Fundeb: Senate excludes sections that would take R $ 16 billion from public schools; text returns to the Chamber | Politics

Fundeb is the main financing mechanism for basic education in the country. In August, Congress enacted an amendment to the Constitution that renewed the fund’s rules and made it permanent. But there are still specific rules about the division of money missing.

With the changes made in the Senate, the text will be returned to the Chamber for analysis. The report’s senator, Izalci Lucas (PSDB-DF), said there is an agreement with the mayor, Rodrigo Maia (DEM-RJ), to conclude the new vote this week.

“After the demonstration of representatives of the education sector and parliamentarians, the Federal Senate reversed the changes made by the Chamber to the text of the Fundeb regulation. The senators guaranteed the allocation of resources for public education in the country, an area that needs it most ”, he published. on the social network the president of the Senate, Davi Alcolumbre (DEM-AP).

In the Senate, the parliamentarians decided to rescue the original version of the report by deputy Felipe Rigoni (PSB-ES). This is because, after voting on this basic text in the Chamber, the deputies began to approve several outstanding points, excerpts analyzed individually.

One of these tranches left space for private non-profit, philanthropic or religious schools to also receive public money. The rule would apply even to schools connected to System S (Senai, Sesi, Senac, Sesc).

An estimate from the National Campaign for the Right to Education and the National Association for Research on Education Financing (Fineduca) says that these tranches, together, could draw around R $ 16 billion from public schools.

These points are criticized by experts and educational entities.

Senator Izalci came to present an “intermediate” report on Tuesday, maintaining part of the most controversial aspects and rejecting others. The version, however, did not receive the support of the majority of the senators. So, in plenary, the decision was to resume Rigoni’s original report.

With the exclusion of controversial excerpts, the senators quickly approved the regulation, in a symbolic vote, without counting the votes.

The House will vote on Thursday

In an interview in the Chamber, Maia confirmed that the text will be ruled next Thursday (18) in the plenary session of the Chamber.

“It went too far. Entering System S with money from Fundeb does not make any sense,” said the parliamentarian. “In a short time there will be a reduction in public funds for public schools,” added the mayor.

Maia defended the approval of the rapporteur’s original text in the House, as well as it was approved in the Senate.

“It is clear that the parties will have the right to present highlights to recover the text that was withdrawn in the Senate,” he said.

Promulgated in August by the National Congress, the new Fundeb will enter into force in January permanently. Before, the fund had an expiration date and would end in December.

The amendment approved in the Constitution also increased federal transfers. Today, this supplementation of the Union is 10% higher than the amount collected by state governments and municipalities; the percentage should reach 23% in 2026.

The fund was created with the objective of reducing inequalities and guaranteeing a minimum amount per student to invest in each city of the country, in kindergartens, primary and secondary schools, and also in youth and adult education (EJA).

However, there is still no law that defines the rules that detail the operationalization and distribution of resources to the states and municipalities.

According to a technical note from the Todos pela Educação movement, regulation this year is “essential”. The entity’s calculations indicate that, without this, around 1,500 poorer municipalities run the risk of running out of an additional R $ 3 billion from the new Fundeb model, considering only the year 2021.

According to the approved text, it is not yet possible to know how much each state and municipality will receive. Some indicators will be defined by parliamentarians next year and other rules will have to be established through executive decrees and ordinances.

Among other points, the project defines the Cost of Student Quality (CAQ), provided for in the constitutional reform promulgated by Congress.

The CAQ is an educational financing parameter foreseen in the National Education Plan (PNE) that defines what the investment per student should be to guarantee the quality of education.

The text determines the division of the complementation of the Union as follows:

• 10 percentage points will follow the distribution rules in force, so that the poorest states that receive the Union supplement reach the minimum standard.
• 10.5 percentage points will be distributed to municipal, state or district public educational networks that do not reach the total annual value per student (VAAT), a distribution parameter created based on the financing capacity of the educational networks.
• Completion of 2.5 percentage points based on the annual value per student (VAAR), which will be distributed according to the fulfillment of conditions and evolution of the indicators, to be defined, of service and improvement of learning with reduction of inequalities.

Part of the Union complementation (2.5 percentage points) must follow some criteria, such as:

• technical parameters of merit and performance to occupy the position of school principal;
• participation of at least 80% of students in basic education assessments;
• reduction of socioeconomic and racial inequalities in education, measured in assessment tests.

What the senators said

Here’s what the senators said in Tuesday’s vote:

• Izalci Lucas (PSDB-DF), speaker of the project:

“The most practical, the fastest, the consensus here is simply that we accept Rigoni’s report, because that was the report that we approved in the committees. If there is any change, the Board that makes the change.

The Senate monitored this entire period, we approved this report, we agreed with him, a few minutes ago, to receive the report on such an important matter … We cannot discuss much. We have already discussed and decided. I have already asked you to make the dispatch report, the same text as the House rapporteur, Rigoni. So, it is exactly the same. If they want to change, they will change there [na Câmara]”.

• Jorge Kajuru (Citizenship-GO), Senator:

“Experts report that, with the decision of the Chamber, in the Fundeb regulation, R $ 16 billion will simply disappear from public education to go to private schools. So this is a concern.

Once again, we see that the Senate has to vote against us, knowing that today we can do the opposite, that is, return the bill to the House and hope that it complies with Mr. Rigoni’s report ”.

• Paulo Paim (PT-RS), Senator:

“Brazil fell five positions in the HDI world ranking, we rank 84th in 189 countries. The UN points out the lack of progress in education as responsible for this index. With less investment in Fundeb, we will fall even more, that is, the poorest will pay the bill again.

This is unacceptable for a nation that needs to give its people a better future! If they really want to advance, the way is to approve Fundeb without the privatizations that came from the Chamber ”.

• Otto Alencar (PSD-BA), party leader in the Senate:

“What Brazil needs are more kindergartens, more classrooms for preschool, primary, more federal, state, public, free universities, with good quality teaching. It is unacceptable to withdraw, as the House text did, R $ 15.9 billion for private schools, foundations and associations ”.

• Randolfe Rodrigues (Rede-AP), party leader:

“We have just restored the original text presented to the House. The final text that had been approved by the Chamber with the changes took R $ 12 billion from public schools and was destined for confessional and private institutions.