Cities financial shortage
“Dramatic financial situation”: Municipalities are demanding relief
Shortly before the Bundestag election, the city day raises the alarm. Hardly a big city creates a balanced household. What that means for the citizens.
The city day sees an alarming financial situation of many major cities in Germany – with consequences for citizens. This year almost no city in Germany will be able to present a balanced budget anymore, a flash survey of under 100 large cities shows. These are terrifying results, said Markus Lewe, President of the German City Day and Mayor of Münster, in Berlin. The federal and state governments urgently would have to relieve the municipalities after the federal election.
According to the survey, 37 percent of cities can no longer present a balanced budget. Another 47 percent create a balanced budget by falling back on financial reserves. “The social expenditure that we have hardly any influence runs away from us,” said Lewe. According to the Mayor of Bonn Katja Dörner, examples are all -day childcare, integration assistance for people with disabilities or the assistance to care in old age.
Consequences for citizens
The citizens feel the bad financial situation. The representatives of the city day reported savings in swimming pools, sports clubs, libraries or museums and the equipment of schools. Cities would have to delete bus and train lines. Personnel must be dismantled. This then ensures longer processing and waiting times for services. The compulsion to save will increase without countermeasures.
Cities are demanding U -turn
The new federal government has to turn “big wheels” so that the local finances do not collapse, said Lewe. A turnaround is necessary. For example, the city day calls for a higher proportion of cities in community taxes, such as sales tax. The federal and state governments should no longer give any additional tasks for the cities that are not financed. Instead of complicated support programs, there must be fixed budgets more often. In addition, the debt brake must be reformed.
A central task is that municipal old debts are taken over, said Lewe. The Federal Ministry of Finance had drawn up a draft speaker for the necessary amendment to the Basic Law. That would enable the federal government to take part in the unique partial debt. However, the draft had no chance of implementing it due to the failure of the traffic lights and the upcoming Bundestag election. The new federal government would have to deal with the theme again.
dpa
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
