The Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe has dismissed the constitutional complaint filed by six FDP members of the Bundestag, who sought to have the solidarity surcharge on income tax abolished.
The complainants argued that the solidarity surcharge, introduced in 1995 to finance the costs of reunification and the development of the eastern regions, is now obsolete since reunification is considered financially complete. They claimed that its continued collection violates Articles 2 and 14 of the German Basic Law, which protect citizens from unjust taxation.
The court disagreed, ruling that the federal government can continue to collect the solidarity surcharge. According to Judge Christine Langenfeld, the Bundestag has shown that it regularly reviews the necessity and reasonableness of the additional tax burden and adjusts it to the changing circumstances, fulfilling its “obligation to observe”.
The court also cited a study by the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW), which found that despite positive developments, structural differences between East and West Germany still exist and that the reunification-related costs of the federal budget will continue to be felt until at least 2030, with a projected annual deficit of 11 to 12 billion euros.
The court did not consider the differing opinions of other economic experts presented during the oral hearing in November, as the DIW study showed that the government remained within the bounds of its discretion in assessing the situation. According to the judge, it is not the court’s task to select between different economic assumptions, as long as the assumption on which the government based its decision is not clearly at odds with the facts.