Operating costs of municipalities up by 3.9% in Jan-Sept

The external operating expenses of municipalities in Mainland Finland were 3.9 per cent higher than in the corresponding period of the previous year, according to Statistics Finland.

External operating revenue declined by 3.7 per cent. Municipalities received a total of EUR 17.1 billion in tax revenue and EUR 6.7 billion in central government transfers to local government.

The external operating expenses of joint municipal authorities grew by 8.2 per cent and operating revenue by 7.1 per cent.

The external operating expenses of municipalities in Mainland Finland amounted to EUR 28.4 billion in January to September 2019.

Compared with the corresponding period of the previous year, the growth was 3.9 per cent. The external operating revenue of municipalities amounted to EUR 5.0 billion.

The operating revenue decreased by 3.7 per cent. Certain recording procedures used in the comparison year in part increased the operating revenue and expenses of the comparison year. 1) The discontinuation of these procedures decreases the operating revenue and expenses in 2019 compared to the previous year. The operating margin weakened by EUR 1.2 billion and totalled EUR -23.2 billion.

Municipalities received EUR 17.1 billion in tax revenue during the first three quarters of 2019, which is 4.7 per cent less than in the corresponding period the previous year.

The taxation reforms implemented in 2019 had a reducing effect on tax revenue. Central government transfers to local government grew by 0.6 per cent to EUR 6.7 billion.

Tax funding formed of tax revenue and central government transfers to local government was EUR 4,338 per capita, on average, in the municipalities in Mainland Finland. 2) The annual contribution margin weakened by 66.1 per cent from the previous year and was EUR 1.0 billion.

In the period from the beginning of January to the end of September, the investment expenses of municipalities amounted to EUR 2.5 billion, and they grew by 13.8 per cent from the previous year.

At the end of the third quarter of 2019, the loan stock of municipalities was EUR 18.7 billion. The loan stock grew by 3.9 per cent from the end of the previous quarter. The loan stock per capita was EUR 3,415, on average. 3)

The external operating expenses of joint municipal authorities in Mainland Finland amounted to EUR 11.8 billion in total and the operating revenue to EUR 12.3 billion in January to September 2019. Operating expenses grew by 8.2 per cent and operating revenue by 7.1 per cent compared to the corresponding period of the year before.

During the first nine months of 2019, joint municipal authorities spent altogether EUR 0.8 billion in investment expenses.

They increased by 12.4 per cent from the comparison year. At the end of September, the loan stock totalled EUR 4.3 billion and it grew by 1.8 per cent during the quarter.