The Brazilian Chamber of Deputies on Wednesday passed the main text of a keynote pension reform bill by a vote of 379 to 131. The bill, in the form of a constitutional amendment, required a three-fifths majority, or at least 308 votes, to pass. The Chamber will consider a series of amendments to the bill Thursday. The bill must then pass the Chamber of Deputies in a second-round vote before moving on to the Senate. First-round passage of the bill was a major victory for the administration of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who has said the pension reform is needed in order to avoid government bankruptcy. The reform will reduce government outlays for pensions by some R$1 trillion over a period of ten years and place the system on a viable fiscal basis permanently. Brazil’s public sector has been rolling up huge deficits since 2014, mainly because of yawning gaps in the pension system.
Link to Chamber of Deputies release.
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