2010 Acre time zone referendum explained

Acre state time zone referendum
Country:Acre
Are you in favor of the recent change of legal time zone promoted in your state?
Date:31 October 2010
Yes:139,891
No:184,478
Total:335,921
Electorate:470,560

The 2010 Acre referendum consisted of a decision regarding maintaining the time zone change for the Brazilian state of Acre, as the state had an 1-hour difference from Brasília Time in 2008, when the original time zone had minus 2 hours from Brasília.

History

In 1913, Executive Order 2,784 was signed,[1] which instituted the first time zones in Brazil. According to paragraph d, in joint interpretation with paragraph c, Acre and the area west of the line which connects the municipalities of Tabatinga and Porto Acre, was incorporated as part of the "fourth zone", characterized by GMT-5 (current). Almost a century after the change, Federal Law no. 11,662 of 2008 was signed,[2] which, along with another change in the state of Pará (inserting it totally in the Brasília Regional Time), made the state of Acre and southwest Amazonas advance the time by one hour, to the time zone, on 23 June 2008.[3]

Reasons for change

The time zone change was proposed by then Senator Tião Viana (PT-AC), who defended the change by stating that the time difference between Acre and nearby states jeopardized the state economically and culturally.[3] After the referendum, the Abert (Brazilian Association of Radio and Television Broadcasters) opposed the return to the previous time,[4] owing to scheduling adjustments that would be required after the institution of the Brazilian advisory rating system by the Ministry of Justice in 2007.[5]

The referendum and its effects

The referendum was held on 31 October 2010, on the same day of the second round of the 2010 presidential election.[6] The majority of the population decided to choose to return to the previous time zone, which had a 2-hour difference from Brasília Regional Time.[7]

The provisions of the referendum did not immediately commence due to doubts of the validity of the referendum by certain political elements[8] and pressure from TV broadcasters[9] [10] that stalled its implementation for almost three years after the referendum had taken place. The change was finally approved by the Federal Senate committees in September 2013.[11]

As consequence, the Federal Law no. 12,876/2013 reestablished the previous time in Acre and southwest Amazonas, repealing the Federal Law no. 11,662/2008.[12] The regions covered by the change returned to the old time zone at midnight on Sunday, 10 November 2013.[13]

Result

As officially published by Electoral Justice, the result of Acre referendum was the following:

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Decreto nº 2.784, de 18 de junho de 1913. Palácio do Planalto. pt. Hermes da Fonseca. 18 June 1913. 13 November 2020.
  2. Web site: Lei nº 11.662, de 24 de abril de 2008. Palácio do Planalto. pt. Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. 24 April 2008. 13 November 2020.
  3. Web site: Lei que altera fuso horário do Acre e parte do Amazonas é sancionada. G1. pt. 31 October 2013. 13 November 2020.
  4. Web site: Quatro meses após referendo, fuso horário do Acre continua o mesmo. Folha de S. Paulo. pt. Jean-Philip. Struck. 28 February 2011. 13 November 2020.
  5. Web site: Classificação indicativa mantém veiculação entre faixa etária e horários. O Globo. pt. 11 July 2007. 13 November 2020.
  6. Web site: Eleitores do Acre votam em referendo do fuso horário. G1. pt. 31 October 2010. 13 November 2020.
  7. Web site: Em referendo, Acre decide pela volta de 2h de diferença no fuso horário. O Globo. pt. 1 November 2010. 13 November 2020.
  8. Web site: Senador cassado idealizou contra validade de referendo sobre hora do Acre. AC24Horas. pt. Roberto. Vaz. 11 July 2012. 13 November 2020.
  9. Web site: Globo tenta impedir que o Acre adote fuso horário aprovado em referendo. ViOMundo. pt. Altino. Machado. 18 February 2011. 13 November 2020.
  10. Web site: Petecão: "Não vou ceder a pressões sobre o fuso horário do Acre". SenaOnline.net. pt. 23 February 2011. 13 November 2020.
  11. Web site: Senado aprova proposta que restabelece fuso horário do Acre e Amazonas. Correio Braziliense. pt. 26 September 2013. 13 November 2020.
  12. Web site: Lei nº 12.876, de 30 de outubro de 2013. Palácio do Planalto. pt. Dilma Rousseff. 30 October 2013. 13 November 2020.
  13. Web site: Volta de fuso deixa o Acre a 3h de Brasília a partir deste domingo. G1. pt. Veriana. Ribeiro. 9 November 2013. 13 November 2020.