BRASILIA: The Brazilian government will make changes to a controversial bill that limits the spending of cash-strapped states, Finance Minister Henrique Meirelles said on Monday, in a last-minute effort to fast-track the approval of austerity measures.
Meirelles said the government will remove from the bill on state debts measures that would limit their expenditures on state employees.
Their current expenditures will be addressed in separate legislation that will re-work the country's fiscal responsibility law.
He said the government will keep the bill currently before Congress that gives Brazilian states substantial relief on their debts in exchange for a ceiling on spending and a 2-year ban on wage increases for public servants.
The government is pushing for that bill to be voted on this week after several delays.
Interim President Michel Temer has struggled to approve the state debt bill in Congress as he faces resistance from governors that want to relax some austerity obligations.
Some analysts accuse Meirelles of bowing to governors' pressure and diluting the original bill that aims to rebalance the finances of states struggling to honor their debts and payrolls.
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