# Law No. 5978 of December 12, 1973

> Brazilian law

**Wikidata**: [Q105659915](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q105659915)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/law-no-5978-of-december-12-1973

## Summary
Law No. 5978 of December 12, 1973 is a Brazilian statute that estimates revenue and fixes the budget for the Federal District for the 1974 fiscal year. Enacted during the presidency of Emílio Garrastazu Médici, this law represents a formal legislative act governing financial planning for Brazil's capital region. The law is publicly accessible through the Brazilian government's official legislative portal and is cataloged under the LexML Brazil identifier system.

## Key Facts
- **Official Title**: Lei nº 5978, de 12 de dezembro de 1973
- **Publication Date**: December 12, 1973
- **Legal Citation**: Lei nº 5978/1973
- **Legal Classification**: Instance of a statute (formal written document that creates law)
- **Country of Origin**: Brazil
- **Jurisdiction**: Applies to Brazil
- **Language**: Brazilian Portuguese
- **Primary Subjects**: Budget and Federal District (Distrito Federal)
- **Law Digest**: "ESTIMA A RECEITA E FIXA A DESPESA DO DISTRITO FEDERAL PARA O EXERCICIO FINANCEIRO DE 1974" (Estimates the revenue and fixes the expenses of the Federal District for the 1974 financial year)
- **Approving Authority**: Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil
- **Promulgating President**: Emílio Garrastazu Médici
- **Promulgation Method**: Promulgation
- **Place of Publication**: Brasília
- **LexML Brazil ID**: urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1973-12-12;5978
- **Official URL**: https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/1970-1979/l5978.htm
- **Wikimedia Project**: Included in WikiProject Brazilian Laws

## FAQs
**What does Law No. 5978 of December 12, 1973 do?**
This law establishes the annual budget for the Federal District, specifically estimating revenue and fixing authorized expenditures for the 1974 fiscal year. It functions as a financial planning instrument that legally binds the capital region's government to operate within specified fiscal parameters.

**Who enacted this law and when?**
The law was enacted by the Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil under President Emílio Garrastazu Médici on December 12, 1973. The promulgation process made it legally binding on that date.

**What type of legal instrument is this?**
Law No. 5978 is classified as a statute, which is a formal written document that creates law and serves as the manifestation of statutory law. As a statute, it is a subclass of written work, document, and rule, and is equivalent to the schema.org Legislation class.

**Where can I access the full text of this law?**
The complete text is available at the official URL https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/1970-1979/l5978.htm, hosted on the Brazilian presidency's legislation portal. It is also indexed in the LexML Brazil system under the identifier urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1973-12-12;5978.

**What jurisdiction does this law apply to?**
The law applies to the Federal District (Distrito Federal), which is Brazil's capital region where Brasília is located. While enacted at the federal level, its specific provisions govern only the budgetary framework for the Federal District's government operations.

## Why It Matters
Law No. 5978 of December 12, 1973 matters because it exemplifies the statutory mechanism through which Brazil's federal government exercises fiscal control over its capital region. During the military dictatorship period under President Médici, this law provided the legal foundation for all public spending in the Federal District for 1974, affecting infrastructure, services, and administration in Brasília. As a statute, it carries the full force of law, meaning any expenditure outside its authorized budget would be illegal. Its inclusion in WikiProject Brazilian Laws indicates its status as a documented piece of Brazil's legislative history, preserved for legal research and historical analysis. The law's public domain status ensures that citizens, researchers, and government officials can freely access and reference its provisions, supporting transparency in governmental financial planning. Furthermore, its specific focus on the Federal District highlights the unique administrative status of Brazil's capital region, which requires separate budgetary legislation distinct from state or municipal budgets.

## Notable For
- **Specific Fiscal Scope**: Uniquely targets the Federal District's budget rather than national or state-level finances
- **Historical Context**: Enacted during Brazil's military dictatorship under President Emílio Garrastazu Médici (1969-1974)
- **Precise Legal Identity**: Cataloged with a detailed LexML Brazil URN identifier that encodes date, number, and legislative hierarchy
- **Digital Accessibility**: Maintained on the Planalto presidential portal with a direct URL structure organized by decade (1970-1979)
- **Wikimedia Documentation**: Recognized as significant enough for inclusion in WikiProject Brazilian Laws, indicating its value for legal and historical documentation
- **Statutory Classification**: Formally classified as a statute, distinguishing it from other legal instruments like executive orders or by-laws
- **Portuguese Language**: Written in Brazilian Portuguese, reflecting the official language of Brazil's federal government
- **Capital Region Focus**: Addresses the financial planning of Brasília, a city inaugurated just 13 years prior in 1960

## Body

### Legal Classification and Nature
Law No. 5978 of December 12, 1973 is formally classified as a **statute**, which represents a foundational legal concept in Brazil and globally. A statute is defined as a formal written document that creates law, encompassing acts passed by legislatures, executive orders, and by-laws. As a subclass of written work, document, and rule, this law functions as the concrete manifestation of statutory law for the Federal District's 1974 fiscal year. The statute is composed of legal norms and is itself part of the broader concepts of law and legal act. Its creation was caused by the legislative process of promulgation, distinguishing it from draft laws that precede final enactment. The law is equivalent to the schema.org Legislation class, enabling structured data representation on the web.

### Content and Scope
The law's digest explicitly states its purpose: "ESTIMA A RECEITA E FIXA A DESPESA DO DISTRITO FEDERAL PARA O EXERCICIO FINANCEIRO DE 1974." This Portuguese text translates to estimating revenue and fixing expenses for the Federal District for the 1974 financial year. The main subjects are categorized as "budget" (stated as "Orçamento") and "Federal District" (stated as "Distrito Federal (Df)"). Unlike general appropriations bills that might cover the entire federal government, this statute has a narrow geographic and administrative focus, concentrating solely on Brazil's capital region where Brasília is located. The law applies to the jurisdiction of Brazil but operates specifically within the Federal District's governmental structure.

### Enactment and Authority
The law was approved by the **Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil**, with **Emílio Garrastazu Médici** serving as the determining authority at the point of promulgation on December 12, 1973. President Médici, a military leader who governed Brazil from 1969 to 1974, promulgated this statute as part of the federal government's administrative functions. The determination method was "promulgation," which is the formal act of making a law officially known and effective. This process transforms a draft law into binding statutory law. The law's authority derives from the executive branch during a period when Brazil operated under the Institutional Act Number Five (AI-5) regime, which concentrated significant legislative power in the presidency.

### Publication and Accessibility
The statute was published in **Brasília**, the capital city of Brazil, on December 12, 1973. Its official publication date coincides with its enactment date, indicating immediate effect. The law is publicly accessible through multiple channels. The primary source is the URL https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/1970-1979/l5978.htm, which is part of the Brazilian presidency's online legislation repository organized by decade. Additionally, the law is indexed in the **LexML Brazil** system with the persistent identifier urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1973-12-12;5978. This URN structure encodes the country (br), legislative level (federal), type (lei), date (1973-12-12), and number (5978). The law is written in **Brazilian Portuguese**, the official language of Brazil's federal government, ensuring accessibility to the nation's citizens and officials.

### Historical and Political Context
This law was enacted during a pivotal period in Brazilian history. **Brazil**, the largest country in South America with an area of 8,515,767 km², was under military rule from 1964 to 1985. The **Federative Republic of Brazil** operated as a federal republic with a presidential system, though democratic institutions were suspended during the dictatorship. The Federal District itself, where this law applies, had been the capital region since Brasília's inauguration on April 21, 1960. By 1973, the Federal District was still relatively new as the seat of federal power, having replaced Rio de Janeiro. The budget law for 1974 would have covered critical infrastructure development, administrative operations, and public services in the growing capital region during the final year of Médici's presidency.

### Related Legal Framework and Documentation
Law No. 5978 is part of Brazil's extensive statutory framework. As a **statute**, it shares characteristics with other formal written documents that create law, including acts, executive orders, and by-laws. The concept of statute is recognized globally, with Library of Congress Authority ID sh85127611 and GND ID 4020660-9. In copyright terms, statutes are in the public domain in the United States under the edict of government doctrine and similarly in France, ensuring this law can be freely distributed and reproduced. The law is specifically tracked by **WikiProject Brazilian Laws**, a Wikimedia initiative focused on documenting Brazil's legislative history. This project inclusion signifies its importance for legal researchers, historians, and citizens studying Brazil's governmental financial planning during the military period. The law's legal citation format "Lei nº 5978/1973" follows Brazilian standard citation practices for federal legislation.

### Technical Specifications and Identifiers
The law carries multiple identifiers across different systems. Its **LexML Brazil ID** uses a URN structure: urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1973-12-12;5978. The legal citation is standardized as Lei nº 5978/1973. The law is classified under Wikidata with the description "Brazilian law" and is an instance of "statute." The **language of work or name** is explicitly identified as Brazilian Portuguese, distinguishing it from European Portuguese variants. The law's **applies to jurisdiction** property is Brazil, though its substantive provisions target the Federal District specifically. The **place of publication** is Brasília, confirming its federal origin. The law is available at a stable URL on the Planalto portal, which is the official website of the Brazilian presidency, ensuring long-term accessibility for legal consultation and historical research.

## References

1. [Source](https://www.lexml.gov.br/urn/urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1973-12-12;5978)
2. [Source](https://legislacao.presidencia.gov.br/atos?tipo=LEI&numero=5978&ano=1973&data=12/12/1973&ato=507QTUq5EenRVTe90)
3. LexML Brasil