Census war in the Vogelsberg: Municipalities are fighting for recognition!

Census war in the Vogelsberg: Municipalities are fighting for recognition!

Wartenberg, Deutschland - In Hessen it is currently bubbling around the results of the census 2022. As Giessener General have been objected to 16 of 19 municipalities in the Vogelsberg district. When evaluating the population, the State Statistical Office seems to have come across considerable differences that could now have unpleasant consequences for some cities. The cities of Lauterbach, Schlitz and Wartenberg complain after their objections have been rejected. These inconsistencies are not only a question of honor, but have a direct impact on the finances of the municipalities, since the census results significantly influence municipal financial equalization and funding.

The census statistics, created by a extrapolated sample, came in Wartenberg an alleged loss of residents of 11 percent. Slit also hit hard: According to the census numbers, 664 inhabitants are missing here, while Lauterbach speaks of a loss of 887 inhabitants. Mayor Heiko Siemon (Schlitz) and Rainer-Hans Vollmöller (Lauterbach) criticize the methodology and urge on a register-based process to avoid such predicament of statistics.

The challenges for the municipalities

The discussion about the number of census is not limited to the three complaining cities. As The municipality nationwide there are 100 complaints about the results of the census 2022. It is particularly bad about the foreign population: there is almost a million fewer foreigners than originally thought, but also falsifies, but also direct financial Has an impact. The municipalities expect the incorrect figures to have a negative impact on their finances - fewer residents mean fewer funds from financial equalization.

Baden-Württemberg has also felt the problem strongly. Around 131,000 people lived here in 2022 less than for an estimate in 2011. The methodology based on samples is critically questioned and, similar to the Vogelsberg district, could lead to massive wrong decisions and financial losses. In order to counter this uncertainty, a temporary solution is used for the years 2023 and 2024: the population is based on the 2011 census, while the new figures are to be gradually introduced.

an uncertain view

The census 2022 has also created a broader database that covers various areas - from population figures to age structures to relevant demographic data. Destatis provides a variety of data records that can in future be important in the political and economic planning of the municipalities.

The mayors from affected cities such as Stephan Paule (Alsfeld) already warn that a successful lawsuit could possibly also have far -reaching consequences for all Hessian municipalities. Leopold Bach from Feldatal criticizes the discrepancy between the census values and the actual population, which is a major challenge, especially for the infrastructure. So it remains exciting how these legal disputes develop and what weight the municipal voices will ultimately have.