Budget consolidation means that the district has made a conscious decision to look for ways to close the deficit in the district budget together with its employees. Rather than using the lawnmower method, the district wants to go into depth with the consolidation process, consciously keep the reins of action in its own hands and restore the balance between political requirements and current planning data for 2026. In this way, the district is actively shaping its future viability.
The district has to consolidate its budget because it has a large deficit of 56 million euros. This deficit is not home-made, but has structural causes: districts and cities have to take on more and more tasks from the federal and state governments without receiving sufficient funding from the higher levels: They now bear 25 percent of the total public budget, but only receive 14 percent of the tax revenue. This is why almost all other districts and municipalities are currently struggling with large budget shortfalls.
The consolidation process takes place in stages: Layer by layer, the budget is filled with new tasks from scratch. The departments have to set priorities by deciding which tasks they can do without and which they cannot. They also check whether they could possibly complete the tasks differently, i.e. more efficiently. In concrete terms, this means that each department is given a budget target and those responsible for the budget plan their budget in consultation with their department heads according to this target. The budget commission set up specifically for the consolidation, an advisory body made up of 13 representatives from all parliamentary groups in the district council, will hold a total of six meetings to discuss the budget consolidation proposals and make recommendations to the district council.
This has not yet been decided. The budget managers and their employees will take a close look at all tasks and then make proposals, which the district council will then decide on at the end of July this year. There will be no taboos or bans on thinking in the proposals - but the aim will be to maintain the wide range of services offered by the district administration office for citizens as well as possible.
The consolidation process will be provisionally concluded with the district council's decision on the proposed measures in July of this year. How long the proposed measures will take effect and whether consolidation will be necessary again in future years will depend on the overall financial situation in subsequent years. The optimization of processes that has already begun will be continued in any case.
The district does not levy any taxes, so there will be no tax increases. The consolidation process must show whether there will be fee increases to improve the revenue situation. It is likely that the statutory review of fees will take place at shorter intervals in future. However, every fee is always offset by a specific service provided by the administration, e.g. for a particular service or official act.
