Quickborn's brains: communities are threatened with extinction due to high taxes!

Quickborn's brains: communities are threatened with extinction due to high taxes!

The town of Quickborn in the Pinneberg district is facing profound changes in its administrative community with the surrounding communities. In a decisive step, the city has terminated all existing contracts with the municipalities of Ellerau, Ascheberg, Bönningstedt and Hasloh, which puts the future of this cooperation in question. Loud kn-online.de Quickborn plans to end the administrative community if no higher payments are received from the partner communities.

The four communities reject Quickborn's new financial demands. Helge Tiemann, spokesman for Quickborn, explained that the current payments no longer cover the increased costs. “We have seen a significant increase in personnel costs in recent years, and the work has become more complex due to new regulations,” says Tiemann. The terminations are due to take effect on December 31, 2027 and now require planning for new administrative models.

Rising costs and planned tax increases

Ellerau, which paid around 1.8 million euros to Quickborn last year, is now confronted with drastic demands: “We have to increase our payments from 2 million to 2.5 million euros,” reports Ellerau. This increase could result in the property tax having to be increased by 50 percent, which is unacceptable for the community. This was also clearly rejected by the local council. The mayors of other affected communities also express incomprehension about the new amounts: Bönningstedt would have to pay from 800,000 euros to 1.6 million euros and Hasloh from 750,000 to 1.3 million euros. These increases are not perceived as transparent, especially by Mayor Rolf Lammert from Bönningstedt, who is shocked by the plans.

Thomas Menzel, mayor of Ascheberg, speaks of a “terrible shock” because his municipality also had to pay from 480,000 euros to 1.15 million euros. He has set a negotiation limit of 700,000 euros and is planning another conversation with Quickborn. But Quickborn's mayor Thomas Beckmann is not very optimistic and sees little scope for negotiations. “The old contracts are no longer appropriate,” said Beckmann.

Background to the property tax increases

The challenges facing Quickborn and its neighboring communities come in a context in which many cities and municipalities nationwide are increasing their property tax rates. This development follows a legal reform that became necessary following a ruling by the Constitutional Court in 2018. The aim of this reform was to ensure fair and constitutional property tax collection, but the promise that property owners would not have to pay more than before remains questionable. capital.de highlights that many municipalities are trying to consolidate their budgets with these increases.

In view of the current developments, the mayors of the affected communities are required to find alternatives and solutions in order to reach an agreement with Quickborn. The working group for planning future administration could play an important role here. Ellerau and the other municipalities face the challenge of managing their financial resources while protecting the interests of their citizens. Whether this will succeed remains to be seen.