This paper explores the policy of education finance through the funds FUNDEF and FUNDEB, which redistribute between the state and municipal governments, part of taxes (15% of some, in the case of FUNDEF, and 20% of a greater number of taxes, in the case of FUNDEB) already linked to the maintenance and development of education as provided for in the Brazilian Constitution of 1988, based on the number of enrolments in regular basic education (FUNDEF) and primary education (FUNDEB). The role of the federal government would be to provide additional finance to those state funds whose value per enrolment would not reach the minimum national value, in order to guarantee a minimum standard of quality. This text emphasizes some of the deficiencies of both funds. One is that they provide very few new resources to the educational system as a whole, since the federal contribution (which would constitute these new resources) was insignificant with FUNDEF and will not be significant with FUNDEB. Another deficiency is that some governments get more than they contribute while others get less, which means that only governments gaining and/or receiving the federal contribution have more chances to maintain and develop education and to valorize their teaching staff.
Education funding; FUNDEF; FUNDEB
