The Public Prosecutor’s Office at the Federal Court of Accounts (TCU) requested on Thursday, the 17th, the suspension of the increase announced for the Bolsa Família program by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. According to Deputy Prosecutor General Lucas Furtado, the government did not present a budget estimate or the financial impact before adopting the increase.
Furtado noted that the adjustment entails a mandatory, ongoing expense that lacks legislative authorization, encroaching on the powers of the National Congress. “Granting the injunction is necessary to preserve the validity of the process and prevent irreparable harm to public assets and the legal order,” the deputy prosecutor general said.
Details of the increase and financial impact
The presidential decree sets a 15.04% increase in the benefit amount, raising the minimum from R$ 600 to R$ 691. The average payment rises from R$ 675 to R$ 777, with payments scheduled for October 19.
For this year, the estimated cost of the increase is R$ 5.8 billion. In 2027, spending is expected to reach R$ 22 billion, according to official projections.
The government’s position
In a statement, the government noted that this is the first inflation-index adjustment since the program was relaunched in 2023. Planning and Budget Minister Bruno Moretti reaffirmed that the adjustment is provided for by law and seeks to preserve beneficiaries’ purchasing power.
Moretti said the economic team identified fiscal room for the increase through internal reallocations, without changing the government’s overall spending cap. “On the 24th we will release the numbers, but we are confident that the fiscal room is greater than what is needed to fund this measure,” he said.
