As a last safety net, public assistance protects people from poverty, social exclusion and hardship; it is provided so that those entitled to it can live in human dignity. Public assistance benefits are granted to persons and households who are unable to meet their own needs and lack (sufficient) entitlement under other insurance and welfare systems that come before it.
What do statistics on public assistance describe?
Various surveys are conducted to produce federal official statistics on public assistance in order to assess the effects of Book Twelve of the Social Code (SGB XII on "public assistance") and to further develop it. These surveys deliver results on the number and structure of public assistance recipients and on the expenditure involved with benefits under SGB XII. This gives politicians, administrators, business people, scientists and the public a detailed insight into public assistance granted by the government and provides important data as a basis for planning and decision-making. The statistical reporting system on public assistance, which was last subject to a major reform when SGB XII on "public assistance" became effective on 1 January 2005, has since been subdivided into the following major sub-surveys distinguished by different survey techniques, reference periods and content:
Statistics of recipients of continuous subsistence payments in accordance with Chapter 3 of SGB XII
Statistics of recipients of basic security in old age and in cases of reduced earning capacity according to Chapter 4 of SGB XII
Statistics of recipients of benefits according to Chapters 5 to 9 of SGB XII (including integration assistance for disabled persons, assistance for nursing care, assistance towards healthcare; until the end of 2004, these benefits were referred to as "assistance in special situations")
Statistics of expenditure and receipts of public assistance institutions
How are statistics on public assistance produced?
Statistics on public assistance are decentralised data collections, that is the Federal Statistical Office is responsible for organisation and technology, while the statistical offices of the Länder conduct the enquiries and process the collected data to obtain statistical results. These statistics are referred to as secondary, because existing data from administrative sources are processed for statistical purposes. The legal basis of statistics on public assistance is Articles 121 to 129 of SGB XII on "public assistance". The local authorities responsible for public assistance (public assistance offices of the towns not attached to an administrative district and of rural districts) and non-local authorities (the Länder themselves or higher municipal authorities such as regional welfare associations, regional municipal associations and regions) are obliged to provide information for all surveys, pursuant to Article 125 of SGB XII.
Recipients of continuous subsistence payments (Chapter 3 of SGB XII)
After the "Fourth Law for Modern Services in the Labour Market" (Hartz IV) took effect on 1 January 2005, subsistence payments pursuant to SGB XII on "public assistance" have only been received by persons in need of assistance who are not able to earn a living and cannot support themselves from their own resources (for instance property) or from benefits of other social benefit institutions. These include, for example, persons who are temporarily incapable of earning, long-term sick or early retired people with low pension. Persons in need of assistance who are basically capable of working and their family members now receive "basic security benefits for job-seekers" pursuant to Book Two of the Social Code (SGB II). Under Article 27 of SGB XII, the necessary living expenses of those entitled to benefits include "in particular food, accommodation, clothing, bodycare, household effects, heating and everyday personal necessities". The latter also comprise "reasonable expenditure on maintaining contacts with the outside world and on taking part in cultural life". This definition shows that over and above securing a physical subsistence level, public assistance is also to provide for a minimum standard of living in socio-cultural terms to enable participation in the community.
Subsistence payments have to be calculated for the individual case. The assistance is always granted to a community of need consisting of several persons. Households of cohabiting partners and under-age children (in need of help) living in the household are regarded as a community of need. Recipients who live alone form a separate community of need.
Subsistence may also be paid to persons living in institutions (for instance in residential or nursing homes). Until the end of 2004, the living expenses of needy persons in institutions were paid as part of in-patient treatment and care (for example integration assistance for disabled persons or assistance for nursing care). From 2005, the living expenses and treatment or care for that group of persons have been financed separately (Article 35 of SGB XII is of particular relevance here). As a consequence, persons in institutions entitled to benefits are now also covered by the statistics of recipients of subsistence.
The survey of recipients of continuous subsistence payments is conducted as an annual stock survey as at 31 December. A wide range of characteristics are covered: not only classic person-related or socio-demographic basic data (sex, year of birth, citizenship, migration background etc.) but also detailed information on the kind, level, and duration of benefits received. The set of statistics also provides information on the income situation. Furthermore, data are collected at the time when the payment of benefits starts, when it ends, and when the composition of the household changes. That means that information is available, in particular, on subsistence dynamics, on the period for which subsistence was paid, and on the reasons why the benefits ceased to be granted.
Recipients of basic security in old age and in cases of reduced earning capacity (Chapter 4 of SGB XII)
Under Chapter 4 of SGB XII, all individuals from age 65 and individuals from age 18 who have suffered a complete loss of earning capacity are entitled to basic security provided that they are in need and their normal place of residence is Germany. The assistance is equal in amount to non-institutional subsistence payments (Chapter 3 of SGB XII). It has to be applied for and is granted for one year at a time. Income such as a pension and assets belonging to the person entitled to basic security payments, to his/her spouse, life partner or civil partner (provided they do not live separately) are taken into account as with subsistence payments. However, no recourse is made to children or parents whose annual income is under EURO 100,000, but who would otherwise be legally required to support the person entitled to basic security payments. Basic security in old age and in cases of reduced earning capacity also is to limit "bashful poverty". Especially elderly people often did not claim existing rights to public assistance in the past for fear of recourse to their children who were legally required to support them.
The survey of recipients of basic security in old age and in cases of reduced earning capacity is conducted as an annual stock survey as at 31 December. The catalogue of characteristics covered is basically identical with that of the statistics of recipients of continuous subsistence payments.
Recipients of benefits pursuant to Chapters 5 to 9 of SGB XII
Chapters 5 to 9 of SGB XII distinguish between the following benefits known as "assistance in special situations" until the end of 2004:
Chapter 5 of SGB XII: assistance towards healthcare (Articles 47 to 52),
Chapter 6 of SGB XII: integration assistance for disabled persons (Articles 53 to 60),
Chapter 7 of SGB XII: assistance for nursing care (Articles 61 to 66),
Chapter 8 of SGB XII: assistance in overcoming special social difficulties (Articles 67 to 69),
Chapter 9 of SGB XII: assistance in other circumstances (Articles 70 to 74).
This set of statistics contains data on recipients of assistance who received at least one type of assistance under Chapters 5 to 9 of SGB XII at some time during the respective reference year. In addition to these cumulated figures, data are available as at 31 December in any year.
Detailed information is collected especially about recipients of integration assistance for disabled persons and recipients of assistance for nursing care. On the one hand, the various sub-types of assistance are covered in detail for these particularly important types of assistance, and they are broken down by out-patient, part-time in-patient and in-patient assistance. On the other, data are collected on the granted personal budgets and on the time at which the assistance begins and ends.
Expenditure and receipts of public assistance institutions
This statistical survey collects annual data on the expenditure and receipts of public assistance institutions for the immediately preceding calendar year. The goal is to supply comprehensive and reliable data on the financial and social effects of SGB XII. The annual statistics of expenditure and receipts of public assistance institutions cover:
expenditures (broken down by types or sub-types of assistance) for benefits granted on the basis of SGB XII; they comprise continuous subsistence and basic security in old age and in cases of reduced earning capacity as well as assistance pursuant to Chapters 5 to 9 of SGB XII,
receipts of public assistance institutions; they include in particular payments of other social benefit institutions (for example statutory health, old-age pension, long-term nursing care or unemployment insurance) as well as assigned claims and maintenance claims against persons obliged to provide maintenance on the basis of the German Civil Code.
By comparing gross expenditure with receipts of public assistance institutions, "pure" or net expenditure can be shown with a breakdown by types of assistance. Altogether, the types of assistance as shown in the expenditure statistics are the same as those covered by the statistics of recipients. This ensures close interaction between the two survey parts.
When are the statistics on public assistance released?
Generally, the statistics are first published in a press release around nine to twelve months after the survey has been taken. Then they are presented in detailed form in other publications (Subject-Matter Series (Fachserien), thematic papers, contributions published in "Wirtschaft und Statistik", etcetera). All publications are available on the website of the Federal Statistical Office (as a rule free of charge).
In addition to federal results, many results are available for the Länder and with even more detail at the level of administrative districts, which are usually published by the relevant statistical offices of the Länder.
How accurate is the statistics on public assistance?
The statistics on public assistance are based on complete enumerations, that is all local and supra-local social benefit institutions are obliged to provide information to the bodies of official statistics. In addition, there are regular and extensive plausibility checks, and continuous quality control has been established. Consequently, the results are of a high informative value and quality. In exceptional cases where the informative value is limited, this is clearly indicated.
