Canton of Lucerne is in the black
Lucerne - The canton of Lucerne closed 2023 with a surplus of around 146 million Swiss francs. Previous estimates had suggested a shortfall of around 21 million Swiss francs in the budget. However, tax income, in particular from legal entities in the canton, came in higher than originally expected.
The income statement for the canton of Lucerne shows a surplus of 146.2 million francs for 2023, according to a press release issued by the State Chancellery. A shortfall of 21.1 million Swiss francs had previously been estimated in the budget. The State Chancellery puts this positive deviation of 167.3 million francs primarily down to tax income from legal entities, which ended up higher than expected.
With the current surplus, the canton of Lucerne is in the black for the sixth successive year. Reto Wyss, member of the government of Lucerne responsible for the Department of Finance, sees this as confirmation of the finance and tax strategy at cantonal level. At the same time, however, Lucerne must continue to plan its finances «carefully and with foresight», as Wyss explains in the press release, adding that: «Large-scale, important investments still need to be financed in all areas». In addition, measures would have to be taken in order to be able to comply with the debt brake on net debt over the long term.
At present, the canton of Lucerne has net assets of 292.7 million Swiss francs. This is 178.4 million Swiss francs down on the equivalent figure from the prior year. The canton expects that it will have to report a net debt figure again from 2025 onwards, owing to the losses calculated in its income statement between 2024 and 2026 as well as increasing cantonal investments. In 2023, investments made by the canton of Lucerne were already up by 262.5 million Swiss francs versus 2022.
