# Law No. 3604 of August 8, 1959

> Brazilian law

**Wikidata**: [Q105648612](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q105648612)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/law-no-3604-of-august-8-1959

## Summary
Law No. 3604 of August 8, 1959 is a Brazilian federal statute that authorized special budgetary credit to provide financial aid for higher education institutions in the state of Rio Grande do Sul through the Ministry of Education. Promulgated by President Juscelino Kubitschek, this law represents a specific federal intervention in state-level educational financing during Brazil's developmentalist period.

## Key Facts
- **Full Title:** Lei nº 3604, de 8 de agosto de 1959
- **Publication Date:** August 8, 1959
- **Promulgating Authority:** Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil
- **President at Promulgation:** Juscelino Kubitschek
- **Place of Publication:** Rio de Janeiro
- **Legal Citation:** Lei nº 3604/1959
- **Language:** Brazilian Portuguese
- **Jurisdiction:** Applies to Brazil
- **Legal Classification:** Instance of a statute, which is a formal written document that creates law
- **Taxonomic Classification:** Subclass of written work, document, and rule
- **LexML Brazil Identifier:** urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1959-08-08;3604
- **Primary Subject:** Special budgetary adjustment (Credito Especial)
- **Secondary Subjects:** Ministry of Education (Ministerio Da Educação (Mec)), financial aid (Auxilio Financeiro), Rio Grande do Sul (Estado Do Rio Grande Do Sul (Rs)), educational institution (Estabelecimento De Ensino), municipality (Municipio), higher education (Curso Superior)
- **Digital Availability:** Full text available at https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/1950-1969/l3604.htm
- **Copyright Status:** Public domain in the United States under the edict of government doctrine and in France
- **Dewey Decimal Classification:** 342.057 and 348.02
- **Library of Congress Authority ID:** sh85127611
- **GND ID:** 4020660-9
- **Wikimedia Project Status:** On focus list of WikiProject Brazilian Laws
- **Equivalent Class:** https://schema.org/Legislation

## FAQs
**What is Law No. 3604 of August 8, 1959?**
Law No. 3604 is a Brazilian federal statute promulgated on August 8, 1959, that authorized special budgetary credit to provide financial assistance to higher education institutions in Rio Grande do Sul through the Ministry of Education.

**Who approved this law and under what authority?**
The law was approved by the Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil and promulgated by President Juscelino Kubitschek on August 8, 1959, exercising executive authority under the Brazilian legislative process.

**What specific topics does this law address?**
The law addresses seven specific subjects: special budgetary credit allocation, Ministry of Education administration, financial aid distribution, targeting the state of Rio Grande do Sul, support for educational institutions, involvement of municipal governments, and funding for higher education courses.

**Where was this law published and where can I find it today?**
It was published in Rio de Janeiro and remains accessible today through the official Brazilian government portal at https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/1950-1969/l3604.htm, with permanent identification via LexML URN urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1959-08-08;3604.

**What is the legal status and classification of this document?**
As a statute, it is a formal written document that creates law, classified as a subclass of written work, document, and rule. It functions as the manifestation of statutory law and is composed of legal norms, resulting from legislation and following draft laws.

**Are there any copyright restrictions on using this law?**
No, the law is in the public domain in the United States under the edict of government doctrine and similarly in France, meaning it can be freely reproduced, distributed, and used without copyright limitations.

## Why It Matters
Law No. 3604 of August 8, 1959 matters because it exemplifies the Brazilian federal government's direct financial intervention in state-level higher education during a critical period of national development. Promulgated during Juscelino Kubitschek's presidency—a time characterized by ambitious developmentalist policies and the construction of Brasília—this statute demonstrates how the central government used special budgetary credits to support educational infrastructure in specific states. The law's focus on Rio Grande do Sul reveals targeted federal investment in regional education systems, addressing disparities between states and establishing precedents for future educational financing mechanisms. Its inclusion in WikiProject Brazilian Laws highlights its significance within the broader corpus of Brazilian legislation, ensuring its preservation and accessibility for legal research, historical analysis, and comparative studies of education policy. The law's digital availability through the official Planalto portal ensures that researchers, students, and policymakers can access primary source documentation of mid-20th century Brazilian legislative approaches to federal-state cooperation in education. As a concrete manifestation of statutory law, it provides tangible evidence of how legal norms governing public finance and education were formally enacted and recorded, serving as a reference point for understanding the evolution of Brazil's educational federalism and budgetary law.

## Notable For
- **Specific State Targeting:** Uniquely focuses exclusively on Rio Grande do Sul for higher education financial aid, distinguishing it from nationwide education laws
- **Special Credit Mechanism:** Employs a special budgetary adjustment (Credito Especial) rather than regular budget allocation, indicating extraordinary financial measures
- **Presidential Era:** Enacted during Juscelino Kubitschek's administration (1956-1961), a defining period of developmentalism in Brazilian history
- **Digital Preservation:** Official full text maintained on the Planalto government portal with permanent LexML URN for reliable citation
- **Wikimedia Recognition:** Included in WikiProject Brazilian Laws, indicating its importance for encyclopedic documentation of Brazilian legal history
- **Comprehensive Subject Coverage:** Addresses seven distinct but interrelated subjects spanning budget, education, geography, and administration
- **Public Domain Status:** Exempt from copyright restrictions, ensuring unrestricted academic and public use
- **Multiple Authority Control:** Cataloged under both Dewey Decimal classifications (342.057 and 348.02) and assigned authoritative identifiers by Library of Congress and German National Library
- **Schema.org Equivalence:** Serves as real-world equivalent to structured data standards for legislation on the web
- **Municipal-Level Implementation:** Explicitly mentions municipalities as part of its implementation structure, showing multi-level governance approach

## Body

### Basic Identification and Classification
Law No. 3604 of August 8, 1959 is formally titled "Lei nº 3604, de 8 de agosto de 1959" and is classified as an instance of a statute. As a statute, it represents a formal written document that creates law, functioning as the concrete manifestation of statutory law. Taxonomically, it belongs to the class of legal terms and concepts, while also serving as a subclass of written work, document, and rule. The law is composed of legal norms and results from the legislative process, specifically following draft laws and being caused by legislation or a legal act. Its creation process aligns with the standard Brazilian legislative procedure where executive proposals become formal legal enactments.

### Legislative Authority and Promulgation
The law was approved by the Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil, representing the highest executive authority in the Brazilian federal system. It was promulgated on August 8, 1959, by President Juscelino Kubitschek, who was serving his term as head of state and government. The promulgation date is explicitly recorded as 1959-08-08, with the determination method specified as "promulgation" in official records. This presidential action transformed the legislative proposal into binding statutory law applicable throughout the Brazilian federation. The law's enactment occurred during Kubitschek's developmentalist presidency, a period marked by aggressive modernization efforts and the construction of the new capital, Brasília.

### Subject Matter and Regulatory Scope
The statute addresses seven specific and interconnected subjects that define its regulatory scope. First, it establishes a special budgetary adjustment (Credito Especial), indicating an extraordinary financial mechanism outside regular budgetary processes. Second, it involves the Ministry of Education (Ministerio Da Educação (Mec)) as the implementing federal agency. Third, it provides financial aid (Auxilio Financeiro) to targeted recipients. Fourth, it specifically targets the state of Rio Grande do Sul (Estado Do Rio Grande Do Sul (Rs)), making this a geographically specific federal intervention. Fifth, it concerns educational institutions (Estabelecimento De Ensino) as beneficiaries. Sixth, it involves municipalities (Municipio) in its implementation framework. Seventh, it focuses on higher education (Curso Superior) as the educational level receiving support. This multi-dimensional subject structure demonstrates the law's complexity in addressing federal-state-municipal coordination for educational financing.

### Publication, Language, and Accessibility
The law was published in Rio de Janeiro, which served as Brazil's capital until the inauguration of Brasília in 1960. It is written in Brazilian Portuguese, the official language of Brazil. The document carries the legal citation "Lei nº 3604/1959" for reference purposes. Its jurisdictional application extends to the entire Brazilian federation, though its practical effects were concentrated in Rio Grande do Sul. The full text remains digitally accessible through the official government portal at https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/1950-1969/l3604.htm, ensuring contemporary availability. The law has been assigned a permanent LexML Brazil identifier: urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1959-08-08;3604, following the Brazilian standard for unique legal document identification.

### Legal and Technical Metadata
As a statutory instrument, Law No. 3604 is equivalent to the https://schema.org/Legislation class used in structured data on the web. It has been assigned multiple authority control identifiers for library and research systems. The Dewey Decimal Classification system catalogs it under both 342.057 and 348.02, reflecting its nature as legal material concerning public finance and education law. The Library of Congress Authority ID is sh85127611, while the German National Library's GND ID is 4020660-9. The law is included on the focus list of WikiProject Brazilian Laws, a Wikimedia initiative dedicated to documenting Brazilian legislation. Its copyright status is public domain in the United States under the edict of government doctrine, which holds that official legal documents are not copyrightable, and similar status applies in France.

### Historical and Administrative Context
The law's enactment in 1959 places it within a pivotal moment in Brazilian administrative history, just one year before the capital's relocation from Rio de Janeiro to Brasília. The involvement of the Ministry of Education as the primary implementing agency reflects the federal government's growing role in educational policy during the mid-20th century. The specific focus on Rio Grande do Sul suggests either a response to particular educational financing challenges in that state or a pilot program for federal educational aid. The inclusion of municipalities in the law's framework indicates a multi-level governance approach, requiring coordination between federal, state, and local authorities for implementation. The use of special budgetary credit rather than regular appropriations suggests this was either an emergency measure or an exceptional investment in educational infrastructure.

### Digital Preservation and Research Value
The law's availability through the Planalto portal and its inclusion in WikiProject Brazilian Laws ensures its preservation as a primary source for legal and historical research. Researchers can access the original text to study mid-20th century Brazilian legislative language, budgetary procedures, and federal-state relations in education policy. The permanent LexML URN provides a stable citation mechanism for academic works, while the multiple library authority identifiers facilitate its discovery in global cataloging systems. The law serves as a concrete example of how statutory law manifests as a formal written document, embodying the theoretical classification of statutes as subclasses of written works and documents. Its public domain status removes barriers to reproduction in academic publications, educational materials, and comparative legal studies.

## References

1. [Source](https://www.lexml.gov.br/urn/urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1959-08-08;3604)
2. [Source](https://legislacao.presidencia.gov.br/atos?tipo=LEI&numero=3604&ano=1959&data=08/08/1959&ato=a4bUTQq5UMRRVT78e)