Bassum fights against census: 300 fewer taxpayers feared!

Bassum fights against census: 300 fewer taxpayers feared!

Mayor Christian Porsch recently expressed his dissatisfaction with the current census, which shows that the city of Bassum has 300 fewer inhabitants. This has a direct impact on the municipality's tax base, as it means there are 300 fewer taxpayers. In this context, the city is considering legal action against the census decision and is being supported by a law firm. This topic was also the focus of the meeting of the Economic and Financial Affairs Committee.

At the meeting, climate protection officer Vanessa Witt reported on her ongoing projects and the funding decision for municipal heat planning. The city will only cover 10% of the heat planning costs itself, while the remaining 90% will be covered by state funding. The order for this planning was recently awarded to Beks Energieeffekt GmbH for an amount of 73,470 euros.

Finances of the city of Bassum

During the committee meeting, Treasurer Anke Schulz presented the annual financial statements for 2023, which are the second ones this year. An annual financial statement is also being prepared for 2024. Schulz described the year 2023 as a “curious year” in which investments totaling 11.5 million euros were made without taking out loans. Tax revenue increased to 22.5 million euros, compared to 18.6 million euros in 2019.

The surplus reserve for 2023 is an impressive 27.9 million euros, while the liquid assets are 2.468 million euros. Instead of an initially expected deficit of 2.3 million euros, the city recorded an increase of 1.3 million euros. This plus flows into the surplus reserve, which leads to a falling debt ratio. However, the city expects that this could change in 2024.

Outlook for 2025

A “groundbreaking year” is expected for the coming year 2025, as no loans have been taken out to date. Around 72% of the income comes from tax revenue, with the tax capacity increasing to 22.3 million euros. Nevertheless, there is a warning about a possible collapse in trade tax, which could further burden the city's financial conditions.

Investment funds of 14.9 million euros are planned for 2025, of which 4.6 million euros come from 2024. So far, 2.5 million euros have already been spent on investments. A negative balance was found that is higher than originally estimated, which could make it necessary to use the equalization reserve. Issues such as the possibility of a budget freeze under paragraph 32 have been raised, although this has not yet been deemed necessary.

Mayor Porsch and committee chairman Lanzendörfer expressed concerns about the repayment of liabilities. Gillner from the CDU also recommended being more careful with investments in the future and paying more attention to spending.

In this context, it becomes clear that Bassum is facing major challenges, both financially and in the implementation of investment projects.

For more information about municipal heat planning in the city of Bassum, visit the city of Bassum website here.

You can read additional background information about the census and its impact on the community in the Weser-Kurier article here.