Account balances exceed anticipated levels
The city of Graz has closed the 2024 financial year significantly better than originally forecasted, according to Finance Councilor Manfred Eber (KPÖ). The improvement was due to proactive measures and careful budgeting, resulting in higher revenues from own taxes.
The highest increase in revenues came from property tax (+2.2 million euros) and parking fees (+1.3 million euros), totalling an increase of +4.2 million euros. This boost in revenue was a welcome change, as the city faced an overall surplus of 2 million euros in fee income.
The surplus in fee income was particularly noticeable in wastewater (+1.2 million euros) and waste disposal (+0.6 million euros). However, without reliable framework conditions, sustainable budget planning is becoming increasingly difficult for the city.
Despite the positive financial outcome, the operating cash flow for the year was -16.6 million euros, which is nearly 88 million euros above the originally planned value. This discrepancy can be attributed to the higher revenues from own taxes, which were the largest deviations from the planned budget.
In the previous year, the city invested 314.3 million euros in central areas of public infrastructure. Councilor Eber emphasised that the budget has been honestly balanced, proactive measures have been implemented, and socially acceptable measures have been taken.
Looking ahead, the budget presentation for 2025 and 2026, scheduled for November, is expected to show an increase in debt to 2.54 billion euros by 2030. The federal government and the state are being urged to provide clarity for municipalities in this regard.
However, the search results do not provide specific information about who implemented the proactive measures to stabilise the budget in the city of Graz in 2024. Further investigation is needed to identify the individuals responsible for this positive financial outcome.
