As of: March 27, 2024, 2:00 p.m
By: Sebastian Grauvogl
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Receives a new filter system: The community of Fischbachau is investing around 600,000 euros in its warm outdoor pool this year.
© Thomas Plettenberg
Fischbachau will have to take on 2.5 million euros in new debt in 2024.
And that's just the beginning: in the following years, the community will also have to take out loans worth millions.
Fischbachau
– Andreas Estner (FWG) almost thought he had misheard.
“Will we actually have debts of over 19 million euros at the end of 2027?” Estner asked treasurer Veronika Rauscher again in the Fischbachau local council to be on the safe side.
She at least reassured him that she had set the highest possible expenditure amounts everywhere in the financial plan from 2025 in order to be best prepared for such a development.
If all major projects can be realized in the timeframes currently envisaged, Fischbachau would actually have to take out loans amounting to 12.5 million euros by the end of 2027, explained Rauscher.
At least part of it will be refinanced later - for example through grants.
“Nevertheless, we have to make advance payments first.”
The first new debt is already planned for in the budget for 2024, which Rauscher presented at the local council meeting.
At the end of the year, Fischbachau is in debt with around 9.5 million euros, a per capita debt of 1,633 euros.
Furthermore, the municipality has to withdraw almost 646,000 euros from the reserves this year, which means that only around 1.8 million euros are left in reserve.
Mayor calls for “strict budget discipline”
Not surprisingly, Mayor Stefan Deingruber (CSU) called for “strict budget discipline” for the coming years.
You have to concentrate on the mandatory tasks and process them in a prioritized manner.
What makes matters worse is that expenses - for example for personnel, craftsmen's services and materials - are constantly increasing, while income tends to stagnate.
It is not for nothing that the local council's finance committee discussed constructively for five hours, so that in the end a “solid budget” was produced.
Michael Gartmaier (CSU) became more specific.
He spoke of some “deletions and postponements” that were unavoidable.
“We have to save.” However, this is also due to the once again lavish district levy, which this year, at a good 3.7 million euros, accounts for almost 27 percent of the expenditure in the administrative budget.
“This is a huge item over which we have no influence whatsoever,” criticized Gartmaier and asked Deingruber to invite the district administrator or a representative of the treasury to the local council as soon as possible to talk about the use of the money at the district level and an outlook on what is to come years to give.
Brigitta Regauer (CSU) anticipated this.
The district councilor reported that she had already asked District Administrator Olaf von Löwis about it.
Result: The district budget is publicly visible to everyone, including the district's planned investments.
The fact is that the district levy has not been increased despite high deficits in the Agatharied Hospital.
A reduction could only be discussed in two years at the earliest, when the financial effects of the hospital reform have been determined.
Basically, the district administrator asked for the trust of the local councilors.
All expenses were carefully considered.
Especially since the district is also affected by general inflation and, above all, wage increases for staff.
“It affects us all the same, and no one has a crystal ball,” confirmed Deingruber.
Hence the conservative planning for this year and the coming years.
Asset household shrinks by 12.9 percent
Rauscher had previously presented the key data for the 2024 budget, which was unanimously approved by the local council.
At 25.8 million euros, the total volume is around 2.9 percent below the previous year.
Although the administrative budget increased by 8.3 percent to 13.6 million euros, at the same time the asset budget shrank by 12.9 percent to 12.2 million euros.
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The largest item in the investment program relates to the Wolfsee development area.
The municipality has to pay the next tranche of development costs this year, namely 4.3 million euros.
The same amount will be due in 2025.
At the same time, on the income side there are property proceeds for two plots that have not yet been sold amounting to 1.2 million euros.
The sale of the Wolfseehalle with gastronomy is expected to bring 3.4 million euros into the coffers.
Fischbachau is investing a good 1.4 million euros in road construction this year and 4.6 million euros in other construction work.
The latter includes investments in the warm outdoor pool and the Deisenried exhibition gallery (both around 600,000 euros).
The major projects of the coming years (extension of the Fischbachau kindergarten, new Fischbachau fire station, expansion and renovation of Elbach primary school as well as flood protection in Aurach, Leitzach and in Hundham) with an estimated total volume of almost 20 million euros will only cost this year with costs for planning and demolition (fire station). to book.
That will change radically by 2027 – and with it the debt level.
sg