ADMINISTRATIVE REFORM IS PRESENTED BY THE EXECUTIVE POWER

Proposed Amendment to the Constitution (PEC) No. 32/2020

In the first week of September 2020, the Executive Branch presented the Proposed Amendment to the Constitution (PEC) No. 32/2020, with the object of changing “provisions on civil servants, public employees and administrative organization”, with scope, among others, of the Powers of the Union, States and Municipalities. The main purpose, according to the explanatory memorandum, is the transformation of the State through a new model of public service, which provides more agility and efficiency, being, therefore, capable of facing the challenges of the future.

Public service statistics emphasize the urgency of administrative reform in Brazil. In this context, data were identified in a study carried out by the Millennium Institute, a non-profit entity, in partnership with Science Octahedron Data eXpertes, business intelligence consultancy¹. The following stand out: 21% of formal jobs existing in Brazil in 2019 refer to civil servants; in 2019, spending on civil servants in Brazil reached 13.7% of GDP (R $ 928 billion); in 2018, according to IMF data, Brazil ranked sixth, in a ranking of 64 countries, when considering total personnel expenses.

Emphasis is given to the guarantee of legal certainty registered in the PEC, regarding the validity of the new rules only for civil servants who enter public careers after their approval. For example, PEC protects specific legal regime and other rights for public servants invested in effective positions until the date of entry into force of the regulatory changes; preservation of benefits, such as, for example, leave due to length of service, vacation for more than thirty days, increase in remuneration with retroactive effects, among others, provided that on September 1, 2020 there is a specific law in force that granted such benefits.

In the explanatory statement of the PEC, an explanation of the impact of the proposed administrative reform is found regarding the scope of the new rules for future civil servants. This is based on World Bank projections based on data provided by the Ministry of Economy. Looking at the current picture of public servants, it is estimated that in 2022, 26% will have retired, a percentage that increases to 40%, when considering the period until 2030. Thus, at the end of this decade, approximately “one quarter of the payroll payments from the federal government will be to pay servers that will still be hired ”.

The PEC stipulates that stability is acquired by the civil servant who, after the end of the trial period, “remains for one year in effective exercise of a typical state position, with satisfactory performance”. In this way, the restriction of stability to the areas defined, in a subsequent law, is perceived as typical of the State, while the other professionals will be hired for an indefinite or determined period. In the explanatory memorandum, it is made clear that these positions relate to “civil servants who are responsible for carrying out activities that are specific to the State, sensitive, strategic and that represent, in large part, the extroverted power of the State”.

Performance management is also a prestigious aspect at PEC. It will be defined in a subsequent law, providing that the performance evaluation by a committee instituted for this purpose is mandatory and a condition for the acquisition of stability, ensuring broad defense.

Finally, it is important to mention the addition between the principles that govern Public Administration, in the wording proposed for the caput of article 37 of the CF / 1988, “innovation” and “good public governance”, which are related directly the transition from public services to a digital government in the perspective of improvement, cost reduction, approximation with society, simultaneously the evaluation, control and monitoring of public management.

By: Wilson Sales Belchior

¹ Available at: https: //campanha.institutomillenium.org.br/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Re …