"Class representative" of the Bavarian district administrators is 60 years old

Created: 2022-11-28 09:21

District Administrator Thomas Karmasin is a big Italy fan.

You can see that in his office.

© Peter Weber

District Administrator Thomas Karmasin turns 60 today.

In an interview on the occasion of his birthday, he talks about his newest additional position and current developments.

You have been President of the County Council for some time.

The office seems to be relatively time-consuming.

What are your tasks?

I'm something like the class representative of all Bavarian district administrators.

I have to try to develop common positions first.

That's not easy when you consider that the districts from Lindau to Cham and from Wunsiedel to Garmisch are quite different.

And then I have to represent these positions at a higher level, i.e. mostly to the state government or to associations etc.

How big do you estimate the influence of the district council when it comes to new legislation?

Are you heard?

The Bavarian state government has cooperation with the municipalities in its genetic code.

That means we are heard, and I daresay that is to the benefit of both levels.

Of course, it is also clear that we cannot always get through with all demands.

Is the job fun?

And if so: why?

Let's say the work is great fun.

It's not always funny, sometimes you have to fight for positions very seriously and persistently.

But it also gives you insight and understanding for the interests of other levels.

You have to look beyond your own church tower, but without neglecting your own interests.

Significantly more asylum seekers are arriving in Germany again, and therefore also in the region.

Is the accommodation achievable?

Will there be confiscations as announced?

I am very seriously concerned about this issue.

Of course, despite all the crises, we are a country that is still doing relatively well.

We are ready to help.

But we have to consider whether we really have the resources for this in the long term.

In truth, it is not about short-term help in an emergency, for example after a catastrophe or something similar.

Rather, the vast majority of immigrants want to stay with us in the long term and are actually successful in this endeavor, even if they actually have no right to stay.

We cannot do this indefinitely, especially in a region where even the local population has great difficulty finding housing.

And cramming thousands of people onto bunks in random halls isn't a permanent solution.

Neither for us nor for the people

who come to us.

Strangely enough, the word "seizure" makes a splash, although it appeared several times in 2014/15.

We will not take anyone's house, as has been rumored to some extent.

The district is facing a challenging time financially.

Most of the tasks are mandatory.

Do you see any savings potential at all?

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It's gotten tight.

You don't save by setting social spending low, for example.

Legal claims have to be fulfilled.

Significant design potential is in local public transport and schools.

Both are areas in which there is consensus in the district council that we do not want to destroy again what we have built.

The staff is always gladly reduced.

You can do that, but then you shouldn't be surprised if the waiting times for citizens are long.

Not to mention new burdens that are constantly being passed on to us.

I'll just mention the housing benefit, where immensely long waiting times are already inevitable.

Climate change and the energy crisis are the big issues these days.

Could the district have achieved more in terms of self-sufficiency in the past?

Until now (this is to be changed at the instigation of the district council), the districts were only allowed to generate energy for their own use.

That means: photovoltaics on the roofs of the district properties, that's almost it.

And that was only possible if it was not grossly uneconomical.

If you mean the district's citizens, then that's beyond our control.

Perhaps the promotion was not such that production was profitable for the individual.

And the counterpart, energy saving, was also a pipe dream given the fact that the world is generating more and more electricity consumers and not fewer.

Even the simple front door key is electric for many today.

You will be 60 years old (today).

What would you wish for yourself?

Health and further support in the office and at home so that we can move things forward.

As a district administrator, you feel like you have an infinite amount of experience.

Are you doing things differently today than when you started?

Yes, I no longer jump over every little stick that is held out to me.

And I take more time than I used to to think.

That would be a birthday wish to all politicians in the world: don't keep rowing more, keep rowing faster, and see where you're going.