The reversal of the reserves of the optimized Regiebetrieb Bildungshaus from the sale of the property in Heinrich-Heine-Straße will reduce the shortfalls by two million euros each to 138.4 million euros in 2025 and 128.5 million euros in 2026 and improve the result.

The expenditure in the investment program amounts to a total of 99.3 million euros for 2025 and 99.4 million euros for 2026. This does not include the fibre optic expansion with the Graue Flecken project with around 25 million euros (15 million euros in 2026).

"We are still in a difficult budgetary situation, which makes it necessary to continue consolidating. However, it is just as important to continue investing in the future of our city," says Lord Mayor Dennis Weilmann. "Especially in the current economic situation in which the whole of Germany finds itself, we must invest in the future topics of urban development in order to remain competitive."

Weilmann adds: "But the truth is also that the necessary counter-financing from the federal and state governments is lacking for large cost centers in our budget." These additional task allocations to the local authorities in conjunction with a significant increase in the number of cases for social benefits are placing a heavy burden on the municipal budget.

Wolfsburg is not alone in this. The majority of local authorities in Lower Saxony will not be able to set up a balanced budget in the coming years.

28.7 million euros for the new main fire station of the professional fire department

The highest investments will be made in the areas of health and safety at 40.8 million euros (30.7 million euros in 2026), participation and education at 24 million euros (30.7 million euros) and climate, construction and housing at 7.3 million euros (9.3 million euros). Further investments are being made in the areas of economy and mobility with 6.9 million euros (9.3 million euros), volunteering and sport with 6.6 million euros (7.8 million euros) and smart city and city center with 6.6 million euros (3.5 million euros).

In addition to the 10.3 million euro (13.9 million euro) contribution to the Wolfsburg Clinic, individual projects worth mentioning include the new main fire station of the professional fire department with 28.7 million euro (15.5 million euro), the new main building at the Ratsgymnasium with 7.0 million euro (10.4 million euro) and the new primary school at the Leonardo da Vinci comprehensive school with 4.8 million euro (4.9 million euro).

"It remains our central task to reduce our expenditure," adds treasurer Andreas Bauer. "The uncomfortable truth is that we can no longer operate in the way we were used to for a long time due to our changed income situation. In future, we will have to reduce the standard of individual services where it is acceptable to do so in order to remain capable of acting in this difficult financial situation."

The main sources of income in the general finance sub-budget are taxes and similar levies amounting to around 307.6 million euros in 2025 and 313.3 million euros in 2026. The key factors here are trade tax income, which has been budgeted at 150 million euros in each case, as well as the shares of income and sales tax of 120.8 million euros for 2025 and 126.4 million euros for 2026.

High expenditure in the areas of youth, schools and social affairs

The largest areas of expenditure are youth, schools and social services (including the JobCenter), which together account for around 50% of total expenditure. Here in particular, the city administration is recording higher costs as a result of massive case and cost increases in social services. However, this is also due to increasing funding gaps for tasks transferred from the federal and state governments. Examples of this include all-day schooling, participation, childcare entitlement in the area of early childhood education and the continuation of media development at schools.

The medium-term financial planning from 2024 set by the financial framework and a targeted reduction in the subsidy requirements of the sub-budgets of the core administration and the municipal holdings could nevertheless be met for the planning of the years 2025 and 2026 with regard to the core administration for four of the five departments. The draft budget will be discussed politically in the relevant specialist committees in the coming weeks. The city council is expected to adopt the budget in February 2025.