Overview
- The Bundeskabinett has put a Gesetzentwurf forward that seeks to save €1.5 billion next year and about €2 billion annually from 2028 by cutting Wohngeld.
- Planned design changes include stopping automatic adjustments for inflation and rents, halving the heating-cost component, and changing the calculation so fewer households qualify.
- Official figures show nearly 49,000 households in Rheinland-Pfalz received Wohngeld at the end of 2024, about half of them single-person households and many older pensioners.
- Social groups and state politicians from multiple parties warned the cuts will push vulnerable people toward Grundsicherung and called the proposal socially harmful.
- Ministry calculations say the change would shift costs to municipalities, with estimated extra national municipal expenses of €33 million next year and €58 million in 2028.