Professor Dr. Jürgen Kientz: "The task is very demanding"
The district administration and district council are being supported in the consolidation process by Professor Dr. Jürgen Kientz. The Professor of Administrative Management at Kehl University of Applied Sciences has taken on the external project management of the budget consolidation. "The initial situation combined with the target set is complex and very challenging," explains Professor Kientz. "We will use agile methods and constantly set priorities together. We can only achieve our goal if we all work towards it together." Optimizing work processes will also help. To this end, employees in each department will be trained to identify and implement potential for improvement.
Tasks categorized and given a "price tag" - district council decides at the end of July
Internally, Head of Finance Bettina Beck is coordinating the savings proposals. "The managers of the district administration are closely involved in the consolidation process," says Beck. "As a first step, they have categorized all tasks in their areas as mandatory, compulsory or voluntary and given them a 'price tag'." In total, more than 900 tasks were compiled, which will be dealt with in six meetings of the Budget Commission in the first half of 2025. The commission is an advisory body made up of 13 representatives from all political groups. The final decision on the task and savings package will be made by the district council on July 25.
Cause of deficits lies in chronic underfunding of municipal budgets
District Administrator Allgaier pointed out that the deficit in the district budget was not caused by poor budget management by the district administration or the district council. Rather, the chronic underfunding of tasks transferred to districts and municipalities by the federal and state governments was to blame. The local authorities were responsible for 25 percent of the overall public budget, but only received 14 percent of the tax revenue. "That is why the district of Ludwigsburg is not alone in this difficult budget situation; all districts and our municipalities are in this precarious situation." As an important item in the district budget is the financing of the clinics, a strategic consolidation program has also been launched there. "After all, as things currently stand, we are contributing 45 million euros to the operations of our clinics from the district budget this year alone," continued the district administrator.
A joint effort is necessary. "We have the reins of action in our own hands and can actively shape our budget and thus also the future viability of the district."
