Bureaucracy altitude: Examples from Germany show chaos!

Bureaucracy altitude: Examples from Germany show chaos!

Pforzheim, Deutschland - German bureaucracy seems to develop more and more like a never -ending labyrinth, and the latest figures show this. According to the annual black book of the federal government (BDST), many resources and considerable taxpayers in the deep structures of the administration end, while the regulations and written norms prove more complicated.

An example illustrates this problem: While bureaucracy costs have decreased slightly since 2012, the number of legal norms at the German level has increased enormously. In 2015, 44,522 regulations were still in force, while at the beginning of 2024 there were already 52,468 - an increase of 20 percent. This is not just a number, but also reflects the excess of a system that often enters into the shadow of efficiency. The administration has grown by 325,000 jobs since 2015, whereby these are financed by tax money.

Bureaucratic hurdles in Pforzheim: difficult daycare plant search

In the city of Pforzheim, this system becomes particularly clear when it comes to the search for childcare places for children. Parents stand in front of a huge bureaucratic mountain when they are looking for a daycare center. The registration system is complicated and requires many evidence. A point system evaluates how needy the parents are, with the age of the child, marital status and income into account. In order to get a place, parents not only have to register online, but also submit the necessary documentation by email at the responsible office.

the space is secured, follows the next hurdle: the fees. These are based on the income and require a specific online form that must also be edited. The process to determine the individual contribution rates can lead to an enormous additional effort for the daycare lines. They often have to track non -transparent payments and reimbursements, which makes the entire experience frustrating for everyone involved.

The BDSt emphasizes that this handling of the fee structure and the registration system not only causes a high bureaucratic effort, but also urges the actual goal - better care for children. Parents and institutions suffer from the constant uncertainties that arise from unclear regulations and create an anything other than a beneficial framework.

Farewell to the springboard: A case from Hessen

Another example of bureaucratic absurdities can be found in Biedenkopf in Hesse, where a springboard has to be demolished after 30 years of operation. The cause: an unauthorized deviation of only five centimeters in the water depth of a pelvis. Despite the years of use and the obvious unproblematic this fact, the legal regulation does not provide any scope. The demolition is associated with costs of just under 2,000 euros and is a reaction to any liability issues - if an accident would happen in the future, the city would be responsible.

The case shows how German accuracy leads to an inflexible and expensive bureaucracy, which often does not take into account the actual circumstances. This raises the question of whether such regulations actually make sense in terms of security and the common good or whether the sheer number of regulations will rather become burden.

Standstill in motorway expansion: A33 near Osnabrück

Another example of the challenges within the German administrative structure provides the A33 near Osnabrück. Despite the need for expansion of the highway since 2003, progress has proven to be extremely slow. The expansion requires a special statement from the EU because the planned measures are intended to lead through a nature reserve. The process to obtain this approval is as lengthy and bureaucratic.

The necessary documents must be processed across several instances that range from the road building authority to the EU. If errors or comments occur during the procedure, the documents must be served again by the same authorities. It is reported that this process had started in 2020, but has not yet arrived in Brussels. This illustrates the inflexibility and inefficiency that are embedded in many public projects.

These impressions from the black book of tax waste illustrate the deeply seated problems in the German bureaucracy system. The collision between regulation and reality shows not only the frustration of the citizens, but also the challenges that consist in the practical application of the multitude of rules and norms. Whether there is a way out of this labyrinth remains questionable, but it is clear that the situation requires urgent need for action.

For detailed information on these current problems, a look at the report on www.merkur.de an.