Over 335,000 Euros Saved in Six Years
Passau. For the inaugural meeting of the city council on Wednesday, 6 May 2026, the FDP council group is tabling four amendments to reform the allowances paid to the deputy mayors. Instead of the …
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Passau. For the inaugural meeting of the city council on Wednesday, 6 May 2026, the FDP council group is tabling four amendments to reform the allowances paid to the deputy mayors. Instead of the monthly flat rates proposed by the administration – 3,900 euros for the 2nd and 3,000 euros for the 3rd mayor – an expense-based model following the example of the independent city of Ansbach is to be introduced. Extrapolated over the six-year council term, this would relieve the city budget by around 337,800 euros.
“Honorary office means honorary office,” says group chairman Prof. Dr. Holm Putzke. “Anyone who chairs a few meetings a year and occasionally attends an event as a stand-in receives an appropriate expense allowance – but not a hidden part-time salary of almost 4,000 euros a month. With the inaugural meeting, we now have the chance to set up the system on a fundamentally new footing.”
The proposed model provides for a significantly reduced monthly basic allowance for the deputy mayors – around 815 euros for the 2nd and around 580 euros for the 3rd mayor – supplemented by activity-based flat rates: 75 euros for chairing a city council meeting as a stand-in, and 75 euros per appointment when the Lord Mayor delegates an appointment in writing to a deputy mayor or to an ordinary member of the city council.
Another new feature is that in future all 44 members of the city council are to receive a flat rate for representative appointments on behalf of the Lord Mayor. “The city council is made up of 44 individuals with different areas of expertise – from business and education to social affairs, culture and sport,” explains deputy group chairman Prof. Georg Steiner. “In future, the Lord Mayor can decide across party lines who is best suited to which appointment. That makes representation livelier and takes pressure off the deputy mayors. Anyone who attends an appointment on behalf of the Lord Mayor receives 75 euros – regardless of which group they belong to.”
“Passau is facing enormous tasks – schools, bridges and utility networks need money,” stresses city councillor Sebastian Frankenberger. “More than 335,000 euros over six years is not small change. Other cities such as Ansbach have been showing for years that it is possible to be fair and thrifty at the same time.”
The model is based on Section 5(6) of the statutes of the independent city of Ansbach, which has around 42,000 inhabitants and where a comparable rule has been in place for years. The rates for Passau have been raised moderately to reflect the somewhat larger city.
The post Über 335.000 Euro Einsparung in sechs Jahren first appeared on FDP Fraktion | TEAM Putzke.