On Wednesday (11), the Governing Board of the Chamber decided to grant transparency to the deputies’ expenses with indemnification.

The president, Michel Temer, informed that next Tuesday (17), the First Secretary of the House, Deputy Rafael Guerra (PSDB-MG), should present to the Board a study on the way that release of expenses should be made. “Transparency is important, regarding the constitutional principle of publicity. The Board has no doubt about it”, highlighted Temer. The study will still have to be approved by the Board members.

The cash, which amounts to a monthly R$15,000 (USD 6,637), can be used for rent, office maintenance, food, consulting and research services, safety, subscription to publications, cable TV, internet, transportation and hotel for the congresspeople and for their assistants, among others. The citizens have currently access, through the Chamber’s website, at the transparency page, only to the general amount paid by the congresspeople for those services.

The benefit is granted to congresspeople if they request it to the First Secretary of the Board, to which the invoices and bills proving those expenses should be submitted. The remaining indemnification balance is added to the following month’s amount, but only for one semester. Or be it, the account is zeroed every six months.

17,000 bills
According to Rafael Guerra, 17,000 bills are submitted to the Chamber’s Administration every month. He said that, since that rule on indemnification has prevailed – for 8 years – more than one million invoices and bills have accumulated. For him, it is natural that citizens may access those data on the internet. However, he said that the Board has not yet decided if the release of the bills and invoices should be retroactive.

"The sector of administration which operates those 17,000 bills should adequate its actuation to release that information on the internet. I think that this is the right thing to do”, he highlighted.

Report - Ana Raquel Macedo
Editing - Newton Araújo
Translation – Positive Idiomas Ltda