The National Association of Parishes (Anafre) has given a negative opinion on the budget proposal for the third consecutive year, highlighting today that the 2026 proposal “reflects a loss of revenue for the parishes” during a hearing on the State Budget proposal for 2026.
“And why do I say it’s the worst budget of the last five years? I base it on facts. In 2023, we had a revenue increase of 5.89%. In 2024, we had 19.17%. In 2025, we had 13.50%. In 2026, we will have 2.5%. This is factual. This certainly reflects, as my colleagues also believe, a loss of revenue for the parishes,” said Jorge Veloso, president of Anafre.
The official admitted that the proposal is close to the minimum value foreseen in the Local Finance Law (LFL), but “it is a meager value, it is very little” and insufficient for the parishes to meet their commitments.
He reiterated the need to revise this law, a process requested by local authorities that has been delayed over the years, now postponed to 2026/2027.
Jorge Veloso also emphasized that this is the third year Anafre has presented an unfavorable opinion, maintaining the same proposals as in previous years.
“Which means they haven’t listened to us,” he said.
