Thuringia releases billions for municipalities: investment backlog in sight!

Thuringia releases billions for municipalities: investment backlog in sight!

Thuringia's government has launched a comprehensive initiative to ease the investment backlog in cities, municipalities and districts. As part of a multi-year investment program, a total volume of one billion euros is to be made available by 2029. Finance Minister Katja Wolf announced this during a meeting with around 130 local representatives in Erfurt.

The minister emphasized that 250 million euros should be available annually for additional investments in municipalities. These funds are crucial because, according to a study by the Thüringer Aufbaubank, the annual investment needs of Thuringian municipalities are 1.6 billion euros in order to maintain the existing infrastructure.

Program details and funding

Details on how the funds will be used and how the program will be funded are expected to be announced later this week. It is planned that the investments will be realized through loan offers from the Thüringer Aufbaubank. A special measure stipulates that the state takes over the interest payments and the repayment of the loans, which is intended to particularly benefit financially weak municipalities that cannot take out their own loans.

However, the support does not come in the form of direct payments from the state budget, which disappointed some local politicians. Despite this form of assistance, the need not to skimp on investments is crucial, especially in times of financial challenges. Wolf emphasized that although the financial conditions are difficult, they are necessary to keep the infrastructure up to date.

Financial challenges

A current tax estimate shows that Thuringia's municipalities have to expect a loss of revenue of 101 million euros this year, which could increase to 127 million euros next year and to 136 million euros by 2027. These reduced revenues result from lower trade tax revenue and changes in tax law.

The minister plans to compensate for part of this shortfall in revenue over the next two years. In addition, 205 existing funding programs for municipalities in Thuringia will be examined in order to assess the effectiveness and necessity of these measures.

In conclusion, it should be noted that with this initiative Thuringia is taking an important step to eliminate the existing investment backlog and sustainably strengthen the municipal infrastructure. The measures could make a decisive contribution to improving the quality of life in the affected communities and promoting development in the region. For further information on the topic, take a look at the reporting from Time or the detailed analysis n-tv to.