More tax rate reductions than increases
Lucerne - Overall, 10 municipalities have lowered their tax rate for the current tax year, while 2 have increased it. The majority of the 80 municipalities in Lucerne are keeping their tax rates unchanged. Nearly 87 percent of Lucerne's population lives in a municipality with a municipal tax rate between 1.70 and 2.30 units.
In 68 out of 80 municipalities in Lucerne, the municipal tax rate for 2023 remains unchanged from the previous year. 10 municipalities have a lower tax rate and 2 municipalities have a higher tax rate compared to 2022. The largest tax rate reduction is 0.10 units, and 4 municipalities implemented a reduction of this magnitude (Dagmersellen, Hochdorf, Rain, and Root). Another 6 municipalities are reducing their tax rate by 0.05 units each, including the city of Lucerne, which has lowered its tax rate from 1.75 to 1.70 units. The municipality of Pfaffnau has decided to increase its tax rate by 0.10 units, while Hitzkirch has raised its tax rate by 0.05 units, reversing the reduction from the previous year.
The range of municipal tax rates has remained constant since 2021, ranging from 0.95 to 2.40 units for the third consecutive year. Meggen has had the lowest tax rate among Lucerne municipalities since 1992, and since 2021, it has been 0.95 units. This value is higher than the lowest value since 1992, which was 0.89 units in 2020. Luthern has had the highest tax rate among Lucerne municipalities for the third consecutive year, with an unchanged rate of 2.40 units. This value is below the maximum of 2.60 units reached in Lucerne municipalities from 2015 to 2017. Over 80% of municipalities have a tax rate between 1.70 and 2.30 units for 2023, and almost 87% of the Lucerne population lives in one of these municipalities. Due to tax rate reductions, the percentage of the population with a municipal tax rate between 1.70 and 1.75 units has increased by 3 percentage points compared to the previous year (now 29%), while the percentage of the population with a tax rate between 1.80 and 2.15 units has decreased by 3 percentage points (now 52%).
55 municipalities with a budget deficit
The budgets for 2023 of municipalities project a total expenditure surplus of CHF 49.5 million. Of the 80 Lucerne municipalities, 55 municipalities anticipate a deficit. Over half of these municipalities estimate an expenditure surplus of over CHF 0.2 million. Of the 5 most populous municipalities, the cities of Lucerne and Kriens, as well as the municipality of Horw, have a deficit budget. Lucerne has the highest budget deficit among Lucerne municipalities, with CHF 20.5 million, and Horw has the second-highest with CHF 5.8 million. In contrast, Ebikon and Emmen anticipate a surplus. 25 Lucerne municipalities have budgeted a surplus in revenue, of which 14 municipalities expect a surplus of over CHF 0.1 million. Ebikon has the highest budgeted revenue surplus (CHF 5.4 million), followed by the municipality of Weggis (CHF 1.0 million). The high budgeted revenue surplus in Ebikon is due to a revaluation gain from a land exchange. The budgeted net investments for 2023 amount to CHF 425.3 million, which is CHF 27.0 million more than was planned in the previous year's budgets.
