Austerity budget approved: "The fat years are over"

2022-12-20T06:22:56.989Z

Austerity budget approved: "The fat years are over" Created: 2022-12-20 07:10 By: Laura Forster From 2023, the district of Starnberg will start saving. © Photo: Sabine Brose/Sorge / IMAGO According to district administrator Stefan Frey, saving is the order of the day - this is also reflected in the budget for 2023, which the district council decided in its meeting on Monday. District – The di

Austerity budget approved: "The fat years are over"

Created: 2022-12-20 07:10

By: Laura Forster

From 2023, the district of Starnberg will start saving.

According to district administrator Stefan Frey, saving is the order of the day - this is also reflected in the budget for 2023, which the district council decided in its meeting on Monday.

District – The district budget is in dry cloths.

After almost 24 hours of consultation in various meetings spread over the past few weeks, the district council approved the final figures on Monday morning, which treasurer Stefan Pilgram presented to the members in the last meeting of the year.

Only the Greens, Christine Nimbach (non-attached) and Prof. Dr.

Ingo Hahn (AfD) voted against it.

Everyone agreed on one thing: "We are in a difficult situation that the district has never had before", to quote District Administrator Stefan Frey.

The headlines that the respective factions gave to their budget speeches had a similar tenor - from "It can't get any worse" as Albert Luppart opened the speech of the Free Voters to "The fat years are over" (Harald Schwab/CSU) to "We live in times of multiple crises” (Tim Weidner/SPD).

The statements by the FDP (“The budget is difficult, but not hopeless”, Wilhelm Boneberger) and the Greens (“Looking into the future”, Martina Neubauer) were somewhat more hopeful.

County Budget: Mandatory expenditures increase - tax revenues decrease

"The world has been upside down since February 24," said Frey, referring to the Ukraine war.

"This is now also reflected in the district budget." Energy costs have become five times as expensive, the inflation rate has reached a double-digit value, additional costs have arisen for the refugees - there are also around 13 million euros more than this year for compulsory tasks such as civil protection, property management, the guest school contribution and additional personnel expenses.

On the other hand, tax revenue from trade and property tax has fallen significantly.

In communities such as Pöcking and Weßling, the levy has fallen by several million euros.

"Financially there is no improvement in sight," said Luppart.

"It won't get any easier in the coming years, it'll get worse.

The district's debt level is expected to rise to 150 million euros by 2026. Until recently, the district was debt-free for years.

"You have to let this sum melt in your mouth," says Luppart.

District doesn't sit back and relax at the Tutzing high school

While the Free Voters continue to be critical of the construction of the Herrschings Gymnasium, for which around 38 million euros are estimated in 2023, the FDP considers the construction necessary and important.

"We fought for it for a long time, we should be happy that the construction is finally coming true," said Boneberger.

Other school projects such as the new construction of the Starnberg technical college (FOS) and the general renovation of the Tutzinger grammar school, on the other hand, have to be postponed until after 2026 (we reported).

"Of course it's bitter," said Weidner.

And Neubauer added that one cannot speak of a progressive Bavarian with a laptop and lederhosen if students do not have the opportunity to prepare for a presentation with WLAN access.

"It is missing in the south building of the Tutzing high school." Frey emphasized that the planning for the general renovation is ongoing and that a list of improvements is currently being examined by the district office.

"'We definitely don't sit back and relax."

Frey praised the Treasury, administration and district councils, who, through massive savings, succeeded in increasing the district levy from 50.2 to 53.55 percent in the coming year and not to 53.95 percent as planned in the first draft.

CSU faction leader Schwab noted that the budget was "sewn on edge".

“There is no more leeway.

Depending on the economic situation, we need a supplementary budget.” Nevertheless, the CSU looks positively to the future.

running

The '23 budget in figures