“What kind of development do we want for the next 50 years?” With this question, Laura Souza, executive secretary of the Observatory of Socio-biodiversity Economies (ÓSocioBio), opened the roundtable discussion “Socio-biodiverse Tax Reform” at the Chamber of Deputies on June 14th, as part of the Sustainable Parliamentary Turnaround seminar.
Alongside André Tomasi, a member of the Chestnut Observatory – IIEB/OCA, Carina Pimenta (National Secretary of Bioeconomy at the Ministry of the Environment), Cido Souza, from the Grande Sertão Cooperative (MG) and President of the National Union of Family Farming and Solidarity Economy Cooperatives (UNICAFES), and Edna Cássia Carmelio, consultant at GIZ, ÓSocioBio raised the issue in parliament of the need for taxation policies appropriate to the products of the economies of traditional peoples and communities, and family farmers.
Established in the 1960s, Brazil's consumption tax model was, and still is, quite confusing and unfair to vulnerable populations. This year, the Tax Reform agenda returned with vigor and is expected to be voted on in the National Congress. This means that the way Brazilians pay taxes will be changed through PEC 45/2019 and PEC 110/2019.
The main change proposed by the federal government is: the five current taxes on consumption (IPI, PIS, Cofins, ICMS and ISS) could be replaced by a consumption tax, the Tax on Goods and Services (IBS), and by a Selective Tax (IS) – intended for products harmful to health and the environment, such as cigarettes and pesticides. This is the tax reform proposal that the Chamber is analyzing and was presented by the leader of the MDB, Deputy Baleia Rossi (SP).
To contribute to the Reform, together with more than 70 organizations and experts, ÓSocioBio formulated the proposal for Tax Reform 3S – Healthy, Sustainable and Solidarity-based, which seeks to contribute to the eradication of poverty and the reduction of social, regional, racial, and gender inequalities. And now, alongside this movement, it advocates for changes in taxation that also take into account Brazil's sociobiodiversity.
“The sectors that receive the most tax incentives are the automotive, oil and gas, and pesticide industries, for example. As a result, we have had economic growth in the country, but also a loss of biodiversity, increased social inequality, food insecurity, and the deaths of socio-environmental leaders,” highlighted Laura, executive secretary of ÓSocioBio. “Therefore, we believe it is time to consider new tax policies that include socio-biodiversity products,” she added.
The Observatory advocates for a compensation mechanism for taxes levied on products produced by these agroextractive communities, which comprise the initial phase of the supply chain. The sales phase of this production must be compensated for 100% of what should be paid by the new tax under debate in the Tax Reform (IBS).
This means that the price of Brazil nuts, açaí, baru, pequi, and other Brazilian sociobiodiversity products and their derivatives can be lower. And producers won't bear a tax burden disproportionate to their profits. These products also contribute to maintaining living forests and fields, and clean water, promoting biodiversity conservation and climate balance.
Public Hearing
Also as part of the Sustainable Parliamentary Turnaround program, ÓSocioBio, through coordination with the office of federal deputy Airton Faleiro (PT-PA), promoted the public hearing “Sociobioeconomy, challenges of climate balance and healthy food production”, to discuss PL 1855/2022 (Senate), Indication No. 42/2022 and Complementary Law Project (PLP) 150/2022 (Chamber), with representatives from the National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES), Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MMA), National Supply Company (Conab-MDA), Ministry of Planning, National Council of Extractive Populations (CNS/ÓSocioBio).
The debate's central objective was to address the forest economy and promote economies based on social well-being in conjunction with environmental conservation. During the hearing, Leosmar Terena, general coordinator for the promotion of indigenous well-being at the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples (MPI), emphasized that the socio-biodiversity economy is an integral part of the practices and ways of life of indigenous peoples and should not be treated as a mere commodity. "We don't want the socio-biodiversity economy to become just another product, but rather a true economy, which has been practiced by indigenous peoples for a long time," he stated.
Rodrigo Augusto, Project Coordinator at the National Secretariat for Traditional Peoples and Communities and Sustainable Rural Development of the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MMA), emphasized the need to establish fair value chains that adequately compensate indigenous peoples and traditional communities. According to him, all this is only possible if territories are guaranteed. "It is necessary to establish a fair value chain that fairly compensates indigenous peoples and traditional peoples and communities, and none of this exists without territory," he stressed.
José Ivanildo Gama, director of the National Council of Extractive Populations and member of the Observatory of Socio-biodiversity Economies, also participated in the hearing and highlighted the importance of public policies that are aligned with the reality of forest peoples. He advocated for the creation of inclusive policies. “Public policies must be created that include the ways of life of forest peoples, their knowledge and practices. This is important so that the government can promote policies that are appropriate and contextualized to these realities,” he emphasized.
Sustainable Parliamentary Turnaround
The Sustainable Parliamentary Turnaround is a movement that seeks to chart a prosperous future for Brazil through actions, debates, seminars, exhibitions, public hearings, and roundtables. The events will take place until June 29th in the Federal Senate and the Chamber of Deputies, with the participation of more than 60 civil society organizations. Learn more at: https://viradaparlamentar.org.br/
ÓSocioBio
The Observatory of Socio-biodiversity Economies (ÓSocioBio) is a group of socio-environmental organizations from civil society, popular social movements, community-based enterprises and cooperatives, and networks from the fields, forests, and waters, united around the agenda of Socio-biodiversity Economies.
ÓSocioBio monitors public policies and bills at the federal level, in addition to developing political advocacy, oversight, and social participation activities aimed at strengthening sustainable and inclusive socio-productive systems for indigenous peoples, traditional peoples and communities, and family farmers.
Text: Dominik Giusti/ ISPN Communication and Tainá Aragão/ISA Communication