PEC 215 is a proposed

constitutional amendment A constitutional amendment (or constitutional alteration) is a modification of the constitution of a polity, organization or other type of entity. Amendments are often interwoven into the relevant sections of an existing constitution, directly alt ...

to the

constitution of Brazil The Constitution of the Federative Republic of Brazil () is the Constitution, supreme law of Brazil. It is the foundation and source of the legal authority underlying the existence of Brazil and the federal government of Brazil. It replaced the ...

. It intends to delegate exclusively to Congress the duty of demarcation of

indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology) In biogeography, a native species is indigenous to a given region or ecosystem if its presence in that region is the result of only local natural evolution (though often populari ...

and

Quilombola A ''quilombola'' () is an Afro-Brazilian resident of ''quilombo'' settlements first established by escaped slaves in Brazil. They are the descendants of Afro-Brazilian slaves who escaped from slave plantations that existed in Brazil until abol ...

territories, as well as the ratification of land already approved. It would prohibit the expansion of already existing indigenous areas. One of the proposal sections provides compensation of the Union to farmers who have properties absorbed by areas demarcated as indigenous land. The Federal Constitution considers that indigenous lands belong to the Union and, therefore, there is no compensation to those who lose the ownership of the territory when the demarcation is recognized. Currently, the government and

Funai is a Japanese consumer electronics company headquartered in Daitō, Osaka. Currently, it is in liquidation. Apart from producing its own branded electronic products, it was also an OEM providing assembled televisions and video players/recor ...

are responsible for demarcation. Under the proposed amendment, indigenous people might only be able to claim an area, they have lived in and used by 1988. It would give Congress the final say on new demarcations, a fact that displeases the indigenous leaders because of the strength of lobbyists. Much of the protected area of indigenous lands and quilombola territories are

rain forest Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...

s being important for

water Water is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance. It is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known liv ...

and

climate Climate is the long-term weather pattern in a region, typically averaged over 30 years. More rigorously, it is the mean and variability of meteorological variables over a time spanning from months to millions of years. Some of the meteoro ...

. There are farmers, who have filed an appeal.

Legislative process

Approval of the bill depends on two rounds of voting in the plenary sessions of the Chamber of Deputies and the

Federal Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. Senate or the Senate may also refer to: * Any one of the national senates in the world, including ** The Australian Senate ** The Brazilian Senate * ...

, with qualified quorum, that is, with the votes of at least 308 deputies and 49 senators. Parliamentarians opposed to the bill have said they will question its constitutionality in the Supreme Court. The bill needs three fifths of the votes in senate to be approved. PEC 215 has been proposed in repeated sessions of Congress since 2000, and has been approved in several congressional committee votes. Members of the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourb ...

of PT, PCdoB, PV, PSOL and REDE have advocated against the bill. Great land owners have a great impact in congress. Protests by indigenous people prevented a vote on PEC 215 in 2014. Indigenous people have protested against the bill in front of the Chamber of Deputies.

References

{{Reflist Environmental law in Brazil Proposed constitutional amendments of Brazil 2015 in politics 2015 in Brazil