President of the Association of Cities and Municipalities of North Rhine-Westphalia, Christoph Landscheidt, accuses the state of leaving the municipalities financially on their own.
Landscheidt told the “Rheinische Post”: “The state is aware of the extent of the problems on the ground, we regularly speak with each other. And yet, the municipalities are in a crisis, as I have not experienced it in 30 years of office.”
The structural financial provision for the municipalities has recently deteriorated catastrophically, warned the mayor of Kamp-Lintfort. “The citizens feel this in their daily lives. The state, however, only brings an indignant finger to Berlin. That does not help us. Our financial partner is now Düsseldorf, in any case.” This applies to the kindergarten equipment, the property tax, and the refugee problem.
According to Landscheidt, the municipalities are currently still refraining from building large refugee centers, as they do not want to provide the right-wing extremists with ammunition. “We are investing heavily in the establishment of temporary housing and are again being left alone with the costs. In reality, we need a takeover of the initial costs by the state. The state signals understanding, but ducks away as soon as it becomes concrete. At least an entry into talks is overdue.”
One does not yet notice the construction of the state-owned temporary housing in reality, he said. “Too many people are still being distributed to our municipalities, where it is clear that they will have to leave again – for example, refugees from Turkey. This overloads the many engaged people on the ground.” He also understands that not everything can be done overnight. “We need faster asylum procedures and more administrative judges for that. The state has taken steps with the security package. We, however, also need more staff in the foreigner’s offices. And then we are back at the starting point. In the municipalities, simply, there is no money.