Rottweil is planning 33.5 million euros in new debt for 2026 – what now?

Rottweil is planning 33.5 million euros in new debt for 2026 – what now?

Things are getting exciting in the Rottweil district! Investments worth billions and new debts amounting to 33.5 million euros are planned for the 2026 budget. District Administrator Wolf-Rüdiger Michel has already announced that there will be cuts in various areas, especially in the budgets for schools as well as in building maintenance and in the arts and culture sector. This shows once again that the financial situation of the municipalities is anything but rosy.

The alarm bells are ringing: the structural problems caused by increasing mandatory tasks and falling income are causing serious problems for the administration. District Administrator Michel emphasizes that the districts are demanding full counter-financing of new statutory services from the federal and state governments. A reform to ensure municipal financial viability is also urgently needed. The planned increase in the district levy rate from 29 to 32.75 percent should make it possible to present a budget that can be approved. According to schwarzwaelder-bote.de the situation is in the social budget alarming, because there is an increase of 14 million euros, which corresponds to over 15 percent.

Investments with a sense of proportion

Total expenditure in the earnings budget increases by 9.7 million euros to almost 277 million euros. A significant portion of these expenses is used for personnel costs, which now account for 21 percent of expenses. With regard to investments, the district has put together a comprehensive package - the investment volume for 2026 amounts to around 35.5 million euros. The main focuses include the new construction of the district office with 23.3 million euros, the expansion of district roads with 4.3 million euros and 3 million euros for broadband expansion.

But that's not all: maintaining the schools is also on the agenda. As part of the building maintenance budget, 1.6 million euros are earmarked exclusively for repair work on schools. As far as roads are concerned, the road budget for 2026 includes an impressive 4.2 million euros for various projects. These measures are necessary to ensure the maintenance of the existing infrastructure.

Financial challenges in the social sector

The social sector presents a particular challenge. There are signs of a sharp increase in costs, especially for integration assistance and care assistance. The district also has to contribute significant amounts for local public transport - a total of 7.7 million euros and 1.2 million euros for the on-call bus. In addition, 898,000 euros are planned for the “Ringzug 2.0” investment cost allocation. The district's contribution to the costs of accommodation for around 2,108 communities of need amounts to around 3.2 million euros.

The budget, which is part of the budget statutes, is presented to the district council and must be published after extensive consultation before being approved by the Freiburg regional council. This process, as well as the preliminary discussions in the specialist committees, are crucial for future budget management in Rottweil. The final decision is usually made in December and initiates the new financial year, in which the municipalities have to face new challenges in order to operate sustainably, as can also be read on landkreis-rottweil.de.