The budget of Aa en Hunze for 2027 ends with a surplus of €29,000, but residents will pay more. The waste charge rises by 11 percent, and local charges per resident go from an average of €415 to €446.
The council will debate the budget, the first from the municipal executive in the new term of office, on Thursday 5 and Wednesday 11 November.
The largest rise is in the waste charge. A one-person household will pay €236.50 in 2027 instead of €212, a larger household €315 instead of €282.50. According to the municipality this is mainly due to higher landfill costs, largely caused by higher central government levies, and to lower income from separately collected waste, because the collected PMD (plastic, metal and drinks cartons) is often contaminated. The sewerage charge rises by 4.5 percent.
The OZB rate for homes, the property tax, falls from 0.0816 to 0.0765 percent of the WOZ value. Because homes have risen in value by 8 percent on average, the owner of an average home will still pay a little more. The tourist tax stays at €1.55 per person per night in 2027. For 2028 the executive proposes €1.75.
“The multi-year outlook is negative, while there are substantial new ambitions,” says Sonja Hilgenga, the alderman for finance. “To be able to realise those ambitions, clear strategic choices will have to be made.”
According to the municipality, central government's revised policy makes its finances harder, and it is uncertain how the municipal fund, through which central government pays the municipalities, will develop, while the cost of youth care is not yet sufficiently under control.
At the same time, large projects are on the agenda for the coming years, for facilities in Gieten and Gasselte and for school buildings, including those of the Dr. Nassau College and the Jan Thiesschool. The executive also wants to make progress on housebuilding, strategic land purchases, entrepreneurship, farming with a future and a new environment plan. To do so, it also wants to use subsidies and other schemes, such as Nij Begun, the programme for the area affected by gas extraction. It also wants to keep a critical eye on what it spends.
