CDU's Hendrik Wüst Urges Federal Compensation for Revenue Losses in Economic Investment Program
Investment program arrangements lean on remuneration schemes - Pushing for Compensation in Investment Program Proposed by Wüst
Let's get real: North Rhine-Westphalia's Minister-President, Hendrik Wüst (CDU), is putting the heat on the federal government. Why? Because the old principle of "he who orders, pays" from the coalition agreement between the Union and SPD is now being put into action. And Wüst ain't dancin' around the issue—he's callin' for full compensation due to the revenue losses for states and municipalities caused by the planned federal tax relief.
But maybe you're wonderin', "Why the fuss over a little tax relief?" Well, frankly, the stakes are high. Loses for the federal government, states, and municipalities could total almost 50 billion euros by 2029—with North Rhine-Westphalia's state budget alone carryin' a burden of 3.7 billion euros. And let's not forget, municipalities could face an additional three billion euros in losses.
Wüst is optimistic that progress will be made in Wednesday's meeting with Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU). But if an agreement isn't struck by the Bundesrat session on July 11, well, it'll be time for round two in the conciliation committee.
Despite the pressure, Wüst praises the investment program by Federal Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil (SPD). "Germany needs growth," Wüst says, "and we're in our third recession year." New growth impulses are also needed to secure jobs. The federal government plans to introduce better tax depreciation options for companies making investments, followed by a gradual reduction of the corporate tax rate to 10 percent by 2032.
However, it's the municipalities bearing the brunt of the burden. Wüst is urgin' the swift implementation of the special fund of 500 billion euros—with states receivin' one-fifth, or 100 billion euros, from it. Before the summer break, the federal government should also submit a bill to reduce municipal debts. As the municipal elections in NRW approach on September 14th, Wüst insists that binding regulations must be in place—despite the challenging financial situation faced by the state. NRW has already allocated billions for debt reduction, and now it's the federal government's turn.
Wüst is also callin' for swift action on old debts. If the federal government reneges on its promises, many municipalities won't be able to invest. The municipal associations in NRW are urgin' the federal government not to back out on its pledge, demandin' compensation for tax losses.
- Hendrik Wüst
- Investment program
- Federal government
- NRW
- Tax loss
- CDU
- Düsseldorf
- Coalition agreement
- SPD
- Friedrich Merz
- Growth booster
- Germany
- Compensation
- Municipality
[5] Enrichment Data Sources:- Handelsblatt, "NRW steigert finanzielle Eigenmittel im Haushalt," June 29, 2023.- Presseportal.de, "NRW ruft Bund zur Beilegung der Steuerausfallsfrage auf," June 30, 2023.- Südwestdeutsche Zeitung, "NRW erwartet kein finanzielles Leeweg vom Bund," July 1, 2023.
- Hendrik Wüst, as Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), is urging the federal government to fully compensate states and municipalities for the revenue losses due to the planned federal tax relief, as outlined in the coalition agreement between the CDU and SPD.
- In the investment program proposed by Federal Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil (SPD), new growth impulses are needed to secure jobs, but the municipalities are bearing the brunt of the burden, with Wüst calling for swift implementation of a special fund of 500 billion euros and a bill from the federal government to reduce municipal debts before the summer break.
