advertising agencies by the public administration. According to the text, federal, state and municipal civil bodies should adopt more objective criteria when selecting the agencies, to allow a greater transparency in the execution of contracts and to avoid an inadequate use of the resources.

The approved text is a substitution bill proposed by the Deputy Milton Monti (PR-SP), to the Bill number 3305/08, from Deputy José Eduardo Cardozo (PT-SP). Among other changes, it adds to the original bill the establishment of a technical sub-committee to analyze the proposals of the companies.

Umbrella Contracts
The bill also prevents the so called umbrella contracts. Several communication services, such as office of press, surveys and event organization are contracted at once in that modality of service supply. 
 

According to José Eduardo Cardozo, that way of contracting, permitted by the prevailing legislation, hampers the inspection of resources and can generate corruption. With the proposed change, the services of office of press, surveys and event organization will have to undergo specific bidding processes.

The text also restricts the contracting of opinion surveys to the strategic functions of planning and assessment of advertising campaigns performed as a result of the contract. Thus, inquiries for electoral purposes will not be allowed.

Selection Committees
Also according to the bill, the responsible committees for the selection of agencies will be composed by people drawn by lots in a public session, including experts without functional or contractual link to public power. The committee will be composed by 5 members, oddly chosen among a minimum of 15 competitors equally qualified to supply the service.

The registration of suppliers
The registration of suppliers of agencies, the performance of previous estimates and the online availability of data on the contract execution should be legal requirements.

José Eduardo Cardozo affirms that, despite the rigor of the Bidding Law (Lei 8.666/93), Brazil has suffered with the deviation of millions of Reais from the public assets, because of advertising contracts.  The congressman reminds that there are recent cases of advertising companies contracted because of an “obvious favoring, by means of contracts allowing undue payments and deviation of public funds, destined to advertising, to private assets or to fund election campaigns”. The Parliamentary Joint Inquiry Committee (CPMI) on the Post, from which Cardozo was one of the rapporteurs, revealed those cases.

Procedure
The Project will still be analyzed by the Committees on Finances and Taxation; and on the Constitution and Justice and Citizenship.