The Saxon Association of Towns and Municipalities (SSG) has lamented the increasing financial deficits of local authorities and called for additional funds to cover refugee costs, among other things. "As already feared when the last municipal finance report was presented in the fall of 2020, Saxony's municipalities had to spend significantly more in 2022 than they took in," said SSG President Bert Wendsche, who is also the mayor of Radebeul, in a statement on Wednesday. The result was a significant financial deficit of 173 million euros. The SSG presented its 2022/2023 municipal finance report on Wednesday.
According to the SSG, the deficit rose to just under 250 million euros by the middle of the year despite higher allocations from the municipal financial equalization scheme. The situation will deteriorate further in 2024. Although the municipal financial equalization has been significantly increased in 2023/2024, the focus must also be placed on allocations and grants from the state budget.
"We should use 2024 for an honest stocktaking and improved municipal financing," said Wendsche. In the first half of 2023 alone, social services provided by local authorities had risen by more than 15 percent compared to the same period in the previous year. Despite the transfer of federal funds and extraordinary state allocations, the municipalities are on a "deficit course" at all levels.
The Saxon Association of Towns and Municipalities represents 416 of the 418 towns and municipalities in the Free State of Saxony.
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