Finances - NRW state parliament set to pass record budget
The North Rhine-Westphalian state parliament plans to adopt the state budget for 2024 today (from 10.00 a.m.). Despite austerity measures, the CDU and Green government is planning a record budget next year, which will exceed 100 billion euros for the first time. Sharp criticism from the opposition is to be expected in the final budget debate, which will last several hours.
The draft budget for 2024 has a volume of 102.1 billion euros. More than 38 billion euros of this is earmarked for education alone. The country's interest expenditure will increase by 1 billion to 3.8 billion euros compared to 2023. Around 3 billion euros are earmarked for refugees.
Despite the planned record spending, the country has to make savings in many areas. This is due to the sluggish economy, rising interest rates and tax revenues that are 150 million euros lower than planned.
The budget debate in the state parliament is also under the impression of the budget crisis of the traffic light federal government following the budget ruling of the Federal Constitutional Court. NRW Finance Minister Marcus Optendrenk (CDU) had promised a constitutionally compliant budget policy for the most populous federal state.
The debt brake is to be adhered to again in 2024, after the ban on net new borrowing was also suspended several times in NRW due to the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine. By December 31 of this year, the credit-financed special fund of five billion euros to deal with the consequences of the war in Ukraine is to end.
The FDP criticizes the fact that the black-green coalition wants to withdraw more than 300 million euros from the pension fund in 2024 and, for the first time, 150 million euros from the state-owned Bau- und Liegenschaftsbetrieb NRW (BLB). The SPD opposition is calling for investment packages worth billions, particularly for schools, daycare centers and hospitals in NRW.
The state parliament is also due to pass the black-green Citizens' Energy Act. In future, residents and local authorities in NRW will be required by law to contribute financially to new wind turbines in their area.
PM Ministry of Finance Supplementary bill for the 2024 budget Plenary agenda
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Source: www.stern.de
