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Saxony Audit Office Urges Debt-Free Budget, Flags Cost Pressures and Police Dog Reforms

The annual report presses the state to tighten consolidation as record personnel spending strains finances despite only symbolic staff cuts.

Overview

  • The auditors recommend refraining from new borrowing and say the state budget should generally operate without credit.
  • Personnel expenditures reached €8.3 billion in 2023, and the staffing plan is still considered excessively large.
  • The current two-year budget halts headcount growth, yet the elimination of 382 positions is deemed largely symbolic.
  • A review of the police service-dog program found 107 active dogs costing about €130,000 annually without needs-based planning, and it urges a fundamental recalculation of allowances.
  • Finance Minister Christian Piwarz notes the Basic Law allows debt up to 0.35% of GDP—about €700 million per year for Saxony—though the auditors discourage using this leeway.