Call to Municipalities

No Shortage of Funds for Implementing the House Rules

Since February, Upper Austria has had a “Guide to Living Together.”(Bild: Markus Wenzel)

Respect, equality, the German language: 13 rules are intended to guide immigrants on what Upper Austria expects of them. To ensure these “house rules” can be implemented in the municipalities, the state is providing a total of 250,000 euros. Now, municipalities are being called upon to launch projects.

Critics, particularly the Greens, describe the Upper Austrian “house rules”—in effect since February—as a marketing gimmick by the Black-Blue coalition that also costs money: As reported, 324,000 euros were spent on promoting the rules alone. In addition, the state of Upper Austria is making a total of 250,000 euros in funding available to municipalities so that integration projects can be implemented there under the umbrella of the “House Rules.”

“It Shouldn’t Be a Paper Tiger”
There is likely still quite a bit of money left in the funding pool, as Christian Dörfel (ÖVP), the state councilor responsible for integration, is now calling on municipalities and associations to get such projects off the ground. “The Upper Austrian House Rules shouldn’t be a paper tiger; they should be lived out in everyday life,” says Dörfel, hoping that the rules will be brought to life. “Hotspot municipalities”—those with more than 20 percent of the population whose native language is not German—are especially encouraged to participate.

The maximum grant is 5,000 euros
According to the ÖVP politician, funding will be provided for projects related to personal responsibility, respect for female authority, democracy and the rule of law, work and achievement, intercultural dialogue, and the integration of people with a migration background. Up to 90 percent of the project costs—but no more than 5,000 euros—can be funded per project. The submission deadline—documents are available on the state’s website—is September 15.