Municipal authorities in Oberhausen seek financial assistance from the government
In a bid to strengthen the financial and economic standing of Oberhausen, political figure Stefan Zimkeit has proposed rescue and investment packages aimed at stimulating growth and improving public services.
Zimkeit, a member of the state parliament for Oberhausen-Sterkrade and Dinslaken, has announced the application for three rescue packages in final budget negotiations. These packages are intended for daycare centres, open all-day primary schools, and social and health facilities in Oberhausen.
To finance these packages, Zimkeit suggests several methods. He proposes increasing the municipal share of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) tax revenue to 24 percent, which could provide a significant boost to the city's finances.
Moreover, Zimkeit believes that taking on new loans during economic crises is permissible under the debt brake, as it involves investing in the future generation. He suggests involving NRW.Bank in the investment offensive, leveraging the bank's resources to support the city's growth.
Zimkeit emphasises that all investments must be solidly financed. He states that the funds from the released positions should not be used as a financial minister's piggy bank, but rather flow into the rescue packages.
In addition, there are 17 investment packages planned, covering areas with the greatest investment backlog, including digitalization and bus and rail traffic.
It is worth noting that there are 26,000 vacant positions in the public service of the state, which could potentially be utilised to generate additional revenue or redirected towards the investment packages.
However, for a more precise summary of Stefan Zimkeit's proposals and financing plans, updated contextual information or a text source outlining his specific ideas would be beneficial.
Stefan Zimkeit, in his proposed rescue and investment packages for Oberhausen, seeks to finance them through increasing the municipality's share of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) tax revenue to 24 percent and by taking on new loans during economic crises. He also suggests leveraging NRW.Bank's resources to support the city's growth, with the aim of stimulating business and improving public services in Oberhausen.
