Committee Passes Bill to Regulate Appointment and Tenure of Central Bank President
Brasil
15 noviembre 2019

On November 12, the Senate Committee on Economic Affairs passed a bill seeking to guarantee the autonomy of the Central Bank, regulating the office of the entity’s president and directors. The initiative was sent to the floor of the Senate as a matter of urgency and is expected to be debated in the coming days.

The bill, introduced by Senator Plínio Valério (Partido da Social Democracia Brasileira – allied with the ruling party), establishes a fixed four-year term of office for the president and directors of the Central Bank, and enables them to serve for a second consecutive term. The text adopted by the Committee proposes that the bank president take office on the first working day of the third year in office of the country’s president, so as to ensure the Central Bank’s administration is staggered with the presidential mandate.

The senators believe that staggering both administrations will “protect the bank from the political pressures of the Executive” and ensure that the Central Bank has the stability and time to plan and execute monetary policy as best possible.

It should be remembered that the Executive has itself submitted a bill on the same issue, which did not make any progress. Telmário Mota (Partido Republicano da Ordem Social – opposition) said the current Senate bill is “more appropriate” than Bolsonaro’s, since the latter does not deal with the administrative and financial autonomy of the Central Bank, “but only the autonomy of its monetary policy.”

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