# Law No. 909 of November 8, 1949

> Brazilian law

**Wikidata**: [Q105647706](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q105647706)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/law-no-909-of-november-8-1949

## Summary
Law No. 909 of November 8, 1949 (Lei nº 909/1949) is a Brazilian federal statute that authorized a special issuance of postage stamps to provide financial assistance to the healthy children of individuals affected by leprosy. Promulgated by the Presidency of the Republic in Rio de Janeiro, the law established a specific fundraising mechanism through the national postal system to support this vulnerable demographic.

## Key Facts
- **Official Title:** Lei nº 909, de 8 de novembro de 1949
- **Date of Approval:** November 8, 1949
- **Jurisdiction:** Brazil (Federative Republic of Brazil)
- **Place of Publication:** Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- **Approving Authority:** Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil
- **Legal Classification:** Statute (formal written document creating law)
- **Primary Subject:** Special emission of stamps for the benefit of healthy children of people with leprosy ("filhos sadios dos lázaros")
- **Language:** Brazilian Portuguese
- **Legal Citation:** Lei nº 909/1949
- **LexML Brazil ID:** urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1949-11-08;909
- **Project Focus:** WikiProject Brazilian Laws
- **Classification Codes:** Dewey Decimal 342.057, 348.02

## FAQs
**What is the primary purpose of Law No. 909 of November 8, 1949?**
The law authorizes a special emission of postage stamps specifically to generate funds for the benefit of healthy children whose parents are affected by leprosy (referred to in the text as "lazaros"). It serves as a legislative tool to provide social welfare through administrative postal actions.

**Who approved this law and where was it enacted?**
The statute was approved and promulgated by the Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil. It was issued in Rio de Janeiro, which served as the nation's capital at the time of the law's inception in 1949.

**What is the legal nature of this document?**
It is classified as a statute, which is a formal written document that creates law and functions as a manifestation of statutory law. In accordance with the "edict of government doctrine," such official legislative enactments are generally considered to be in the public domain.

## Why It Matters
Law No. 909 of November 8, 1949, is significant as a historical record of social and public health policy in mid-20th century Brazil. By utilizing "special emission" stamps as a funding source, the Brazilian government integrated postal administration with social assistance for families affected by leprosy. This statute demonstrates how the federal government exercised its authority to address specific social challenges through targeted legislation. Furthermore, as a formal statute, it contributes to the body of Brazilian statutory law and is preserved in national legal databases like LexML Brazil, ensuring the transparency and accessibility of historical legal norms.

## Notable For
- **Targeted Social Beneficiaries:** Specifically identifies "healthy children of lazaros" as the recipients of the authorized benefits, reflecting historical terminology and social priorities.
- **Pre-Brasília Legislation:** Enacted and published in Rio de Janeiro during its tenure as the federal capital, prior to the 1960 relocation to Brasília.
- **Standardized Legal Indexing:** Assigned a unique LexML URN (`urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1949-11-08;909`) for precise identification within the Brazilian legal framework.
- **Public Domain Status:** As a formal legislative act of the Brazilian government, it is an official document not subject to standard copyright restrictions.

## Body

### Legislative Origin and Approval
Law No. 909 was promulgated on November 8, 1949, by the Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil. The document was issued in Rio de Janeiro, the city that served as the national capital from 1763 until 1960. Written in Brazilian Portuguese, the law is officially cited as Lei nº 909/1949. It is categorized as a statute, a class of formal written documents that includes acts, executive orders, and by-laws.

### Purpose and Social Context
The law's primary mandate is the "emissão especial de selos" (special emission of stamps). The specific intent of this emission was to provide a "beneficio" (benefit) to the "filhos sadios dos lázaros." This reflects a period in Brazilian history where the state sought creative financial mechanisms to support the families of those suffering from leprosy (Hansen's disease). The law is indexed under the main subjects of "Benefit" and "Emission" within the LexML Brazil system.

### Jurisdictional Framework
The statute applies to the entire territory of Brazil, the largest country in South America and the fifth-largest in the world. At the time of this law's passage, Brazil was a federal republic that had been an independent nation since 1822. The law functions as a "legal norm" and is a part of the broader statutory law of the country. As a statute, it was preceded by a draft law and was brought into effect through the formal process of legislation.

### Technical Classification and Identification
Law No. 909 is uniquely identified in the LexML Brazil database by the URN `urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1949-11-08;909`. It is also a subject of interest for WikiProject Brazilian Laws. In library and information science contexts, it falls under Dewey Decimal classifications 342.057 and 348.02. As a manifestation of statutory law, it is considered a subclass of "written work," "document," and "rule."

### Related Legal Concepts
As an instance of a statute, Law No. 909 shares characteristics with other formal legal documents globally. It is equivalent to the `https://schema.org/Legislation` class in structured data. Under the "edict of government doctrine," such legislative enactments are not copyrightable, ensuring that the public has unrestrained access to the laws governing them. This principle is consistent with the legal frameworks of other nations, such as the United States and France, where official legal documents are maintained in the public domain.

## References

1. [Source](https://www.lexml.gov.br/urn/urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1949-11-08;909)
2. LexML Brasil