CAE postpones vote on rural credit bill.

The Economic Affairs Committee (CAE) postponed on Wednesday (May 20) the vote on the bill that creates a special financing line for rural producers affected by climate events or the economic impacts of geopolitical conflicts. The committee's president and rapporteur for the proposal, Senator Renan Calheiros (pictured), informed at the opening of the meeting that he decided to remove PL 5.122/2023 from the agenda after a request for a new round of negotiations made by the Ministry of Finance. 

In announcing the postponement, Renan stated that the government had reached out to parliamentarians to seek consensus on the text. According to him, there were further changes to the report to accommodate amendments and, subsequently, a request for dialogue from the economic team. 

"We received repeated phone calls from the Minister of Finance, Dario Durigan, asking us to make one last attempt to reach an agreement on the text," the senator stated. 

Renan announced that a meeting had been scheduled for 14 PM at the Ministry of Finance and said that, as rapporteur, he had chosen to accept the request for negotiation. "We are postponing this vote until after the meeting with the Minister of Finance," he stated. 

He then added that the legislative process moves more easily through negotiation, conversation, and understanding, when possible. 

Credit for rural producers 

The proposal, by Congressman Domingos Neto, authorizes the use of resources from the Pre-Salt Social Fund and other sources to create a special line of financing aimed at rural producers affected by adverse weather events or negative economic impacts resulting from international geopolitical conflicts. Renan's opinion expands funding sources and adjusts criteria for access to credit.  

The proposal includes resources from the Social Fund, financial surpluses from other funds overseen by the Ministry of Finance, as well as sources defined by the Executive Branch. It also establishes differentiated interest rates, a repayment term of up to ten years with a three-year grace period, and criteria for the eligibility of rural producers, cooperatives, and associations affected by production losses or calamitous situations.