Oct. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Brazil's ruling coalition will seek to block a proposal under discussion in congress to increase the salaries of judges and some civil servants that may add 11 billion reais ($4.9 billion) to the government's annual budget, Folha de S. Paulo reported.

Some members of congress have proposed that existing caps on the wages of as many as 4,000 judges be redone, increasing their pay by at least 40 percent, Folha said, citing lower house deputy and one of the measure's sponsors Henrique Alves. Lower house President Aldo Rebelo is seeking to put off a vote on the issue to block its passage, the newspaper reported.

The reworked salary cap would push the judges' salaries up to the level now enjoyed by top court justices, equivalent to 21,500 reais a month, Folha said. Congressional employees, whose salaries are on average five times those of most other civil servants, might be able to exploit loopholes in the proposed legislation to increase their take home pay by 580 million reais a year, the newspaper reported.

To contact the reporter on this story: Guillermo Parra-Bernal in Sao Paulo at at gparra@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: October 31, 2005 06:41 EST