Public Order Support Forces of the Federal States

Typ: Artikel , Schwerpunktthema: Sicherheit

The officers of the public order support forces of the federal states are called up to deal with special law enforcement situations. The office of Commander-in-Chief of the Public Order Support Forces of the federal states, located within the Federal Ministry of the Interior and Community, is responsible for ensuring that their cooperation functions smoothly.

Each of Germany’s 16 federal states (Länder) has public order support forces within its police force. Overall, these units (BPdL) are staffed with approximately 16,400 officers.

The Federal Minister of the Interior and Community has designated the Commander-in-Chief of the Public Order Support Forces of the federal states (IBPdL) to serve as the link between the federal and state levels. The Commander-in-Chief reports directly to the head of the Federal Police Directorate-General at the Federal Ministry of the Interior and Community. This office was established as the result of an administrative agreement concluded between the federal and state governments in 1950.

According to Germany’s constitution, the Basic Law, the Federal Government may, in certain exceptional cases, issue instructions to the state-level police. Consistency and compatibility of the public order support forces in the area of command, operations and equipment are therefore in the federal interest as well.

Tasks of the public order support forces

According to the administrative agreement, the primary task of the public order support forces of the federal states is managing special situations in case of threat. These situations include, for example,

  • public demonstrations,
  • state visits,
  • international summit meetings and conferences,
  • special sporting events – in particular football tournaments – and other large-scale events.

The public order support forces are also deployed in threat situations related to natural disasters and serious accidents according to Article 35 (3) of the Basic Law.

Federal Police The public order support forces assist with snow removal. Quelle: BPol Federal Police The public order support forces assist with snow removal.

The same applies in the event of imminent danger to the existence of a federal state or to its free democratic basic order, according to Article 91 (2) of the Basic Law, and in a state of defence, according to Article 115f of the Basic Law.

Assisting other federal states in such cases is the task of the public order support forces as well. Another task is assisting with regular police duties.

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