On 24.Feb.2026, Transparência Brasil and nineteen other civil society organizations sent an open letter to the Federal Supreme Court (STF) in support of Justice Flávio Dino’s decision, which reaffirms the authority of the constitutional ceiling and determines measures to contain payments above the limit provided for in the Constitution.

The minister’s measure confronts what he himself called the “Empire of the Penduricalhos”, made up of funds classified as indemnities and used to exceed the civil service ceiling. The letter defends the interruption of payments considered undue and the strengthening of transparency and responsibility in the use of public resources.

A recent publication by the Movimento Pessoas à Frente in partnership with República.org showed that Brazil leads the international ranking of super salaries in the civil service. Between August 2024 and July 2025 alone, R$20 billion was paid above the constitutional ceiling, concentrated in just 1.34% of active and inactive civil servants.

The letter also criticizes Bill 2.721/2021, which is currently before Congress. The proposal does not correct distortions, but expands exceptions to the ceiling by providing for a set of indemnity funds that could fall outside the constitutional limit. A survey by Transparência Brasil and República.org indicates that benefits of this nature cost the judiciary R$7.1 billion in 2024 alone.

The text also mentions the recent approval of bills that granted compensatory leave to civil servants from the Federal Court of Auditors, the Chamber of Deputies and the Federal Senate. The proposals were vetoed by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on 18.Feb.2026, after the coalition organizations expressed their opposition.

The STF minister’s preliminary injunction opens the way for regulations that restrict exceptions and establish objective criteria for characterizing indemnity funds.

The organizations say that it will be up to the three branches of government and the autonomous institutions to decide whether to maintain the current model or adopt regulations that strengthen the state and restore society’s trust in the institutions.