Taxation could offset the demands received by deputies for the inclusion of more products in the "basic basket" (a bundle of food items commonly distributed by the government to poor families), which will have a zero rate for the Tax on Goods and Services (IBS) – which will be charged by states and municipalities – and the Contribution on Goods and Services (CBS), which will be federal. This is the case of animal proteins that reside, for the most part, with a discount of 60% from the reference rate.
New taxes created in the reform
In the sum of IBS and CBS, the estimated reference rate is 26.5%. In order not to increase this percentage, the deputies said they will compensate for the demands met with cuts in other areas.
Representative Reginaldo Lopes said that the group is managing to meet around 70% of the demands received in hearings with society.
Representative Claudio Cajado said, however, that the discussion, for now, has only been technical. “So, there are very technical issues regarding some of these topics – cashback, basic food basket, installments – which we are still considering from a technical point of view.”
On Wednesday (3), according to the deputy, political decisions will be taken at the College of Leaders. “We will have a meeting with the president of the Chamber and the leaders and, from there, with the publication of the report on Thursday (4), the text will possibly go to the Plenary next week,” he said.
The Selective Tax, by definition, may include products or services that are harmful to human health or the environment, such as: soft drinks, cigarettes, alcoholic beverages and combustion-powered vehicles. The proposal is supported by other colleagues.
“I think that if it is something that is bad for mental health, it has to be included. The Selective Tax has no revenue collected, so the objective would be to remove another product from the list, or reduce the standard rate,” said deputy Hildo Rocha.
Representative Reginaldo Lopes, however, fears that yet another tax on online betting could lead to a search for illegal gambling: “I think it depends, we have to see. This may promote lawlessness,” he said.
In an interview with g1, the Extraordinary Secretary for Tax Reform of the Ministry of Finance, Bernard Appy, stated that there is a demand from parliamentarians for the Selective Tax to be applied to gambling.
"The question is to understand how and if this taxation makes sense and to calibrate it properly. We are working on this together with the Betting Secretariat at the Ministry (of Finance)," he added.
Source: GMB / Agência Câmara de Notícias
