By our economics editors
Feb 29, 2024 at 4:36 PM Update: an hour ago
The municipality of Amsterdam has not discriminated against students when granting energy allowances. The Central Board of Appeal has determined this. A student whose application was rejected in 2022 had gone to court.
Amsterdam was previously reprimanded by the judge for wrongfully excluding students from the one-off energy allowance for low-income households. The government introduced the surcharge of 1,300 euros at the end of 2022. The surcharge was intended to compensate people because of rising energy prices.
After the court ruled that Amsterdam could not exclude students, the municipality drew up a new regulation. One of the criteria for students was that they had to have an energy contract in their own name. This condition did not apply to other households with a relatively low income.
Although students were treated differently than others, according to the judges, there was no discrimination here. According to the Central Appeals Board (CRvB), the municipality has been able to explain and motivate this difference well.
The requirement for their own energy contract was a way to ensure that only households that really needed the energy allowance would receive it. Students who live at home do not have any energy costs themselves and for many students who live in rooms, energy costs did not increase, according to the court.
The student who initiated the case is now definitively not entitled to benefits.
Image: ANP
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Energy Economy
2024-02-29 15:36:34
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