The effect of the welfare factor on large social welfare numbers

Abstract

The welfare factor was introduced in 1999 by Act 9876 to promote a balance between the revenues and expenditures of the General Social Welfare System - GSWS. However, since its inception, it has been the target of criticism, and its abolition is often discussed. Given the importance of understanding the extent to which the introduction of the factor changed the financial structure of Brazilian social welfare and because limited research supports discussions on the retention or removal of the welfare factor, this study aims to analyze the effect of the welfare factor on large social welfare numbers. To that end, stationarity tests were performed to decide which model to use. Then, the structural breakdown of the data was tested, and an analysis was performed using an autoregressive model with trends to verify if the welfare factor variable (dummy) affected the series "Net Revenue", "Social Welfare Benefits Expenditure" and "Expenditure on Pensions by Contribution Period." The supporting monthly data were collected from the historical database of the Infologo Social Welfare Statistical Yearbook (Anuário Estatístico da Previdência Social - AEPS) from January 1988 to April 2011 for the first two variables and from January 1993 to August 2011 for the third. The results indicate that the implementation of the welfare factor has not been able to reverse the trend of higher growth of expenditures relative to revenue, thus confirming the expectation that social welfare finances will remain in deficit. For "Expenditure on Pensions by Contribution Period," since the implementation of the welfare factor, a slowdown in the growth trend of benefit payments has occurred. However, as this mode corresponds to only a portion of the total benefits paid, while acknowledging that the factor provided savings to the public coffers, its implementation has been unable to promote a balance between revenues and expenditures for the GSWS.