The Challenge of Local Government Size
The Challenge of Local Government Size

Author: Santiago Lago-Peñas

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

Published: 2013-07-01

Total Pages: 305

ISBN-13: 1782544305

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In the efficient delivery of local public services, size matters. Many countries around the world have vertical government structures that are perceived as inefficient because of their high levels of jurisdictional fragmentation. This timely volume examines the different strategies used to address local government fragmentation and their observed results and consequences. Expert contributors in economics and political science offer a comprehensive breakdown of the issue of local jurisdiction fragmentation and provide recommendations for successful policy reform. Topics discussed include economies of scale, the costs and benefits of voluntary and forced amalgamation programs, the correlation between government size and corruption, privatization, and inter-municipal cooperation. A combination of theory and empirical evidence provides depth and makes this book an invaluable addition to the literature. Economists, public administrators and political scientists will find much of interest in this innovative volume, as will professors, students and international institutions with an interest in local government structure and reform.

Cities Transformed
Cities Transformed

Author: Mark R. Montgomery

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2013-10-31

Total Pages: 553

ISBN-13: 1134031661

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Over the next 20 years, most low-income countries will, for the first time, become more urban than rural. Understanding demographic trends in the cities of the developing world is critical to those countries - their societies, economies, and environments. The benefits from urbanization cannot be overlooked, but the speed and sheer scale of this transformation presents many challenges. In this uniquely thorough and authoritative volume, 16 of the world's leading scholars on urban population and development have worked together to produce the most comprehensive and detailed analysis of the changes taking place in cities and their implications and impacts. They focus on population dynamics, social and economic differentiation, fertility and reproductive health, mortality and morbidity, labor force, and urban governance. As many national governments decentralize and devolve their functions, the nature of urban management and governance is undergoing fundamental transformation, with programs in poverty alleviation, health, education, and public services increasingly being deposited in the hands of untested municipal and regional governments. Cities Transformed identifies a new class of policy maker emerging to take up the growing responsibilities. Drawing from a wide variety of data sources, many of them previously inaccessible, this essential text will become the benchmark for all involved in city-level research, policy, planning, and investment decisions. The National Research Council is a private, non-profit institution based in Washington, DC, providing services to the US government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The editors are members of the Council's Panel on Urban Population Dynamics.

Handbook of Research on Global Challenges for Improving Public Services and Government Operations
Handbook of Research on Global Challenges for Improving Public Services and Government Operations

Author: Babao?lu, Cenay

Publisher: IGI Global

Published: 2020-11-20

Total Pages: 622

ISBN-13: 1799849791

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As the field of public administration has been changing due to globalization, government reforms, and increasing governance practices within intergovernmental networks, research and teaching in public administration also adapted itself to these changes. Public policy research and instruction has become transformed and has diffused into other countries with the help of international organizations and other agents of change and transfer. Research in this field is seen as an opportunity for a definitive shift from traditional models of public administration in the sense that policies may be better designed, articulated, and governed through a collaborative approach, while service provision could be enhanced in terms of proximity, representativeness, and innovativeness. The Handbook of Research on Global Challenges for Improving Public Services and Government Operations provides comprehensive approaches to the study of public administration and public policy from a comparative perspective and includes sound theories and concepts for understanding opportunities and challenges governments face when seeking to improve public services and government operations. The book is a compilation of selective high-quality chapters covering cases, experiences, and practical recommendations on topics related to public administration, public policy, social policy, public management, and public affairs. This book is ideal for policymakers, students, and researchers in the field of public administration, public policy, governance, public management, public affairs, citizen engagement, and administrative sciences and management along with practitioners, stakeholders, and academicians interested in the best practices of various countries in public administration and policy.

The Role of Local Government in Economic Development
The Role of Local Government in Economic Development

Author: Jonathan Q. Morgan

Publisher: Unc School of Government

Published: 2009

Total Pages: 21

ISBN-13: 9781560116127

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This report discusses the findings from a mail survey of local government economic development activities that was sent to all 540 municipalities and 100 counties in North Carolina. An important part of the analysis examines whether cities and counties differ significantly in their economic development efforts and whether smaller jurisdictions employ different types of development strategies and tools than larger ones. The survey findings also highlight the barriers that local governments face in promoting economic development and identify important technical assistance needs and gaps in local capacity.

The Future of Local Self-Government
The Future of Local Self-Government

Author: Tomas Bergström

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2021-01-12

Total Pages: 300

ISBN-13: 3030560597

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This book presents new research results on the challenges of local politics in different European countries, including Germany, the Netherlands, the Nordic countries and Switzerland, together with theoretical considerations on the further development and strengthening of local self-government. It focuses on analyses of the most recent developments in local democracy and administration.

Managing Local Government
Managing Local Government

Author: Kimberly L. Nelson

Publisher: CQ Press

Published: 2017-08-04

Total Pages: 305

ISBN-13: 1506323367

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Managing Local Government: An Essential Guide for Municipal and County Managers offers a practical introduction to the changing structure, forms, and functions of local governments. Taking a metropolitan management perspective, authors Kimberly Nelson and Carl W. Stenberg explain U.S. local government within historical context and provide strategies for effective local government management and problem solving. Real-life scenarios and contemporary issues illustrate the organization and networks of local governments; the roles, responsibilities, and relationships of city and county managers; and the dynamics of the intergovernmental system. Case studies and discussion questions in each chapter encourage critical analysis of the challenges of collaborative governance. Unlike other books on the market, this text’s combined approach of theory and practice encourages students to enter municipal and county management careers and equips them with tools to be successful from day one.

Decentralized Governance and Accountability
Decentralized Governance and Accountability

Author: Jonathan A. Rodden

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2019-02-28

Total Pages: 313

ISBN-13: 1108571093

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At the end of the twentieth century, academics and policymakers welcomed a trend toward fiscal and political decentralization as part of a potential solution for slow economic growth and poor performance by insulated, unaccountable governments. For the last two decades, researchers have been trying to answer a series of vexing questions about the political economy of multi-layered governance. Much of the best recent research on decentralization has come from close collaborations between university researchers and international aid institutions. As the volume and quality of this collaborative research have increased in recent decades, the time has come to review the lessons from this literature and apply them to debates about future programming. In this volume, the contributors place this research in the broader history of engagement between aid institutions and academics, particularly in the area of decentralized governance, and outline the challenges and opportunities to link evidence and policy action.

Service Provision and Rural Sustainability
Service Provision and Rural Sustainability

Author: Greg Halseth

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2018-10-25

Total Pages: 203

ISBN-13: 1351054023

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Access to quality services and community infrastructure are vital parts of supporting sustainable and resilient rural and small town places. Renewing outdated infrastructure and supporting the delivery of services in rural communities present significant challenges from the constrained fiscal and policy realities of the 21st century. Drawing upon contributors from five Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, this book describes innovative service delivery and community infrastructure models that are appropriate to the contemporary rural and resource-dependent regions of developed economies. The examples show that an entrepreneurial approach to service delivery and infrastructure provision by local organizations and governments is needed. Critical economic and community development supports are crucial to assist creative and innovative sets of solutions that work for small communities. Chapters in this book argue that community development foundations for resilient rural and small town communities and regions must be co-constructed and co-delivered in partnership by both local and senior government actors, in terms of both policy and committed resources. This volume will be extremely valuable for students, scholars, and community development practitioners exploring policy-making, government initiatives, and community service provision in rural and small town places.

Local Governance and Intermunicipal Cooperation
Local Governance and Intermunicipal Cooperation

Author: F. Teles

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2016-04-29

Total Pages: 118

ISBN-13: 1137445742

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Territory and scale have been some of the most relevant topics in recent political science, but do we know enough about cooperation between local governments? How we think about local government has changed significantly and requires us to be equipped with new epistemological gear, considering more variables and social functions of local government than before. For instance, is inter-municipal cooperation a special arrangement? The answer is certainly positive, not as a consequence of its nature when compared to other alternatives of policy coordination and service delivery, but because it captures almost every facet of the complexity of contemporary territorial governance. Bringing relevant case-studies, previous research, and available literature together, this book will help researchers, students and practitioners with these ideas. The author provides comprehensive information about inter-municipal cooperation and identifies the main gaps in contemporary research.

Municipal Shared Services and Consolidation
Municipal Shared Services and Consolidation

Author: Alexander Henderson

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2014-10-17

Total Pages: 371

ISBN-13: 1317519930

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Municipal Shared Services and Consolidation provides a comprehensive and clear review of the theories and practices of structuring and managing complex local government services. Intended for both students and practitioners, this volume in the Public Solutions Handbook Series addresses concepts and processes of shaping collaborative arrangements in public service with goals of effectiveness and efficiency in mind. The Handbook begins with a review of theories of shared services and consolidation, highlighting conceptual foundations, practical barriers, and cultural considerations related to these efforts. Specific, practical advice follows, highlighting the processes of creating, implementing, and managing shared services and consolidation agreements. Municipal Shared Services and Consolidation is exceptionally well written and is amplified by examples, cases, illustrations, and a comprehensive bibliography.