If the money is not enough, you have to come up with something - cut expenses or increase income.
Municipalities are no different than ordinary citizens.
But there is one important difference: The city parliament can decide, based on its own powers, to collect more taxes on the property and from businesses in the future or higher fees for daycare centers, books, baths and graves.
The affected residents are denied a comparable step.
Letters to the esteemed employer along the lines of “According to my decision of December 26, you are obliged to increase my salary by 10 percent as of January 1” remain a crazy dream.
A look at the foreseeable changes in the municipalities at the turn of the year shows a mixed picture.
On the one hand, there are adjustments to fees and municipal taxes - and then they usually only know one direction: upwards.
On the other hand, one has to admit that crass increases, such as with parking fees in Berlin, are the exception.
Still - one must probably add, since by no means every municipality has already decided on its budget with everything related to it on the revenue side.
A lot can come of that.
Without a comprehensive database covering all local taxes and fees, it is difficult to say anything general about local government greed or non-greed.
So it is meritorious when the taxpayers' association sets about recording the burden of property tax.
Finally, at the beginning of 2025, this will be collected on a new basis.
Since some federal states have made use of the opening clause to issue their own rules, it will become even more difficult to keep track.
Municipal representatives have promised not to use the conversion for hidden increases.
The citizens will measure them against it.
Of course, the women and men in municipal finance are not entirely free in what they do. Many want to be re-elected.
That is and remains the central corrective.