No end in sight

Nine years of dispute over company cars

City boss Andreas Rabl has been traveling without a chauffeur since 2015. The fact that he now uses an electric car privately has led to criticism(Bild: Markus Wenzel)

An expert opinion should have brought calm to the discussion about company cars at Wels town hall. Because there is still room for interpretation, the dispute continues. The SP is angry with the FP because it refuses an audit by the provincial audit office. According to the Blue Party, this is not their responsibility.

Shortly after his election as mayor of Wels in the fall of 2015, Andreas Rabl (FP) cut the city politicians' chauffeurs. The company cars remained. And they still cause a lot of debate. The topic was only recently back on the agenda of the Audit Committee. The reason for this was the presentation of an expert opinion that should finally provide clarity on how to deal with the two luxury BMWs in the future.

As reported, one electric car is available to Rabl, the second to City Vice-Chairman Gerhard Kroiß and all other members of the City Senate and municipal staff. The annual rent of around 28,000 euros is paid by the city. There are no benefits in kind. There is also no need to keep a logbook for business trips or private use. This annoys many SP politicians. And they also don't like the expert opinion now available. It states: "Although the use of an electric company car constitutes a 'benefit in kind', it is to be valued at 'zero' by express statutory order.

Majority rejects audit
"An absolute courtesy report," rumbled the Reds. They pushed for an audit by the State Court of Auditors. However, the motion did not receive a majority. Rabl, who is not on the audit committee, is not surprised by the decision: "The State Court of Audit is not responsible for this. The city's Court of Audit, the city's lawyers and now an expert have already audited it. It has been confirmed three times that renting the vehicles is the cheapest option for the city." However, Rabl has announced that he intends to take a close look at the company car regulations in Linz.