Graz government unveils 55 million euro savings package
Thursday 10th September 2026 on 17:00 in
Austria
Graz’s city government has presented a savings package designed to improve the city’s finances, with the operating balance set to improve by around 55 million euros over 2027 and 2028, ORF reported. The city’s debt currently stands at about two billion euros.
The coalition parties, the Communist Party of Austria and the Greens, say the package is the first of two measures planned for the next two years. A second package is due to be presented in December. The city senate is scheduled to discuss the next steps on Friday.
Existing budget freezes will remain in place permanently. New funding applications will therefore no longer be processed until further notice. The measures also include savings, efficiency improvements, index-linked adjustments and financial effects from measures introduced by the federal and state governments.
Staff numbers will be reduced. Over the next two years, one in every four administrative posts that becomes vacant at the municipal authorities will remain unfilled. In subsequent years, this will apply to one in eight vacancies. Fire services, childcare and care services are excluded.
The number of supervisory board members at municipally owned companies will be cut by one third, from 84 to 57. At Holding Graz, for example, the supervisory board will be reduced from 15 to eight members. Allowances for parliamentary group leaders will be abolished, while those available to the city government will be reduced by one fifth.
Residents will also feel the savings programme through higher fees. The connection charge for the public sewer network and parking fees will rise, although the exact increases have not yet been decided.
The city expects some relief from measures at federal and state level, including higher traffic fines. The nationwide penalty issued without identifying the driver will rise from 25 to 60 euros, while fines for speeding will increase by 20 percent. A planned reduction in payroll-related costs is also expected to improve the budget.
Bühnen Graz will also be affected. Following a decision by the state, it must save an additional one million euros in each of the next two years, with 45 percent of those savings to be borne by the city of Graz.