Desafios para a universalização do saneamento básico no contexto do novo marco legal e as particularidades do Maranhão

Abstract

This dissertation analyzes the challenges to the universalization of basic sanitation in the State of Maranhão in light of the transformations introduced by Law No. 14,026/2020, which established the New Legal Framework for Basic Sanitation. Part of the research problem consists of verifying to what extent the normative changes promoted by the reform have contributed to expanding access to water supply and sewage services in a context marked by territorial inequalities, institutional limitations, and low state capacity. The hypothesis is that, although the new framework has strengthened regulatory instruments, stimulated the regionalization of service provision, and expanded mechanisms for attracting investment, its effectiveness remains conditioned by structural factors that restrict the realization of universalization in peripheral states such as Maranhão. The study is based on the historical-dialectical materialism approach, articulated with contributions from the literature on public policies, state capacity, regulation, territorial inequalities, and human rights to water and sanitation. Methodologically, it adopts a qualitative approach, of an analytical critical nature, developed through bibliographic review, documentary research, and analysis of secondary data from legislation, regulatory norms, institutional reports and documents, academic productions, and official information databases of the sector. Based on the formulations of Karl Marx and Florestan Fernandes, the sanitation deficit is understood as an expression of the structural contradictions of dependent Brazilian capitalism and the socio-spatial inequalities historically produced. The theoretical framework also engages with authors such as Léo Heller and Sonaly Rezende, especially regarding sanitation as a human right and a structuring dimension of social citizenship. The analysis demonstrates that the persistence of water supply deficits and, above all, sanitation deficits in Maranhão stems from the interaction between historical processes of unequal development, insufficient public funding, weak inter federative coordination, reduced municipal administrative capacity, and limitations in the implementation of instruments foreseen by the new regulatory framework. It is evident that the universalization of sanitation is not an automatic result of normative modernization or increased competition, requiring public planning, institutional strengthening, redistributive mechanisms, regulation that adheres to territorial specificities, and state action oriented towards the realization of human rights. It concludes that the limitations observed in Maranhão reveal the tensions between the economic rationality incorporated into the regulatory reform and the need to ensure sanitation as a fundamental social right, contributing to the debate on public policies, state capacity, and regulatory governance in subnational contexts marked by structural vulnerabilities. Keywords: Basic sanitation. Public policies. State capacity. Regulation. Universal access. Maranhão.