Supplementary budget in planning

Due to unexpectedly sharp increases in costs in the current year and lower income, the funds planned in the 2024 municipal budget are no longer sufficient. City Treasurer Martin Wilhelm has therefore already announced that a supplementary budget will be introduced. "Exorbitantly higher expenses for integration assistance in the youth and family sector as well as less income from trade tax make a supplementary budget necessary this year," says Wilhelm. "As the fire department also needs more money for the rescue service in the short term, we will also take this into account in the supplementary budget - instead of providing unbudgeted funds as usual." The city councillors are expected to meet on September 30 in a special session to discuss the supplementary budget.

In mid-August, the city announced that it is expecting at least five million euros less income from trade tax in 2024, while at the same time costs at the youth welfare office have risen more sharply than was foreseeable when the budget was planned a year ago. For example, an additional requirement of 12 million euros is expected for the area of "educational assistance" alone. These services are legally regulated support for families who are entitled to them if necessary. The exact reasons for the cost increases can be found in an earlier press release:

Additional costs of around 870,000 euros are now also on the horizon for the fire department in the area of rescue services. This is due to the constantly increasing number of call-outs, which require more personnel and emergency vehicles. "The costs for the rescue service cannot be fully refinanced in the first year via the rescue service fee, the subsidies from the state of Hesse and user fees for emergency rescue and ambulance services. Only in subsequent years can 80 or 100% of the costs be claimed, depending on the area," explains Dr. Michael Eiblmaier, head of the fire department. The additional costs are due to the fact that an additional ambulance and its equipment had to be pre-financed this year. As the vehicle has to be ready for use around the clock, additional emergency personnel have been hired in shifts with on-call times.

"The expansion of the rescue service is necessary in order to meet the legally prescribed deadlines for emergency rescue in the future. Anyone who dials 112 must be sure to get help quickly," says Lord Mayor Dr. Felix Schwenke.

In the current year 2024, one-off set-up costs and rental costs are also due for a new additional rescue station West, which will cover the west of the city and has been provisionally set up on the grounds of the SANA Clinic for the time being. The new ambulance and crew have been stationed there since the end of March 2024. The plan is to relocate the temporary station to an existing building that can be used permanently in future. Two emergency ambulances and an intensive care transport vehicle with personnel will then remain on the hospital grounds. The specific amount of the costs incurred for the temporary station and the operational readiness with vehicles and personnel were not foreseeable when planning the budget for 2024.

The aim is to have the supplementary budget approved by the city councillors in October. The budget for 2025 can then no longer be adopted in December, but will be postponed to January 2025.