At least 80% of the revenue collected by municipalities across the country goes towards paying salaries and wages, which contributes to the low availability of funds for investment in development projects.

Meanwhile, the percentage of spending on salaries drops to 47%, when taking into account the compensation transferred by the central government to the municipalities, according to "Notícias".

According to the Ministry of Economy and Finance's fiscal risk assessment for 2025, this scenario reflects the dependence of municipalities on transfers via the state budget to reinforce the execution of operating and investment expenses.

Overall, it was noted that the municipalities' own revenues correspond to an average of 43% of total expenditure.

In addition, during the period in question, central government transfers and own revenues had an average weight of 44% in the total revenue portfolio and the rest came from other sources.

The document also states that between 2019 and 2020, there was greater pressure on spending, with an increase of 20%, due to unforeseen expenses to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic.

Even so, amid the indicators that are considered worrying, these decentralized governance entities are making an effort to maximize the collection of their own revenue, which could improve financial availability.

Nevertheless, the aggregate financial autonomy ratios show that municipalities are improving their financial situation, a scenario that is partly explained by progress in collecting their own revenue.

By way of example, the Ministry of Economy and Finance points out that between 2019 and 2022, the aggregate own revenues of municipalities will grow by 53% , demonstrating their efforts to improve their fiscal situation. (News)