Erzsébetváros withholds solidarity tax amid government regulatory dispute

The municipality of Erzsébetváros has announced it will withhold its next installment of the solidarity contribution, stating it is taking the matter on a legal path. Mayor Péter Niedermüller criticized the government for maintaining the tax, which he described as a punitive measure rather than a tool for regional solidarity. He noted that the district has already paid 2.7 billion forints without transparency regarding how the funds were distributed to other settlements.

In response to the tension, Finance Minister András Kármán clarified that the Constitutional Court's recent ruling does not exempt municipalities from paying the contribution, nor does it cancel existing debts. The Court found specific procedural rules regarding the assessment and collection of the tax to be unconstitutional, rather than the tax itself.

The government intends to develop a new regulatory framework by the end of the year to provide municipalities with better legal recourse to contest demanded amounts. Minister Kármán emphasized that the goal remains to ensure financial solidarity between wealthier and disadvantaged settlements through a transparent and legally challengeable system.