SPD on finance and taxes

The SPD wants to push at the federal level for everyone to receive a basic inheritance of 20,000 euros on turning 18. It justifies this with its goal of greater social justice.

Everyone should get 20,000 euros at age 18. The SPD calls this a basic inheritance. The SPD wants to push for this at the federal level. It wants more fairness.

The basic inheritance is to amount to 20,000 euros and go to everyone who reaches adulthood. It would have to be introduced at the federal level, where the Thuringian SPD wants to advocate for it. The platform places the demand in the context of social justice.

The SPD wants to help municipalities work off their investment backlog in a predictable way through permanent investment grants. A fund is to provide missing co-financing as low-interest loans, and a digital database is to make access to grants easier.

Many towns need to renew roads and buildings. They often lack the money. The SPD wants to give towns lasting money for investment. A new fund should give cheap loans. A database should show all grant programs.

The grant database is also meant to show possible combinations with federal money and relieve administrative staff. The free advisory service for municipalities on funded projects will continue. The annual investment lump sum paid through fiscal equalization is to be adjusted dynamically because of rising prices. Spa and resort towns are to receive reliable funding because, according to the platform, they can raise less business tax revenue than other municipalities.

The SPD wants to hold the investment share of the state budget between 16 and 18 percent. At the same time, loans taken out during the pandemic are to keep being repaid, and reserves are to be built up for unforeseen developments.

The state should spend a lot on investments. That is spending for the future, such as buildings. It should be 16 to 18 percent of the budget. The state should also pay back debt from the COVID years. And it should save money for emergencies.

The budget is to rest on realistic financial planning in which approved money is actually spent. Municipalities are to receive sufficient funds, and public services at all levels are to have staff matching their tasks. The SPD justifies the investment rate with the transformation of the economy and the administration. It says this requires clear priorities in the budget.

The SPD wants to push at the federal level for abolishing the constitutional debt brake in its current form. In its view, the rule severely limits the state's ability to act, especially for the states. The borrowing rules in Thuringia's budget law are also to be reviewed.

The debt brake limits new government debt. It is part of the German constitution. The SPD wants to end it in its current form. It says the states cannot invest enough otherwise. Thuringia should also be allowed to borrow more for investments.

States are to be allowed, within limits, to finance investments with loans whose term matches the useful life of the project. The platform cites projects in the energy and heating transition as examples that should not fail for lack of money. In parallel, the SPD wants to review the borrowing authorizations in the state budget code. The aim is to widen them, especially for investments.

The SPD wants to create a Thuringian transformation fund to finance future-oriented investments over the long term. It is meant to give a boost to structural and climate policy. To finance it, the party wants to examine issuing “green” bonds.

The SPD wants a new fund for Thuringia. A fund is a large pot of money. The money is for investments in the future and for the climate. Companies and towns can then plan with more certainty. The SPD will look at green bonds to pay for it.

The fund is meant to give companies, public institutions and municipalities certainty about financing. It is also supposed to simplify how the state administration manages the money. Green bonds are debt securities whose proceeds may only go to certain sustainable projects. The SPD sees them as bringing more transparency about how money is used and as a contribution to more sustainable capital markets.

The SPD wants to review the state's funding programs for effectiveness, simplify them and consolidate them. It is also considering cuts. A central platform is to process all state programs fully electronically, and the Thüringer Aufbaubank (the state development bank) is to be strengthened.

The state has many funding programs. The SPD wants to check them and make them simpler. Some programs may be dropped. An online platform should handle all applications digitally. The state development bank should give cheap loans and guarantees.

Programs are to be standardized, efficient and transparent to make investments in schools, infrastructure, the economy and social services easier. The state budget code and related administrative rules are to be checked for ways to cut red tape. Because interest rates have risen since 2022, the SPD is counting on guarantees and reduced-interest loans for municipalities and companies. The Thüringer Aufbaubank is to carry out such state programs.