THE (DIS)PATHS OF PUBLIC CONSULTATIONS IN THE FEDERAL SENATE (1988-2023)

Abstract

does the increasing number of public consultations carried out by the Federal Senate result in an effective contribution to the improvement of the Brazilian democratic process? By locating the presence and frequency of public consultations, seek to identify and describe the trajectory of use of this social participation mechanism in the Federal Senate from 1988 to 2023. In this sense, intend to discuss the possibilities for the arguments of expanding social participation and democratic legitimacy. The development of this enterprise is justified by theoretical and empirical reasons; first, to understand the path and functionality; second, to analyze its possible contributions to strengthening Brazilian participatory democracy. Except for the introduction and references, the paper is structured into four sections, namely: (i) describe the main ideas, functions and projections of public consultations in light of the democratic rule of law; (ii) put public consultations into perspective as a possibility for building social participation; (iii) detail the path of public consultations in the Federal Senate through the elaboration of a specific table with data obtained during the period (1988-2023); at end, (iv) evaluate the possible equivalence between public consultation and democratic legitimacy. Finally, conclusions will be presented. Thus, despite the apparent inclusion (which is applicable to any legislative proposal in the Federal Senate and with the possibility of expression from any person registered on the portal), the volatility of participation (both in frequency and in matters) and the non-binding nature of public consultations reduce their positive impact on participatory democracy.