Perception of Intermunicipal Cooperation as a Managerial Approach: Centralized Decisions or Voluntary Principle – What is More Efficient?

Authors

  • Lucia Grešová Slovak University of Agriculture in Nitra
  • Jan Fuka University of Pardubice, Faculty of Economics and Administration

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4335/16.3.431-452(2018)

Keywords:

local self-government, DEA, intermunicipal cooperation, managing approaches, performance of competences, technical efficiency

Abstract

This paper examines the influence of managerial approach in terms of Intermunicipal cooperation on the efficiency and effectiveness of the local municipalities. The Intermunicipal cooperation shall not be understood as general panacea for municipalities. While in some countries, there had been identified the benefits of Intermunicipal cooperation, there are countries which decided to perform the cooperation through softer legislative measures. These managerial approaches to govern the cooperation are either left on the decisions of legislator or the voluntary principle is adopted. The results of the research streamline that the managerial approach influences the performance of competences in terms of efficiency.

References

Bel, G., Fageda, X. & Mur, M. (2011) Why Do Municipalities Cooperate to Provide Local Public Services? An Empirical Analysis. Local Government Studies, 39(3), pp. 435-454, https://doi.org/10.1080/03003930.2013.781024.

Bel, G. & Warner, M. E. (2014) Inter-municipal Cooperation and Costs: Expectations and Evidence. Public Administration, 93(1), pp. 52-67.

Burton, L. (2008) The constitutional roots of all-hazards policy, management, and law, Journal of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, 5(1), https://doi.org/10.2202/1547-7355.1395.

Carey, M., Srinivasan, A. & Straus, R. (1996) Optimal Consolidation of Municipalities: An Analysis of Alternative Designs. Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, 30(2). pp. 103-119.

Carr, T. R. (2003) Public Information Technology: Policy and Management Issues (Edwardsville: North Carolina State University).

Charnes, A., Cooper, W. W. & Rhodes, E. (1978) Measuring Efficiency of Decision Making Units, European Journal of Operational Research, 2(6), pp. 429-444.

Denhart, R. B., Denhart, J. V. & Blanc, T. A. (2014) Public Administration, International Edition: An Action Orientatio., Seventh Edition (Wochen: Wadsworth Publishing Co.).

Fuka, J., Grešová, L. & Šatera, K. (2016) Differences in Municipal Structure in Czech and Slovak Republic with Emphasis on Delegated Powers, In: Soliman, K. S. (ed.) Innovation Management and Education Excellence Vision 2020: From Regional Decelopment Sustainability to Global Economic Growth, Vols I – VI (Norristown: International Business Information Management Association), pp. 252-261.

Grešová, L. (2016) Towards the Implementation of the Best Practice from Abroad Strengthening the Cooperation among Slovak Municipalities, Acta regionalia et environmentalica, (13)2, pp. 7-42.

Guajardo, S. A. (2015) Assessing Organizational Efficiency and Workforce Diversity: An Application of Data Envelopment Analysis to New York City Agencies, Public Personnel Manegement, 44(2), pp. 239-265, https://doi.org/10.1177/0091026015575179.

Hasprová, M., Drábik, P. & Žák, Š. (2012) Options and Perspectives of the Intermunicipal Cooperation (Brno: Institute for Spatial Development of the Czech Republic).

Mäeltsemees, S., Lõhmus, M. & Ratas, J. (2013) Inter-Municipal Cooperation: Possibility for Advancing Local Democracy and Subsidiarity in Estonia, Halduskultuur – Administrative Culture, 14(1), pp. 73-97.

Nižňanský, V. (2005) Decentralisation in Slovakia. Balancing the Never-ending Story (1995-2005) (Bratislava: Governmental Office. Prague print).

Niaounakis, T. & Blank, J. (2017) Inter-municipal cooperation, economies of scale and cost efficiency: an application of stochastic frontier analysis to Dutch municipal tax departments, Local Government Studies, 43(4), pp. 533-554.

Panagopoulos, T., Ferreira, V., Antunes, D. & Lackóová, L. (2016) Seeking a new strategic research agenda on soil, land-use and land management in Europe, WIT Transactions on Ecology and The Environment, 210, https://doi.org/10.2495/SDP160291.

Sarkis, J. & Talluri, S. (2013) Using data envelopment analysis for ecoefficiency evaluation, In: Qaddus, M. A. & Sidique, M. A. B. (eds) Handbook of Sustainable Development Planning: Studies in Modelling and Decision Support, 2nd Edition (Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd.), pp. 141-157.

Schakel, A. H. (2010) Explaining Regional and Local Government: An Empirical Test of the Decentralization Theorem, Governance, 23(2), pp. 331–355. doi:10.1111/j.1468-0491.2010.01482

Skutsch, M. M. (2005). Reducing carbon transaction costs in community-based forest management. Climate Policy, 5(4). pp. 433-443.

Slavík, V. & Bačík, V. (2007) Microregions as Support to Communal Reform in Slovak Republic, Geographia Cassoviensis I, pp. 169-174

Slavík, V., Grác, R. & Kloboučník, M. (2010) Reflection to Problematic of the Functioning of the Joint Municipal Offices in the Slovak Republic, Geographia Cassoviensis IV, pp.193-200

Sørensen, R. J. (2007). Does Dispersed Public Ownership Impair Efficiency? The Case of Refuse Collection in Norway, Public Administration, 85(4), pp. 1045–58.

Statistical Office of the Slovak Republic (2014) Demography statistics of Slovakia (Bratislava: Statistical Office of the Slovak Republic).

Subhash, C. R. (2004) Data Envelopment Analysis. Theory and Techniques for Economics and Operations Research.ž (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press).

Šťastná, L. & Gregor, M. (2011) Local government efficiency: Evidence from the Czech municipalities. IES Working Paper, No. 14/2011 (Brussels: Institute for European Studies).

Zarcadoolas, C., Boyer, J., Krishnaswami, A. & Rothenberg, A. (2007) GIS maps to communicate emergency preparedness: How useable are they for inner city residents?, Journal of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, 4(3), pp. 1-12, https://dpi-org/10,2202/1547/7355.1367.

Žárska, E., Černěnko, T. & Kozovský, D. (2010) Public Administration I (Bratislava: Ekonóm).

Published

2018-07-30

Issue

Section

Article