Level: Character: Mandates / responsibilities / roles:

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1 LG Action - Country Profile Collection GERMANY Version 2.1 This document reflects the current status on: Government levels and departments responsible for / working with local governments (LGs). Main national climate and energy relevant legislation and strategies that impact / has potential to impact cities and towns (also identifying what is legally not possible or difficult)., National LG networks / associations support for local climate and energy action Potential opportunities to be explored to improve the roll-out of local climate and energy action A summary on the LG and their networks / associations interest and involvement in the Roadmap and advocacy processes. A. CONTEXT 1. Levels of government and roles: Basic inter-relationship and impact (potential impact for climate and energy action) Level: Character: Mandates / responsibilities / roles: National Federal parliamentary republic 81, inhabitants (2010) Comprised of federated states (Länder), Area 357,021 km 2 districts (Landkreise) and municipalities (Gemeinden). 16 federal states (Länder) 301 districts (Landkreise) Each federal state has its own regime, constitution, government and parliament. The parliament (Landtag) is the legislative body. It is made up of members elected by direct universal suffrage for a four-year mandate. It elects the Minister-President of the Land. The government (Landsregierung) is the executive body. It is elected by the Parliament for a four-year mandate. It elects the Minister President. Minister President (Ministerpräsident) heads the government, with the exclusive power to designate and dismiss the Ministers of the Land. The district council (Kreistag) is the legislative body, elected by direct universal suffrage for a mandate that varies between 1-4 years depending on the Land. The district president (Landrat) is elected either by the assembly or by direct universal suffrage for a mandate of 5-8 years, depending on the Land. As an elected civil servant, he chairs the district Their exclusive competences are related to environment, culture, education and police. Shared competences with the central government are: energy, justice, social policy, civil -, penal - and labour law. Compulsory competences are related to construction and maintenance of roads, youth and social assistance, collecting and managing household refuse. Facultative (non-core) competences are related to energy (grid related issues etc.), culture, economy and tourism, building and managing libraries / universities. LG Action - Country Profile GERMANY (Verion 2.1) 1

2 municipalities (Gemeinde and Städte) Aprox. 75% have less than 5,000 inhabitants 60 have signed the Covenant of Mayors (Sept. 2011) 1 assembly. The district office (Landratsamt) is the executive body made up of civil servants recruited by the district itself or by the Land. Cycle: see below System: Except for cities that enjoy county status, municipalities are clustered in districts and administrative units (Verbandsgemeinden). There are two types of municipal organisations depending on the legal status adopted by the Land: the Magistrat system and the Council system (Süddeutsche Ratsverfassung). (i) The Council system exists in all German federal states, except Hessen. The municipal council is elected by direct universal suffrage in general for a five-year mandate. The mayor (BürgermeisterIn) is elected by direct universal suffrage for a mandate that varies between 4-9 years (also in Hessen). The mayor presides over the municipal council and heads the administration of the municipality. The municipal council (Gemeinderat) is the central body of the municipality. It is elected by direct universal suffrage for a mandate that can vary between 4-6 years. It is the legislative body that takes most decisions and has a supervisory function. In the Magistrat system, the executive body is made up of the mayor and his deputies (Magistrate). They are civil servants appointed by the municipal council for a mandate that usually last four years. The Magistrat represents the municipality and runs the daily administration. It implements the local council s decisions. This system only exists in one federal district (Hessen) 2. Financing: Municipal services are to some extent financed by the federal states and to some extent by its own revenues from e.g.: trade income tax (Gewerbesteuer), PPPs, concession contracts etc.. The total deficit of all German LGs amounted to 10,9 billion EURO in Therefore many LGs are depended on state money and experience budget cuts or budget freezes in which no upfront investment is permitted although maybe profitable. Right to regulate and administer all municipal issues by themselves (Art. 28 Abs. 2 GG). Municipalities have territorial sovereignty and in principle omni competence. Only the federal and central government can restrain competences. Most municipalities administer the local supply and disposal (sewage, waste from households etc.) and thus maintain their influence in the municipal price, staffing, procurement and environment policy. Compulsory competences are related to general administration (staff, finance), urban planning and building, traffic and road, water management, social aid and youth, health (hospital), building and maintenance of schools, fire brigade. Facultative (non-core) competences are related to energy (grid concession, municipal energy supplier), economic development, public infrastructures, family policy, culture and sport CCRE-CEMR, Secretary General, Local and Regional Structure in Europe, and CCRE-CEMR, Secretary General, Consultation Procedures within European States; LG Action - Country Profile GERMANY (Verion 2.1) 2

3 B. NATIONAL / FEDERAL INFORMATION Climate and Energy Legislation & approach taken by country (name & number of law / regulation together with summary of intent) 2. Main national / federal climate strategies, policy and legislation on climate change Strategy: Kyoto Protocol, EU targets and national targets - Germany's target under the Kyoto Protocol for the reduction of greenhouse gases (GHGs) is 21% in , with 1990 as base year. - In the time period , German total GHG emissions, excluding emissions and removals from LULUCF, decreased by 18.2% while total GHG emissions including net removals from LULUCF decreased by 19.3%. The main reasons for this trend are efficiency improvements and restructuring in the energy industries as well as industrial manufacturing sectors undertaken since the 1990s. In addition, there have been an efficiency improvements and insulation programmes in the housing sector, in particular in buildings in Eastern Germany. - The Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) is responsible for coordinating climate change-related policies at national government level. For this purpose an inter-ministerial working group on CO 2 reduction was set up under the lead of the BMU. Activities at federal level are harmonized with the federal states through joint national/regional committees, and with the local or municipality level via the central associations of local authorities. - The next targets, set for 2050, are the decrease of GHGs by 80 to 95 percent. Mid-term goals for GHG reductions are manifested in the Energy Concept 2010 as follows: 40% by 2020, 55% by 2030 and 70% by In the EU Germany is one of the supporters of a 30% GHG European reduction target for Overall climate and sustainable energy strategy and approach - The German government is ambitious with goals for energy efficiency and renewable energy. This is even more so since in the summer of 2011 parliamentarians have decided to phase out nuclear power by 2022 and to continue without Germany s 7 oldest nuclear power plants, which have been taken off the grid shortly after the incident in Fukushima, Japan in March Furthermore, ambition has been accentuated by the decision of the Federal Council of Germany in September 2011 by not passing a law on demonstration and realisation of technologies of carbon capture, transport and permanent storage of CO 2 (CCS-law). (Now the CCS-law needs to be renegotiated again with the Federal Parliament of Germany.) 2.2 Climate Policy and Legislation 4 : Policy Germany has decided to take many measures under the National Climate Protection Programme in the years In the coalition agreement of 2005, among others, goals to be achieved included: double energy productivity by 2020 compared with 1990, improving the energy situation in existing buildings, modernising power stations, promoting the expansion of decentralised power plants and high-efficiency CHP plants, and reviewing the assistance system under the CHP Act on the basis of the monitoring report, supporting the European initiative to improve energy efficiency, continue and intensifying the German Energy Agency initiatives for energy saving in the fields of buildings, electricity consumption and transport, as well as developing an international climate protection convention by 2009 for the period after Further it was decided to and LG Action - Country Profile GERMANY (Verion 2.1) 3

4 develop emissions trading with the aim of improving its environmental and economic efficiency, support the EC in its investigation of the possibility of including air transport in emissions trading, make it easier to use the flexible mechanisms to improve market prospects for German industry abroad and increase the share of electricity supplies accounted for by renewable energies to at least 12.5 percent by Moreover the share of primary energy consumption accounted for by renewable energies to at least 4.2 percent by 2010, is aimed in the German Energy Concept 2010 to reach 18% by 2020, 30% by 2030, 45% by 2040 and 60% by Legislation German legislation about climate change measures is extensive and covers several aspects. Some of the main laws are: Amendment of the Renewable Energy Sources Act (2009), Renewable Energies Heat Act (EEWärmeG) (2009), Climate Legislation Package Enacted under the Integrated Climate Change and Energy Programme (2008), Eco-design requirements for energy-using products (2008), Energy Efficiency Action Plan (2007), Integrated Climate Change and Energy Programme (2007), Coaltion Agreement: Target to Double Energy Productivity by 2020 (2006), Funding for Solar Power Development Center (2006), Energy Industry Act (Energiewirtschaftsgesetz) (2005), National Climate Protection Programme (2005), Biofuels Blending Regulations (2004), CHP Agreements with Industry (2001), Transport Initiatives (2001), National Energy Agency (dena) (2000), Voluntary Programmes of Appliance Labelling (2000). 2.3 Energy Policy and Legislation: Policy Germany adopted its Climate Protection Programme in 2000, which includes 64 measures for the following sectors: households, transport, industry, the energy industry, renewable energy, waste management and agriculture. In 2005, Germany revised the programme, focusing on the households and transport sectors because the industry and electricity production sectors are covered to a large extent by the European Union (EU) Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). Core elements of the National Climate Protection Programme include the promotion of renewable energy sources (RES), energy savings, energy efficiency and ecological tax reforms. This includes the promotion of RES in the power production sector (through the Renewable Energy Act and Biomass Ordinance), which is expected to reduce, by 2010, GHG emissions by 28 million tonnes. The share of renewable electricity production has more than tripled since the late 1990s, mainly owing to favourable feed-in tariffs, and stood at more than 16,3 per cent of total gross electricity production in The German target for 2020 is 35% renewable electricity in the grid. Legislation The legislation related to RE and the energy efficiency include: Renewable Energies Heat Act (2009), Climate Legislation Package Enacted under the Integrated Climate Change and Energy Programme Renewable Energy Sources (2009), Integrated Climate Change and Energy Programme (2007), Funding for Solar Power Development Center (2006) Energy Industry Act (Energiewirtschaftsgesetz) (2005), Renewable Energy Sources Act (Erneuerbare-Energien-Gesetz EEG) (2004), LG Action - Country Profile GERMANY (Verion 2.1) 4

5 Combined Heat and Power Law (Kraft-Wärme-Kopplungs Modernisierung gesetz) (2008), CHP Agreements with Industry (2001), Renewable Energy Sources Act (Erneuerbare-Energien- Gesetz EEG) (2000), Baltic Energy Efficiency Group (BEEG) (1998), Federal Building Codes for Renewable Energy Production (1997), Federal States (Länder) Support for Renewable Energy (1985), Renewable Energies Heat Act (EEWärmeG) (2009), Climate Legislation Package Enacted under the Integrated Climate Change and Energy Programme (2008), Eco-design requirements for energy-using products (2008), Integrated Climate Change and Energy Programme (2007), Coalition Agreement: Target to Double Energy Productivity by 2020 (2006), National Climate Protection Programme (2005), Mandatory Fuel Efficiency Labelling for Passenger Cars (2004), Urban and Regional Planning (2004), Energy Conservation Ordinance (2002), CHP Agreements with Industry (2001), Combined Heat and Power (CHP) (2000), National Climate Protection Program (2000), National Energy Agency (dena) (2000), Promotion of Energy Efficient Electronic Products, The Group for Energy Efficient Appliances (GEEA) (2000), Advisory Services (1998), Town and country planning (1998), Heat Consumption Metering (1996), Small-Scale Combustion Plant Ordinance (1996). Germany initiated an exemplary feed-in tariff system, that was seen by many as the example of a stable policy framework for renewables. However, recently there were drastic tariff cuts for photovoltaics (PV), with a two stage reduction planned over the course of by July 1, the payment rate for PV was reduced by 8-13% (retroactively), depending on the type of PV installation (13% for rooftop installations) and an additional 3% reduction will be applied as from October 1 to all types of PV installations 5. C. LOCAL GOVERNMENT LEGAL MANDATE(S) / RESPONSIBILITIES Legislation and the role of LGs in the specific context of climate change and energy (name and number of law / regulation together with summary) 3. LGs and climate change: Was there a local government reform process? (change in their roles? Change in government levels?) - Recently, there was no reform process to widen or change LGs mandates in Germany as far as energy is concerned. However, in some German states like in Mecklenburg-West Pomerania local governments were merged due to its small size towards bigger administrative units. This will allow better coordination and more comprehensive approaches of any local energy issues. Do LGs have a legal mandate or responsibility regarding climate change mitigation? - No, not a specific mandate. Do LGs have a legal mandate or responsibility to address adaptation/community resilience/disaster prevention? 5 and LG Action - Country Profile GERMANY (Verion 2.1) 5

6 - No, not a specific mandate. May they participate in carbon off-setting schemes (voluntary or otherwise)? - Local governments may only participate in the EU emission trading scheme, if they operate combustion plants (heating plant or co-generation power plant) over 20 MW. The threshold might be reassessed and lowered once the EU agrees on a 30% GHG reduction target by 2020 and the current efforts of Germany s national level are not sufficient enough. If so also other GHG sources which lay under the jurisdiction of LGs like waste management, transport planning and property management might be included and capped. - Since January 2008 the pilot project JIM.NRW from the Energy Agency of North Rhine Westphalia and the Ministry of Economy, Medium-sized Business and Energy of the same state allows local government emitters to produce and sell Emission Reduction Units (ERUs) by using the Kyoto instrument Joint Implementation for energy efficiency measures LGs and energy: Do LGs have any mandate and responsibilities regarding local energy production (e.g. regulations, may they establish an ESCO (Energy Service Company 7 )? - Germany is an active country in terms of establishing Energy Service Companies, with an estimated 500 with many daughter companies. Do LGs have any mandate and responsibilities regarding buildings and urban planning (e.g. regulations, land sale requirements, Urban Master Plan, etc.)? One of the most important topic covered by the National Climate Protection Programme is the promotion of energy savings. The most important measures are the Energy Saving Ordinance and the programmes of Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (kfw), which aim to promote investments in energy savings and CO 2 reductions, mainly in the households and services and industry sectors. Many active cities and regions have pass second generation of climate programme (e.g. Berlin - 1 st 1990, 2 nd 2007 with focus on EE in buildings and RE/ not including transport, agriculture). D. LOCAL GOVERNMENTS ACTUAL APPROACH What is actually happening at the LG level? (e.g. voluntary engagement as the local impact of climate change is already visible, or awaiting guidance from national level) 5. Motivation for local climate and energy action: Why do LGs respond or plan to respond (is there a specific reason or various reasons)? About the climate change measure and the GHG emission reduction all the activities are managed at a national level by the Länder coordination. However, the municipalities contribute by their associations of the local authorities. Many German LGs respond to climate change and energy action with different measures (often ad hoc) addressing the GHG emission reduction with a cross sectoral approach (mobility, building energy efficiency, renewable energy promotion ). In Germany almost the entire variety of different approaches that exist throughout the EU can be found. The most common examples of such frameworks are: low carbon economy, green-, solarcity and to a lesser extent 2,000 Watt society or climate resilient city. In rural areas these tend to be 100% renewables or an energy autonomous municipality. Both are often linked to the regional level (district level and bigger). By now local climate / energy action can be detected in all states of Germany, amounting in more than half of its territory (see below). Moreover local climate and energy action is also driven by economical aspects, including energy (price) security. Many German LGs are repurchasing utilities which have once been outsourced in LG Action - Country Profile GERMANY (Verion 2.1) 6

7 the 80ies and 90ies or don t prolong concessions and re-enter actively in mixed or totally municipal owned utility structures. In December 2010 the German Association of Municipal Utilities (VKU) counted members / utilities with an annual turnover of million and an investment volume of million. Altogether German municipal utilities employ people. Who drives the extension of renewable energy in Germany?: 60% by municipal utilities, 24% by energy companies (E.ON, RWE, EnBW, Vattenfall). Source: Source: 6. Local climate action: What do LGs do? How do they respond (different levels of municipality engaged? Different departments active, with one department leading? Overall strategy or ad hoc responses?). - Trends identified: - Some LGs (mostly larger cities or very small towns) are very advanced and taking the lead, also to encourage others to engage. - The huge number of cities and towns in Germany imply huge potential for action that has not yet been initiated, with the lack of funding to engage (on this additional topic) a major obstacle. - The main challenge highlighted is a lack of (access to) funding or uncertainty about where to access easy funding with limited administrative burdens that overwhelm limited staff. - With the impact of the economic crisis increasingly becoming visible at the local level i.e. reduced municipal income through shrinking income from taxes there is a reprioritisation of activities, with climate slipping down the priority list ( nice to have, but not affordable) versus social issues gaining ascendency. - The huge funding line for cities established by Federal Government has been stopped, implying to municipalities that this is no longer a priority for them to act. Once the Federal Government restarted its climate initiative again in 2010 the run on funding was unprecedented, creating a bottleneck firstly for the evaluation process and secondly for the availability of related energy and climate consultancy services (resulting in higher prices and LG Action - Country Profile GERMANY (Verion 2.1) 7

8 unstable quality). Therefore many LGs expressed the wish for a stably supportive financial framework in Germany which gives more security for long-term visions. - Communication with national government is basically good. European and state government communication however lacks the direct purpose or does not clarify the aim of the political strategies. In other words when communicating with state or European agencies it does not lead to support for immediate action. - Mobility is a particularly important issue, and it is clear that there is no one-size-fits-all solution, but there are processes which can help to identify the best solutions, and which allow the possibility of involving citizens in the future of mobility in their cities - sustainable urban mobility plans. The most important challenge for urban mobility systems in the years to come will be the funding of public transport in the context of an aging society and the increasing scarcity of public funding. - Energy efficiency in old and historic buildings is an interesting field being explored by municipalities. - General public awareness is high, and practical guidance provided to citizens is high in demand, and seems to work very well. Do they typically follow the normal cycle? Starting up Assessment Target setting Action planning Action implementation Monitoring, evaluation and reporting - Yes, preferred - although ad hoc activities take place more often than not. Any specific challenges they face, e.g. difficulty with conducting a greenhouse gas inventory? - Lack of staff capacity and experience to conduct GHG inventories, requiring external consultants to engage. The transport sector remains the main headache of all types of LGs, e.g. rural communities with many commuters or advanced LGs who were able to reduce their carbon footprint already substantially in other sectors. Is there a standard methodology recommended for use by all LGs? (if yes add details, including links) - No, various methodologies like the Cities for Climate Protection (CCP) 5 milestone process or the European Energy Award are in use in Germany. Is climate change resilience / adaptation directly addressed (even if not mandate exists)? - Where specific threats have been identified. There are national funding programmes for adaptation projects (mostly R&D, testing concepts). 7. Local energy action: Estimate how many LGs are actively engaged in switching to sustainable energy. Estimate how many LGs have already developed an Action Plan (energy, mobility, waste,). Estimate how many are starting up in this field - Small number, mostly members of Climate Alliance (generally smaller communities) and ICLEI (typically larger cities). - Out of 60 German LGs that have signed the Covenant of Mayors, 30 have submitted their Sustainable Energy Action Plan to the CoMO. Is there any development of implementing new regulations to conform to national or EU legislation or directives (e.g. EPBD - Energy Performance of Buildings Directive). LG Action - Country Profile GERMANY (Verion 2.1) 8

9 - Voluntary activities (e.g. sale of land linked to passive house standard construction), on top of good national standards. 8. Role of national LG association(s) in support of members All national and thematic local government associations and networks - organisation name{s}, number of members, any established conservation of resources, etc.. - German Association of Cities / Deutscher Städtetag 8 - with around 4300 LGs, representing about 51 million inhabitants. It represents its members towards the German federal government bodies and the EU. The association supports its members on energy and climate issues through the publication of positioning papers, dialogue with national and state government and topic related information on its website. - German Association of Towns and Municipalities / Deutscher Städte- und Gemeindebund 9 - Its members include towns and cities in Germany representing more than 51 million inhabitants. The association supports its members on energy and climate issues through the publication of positioning papers, dialogue with national and state government, topic related publications and information on its website, partnerships with energy initiatives in Germany as well as an annual symposium ( Kommunen aktiv für den Klimaschutz ) on climate change in February. - German County Association / Deutscher Landkreistag 10 Its members include 295 counties which together represent with 56 million inhabitants 68% of Germany s population. The association supports its members on energy and climate issues through the publication of positioning papers, dialogue with national and state government and topic related information on its website. C. INVOLVEMENT IN INTERNATIONAL AND REGIONAL ACTIVITIES 9. Overview of LG involvement in the Local Government Climate Roadmap How have LGs been involved in the international and European process how interested, how many, to what extent (from very active to observer). Level of involvement in the national climate debate? - Most involvement happens indirectly, but very actively through the three national LG associations (including the county level) which regularly produce positioning papers on energy and climate issues. Impact of this on interest and involvement in regional (European) and international activities? - All three German associations have offices in Brussels to link and advocate their (member s) interest on the European level. Moreover there is an exchange with UCLG and ICLEI on international activities such as the international climate negotiations under the UNFCCC. 10. Feedback received since COP 15 and LG visibility / activities: - Ongoing and growing visibility backed by enhancing national activities and interest. D. INVOLVEMENT IN NATIONAL ACTIVITIES 11. Overview of national-local interaction Interaction and activities among national (federal) regional (state) local governments. Also potential / planned activities (e.g. meetings scheduled) for 2010 and 2011 that could be explored within the framework of LG Action. Is there any formal interaction between national government and cities / others? LG Action - Country Profile GERMANY (Verion 2.1) 9

10 - At Länder level, there are no consultation bodies or structures; however, the associations may participate and are often consulted during the preparation stages of the draft laws, though at times at a very late stage. Regular meetings? Specific topics? - The consultation is up to the association at Länder legislative level. Differences also exist in relation to the threshold for a consultation and in this sense, the associations power of consultation changes in relation to topic or the legislative act under consultation. Is there is a need for improved national-local dialogue? - Yes, more involvement at an earlier stage, with serious consideration of proposals and feedback, is needed. E. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 12. Remarks. Also highlight issues where confidentiality is requested. - Please contact: lg-action@iclei.org F. CONTACTS 13. Contacts for cities interested in providing additional information Contacts who could be approached for additional information: name of contact person, Department, address (if possible), Web address - Please contact: lg-action@iclei.org 14. Contacts for the national and sub-national government level Contacts who could be approached for additional information: name of contact person, Department, address (if possible), Web address - Federal Ministry for Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety Mr. Patrick Graichen, (Climate Change Department, Coordinator of the National Climate Protection Initiative) Contacts for LG association(s) Contacts who could be approached for additional information: name of contact person, Department, address (if possible), Web address - German Association of Cities / Deutscher Städtetag Mr Axel Welge, (Environment and Economy) German Association of Towns and Municipalities / Deutscher Städte- und Gemeindebund Mr. Norbert Portz, (Urban Development, Spatial Planning, Waste and Water Management) - Updated in: September 2011 Main Author(s): Dina Rizio, Carsten Rothballer, Maryke van Staden (ICLEI Europe) Contributions by: LG Action - Country Profile GERMANY (Verion 2.1) 10