Municipal police (Austria)

Exceeding the municipal territory is only permitted, if necessary measures could otherwise not be set in time; such interlocutory action must be reported immediately to the Federal Police.

In order to avoid a weakening of the security competences of the federal administration as far as possible, which would have been the case by setting up a state police, the municipalities were given security-related tasks.

Above all in the western states of Tyrol and Vorarlberg, where the focus is set on federalism and self-determination, the number of municipalities is relatively higher than in Eastern Austria.

In May 2009, the Federal Chancellery expressed constitutional concerns about the plan of the Montafon municipal association in Vorarlberg to establish its own security guards.

Thus the frequently expressed political desire of city guards (in German Stadtwache) in Vienna, Graz and Linz is prohibited by the clear regulation of the Federal Constitution.

Some cities circumvent this regulation by setting up Code enforcement units (in German: Ordnungsamt, Ordnungswache, Ordnungsdienst) or private security companies.

On the other hand, officials of the Federal Police are still not allowed to wear their ward or district coat of arms on their uniforms.

An exception is, for example, the Baden city police, who obtain their uniforms from the LZN (Logistik Zentrum Niedersachsen) in Hann.