Overview
- The Hessischer Städtetag said cities cannot absorb future costs from the federal Gewalthilfegesetz once temporary Berlin funding ends, invoking the principle that whoever assigns tasks pays for them.
- After leadership meetings, the association urged a higher municipal revenue-sharing pool in Hesse and a reliable model to calculate needs, while welcoming the state’s swiftly delivered €300 million in emergency aid.
- City leaders voiced concern over a cabinet plan to shift not only funding but also responsibility for emergency care to health insurers, warning of cost-driven cuts to local services.
- The association opposes large-scale municipal mergers and favors intensified inter-municipal cooperation and special-purpose associations, citing citizen identity concerns and the failed 1970s “Stadt Lahn” experiment.
- The Landesrechnungshof reported financing deficits in roughly four out of five municipalities in 2024 and argued that the long-term independence of all 421 municipalities is unlikely, projecting mergers in the coming decade.