Browsing by Subject "Local government"

Now showing 1 - 8 of 8
  • Thumbnail Image
    Publication
    Open Access
    Adaptación y reacciones del sector bibliotecario a la crisis de presupuestos públicos para cultura
    (EPI SCP, Barcelona, Spain, 2013) Gómez-Hernández, José-Antonio; Información y Documentación
    We describe how public funding for cultural and library services in Spain decreased in 2012. Therefore, we analyze the impact of this problem on library services, and explain some ways to reduce the damage, such as user contributions and crowdfunding (i.e., social microfinancing). We conclude by arguing that in any case public funding remains essential for stability of these services, and that library associations and librarians must demand it.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Publication
    Open Access
    Can salaries and re-election prevent political corruption? An empirical evidence
    (2018) Benito López, Bernardino; Guillamón López, María Dolores; Bastida, Francisco; Ríos Martínez, Ana María
    Background and objectives: This paper mainly focuses on decisions taken by politicians that may affect the level of municipal corruption. Specifically, we study whether local politicians’ incentives to be corrupt are influenced by the wages they receive and/or their intention to run for next elections. This issue has hardly been empirically tackled before at local level. Method and data: Our sample comprises 358 Spanish municipalities of over 20,000 inhabitants for the period 2004–2009. We use two different methods of estimation, ordinary least squares and ordered logit model, to analyze the influence of politician’s wages and/or their intention to seek re-election on corruption. We utilize as gauge of corruption the total cases of urban corruption (reported in the online press) in each municipality during this period. Results: We show an impact of wages and re-election on corruption. First, relatively higher wages do not reduce politicians’ incentives to be corrupt. Second, when politicians want to be re-elected, corruption decreases. We also find that income level, income inequality, education level, municipal urban revenues and touristic nature of the municipality affect corruption. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that it is necessary that local governments pay particular attention to rules related to the way politicians’ wages are set and the term limits restrictions
  • Thumbnail Image
    Publication
    Open Access
    Do progressive governments undertake different debt burdens? Partisan vs. electoral cycles
    (2011) García-Sánchez, Isabel-María; Prado-Lorenzo, José Manuel; Cuadrado-Ballesteros, Beatriz
    Public debt has traditionally been explained mainly by two political factors: a progressive ideology and the electoral cycle. The aim of this paper is to demonstrate how these two factors influence the behavior of Spanish local governments as regards indebtedness, and also how indebtedness is influenced by the interaction of ideology and the electoral cycle. Different dependence models were estimated using panel data methodology based on a sample comprised of Spanish provincial capitals and towns with populations over 50,000, for a total of 148 town councils. The time frame corresponds to the fiscal years 1988 to 2008, inclusive. The results show that in an electoral year all politicians behave opportunistically, giving rise to an important increase in public debt in relation to municipal revenue, although progressive incumbents incur three times more debt than those of the opposite ideology. Moreover, the presence of conservative parties in government has tended to significantly attenuate this behavior in years prior to elections, whereas progressive or left-wing parties have not. It must also be noted that partisan and electoral business cycles have been mitigated since 2002, when the Budgetary Stability Law came into effect, imposing limits on the debt of subnational administrations. The empirical evidence obtained points to the need to perfect internal and external control mechanisms in order to avoid a breakdown in the stability policy and the risk of debt becoming untenable, thus achieving greater budgetary discipline
  • Thumbnail Image
    Publication
    Open Access
    El efecto del gasto público sobre las posibilidades de reelección de los gobiernos locales
    (2013) Balaguer-Coll, María Teresa; Brun-Martos, María Isabel
    Este artículo analiza el efecto del gasto público municipal sobre la probabilidad de reelección de los gobiernos locales españoles durante el período 2000-2007, utilizando la metodología logit para datos de panel. Los resultados obtenidos indican que, en general, aumentos en el gasto público municipal repercuten de forma positiva sobre las posibilidades de reelección de los gobiernos locales y, fundamentalmente, cuando este aumento se realiza en el período preelectoral. Asimismo, se aprecia que existen otras variables que afectan de forma positiva sobre las probabilidades de reelección, como son el volumen de ingresos por transferencias, que sean partidos de derechas, o el hecho de que un municipio haya obtenido mayoría absoluta en las elecciones previas. Por el contrario, el número de años que un alcalde lleva en el cargo presenta un impacto negativo sobre las probabilidades de reelección
  • Thumbnail Image
    Publication
    Restricted
    Empirical evidence for efficiency in provision of drinking water
    (ASCE, 2019) Benito, Bernardino; Faura, Ursula; Guillamón, María-Dolores; Ríos Martínez, Ana María; Ciencia Política, Antropología Social y Hacienda Pública
    The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, it assesses the efficiency of the drinking water supply in the Spanish municipalities of over 5,000 inhabitants. Second, it examines the hypothesis that this efficiency is conditioned by a group of environmental variables. Unlike monitoring reports based on descriptive methods, this paper uses the double data envelopment analysis bootstrap procedure to ascertain efficiency determinants. The results show that municipalities could improve their efficiency by modifying the scale at which they are operating. Regarding the determinants of efficiency, population density has been found to have a positive effect on the level of efficiency in the public service covered by this study. Moreover, it is shown that most tourist municipalities are more efficient at managing water supply service. These findings also suggest that there is greater efficiency when the provision of drinking water is managed directly by the local government. Finally, no significant impact of citizens’ level of income, political ideology, and strength on drinking water supply efficiency is found.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Publication
    Restricted
    Influence of selected aspects of local governance on the efficiency of waste collection and street cleaning services
    (PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD, 2021) Benito, Bernardino; Guillamón, María-Dolores; Martínez, Pedro J.; Ríos Martínez, Ana María; Ciencia Política, Antropología Social y Hacienda Pública
    Currently, in all developed countries there is great interest in improving democratic practices in local governments, as the administration closest to citizens. However, the possible influence of these actions on the management of public services and municipal finances have been side-lined, despite the great interest in evaluating the performance of local governments under budgetary constraints. Our research aims to fill this knowledge gap by studying the impact of key aspects of local governance (transparency and citizen participation), together with other environmental variables, on the efficiency of two municipal public services of both qualitative and quantitative importance: waste collection and street cleaning. The results show that the type of management, population density, the tourist activity of the municipality and the strength of local government are determinants that explain the efficiency of the public services examined in this research, while transparency and citizen participation have little impact.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Publication
    Open Access
    Política y gestión financiera municipal
    (2008) Benito López, Bernardino; Bastida, Francisco
    La situación fiscal de los gobiernos locales es el resultado de diversas circunstancias políticas y económicas. Así, los factores socioeconómicos (la población y el nivel económico, entre otros) no son suficientes para explicar el comportamiento del sector público, sino que la estructura política juega también un papel destacado. Ello ha dado lugar a una línea de investigación que estudia el impacto del sistema político, los conflictos entre los órganos de decisión dentro de los gobiernos y las diferencias ideológicas en la gestión financiera de los mismos. Utilizando este enfoque, en este trabajo tratamos de evaluar la evolución a largo plazo de los gastos, impuestos y resultados presupuestarios en España, centrándonos en el impacto de la ideología y de la fortaleza política en las finanzas municipales. Además, y siguiendo la literatura existente, consideramos también el nivel económico y población como variables socioeconómicas relevantes. Concluimos que la gestión financiera municipal no depende del signo político (izquierda/derecha) o la fortaleza política del gobierno, mientras que el nivel económico y la población influyen positivamente en el total de gastos e impuestos. Finalmente, el resultado presupuestario es independiente de nuestras variables explicativas, lo que obedece principalmente al marco legal español sobre finanzas municipales
  • Thumbnail Image
    Publication
    Open Access
    La transparencia de los ayuntamientos de Cataluña antes de la entrada en vigor de la legislación estatal y autonómica
    (Universidad de Murcia, 2017) Molina Rodríguez-Navas, Pedro; Rodríguez Breijo, Vanessa; Corcoy Rius, Marta; Vadillo Bengoa, Nerea
    El objetivo del proyecto Mapa Infoparticipa es mejorar la transparencia de las administraciones públicas locales. Se ha desarrollado un procedimiento de auditoría cívica que comienza con la evaluación de la información publicada en las webs de las corporaciones. Los resultados se muestran en el Mapa Infoparticipa, se elaboran informes para darlos a conocer a los medios de comunicación, se asesora a los ayuntamientos para que mejoren sus resultados y se concede un sello acreditativo a los que obtienen resultados satisfactorios. En 2012 se hizo una primera evaluación de las webs de los 947 ayuntamientos de Cataluña y se han hecho dos más en los años siguientes. Comparando los resultados obtenidos, mostramos el estado de la transparencia en esos dos momentos y la utilidad del procedimiento. Los ayuntamientos que han aplicado los criterios del proyecto están mejor preparados para adecuarse a la Ley de Transparencia, vigente desde diciembre de 2015.