The Minister of the Federal Supreme Court (STF) Gilmar Mendes ordered the suspension of the payment of extra compensation amounts — known as “penduricalhos” — to members of the Judiciary and the Public Ministry that are not provided for in a law approved by the National Congress.
In the decision, signed on Monday (23), the minister established a 60-day deadline for state courts and public prosecutors to interrupt benefits paid based on local laws. It also determined a 45-day period to suspend amounts created by administrative decisions or secondary normative acts.
Gilmar Mendes stated that, after the deadlines, payments that do not comply with the determination may be considered serious infractions, subject to administrative, disciplinary and criminal investigation, in addition to the obligation to return amounts received irregularly.
According to the minister, there is a “huge imbalance” in the granting of these additional payments and the Constitution establishes that magistrates receive up to 90% of the allowance for STF ministers, the ceiling for public service, precisely to preserve the independence of the Judiciary. He also argued that allowing each court to create funds by its own acts violates the national character of the judiciary and makes oversight difficult.
The decision follows the understanding already adopted by minister Flávio Dino, who on February 5th ordered the suspension of extra payments not provided for by law and classified amounts above the ceiling as “disguised remuneration increases as compensation”.
The Supreme Court is expected to begin judging decisions related to the topic this Wednesday (25).
