There's a page one story that popped up on German public TV today (ARD, Channel One), which Germans around the pub tonight will likely discuss at length.
So when 2019 ended....the German Finance Ministry was standing there with 13.5 billion Euro (roughly 16-billion dollars) left in their bucket.
The big talk at the end of 2018 about the slipping economy, and recession period approaching? Well, for the government, it didn't really arrive like you'd think.
The funny thing about this amount.....it's the most ever (2015 was former record, 12.1 billion Euro left in their hands).
The 'blame' here? Germans will likely sit for days and chat about this. What the official folks say is that the economy (via taxation) did pretty well. On top of that, they hint that a shortage of administrative people at the city levels existed, and spending the money (maybe recklessly) simply didn't occur like you'd think.
What happens to the 13.5 billion? Well....the story is just left there. The Finance Ministry suggests that the money is held in reserve, and will be used for 'projects' or requirements in the 'approaching' years. More Berlin Airports or Stuttgart-21 projects? Maybe.
My guess is that various schools and bridge renovation projects will start to pop up weekly now, with just about every single governmental agency trying to get a billion for their 'cause'.
Returning the money to the general public? It'll never happen.
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