Germany's municipal associations have positively received the planned changes to the heating law but warn of additional burdens and demand funding. The agreement between the Union and SPD aims to abolish the 65 percent rule for renewables and introduce a gradual shift to climate-friendly fuels. Meanwhile, the Federal Constitutional Court is reviewing the parliamentary process of the original version.
The German federal government is planning adjustments to the heating law, which have been welcomed by municipal associations. Kay Ruge, managing director of the German Association of Counties, called the changes a "right step" and emphasized that they correspond to the "real life of millions of people." He called for more technological openness, less bureaucracy, and the preservation of municipal heat planning, which should be simplified for smaller municipalities. "Planning security is important – politics has lost a lot of trust on this topic in recent years," Ruge criticized.
André Berghegger from the German Association of Cities and Municipalities expressed similar views. He welcomed the agreement, which should provide quick planning security and reliable funding. The key change abolishes the requirement that new heaters must be operated with 65 percent renewables. Instead, installations of new gas or oil heaters remain possible. The Union-SPD coalition plans a "bio-staircase": From 2029, such heaters should run on 10 percent less climate-damaging fuels, with the share increasing to 2040.
Berghegger stated: "A quota for climate-friendly energy carriers in oil and gas heaters can be a building block for flexibility and technological openness in the heat transition." He warned that existing plans by municipalities and utilities must not be jeopardized.
On Thursday, the Federal Constitutional Court addressed the law but examined not its content, but whether parliamentarians had sufficient consultation time in summer 2023. Critics, as in a Handelsblatt commentary, see the changes as a setback for climate goals, since new fossil heaters could operate beyond 2045. A Spiegel report highlights the controversy over biogas use, which is not expected to suffice long-term.
