As of: February 23, 2024, 2:57 p.m
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Solar panels can be seen on the roof of the Messe Berlin in front of the radio tower before a press event for the construction of Berlin's largest photovoltaic system by the municipal utilities and trade fair.
© Christoph Soeder/dpa
The planned billion-dollar special fund for more climate protection in Berlin is on the brink.
According to information from the German Press Agency, an external report commissioned by the tax administration comes to the conclusion that the black-red coalition's plans cannot be implemented in the form previously envisaged.
As the House of Representatives said, new ways must now be sought to finance climate protection measures on a large scale.
Berlin - The “Berliner Morgenpost” first reported on Friday.
Finance Senator Stefan Evers (CDU) and the coalition originally wanted to set up a special fund worth at least five billion euros in order to make massive additional investments in climate protection, for example when renovating buildings or converting the energy supply.
The program should be financed through loans.
As a justification for the need for these loans despite the debt brake, the idea was to declare an emergency against the background of climate change and the challenges posed by the war in Ukraine.
The program was actually supposed to have started long ago, but was put on hold for the time being in light of a ruling by the Federal Constitutional Court on the federal budget.
The Senate initially wanted to use the report to clarify what effects the ruling on the federal budget would have on the planned special fund.
This is now before the Senate.
As dpa learned from the House of Representatives, the experts from a law firm doubt that the planned procedure is compatible with the principle of annuality, which the Federal Constitutional Court had also pointed out.
This means: Programs that run for one year, like a budget, are okay, but longer terms are not.
dpa