Brazil government must explain accounting methods to audit court

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has been given until the end of Wednesday to provide the Federal Audit Court with her written explanation for alleged irregularities in accounting methods her government used in 2014.

The audit court analyzes the Executive Branch's accounts annually and decides whether to approve them. They then go to Congress, which can then approve or reject the administration's finances for the previous year. The court has never rejected them.

Earlier this year, the audit court found delays in the transfer of funds from the Treasury to public banks to pay for the government's social programs, social security payments and unemployment benefits.

Auditors have said that the delay resulted in the banks making payments for the programs upfront in violation of the country's fiscal responsibility law.