Conceptual considerations on a legal regulation for the nationwide introduction of municipal heat planning

The heat transition can only succeed if many millions of individual investment decisions by homeowners and businesses are coordinated in such a way that a target-compliant heating system is created. Municipal heating planning is the key instrument for the necessary orientation and coordination. Since the federal government cannot directly oblige the municipalities to implement municipal heat planning, the legal implementation must be carried out by the federal states. There are challenges in the concrete material implementation of municipal heat planning, including data procurement and vertical coordination within the planning cascade. With regard to the latter, it must be ensured that the sum of all locally pursued heat transition strategies results in a coherent target picture for a climate-neutral heat supply. The short report summarises the aspects mentioned as a basis for the nationwide introduction of an obligation for heat planning.