📋 Tender Overview
The Regional Development Commission (CDR) approved this Tuesday (17) a bill that authorizes the Union to subsidize airlines to promote the offer of flights on routes originating or ending in the North Region. Called the NorteAr Program, the proposal is now being analyzed by the Economic Affairs Commission (CAE).
Bill 1,600/2025, authored by Senator Dr. Hiran (PP-RR), aims to expand access for the population of the Northern Region to air transport and increase the number of airports in the region served by regular passenger flights.
The proposal also seeks to facilitate the movement of essential goods, such as food and medicines, expand access to locations with tourist potential and strengthen the integration of the air network.
-- The purpose is for us to stimulate regional aviation, reducing operational costs, to attract companies -- so that new companies can even be created -- and to facilitate our inter-regional transport -- said Dr. Hiran.
The proposal received a substitute from the rapporteur, Senator Alan Rick (Republicans-AC). The amendment authorizes the Executive Branch to use resources from the National Civil Aviation Fund (Fnac) to subsidize air operations in the North Region. It would be up to the government to define the necessary mechanisms to guarantee the effectiveness of the policy and the construction of a sustainable market in the long term.
The rapporteur expanded the possibility of defining routes, now allowing connections between any airport in the country and regional airports in the North -- a measure that, according to him, tends to favor national integration and stimulate the development of areas that are still little explored.
Alan Rick defended the flexibility of development instruments, establishing the subsidy as just one of the possible alternatives. It opened space, for example, for investments in infrastructure that enable air operations.
When presenting his report, the senator reinforced that the right to come and go is one of the most fundamental constitutional principles for citizens.
-- The relevance of the program for the Northern Region is indisputable, which historically faces challenges of connection and national integration, especially in relation to the availability and accessibility of air transport. The situation is made worse by the geographical characteristics of the region, which enhance the importance of regional aviation as a means of transporting people and goods -- said Alan Rick.
Regional integration
Data from the National Civil Aviation Agency (Anac) indicate that, in 2024, less than 10% of the 93 million passengers transported on domestic flights in Brazil had their origin or destination at airports in the North Region. Of this total, only 20% traveled between locations within the region itself.
In 2023, the average price of aviation kerosene in the North was around 12% above the national average, highlighting the additional costs that impact air operations in the region.
To overcome this challenge, PL 1,600/2025 provides that the benefits granted, the criteria for selecting airlines, the obligations of operators and possible sanctions will be defined by regulation of the Executive Branch. The text also establishes that the program will initially last for five years from the date of regulation, with the possibility of extension for an equal period.
Digital marketplaces
The CDR also approved this Tuesday the holding of a public hearing on the sale of irregular products in virtual shopping malls, known as digital marketplaces. The debate must specifically address telecommunications equipment without valid certification or in disagreement with Brazilian legislation. The hearing was proposed by senator Professor Dorinha Seabra (Uniao-TO).
Agencia Senado (Reproduction authorized upon citation from Agencia Senado)
