Regional reform in Baden-Württemberg
The regional reform in Baden-Württemberg was carried out between 1968 and 1975 and had the goal of creating more efficient communities . This was to be achieved through larger administrative units , which, in the opinion of the state government at the time , would work more efficiently. In addition, the Baden-Württemberg district reform was carried out in 1973 .
The regional reform was initiated by the coalition government of the CDU and SPD in the Baden-Württemberg state parliament . After the state elections in 1972 , the CDU , which ruled alone, continued the path that had already been initiated with broad support from the state parliament.
history
The administrative and territorial reform
In the second half of the 1960s, the states of the Federal Republic of Germany dealt with the idea of a comprehensive administrative reform. In contrast to society and the economy, public administration had hardly changed structurally in the post-war period. There was growing pressure to reform administrative matters - due to new tasks, increasing specialization and the desire for larger administrative units - which the federal and state governments now had to comply with.
The individual municipalities experienced very different developments in the post-war period. Due to the increasing mobility, there was often a separation of home and workplace. The communities that served as a place of residence but had hardly any trade or industry could no longer finance the costs for the infrastructure (kindergartens, schools, sports facilities or roads). Communities that were away from the economic centers were slowly being depopulated. The trading and commercial enterprises there suffered considerable losses due to the decline in purchasing power . In contrast, as industry grew, communities financed good infrastructure. This encouraged emigration from the rural communities to the larger cities and increased the contrast between the depopulating communities and the expanding cities.
The intended reforms were intended to balance these contradictions and reorganize the communities. In addition, the administrative tasks should be redistributed, the legal and administrative regulations simplified and the training and further education of state employees improved. A network of upper , middle , lower and small centers was created :
“What was decisive was the function assigned to the respective location in a larger network of relationships between the communities. Anyone who was awarded the status of a central location should be equipped with the administrative facilities active in their catchment area (school, finance and road construction offices). The central locations should be assigned to medium-sized, sub-and small centers with all the facilities necessary at their level (post office, pharmacy and secondary school). "
With the state development plan, a political structural reform began, which was implemented in the first half of the 1970s. The state development plan was drawn up on June 22, 1971 and declared binding on April 11, 1972.
The community reform
In parallel to the regional reform, the process of community reform in Baden-Württemberg took place, which began on September 1, 1968 and ended on January 1, 1975. The community reform was introduced with the law to strengthen the administrative power of smaller communities of September 26, 1967, which was passed by the state parliament of Baden-Württemberg in order to create equal living conditions for the citizens and conflicts of interests between communities - arose due to economic and social development - dismantle. The 3379 municipalities in Baden-Württemberg were to become 1,111 municipalities through amalgamations and incorporations; The lowest level should be municipalities with at least 8,000 inhabitants. The reason for the minimum number was that only from this size onwards the increased needs of the population - for schools, kindergartens, leisure facilities, old people's homes, sports and swimming facilities, cultural and social facilities - could be met. The state government gave special subsidies under the Financial Equalization Act to the municipalities that voluntarily incorporated . The condition was that a public hearing had to take place by April 2, 1972 and that the incorporation had to be completed by January 1, 1973 at the latest.
literature
- State Ministry of Baden-Württemberg (publisher): Documentation on the administrative reform in Baden-Württemberg. 2 volumes. Stuttgart 1972, 1976.
- Werner Föll: Chronicle of the city of Heilbronn (= publications of the archive of the city of Heilbronn . Volume 38 ). Volume X: 1970-1974. Heilbronn City Archives, Heilbronn 1999, ISBN 3-928990-68-3 , p. XIV-XVI (Sections Administrative and Territorial Reform and Municipal Reform in the introduction).
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Werner Föll: Chronicle of the City of Heilbronn (= publications of the archive of the city of Heilbronn . Volume 38 ). Volume X: 1970-1974. Heilbronn City Archives, Heilbronn 1999, ISBN 3-928990-68-3 , p. XV (section Administrative and territorial reform in the introduction).