Bavaria-wide, a total of 149 municipalities will now receive need-based allocations and stabilization aid from the municipal financial equalization scheme amounting to around 120 million euros for the application year 2020, according to a press release from the bavarian state ministry of finance and home affairs. This was discussed in the so-called distribution committee on 5. November, together with the leading municipal associations and representatives of the ministry of the interior and the ministry of finance, decided to.
High of 10.3 billion euros
Cities, markets and municipalities can balance their budgets with need-based allocations, for example in the event of a population decline or if they have special budgetary burdens. Stabilization assistance has been available since 2012. They are dubbed a special form of means-tested allocations and are intended to relieve structurally weak municipalities of the burden of paying off their debts so that they can continue to perform their obligatory tasks. The funds came from the state’s municipal fiscal equalization scheme, which reached a high of around 10.3 billion euros in 2020 (an increase of 3.2 percent over the previous year), the press release continues. "This means that the state is supporting its municipalities more than ever before", finance minister albert furacker is quoted.
Almost 20 million euros alone will go to four regional authorities and 25 towns and municipalities in lower franconia. This time, the highest individual allocation will go to the municipality of schonungen (district of schweinfurt) with 2.5 million euros.
Among the four counties in lower franconia that benefit from such allocations are the two in the rhon: rhon-grabfeld as an area corporation can count on 1.3 million euros this year. The district of bad kissingen will receive 8 billion euros in 2020. Stabilization aid for the second time in succession, this year to the tune of 400,000 euros.
Among the cities and municipalities that receive such funds in the district of bad kissingen are also the cities of bad bruckenau (1.48 million euros) and munnerstadt (2.45 million euros). Bad kissingen, however, is not in on it this time. In 2016, the spa town was even the front-runner among the towns and municipalities in lower franconia with three million euros in stabilization aid.
Until 2019, bad kissingen received a total of five consecutive stabilization grants, all in all around 15.7 million euros – money that went primarily into debt reduction.
From the district of rhon-grabfeld, the city of bad konigshofen (1.15 million euros) and an impressive 14 other municipalities will receive need-based allocations and stabilization aid. The notices are now to be sent to the municipalities by the beginning of december.
Maintaining the high level
In 2021, the state of freestate wants to keep the municipal financial compensation "at the highest level" – so with 10.3 billion euros – continued, writes the ministry of finance. It will be interesting to see whether this works out despite the corona crisis and the massive drop in tax revenues expected in the state budget. Cities and municipalities will also have to contend with the pandemic and falling tax revenues in 2020. For this reason, the SPD member of the state parliament volkmar halbleib (wurzburg) has demanded in a press release that the state must provide financial support to the municipalities over and above the above-mentioned allocations.
Lump sum compensation
After all, they had to bear the additional costs for the health authorities, for example, which were newly expanded in the wake of the pandemic. In addition, in view of the expected decline in municipal tax revenues, there should also be a lump-sum compensation for the shortfall in trade tax revenues in 2021, it continues. This year, according to halbleib, the federal government and the state of bavaria are jointly providing 2.4 billion euros for the bavarian municipalities.