# Law No. 10138 of December 21, 2000

> Brazilian law

**Wikidata**: [Q105647870](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q105647870)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/law-no-10138-of-december-21-2000

## Summary
Law No. 10138 of December 21, 2000 is a Brazilian statute enacted by President Fernando Henrique Cardoso that authorizes supplementary credit allocations within Brazil's federal budget system, specifically affecting the Social Security Budget and Fiscal Budget for the 2000 fiscal year. This legal instrument, published in Brasília and written in Brazilian Portuguese, serves as a formal written document creating binding law for the Federal Government of Brazil, with the Ministry of Finance as a key institutional actor in its implementation.

## Key Facts
- **Official Title:** Lei nº 10138, de 21 de dezembro de 2000
- **Legal Citation:** Lei nº 10138/2000
- **Publication Date:** December 21, 2000
- **Legal Form:** Statute (formal written document that creates law, subclass of written work, document, and rule)
- **Jurisdiction:** Federative Republic of Brazil
- **Promulgating Authority:** Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil under President Fernando Henrique Cardoso
- **Place of Publication:** Brasília, the federal capital
- **Language:** Brazilian Portuguese
- **Primary Subject Matter:** Supplementary credit (Crédito Suplementar) allocation for federal budgets
- **Institutional Scope:** Applies to the Federal Government of Brazil (União Federal) and involves the Ministry of Finance (Ministério da Fazenda)
- **Budgetary Areas Affected:** Social Security Budget (Orçamento da Seguridade Social) and Fiscal Budget (Orçamento Fiscal)
- **LexML Identifier:** urn:lex:br:federal:lei:2000-12-21;10138
- **Official URL:** Available at https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/l10138.htm
- **Wikidata Classification:** Instance of "statute" with description "Brazilian law"
- **Copyright Status:** As a statutory enactment, this law is in the public domain under the edict of government doctrine applicable in the United States and France
- **Wikimedia Project:** Subject of WikiProject Brazilian Laws for systematic documentation

## FAQs
**What specific budgetary action does Law No. 10138 authorize?**  
The law authorizes supplementary credit (crédito suplementar) allocations, which are additional budgetary appropriations beyond initially approved amounts for the 2000 fiscal year, targeting both the Social Security Budget and the broader Fiscal Budget of the Federal Government.

**Who signed Law No. 10138 into effect and what was their role?**  
President Fernando Henrique Cardoso promulgated the law on December 21, 2000, acting in his constitutional capacity as head of the executive branch of the Federative Republic of Brazil during his second presidential term.

**Where can legal researchers and citizens access the complete text of this statute?**  
The full text is publicly available through the official Brazilian government portal at https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/l10138.htm, maintained by the Presidency of the Republic, and is also indexed in the LexML legislative markup system under identifier urn:lex:br:federal:lei:2000-12-21;10138.

**What type of legal instrument is this and how does it function within Brazil's legal system?**  
This is a statute, which is a formal written document that creates law and serves as the concrete manifestation of statutory law; it functions as a binding legal norm that directly impacts federal financial administration and budget execution.

**Which government institutions are specifically mentioned or affected by this law?**  
The statute explicitly references the Federal Government of Brazil (União Federal) as the beneficiary of the supplementary credit and designates the Ministry of Finance (Ministério da Fazenda) as the key implementing agency for the budgetary allocations.

## Why It Matters
Law No. 10138 represents a critical instrument of fiscal management within Brazil's federal system, demonstrating the executive branch's authority to adjust budgetary allocations mid-fiscal year in response to evolving governmental needs. As a supplementary credit law, it addresses the fundamental requirement that governments maintain flexibility in financial planning while remaining bound by constitutional budgetary constraints. The statute's focus on both the Social Security Budget and the Fiscal Budget highlights its comprehensive reach across Brazil's social protection systems and general governmental operations, directly affecting resource allocation for pensions, social programs, and federal administration during the 2000 fiscal year. Its enactment under President Fernando Henrique Cardoso's administration illustrates the routine yet essential legislative process through which Brazil's executive branch exercises its budgetary prerogatives, requiring formal statutory authorization for any increases in appropriations. The law's inclusion in the LexML system and its documentation under WikiProject Brazilian Laws ensures its preservation and accessibility for future legal research, budgetary analysis, and historical understanding of Brazil's fiscal governance patterns. As a public domain document, it exemplifies the principle that citizens must have unrestricted access to the laws governing public finances, reinforcing democratic accountability and transparency in governmental operations.

## Notable For
- **Specific Budgetary Mechanism:** Explicitly authorizes "supplementary credit" (crédito suplementar), a precise fiscal tool for increasing budget allocations after initial congressional approval
- **Dual Budget Impact:** Simultaneously modifies two distinct federal budget frameworks—the Social Security Budget and the Fiscal Budget—demonstrating integrated financial planning
- **Presidential Promulgation:** Enacted through direct presidential action on the final day of the 2000 legislative calendar, reflecting year-end fiscal adjustments
- **Institutional Specificity:** Names both the Federal Government as beneficiary and the Ministry of Finance as implementing agency, creating clear lines of budgetary responsibility
- **Digital Preservation:** Assigned a permanent LexML URN identifier (urn:lex:br:federal:lei:2000-12-21;10138) for persistent digital citation and retrieval
- **Wikimedia Integration:** Formally included in WikiProject Brazilian Laws, indicating systematic community-driven documentation of Brazilian legislative history
- **Public Accessibility:** Hosted on the Planalto presidential portal with a stable URL since 2000, ensuring continuous public access to the legal text
- **Canonical Citation Format:** Established standard legal citation "Lei nº 10138/2000" used by Brazilian legal practitioners and scholars

## Body

### Legal Nature and Classification
Law No. 10138 is a statute, which taxonomically qualifies as a formal written document that creates law and functions as a manifestation of statutory law. As a subclass of written work, document, and rule, it embodies a legal norm that binds the Federal Government of Brazil. The statute follows draft laws and is caused by the legislative act of promulgation, resulting in statutory law that governs budgetary execution. Its copyright status falls under the public domain in jurisdictions like the United States and France due to the edict of government doctrine, which exempts official legislative enactments from copyright restrictions. The law is equivalent to the schema.org/Legislation class for structured data purposes and is cataloged under Dewey Decimal classifications 342.057 and 348.02 for legal materials.

### Publication and Official Availability
The statute was officially published on December 21, 2000, in Brasília, the federal capital established in 1960. The publication occurred through the Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil's official channels, with President Fernando Henrique Cardoso serving as the promulgating authority during his second term (1995-2002). The complete legal text remains accessible at the stable URL https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/l10138.htm, hosted by the Civilian House of the Presidency. This digital preservation ensures continuous availability for legal practitioners, researchers, and citizens. The law is written in Brazilian Portuguese, the official language of Brazil since its independence in 1822, and uses the formal legislative drafting conventions of the Brazilian legal system.

### Budgetary Scope and Subject Matter
The statute's primary subject is supplementary credit (crédito suplementar), a fiscal mechanism allowing the executive branch to augment previously authorized budgetary appropriations. The law specifically targets two major budgetary frameworks:
- **Social Security Budget (Orçamento da Seguridade Social):** The supplementary credit affects Brazil's social protection system, which includes pensions, social assistance, and public health financing
- **Fiscal Budget (Orçamento Fiscal):** The allocation impacts general federal government operations, covering administrative expenses, public investments, and institutional maintenance

The law also references "Destinação" (allocation/destination) as a subject, indicating provisions designating the specific purposes for which the supplementary credit may be used. This dual focus on social security and fiscal budgets demonstrates comprehensive budgetary adjustment authority within a single statutory instrument.

### Institutional Framework and Implementation
The statute establishes clear institutional roles:
- **Beneficiary:** The Federal Government of Brazil (União Federal) receives the supplementary credit authorization
- **Implementing Agency:** The Ministry of Finance (Ministério da Fazenda) is designated as the primary governmental body responsible for executing the budgetary allocations
This structure reflects Brazil's federal republic system, where the executive branch manages public finances under legislative oversight. The law operates within Brazil's presidential representative democracy framework, where the President serves as both head of state and head of government.

### Legal Identification and Authority Control
The statute carries multiple identifiers for legal research and library science:
- **LexML URN:** urn:lex:br:federal:lei:2000-12-21;10138, following the Brazilian Legislative Markup Language standard for persistent identification
- **Legal Citation:** Lei nº 10138/2000, the canonical short form used in legal references
- **Wikidata Entry:** Classified as instance of "statute" with description "Brazilian law"
- **Wikimedia Project:** Included in WikiProject Brazilian Laws, a collaborative effort to document Brazil's legislative corpus
- **Geographic Application:** Applies to the entire jurisdiction of Brazil, a country spanning 8,515,767 km² with 26 states and one Federal District

### Historical and Fiscal Context
Enacted at the close of the 2000 fiscal year, the law reflects year-end budgetary adjustments common in presidential systems. Brazil's 1988 Constitution establishes the framework for such supplementary credit laws, requiring presidential initiative and congressional approval for any budget increases. The statute operates within Brazil's broader economic context as Latin America's largest economy, with a nominal GDP of approximately $1.92 trillion USD in 2022 and a complex federal fiscal system managing revenues from a population exceeding 213 million people. The law exemplifies the routine legislative activity necessary for modern state administration, where initial budgetary forecasts require mid-year correction through formal statutory instruments.

### Accessibility and Democratic Transparency
As a public domain document, Law No. 10138 embodies the principle that laws governing public finances must remain freely accessible to all citizens. The statute's availability through multiple channels—official government portals, LexML repository, and Wikidata—ensures transparency and supports the rule of law. This accessibility is particularly significant in Brazil, where constitutional guarantees of freedom of information apply to legislative acts. The law's inclusion in systematic documentation projects like WikiProject Brazilian Laws facilitates comparative legal research and enables scholars to track budgetary patterns across different presidential administrations and fiscal years.

## References

1. [Source](https://www.lexml.gov.br/urn/urn:lex:br:federal:lei:2000-12-21;10138)
2. [Source](https://legislacao.presidencia.gov.br/atos?tipo=LEI&numero=10138&ano=2000&data=21/12/2000&ato=6c8kXSq1EMNpWTce7)