Schellhorn Announces First Steps Towards Bureaucracy Reduction in the Fall

They intend to start with eliminations in areas such as the Waste Management Act, the Trade Regulation, agriculture and environmental sectors, or payroll accounting, Schellhorn announced in an APA interview. Regarding the reform partnership between the federal government, states, and municipalities, he identifies an awareness among "at least eight state governors" that "they now have to deliver."

The debureaucratization office will formally begin its work in August, after the State Secretary responsible for deregulation has "gathered" topics during company visits and stakeholder discussions in recent months. Initial measures in the form of legislative changes are to be presented in September or October. So-called "low-hanging fruits," or easily implementable measures that have a significant impact, are to be implemented immediately. Schellhorn cites the Waste Management Act as an example, where waste disposal companies are confused due to duplications and triplications.

Simplifications planned for payroll tax

Payroll accounting is also to be simplified. Given the "proliferation" due to various amendments, administrative simplifications and legal clarity are needed for entrepreneurs. The building application process is also to be simplified, where currently, in addition to digital submission, four printed copies with stamps are required: "These will now be filed away." Together with the President of the Association of Municipalities, Johannes Pressl (ÖVP), he is also working on a unified IT system for all municipalities, which would enable the creation of municipal associations. In the entire Gastein Valley, only one building office or accounting office would then be needed. At the European level, Schellhorn wishes for deregulation to be declared a top priority.

Schellhorn shares the opinion of his party colleague Dominik Oberhofer, who has tied the implementation of federalism reform to the success of the three-party coalition: "It's quite simple. We have to deliver now. There is no other alternative." The awareness for this is also present. "I believe that every one of the state governors, or at least eight of them, is aware that they now have to deliver, because that is why this reform partnership, this government, came together," said Schellhorn, referring to the only Freedom Party state governor, Mario Kunasek in Styria.

The Styrian state government has already sent the first deregulation law for review and is preparing a "much more comprehensive second law" for next year, Kunasek responded. In a statement to the APA, he also committed to continuing the reform partnership as chairman of the state governors' conference. Additionally, the Styrian state governor demanded that the "deregulation and debureaucratization project" be placed in a technically competent department such as the Ministry of Economic Affairs or the Federal Chancellery. "With him (Schellhorn, note) and the Foreign Ministry, where diplomatic skill should be a requirement for employment, it seems to be wrongly placed," said Kunasek.

Not to make part-time work less attractive, but to make work more attractive

Regarding the current part-time debate, Schellhorn states that the aim is not to make the "lifestyle part-time" criticized by the ÖVP less attractive, but rather to make work more attractive - for example, through tax relief for people who work on weekends or for mothers who return to full-time work, as well as through childcare.

Schellhorn once again criticized the generous civil servant agreement for 2026 as a "fall from grace" with significant impacts on Austria's competitiveness due to its signaling effect for other wage agreements. He does not decide on reopening the agreement made last year, "but we can talk about how it will be done in 2027 and 2028."

At least discuss pension age honestly

Regarding an increase in the retirement age, Schellhorn sees no unified front against it among the coalition partners ÖVP and SPÖ. "We must at least discuss it honestly," he demands, also in view of the EU deficit procedure against Austria. "Otherwise, we will have someone else here. Neither the ÖVP nor the SPÖ want the Troika in the house."

A reduction in non-wage labor costs, planned under budgetary reservation from 2027, is "still not unrealistic" from the perspective of the former entrepreneur. Admittedly, it has become more difficult from a budgetary perspective, but: "I still assume that we can bring about tax relief by the end of the legislative period."

That he himself has repeatedly been criticized in the media in recent months, Schellhorn takes calmly. He takes it sportingly and has nothing to reproach himself for. He has become a target because he has a million followers on social media and thus ensures higher click rates in the tabloids, he says, "but for that, I am the most well-known state secretary."

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.