Brazilian lawmakers seek to roll back Lula's big‑tech regulation

In the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies, opposition members presented 12 legislative proposals on Thursday, 21 May, aiming to suspend two presidential decrees (Nos. 12.975/2026 and 12.976/2026) signed by President Luiz Inácio Lula that tighten rules for large digital platforms. The decrees introduce new responsibilities for platforms, such as monitoring, removing and mitigating harmful content, and include guidelines for protecting women online under the country's Internet Civil Framework.

Deputies argue the measures exceed the executive’s regulatory authority, create ambiguous obligations and could foster censorship. They cite the lack of a formal law defining parameters for concepts like “systemic failure” and “duty of care.” As Diego Garcia (União‑PR) remarked, “ANPD was created to protect personal data, not to regulate the flow of political, ideological and communicational information on the Internet.” Carlos Jordy (PL‑RJ) added that the decree “creates a broad preventive duty, difficult to delineate.” The proposals call for congressional action to preserve separation of powers and safeguard freedom of expression.

The initiative reflects ongoing tension between the Brazilian government’s push for stricter digital oversight and the tech‑friendly bloc in parliament.