scholarly journals The Impact of Intergovernmental Transfers on Fiscal Behaviour of Local Governments in Ethiopia

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bekana Dejene Mamo
Keyword(s):  
Local Governments ◽  
Fiscal Federalism ◽  
Central Government ◽  
State Level ◽  
Intergovernmental Transfers ◽  
Transfer Scheme ◽  
Government Grants ◽  
Revenue Collection ◽  
Political Hierarchy ◽  
The Impact

This paper examines the effect of intergovernmental fiscal transfers on the fiscal behaviour of local governments in Ethiopia for the period 2004-2018. The empirical findings suggest that central government grants bolster state-level employment and expenditure. However, grants from the central government to states do not crowd out state-level revenue collection. Hence, this paper argues that fiscal decentralisation in Ethiopia has mostly, at least in theory, taken the form of devolution of the power to tax and spend public money. However, on average state-level revenue can only finance up to 26 per cent of their annual expenditure. As a result, fiscal federalism in Ethiopia appears to be a form of delegation of spending responsibilities. It has to be considered in the context of a decentralised tax system, but with a transfer scheme and political hierarchy. The results are found to be robust to alternative econometric estimation techniques.

The Budgetary Behavior of Local Governments and Intergovernmental Grant Policies: A Case Study for Japan

1985 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 403-415
Author(s):  
Hiromitsu Ishi
Keyword(s):  
Local Governments ◽  
Central Government ◽  
The United States ◽  
Intergovernmental Fiscal Relations ◽  
Government Grants ◽  
The Us ◽  
Fiscal Behavior ◽  
Intergovernmental Grant ◽  
The Impact

The basic aim in this paper is to clarify intergovernmental fiscal relations in Japan. Particular attention is paid to the impact of various types of central government grants on the local government budgets. This is an important issue in a nation like Japan, where the fiscal system is strongly centralized. First, a model is constructed to express the local fiscal behavior under the present grant policies, following the past attempts developed in the United States of America. Then, the estimates of this model are attempted using available data, and some policy questions are examined. The main empirical conclusions that are drawn from the Japanese experience are much more plausible than those in the US case. This implies that the control of central government via various grant policies is more dominant in Japan.

Standard di spesa e di entrata nella Legge Delega sul federalismo fiscale. Un'analisi con un modello CGE

2012 ◽  
pp. 83-104
Author(s):  
Fabio Fiorillo ◽  
Lorenzo Robotti ◽  
Francesca Severini
Keyword(s):  
Computable General Equilibrium ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Fiscal Federalism ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Computable General Equilibrium Model ◽  
Fiscal Autonomy ◽  
The Law ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Government Transfers ◽  
The Impact

The Law 42/09 represents an important step towards fiscal federalism in Italy. In particular, the Law places its foundation on the principles of territoriality, fiscal autonomy and fiscal equalization in order to abandon the criterion of historical expenditure in favor of «standard costs». A standard level of services must be provided by the local governments which must finance the expenditures mainly with their own tax revenues. In case the revenues are not adequate to cover the «standard» financial needs, the central government intervenes with equalization transfers. The definition of «standard criteria» therefore represents a crucial phase in the whole reforming process. The amount of central government transfers in fact depends on the flexibility of these criteria. Since the law gives very few indications on how to calculate the «standard costs/revenues», in this work we propose some alternative evaluations of these and assess the impact that different approaches can have on the central and local budgets using a CGE (Computable General Equilibrium) model based on a bi-regional SAM (Social Accounting Matrix) for Italy for 2003.

The Impact of Intergovernmental Transfers in the Japanese Local Government Fiscal System

2005 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 26-58 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sayuri Shirai
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Accounting System ◽  
Fiscal Policies ◽  
Total Expenditure ◽  
Intergovernmental Transfers ◽  
Local Revenue ◽  
Fiscal System ◽  
The Impact

Since the 1990s, a decline in local revenue caused by sluggish economic growth and an increased tendency for local governments to implement expansionary fiscal policies on behalf of Japan's central government have given rise to a growing gap between autonomous revenue and total expenditure. This has caused a rapid increase in various intergovernmental transfers, particularly to lowincome local governments, leading to excessive and unproductive spending. Within a cash-based settlement accounting system, the fiscal positions of low-income prefectures have become superior to those of high-income ones, giving the impression that the former are fiscally sounder than the latter. Decentralization initiatives should take these problems of the existing system into account.

Asymmetrical Attribution of Performance in China

Asian Survey ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 60 (5) ◽  
pp. 978-1003
Author(s):  
Jacqueline Chen Chen ◽  
Jun Xiang
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Cultural Theory ◽  
Political Trust ◽  
Mediation Model ◽  
Multilevel Mediation ◽  
Dual Pathway ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
The Impact

Existing studies of the impact of economic development on political trust in China have two major gaps: they fail to explain how economic development contributes to the hierarchical trust pattern, and they do not pay enough attention to the underlying mechanisms. In light of cultural theory and political control theory, we propose adapting performance theory into a theory of “asymmetrical attribution of performance” to better illuminate the case of China. This adapted theory leads to dual pathway theses: expectation fulfillment and local blaming. Using a multilevel mediation model, we show that expectation fulfillment mainly upholds trust in the central government, whereas local blaming undermines trust in local governments. We also uncover a rural–urban distinction in the dual pathway, revealing that both theses are more salient among rural Chinese.

Understanding the impact of mandatory accrual accounting on management practices: interpretation of Japanese local governments’ behavior

2021 ◽  
pp. 002085232198895
Author(s):  
Makoto Kuroki ◽  
Keiko Ishikawa ◽  
Kiyoshi Yamamoto
Keyword(s):  
Internal Control ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Public Management ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
New Public Management ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Institutional Pressures ◽  
Accrual Accounting ◽  
Logistic Analysis ◽  
The Impact

Accompanying the spread of “new public management” since the 1980s, accrual accounting and results-based management has become a global standard. However, whether accrual accounting results in successful outcomes and which drivers lead to the intended impacts of the reform have been contested. Given the mixed arguments in the literature, we set out two research questions: (1) “Have public sector organizations realized any positive impacts on management practices by adopting mandatory accrual accounting?”; and (2) “What are the primary drivers of such impacts?” To answer these questions, we examine the impact on management practices by analyzing a survey to ascertain how financial department officers in Japanese local governments perceive the benefits of adopting mandatory accrual accounting on management practices. The results indicate that they have so far not recognized the intended benefits, though they had expected higher benefits in internal control. Then, we use technical-rational, socio-political, and institutional isomorphic perspectives in a comprehensive approach to understand the impacts on management practices. The logistic analysis shows that financial managers in local governments that do not have a majority party in the assembly, but consist of several parties in power, as well as in those with greater financial dependence on the central government, perceive higher benefits. Further, we find that financial managers that imitate other local governments as a form of mimetic pressure perceive fewer benefits. The results show that some technical-rational tools, socio-political conditions, and institutional pressures change the perceived benefits for public managers of adopting mandatory accrual accounting. Points for practitioners We find that some technical-rational, socio-political, and institutional factors explain the intended internal benefits of the mandatory adoption of accrual accounting. In practice, financial managers in local government feel the merits of accrual accounting in less autonomy in not only politics, but also finance, and few mimetic conditions. It might be understood that difficult situations would drive practitioners to use mandatory information.

scholarly journals The Impact of Social Accountability Mechanisms on Fiscal Management Challenges Facing Goromonzi Rural District Council, Zimbabwe

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 141
Author(s):  
Trust Madhovi
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Monitoring And Evaluation ◽  
Social Accountability ◽  
Rural District ◽  
Government Officials ◽  
Fiscal Management ◽  
District Council ◽  
The Impact

This paper examines the impact of social accountability mechanisms on the fiscal management challenges facing local government bodies in Zimbabwe. The paper hypothesises that there is a positive relationship between the use of social accountability mechanisms or tools by local authorities and the effectiveness of their fiscal management policies to mobilize more revenue for service delivery. In this study, both quantitative and qualitative methods are adopted in gathering and analysing data from central government officials, Goromonzi Rural District Council employees and members of the public. The results of the study reveal that the local government body faces a number of fiscal management challenges that include a shrinking tax base, non-payment of taxes, resistance to successive budgets; lack of implementation; lack of monitoring and evaluation. Council has implemented participatory budgeting to deal with some of these challenges. While results show a significant improvement in tax collection, some of the challenges have persisted. The paper proposes some recommendations useful to central government, policy makers, civil society organisations, local government officials and the general public. The paper manages to demonstrate that the implementation of social accountability tools can have positive impacts on the fiscal management challenges facing local governments. 

scholarly journals National-Local Networks and Immigration Governance

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 345-376
Author(s):  
Jill L. Tao
Keyword(s):  
South Korea ◽  
Immigration Policy ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Local Economy ◽  
Local Autonomy ◽  
Local Networks ◽  
Local Officials ◽  
The Impact

The ability to regulate the flow of goods, capital and people across borders is one of the defining characteristics of nation-state political power. But there is not always agreement between the central government and local officials as to the desirability of immigration, where local governments may desire greater, or fewer, numbers of immigrants, depending on the local economy and labor needs. In South Korea, a unitary form of government offers an opportunity to examine the policy distance between the national government’s stance on immigration based on the politics of the ruling party, and the attitudes of local officials who work for metropolitan-level governments (those with a population of one million or more). I look at the impact of local economic market needs on local attitudes towards national immigration policy through the lens of intergovernmental relations and Lipsky’s concept of bureaucratic discretion. Comparing two cases drawn from local governments in South Korea with dissimilar economic bases but similar levels of local autonomy, I find that economic needs at the local level are addressed by local approaches to immigration policy. Contrary to expectations, the cases illustrate the relative importance of fiscal autonomy and a new understanding for political autonomy. These cases illustrate the need for caution when applying political and institutional theory within new contexts and offer new variables for future investigations of local autonomy.

The Public Debt of French Local Government

1985 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 387-399 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre-Henri Derycke ◽  
Guy Gilbert
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Interest Rates ◽  
Public Debt ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Tight Control ◽  
The Public ◽  
Policy Measures ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACTAfter a sharp increase, the public debt of French local communities has been stabilized in real terms: its amount reached 54 per cent of total public debt in 1980. In the French institutional framework, local government borrowing policy is under the tight control of central agencies. An econometric model of the borrowing behaviour of local governments since 1965 is presented; it emphasizes the role of internal determinants of local debt (needs for investment, self-financing ability of governments), external constraints (e.g. interest rates and the financial resources of lenders, such as households savings), and finally the impact of macroeconomic policy measures from the central government.

From the Tax-for-Fee Reform to the Abolition of Agricultural Taxes: The Impact on Township Governments in North-west China

2007 ◽  
Vol 189 ◽  
pp. 43-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
John James Kennedy
Keyword(s):  
Central Government ◽  
County Government ◽  
West China ◽  
North West ◽  
Local Revenue ◽  
Revenue Collection ◽  
Provision Of Services ◽  
Basic Services ◽  
Administrative Units ◽  
The Impact

Over the last decade, there have been numerous reports of rural discontent and unrest over excessive local taxes and fees known as villagers' burdens. In response, the central government enacted the tax-for-fee reform (TFR) in 2002 that abolished local fees levied on individuals and rural households in favour of a single agricultural tax. In addition the central government has announced plans to eliminate the agricultural tax as well after 2006. The aim of the TFR is to streamline local revenue collection and establish a more transparent and efficient provision of services. The immediate result, however, is a dramatic reduction in the autonomy of township governments as well as the provision of local services. Poorer townships have become more dependent on county government for revenues, and these townships function more like county administrative units than local self-governments. Moreover, many services have also been cut due to a lack of local revenues. In north-west China, there has been a sharp decline in the provision of educational and medical services. The solution is an increase in county remittances, but these are slow and uneven, and the combination of reduced autonomy and services has produced a number of “administrative shells” at the township level. If the inefficacy continues, then there may be even greater rural discontent and unrest over the loss of basic services than there was over increasing villagers' burdens.

scholarly journals FEATURES OF PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION OF LOCAL BUDGETS IN THE CONTEXT OFTHE BUDGET AND DECENTRALIZATION REFORMS

2017 ◽  
pp. 132-144
Author(s):  
Yuliia OSTRISHCHENKO
Keyword(s):  
Local Governments ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Poor Quality ◽  
Intergovernmental Transfers ◽  
Reform Implementation ◽  
Budget Reform ◽  
Subsidiarity Principle ◽  
Planning Methods ◽  
Local Budget ◽  
Budget Revenue

Introduction. Scarce local budget financial resources, lack of sufficient transparency of budget expenditures, and poor quality of public services provided by the central and local governments - all these factors require comprehensive governance reforms introduction primarily budget reform and powerdecentralization reform. Purpose. The aim of the article is to identify special traits and discover challenges of the local budgets planning and execution system, to analyze potential approaches to its improvement based on outcomes and effects of budget reform and local self-government reform implementation in Ukraine. Results. The article summarizes the tasks, measures and achievements of the local budgets reform and intergovernmental relation reform. The changes in the local budget revenue and expenditure structure were analyzed taking into account recent amendments to Budget and Tax Codes of Ukraine. The local budgets planning methods and approaches as well as procedures for fiscal equalization ofthe local government’s financial capacity were investigated; 2010-2017 reporting data on budget revenue and expenditures performance were analyzed. At the same time the article determines key budget parameters preliminarily included in draft 2018 Budget Law and medium-term Budget Declaration, in particular regarding local budgets and intergovernmental transfers and also represents review of progress achieved under the territorial communities’ amalgamation and establishment of direct interrelation between central government and newly formed amalgamated communities. Conclusion. According to the results ofthe research and analysis, the article substantiates the necessity of further local budget revenue amplification, the expediency of the budget decentralization considering budget subsidiarity principle, as well as the effectiveness of the new interbudgetary relation model.

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