Earning Big Bucks: Inside the German Bundestag's Cash Flow
Germany's Federal Legislative Body Holds Meeting
Berlin - German Bundestag members are living the high life, boasting hefty salaries thanks to the infamous "diet" - aka the members' allowance. Unsurprisingly, proposals to boost this allowance are met with a chorus of boos.
A few years back, an annual adjustment mechanism, mimicking pension increases, was implemented. However, like a catchy earworm that refuses to fade away, this mechanism, extended for each new legislative period following a federal election, has also been met with its fair share of critique. Last night, the Bundestag, with the majority on board from CDU/CSU, SPD, and the Greens, extended this mechanism once more.
Cold, Hard Cash: How Much Does It Rain on Bundestag Members?
These pompous politicians rake in 11,227.20 euros per month. This income is subject to tax. On top of this, they pocket a tax-free monthly expense allowance of 5,349.58 euros to cover expenses associated with being a lawmaker, such as office rentals, materials, taxi rides, hotel costs, or accommodations in the capital.
The Bundestag repays office expenses in Berlin (including office supplies and phones for staff) up to 12,000 euros a year. Members can hop aboard trains for free and have their travel expenses for domestic flights reimbursed if they're work-related.
Cash Flow from an Average Worker's Perspective: What's the Secret Sauce?
"Members shall receive a reasonable allowance that guarantees their independence," states the Basic Law. The nitty-gritty details are regulated in the Members Act. Allowances are based on judges' incomes from the highest federal courts. According to the 1975 "allowance ruling" of the Federal Constitutional Court, the allowance needs to be "appropriate to the importance of the office, taking into account the responsibility and burden involved, and the hierarchy of the office in the constitutional order."
This topic has always been a touchy subject: if the allowances are too meager, corruption concerns loom; if they're too lavish, criticism ensues.
Why Does the Bundestag Decide on Its Own Allocations?
This policy goes way, way back to the 1975 Constitutional Court's ruling. The court demanded that the members decide on this matter themselves and openly. The court held at the time that "in a parliamentary democracy, it is unavoidable that the parliament decides on its own affairs when it comes to setting the amount and further design of the financial regulations associated with the status of a member."
Automated Adjustments: A Step Towards Transparency?
This initiative was birthed in 2014 by the then-ruling grand coalition on the advice of an expert commission. Commission chairman and former Federal Minister of Justice, Edzard Schmidt-Jortzig (FDP), reflected on the constant debates surrounding allowance increases: "Politicians were labeled as 'greedy' and 'self-serving' at the expense of parliamentarians." There had long been a desire within political circles to automate such adjustments.
The mechanism works as follows: if the average wage in the country experiences a certain increase this year, parliamentary allowances will jump accordingly next year. However, every new Bundestag must vote on whether to maintain this process for the legislative period. This decision has been made yet again. According to the Left party, the mechanism will result in a 600 euro increase as of July 1.
Supporters vs. Critics: A Battle of Opinions
The SPD and Union defend the automated adjustment, labeling it a smart, data-informed approach to a highly political and emotionally-charged issue. Union parliamentary group leader, Jens Spahn (CDU), suggested it was a sensible strategy, especially during challenging times: "When citizens had less in wages and salaries, this led to corresponding reductions." In 2021, parliamentary allowances actually took a small hit due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Disapproval stems from the AfD and the Left, both advocating for a suspension of the automated adjustment. Left party co-chair, Jan van Aken, contended in the Bundestag that no citizen can comprehend why parliamentary allowances rise before parliament has even commenced its work. AfD parliamentary business manager, Stephan Brandner, is skeptical of the automated adjustment and advocates for an annual hike to be transparently debated and decided upon in the plenary session.
- The policy of automatically adjusting Bundestag members' allowances was initiated in 2014, primarily to promote transparency in the process of setting financial regulations associated with a member's status.
- The Bundestag, governed by CDU/CSU, SPD, and the Greens, has extended the policy-and-legislation that links annual allowance adjustments to pension increases, which has been a subject of both politics and general-news discussions due to its controversial nature.
