Subject of the question:
Since 2015, refugees have been allocated to municipalities via the distribution key. The housing deficits were only partially offset by one-off payments from the MKK to municipalities for the years 2015+2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019.
Many municipalities had to compensate for significant deficits in refugee accommodation, especially in 2018 and 2019.
Questions:
Preliminary remark:
The basis for the reimbursement of the state's costs to the districts and district-free cities is the AufnG-HE (Hessian Land Reception Act). Section 7 regulates the reimbursement of the Land to the districts and district-free cities:
Paragraph 1.:‘The expenses incurred by the districts and municipalities for the reception and accommodation of persons pursuant to § 1 shall be reimbursed in the form of fixed amounts (flat rates) in accordance with the annex to § 7.“.
Paragraph 5: ‘The provincial government shall adjust the amounts by ordinance if and to the extent that this is necessary taking into account the development of costs. Administrative costs shall not be taken into account.’
By way of derogation from this rule, full reimbursement of costs, including administrative costs, shall be made for the care of unaccompanied minor refugees receiving youth welfare benefits.
The costs for the medical care of refugees pursuant to Paragraph 1 of the AufnG-HE are also fully reimbursed to the extent that they exceed the amount of EUR 10,000 per person per calendar year.
Reimbursement for the Main-Kinzig-Kreis is made:
1. In the amount of EUR 940 per month for the group of persons entitled to benefits under Section 1 of the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act (AsylbLG) for the duration of the asylum procedure and up to 3 years after the final negative conclusion of the asylum procedure.
2. Reimbursement of full costs for health care services from an expenditure of more than 10,000 euros per year in individual cases.
3. A one-off amount of 3,000 euros for persons who receive a residence permit after the successful completion of the asylum procedure.
The reimbursement of costs under Annex 1 to Paragraph 7(1) of the AufnG-HE is staggered into three groups (accommodation-obligated districts and district-free cities) due to the regional differences in expenditure:
Stage 1: €1,050
Stage 2: EUR 940
Stage 3: EUR 865
The lump sums are subject to an annual increase of 1.5 %.% for the current duration of the Law of 1 January 2021 – 31 December 2027.
The amounts to be covered by these refunds shall be: Refugee's regular needs (eating, drinking, clothing, etc.), accommodation costs, health care costs, special needs such as school allowance, etc., administrative expenses and additional integration services.
No reimbursement is made by the state of Hesse to the Main-Kinzig-Kreis:
– For the benefit costs under the AsylbLG for refugees after the expiry of the aforementioned 3-year reimbursement period, for which a return to the home country is not possible in the long term. As at 30.09.2021, this affects the cost of services for around 370 people, and the trend is increasing.
– For the costs of health care per person in relation to benefits AsylbLG up to EUR 10,000 per year in individual cases.
– For the cost of accommodation for former refugees who remain in shared accommodation after obtaining the right to stay.
1. Due to its good financial situation, can the MKK make up for the deficits of the municipalities from refugee accommodation in 2020 and 2021 et seq. in full?
Answer: The Main-Kinzig-Kreis has paid a total of 20,200,000 euros in special payments to the district municipalities to compensate for the deficit for the years 2015 – including 2019.
Of this amount, an amount of
EUR 3.2 million for 2018 – disbursed in financial year 2020
EUR 2.5 million for 2019 – disbursed in financial year 2021.
A plan approach for further reimbursements does not exist in the budget of the Public Order, Migration and Integration Office.
2. The state of Hesse makes a payment to the Main-Kinzig-Kreis for the accommodation of the refugees
a. What was the country's payment to the district in 2019 and 2020?
2019: Planned value EUR 20.6 million, IS EUR 18.6 million
2020: Planned value EUR 19 million, IS EUR 14.96 million.
b. What were the total costs of the municipalities for housing the refugees in 2019?
The Main-Kinzig-Kreis can make no statement on the total costs incurred at the level of the 29 cities and municipalities.
The ordinary expenses for the district amounted to:
for 2019 to around EUR 23 million
for 2020, around EUR 17.1 million.
c. If the costs are higher than the payment of the Land Hessen: Why are the country's payments not cost-covering? What possibilities does the circle have to achieve a cost-covering payment here?
The flat-rate reimbursement amounts are regulated by law in § 7 AufnG-HE, currently for the period from 1 January 2021 to 31. December 2027. Reimbursements by the country are necessarily not covering costs, as, for example, reimbursement is made exclusively for eligible refugees (see “Introductory remarks”). Reimbursements shall be determined by the Land of Hesse. A guideline for setting the flat rates is a data collection of all Hessian districts and district-free cities before the recast of the AufnG-HE. On the one hand, the Main-Kinzig-Kreis is represented in the Asylum Working Group and the sub-working group ‘LAG’ of the Hessisches Landkreistag.
The consultation on the results of the data collection of the Hessian districts and district-free cities takes place at the level of the responsible ministry and the municipal umbrella associations. The Main-Kinzig-Kreis is also part of various advisory groups during these consultations.
3. Who checks the settlement between the country and the district and the use of the funds paid for the accommodation of the refugees?
The billing between the state and the districts and district-free cities runs via the digitized billing procedure LAGPausch provided by the state of Hesse. The audit is carried out by the staff of Office 32 (Public Security and Order, Migration and Integration.
4. The crisis in Afghanistan can greatly increase the number of refugees
a. Does the Main-Kinzig-Kreis take precautions to take over housing and financing throughout the district in the event of increasing numbers of refugees in order to relieve the burden on municipalities and volunteering?
By annual decision of the district committee, the Main-Kinzig district assigns the refugees to be admitted to the district municipalities according to a fixed admission rate (current decision of 17 August 2021 for the period from 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022). The cities and municipalities were informed of the possible increase in allocation figures by letter of 23 August 2021. For the sub-question financing, please refer to the answer under 2c.
b. What possibilities does the district have if the refugee shelters are used up throughout the district? Are there already plans for this?
Responsible for the accommodation on site are the district municipalities, which provide sufficient housing according to their respective admission rate (common accommodation or individual apartments) as well as the Main-Kinzig district, which operates a communal accommodation in Schlüchtern. The costs of accommodation are covered by the competent service provider on a case-by-case basis.
c. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the municipalities of the district may be in arrears or difficulties in payment in order to compensate for any shortfall in the accommodation of the refugees. Is it planned on the part of the district to grant a debt reduction or to compensate the deficits completely to corresponding municipalities that fulfil their obligation of accommodation but do not receive sufficient funds (see question 1)?
A corresponding trend as described above is currently not detectable. If financing from the current budget is not possible, it must be provided from the liquid funds (cash balance) or financed via liquidity loans. A debt reduction is not possible from a legal point of view.
d. Has the circle planned a corresponding amount of cover or security reserve in the budget for this purpose?
The Main-Kinzig-Kreis has not planned a separate safety reserve for any deficits of the municipalities in this area. For its own budget, the Main-Kinzig district, like all municipalities, has a cash balance and the opportunity to resort to short-term liquidity loans.
i. If so, how high is it?
The amount of liquidity loans from the Main-Kinzig district is set out in the budget. The total is 30 million euros for 2021.
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