PRENESENI DJELOKRUG U LOKALNOJ SAMOUPRAVI: TEORIJSKA RAZMATRANJA I KOMPARATIVNA ISKUSTVA

After the abolition of the county administrative offices in January 2020, the tasks performed by the county administrative offices as first-instance state administration bodies were delegated to the counties, as the second level self-government units in Croatia. By this organizational change, the model of deconcentrated performance of state administration tasks was replaced by the model of administrative decentralization. In this context, the paper presents the features of the delegated scope of competence as an organizational performance model of state administration tasks in territorial units and administrative decentralization with a delegated scope of competence as an institutional result. The review of the scholarly literature on the delegated scope of competence and the effects of administrative decentralization is supported by a comparative review of the delegated scope of competence in the Czech and German local self-government. Based on theoretical considerations and comparative practices, the paper discusses the possible effects of the application of the delegated scope of competence in Croatian counties on their institutional development and performance of the delegated tasks.

Partisipasi Masyarakat Dalam Implementasi Kebijakan Desentralisasi Administratif di Sub Distrik Pante-Makassar

This research focuses on the Implementation of Administrative Decentralization Policy in the Pante Makassar Sub-District, Oe-Cusse Ambeno Special Administrative Region. This study aims to analyze the implementation of the administrative decentralization policy in the Pante-Makassar sub-district, the Special Administrative Region of Oe-Cusse Ambeno, Timor Leste and the factors that influence the implementation of the administrative decentralization policy. The approach used by the researcher is to use a qualitative approach or method with the research location in the Pante Makassar Sub-District Government, Oe-Cusse Ambeno Special Administrative Region. Primary data is obtained by conducting direct research on the object of research using observation, interview or interview data collection techniques. Secondary data is obtained through literature study to collect data through books, regulations, and documents that are relevant to the research. The respondents of this study were the entire community of the Pante Makassar District as the target of the implementation of Administrative decentralization. Accidental sampling technique. The results showed that the implementation of the Administrative Decentralization Policy showed that the people of the Pante Makassar Sub-district participated in decision making. The community also participates in the implementation of the decentralization policy, the people of the Sub-district of Pante Makassar also take advantage of the results of the implementation of the decentralization policy, but in evaluating the policy, the community does not participate in evaluating the policies that have been implemented.

Does Environmental Decentralization Improve Regional Green Innovation? Evidence from China

Green innovation is critical for sustainable development. The reform of environmental management system plays an important role in improving environmental pollution and technology progress. Working from a heterogeneous perspective, this study investigates the effects of different types of environmental decentralization on regional green innovation using statistical data from 30 provinces in China over the period of 2000–2015. The results show that environmental decentralization (ED) promotes regional green innovation. Furthermore, according to different environmental management of levels and affairs, we divide environmental decentralization into provincial-level environmental decentralization (PED), municipal-level environmental decentralization (MED), and county-level environmental decentralization (CED); environmental administrative decentralization (EAD), environmental monitoring decentralization (EMD), and environmental supervision decentralization (ESD), respectively. There is also evidence suggesting that different types of environmental decentralization have varied effects on regional green innovation. These findings set out in this study are robust when different methods are employed. A further investigation indicates that the effects of different types of environmental decentralization on green innovation apparently differ across Chinese different regions. Some policy recommendations will help policymakers to determine more effective environmental decentralization.

Impact of China's Environmental Decentralization on Carbon Emissions From Energy Consumption: An Empirical Study Based on the Dynamic Spatial Econometric Model

Facing the growing problem of carbon emission pollution, the scientific and reasonable division of environmental management power between governments is the premise and institutional foundation for realizing China's carbon emission reduction target in 2030. Although existing studies have focused on the relationship between Chinese decentralization and carbon emissions, most of them are based on fiscal decentralization indicators to depict China's environmental decentralization, lacking of systematic analysis and empirical test of institutional factors affecting carbon emissions from the perspective of environmental management. In this paper, we directly assess the environmental decentralization degree according to the allocation of environmental management personnel among different levels of government. By incorporating fiscal decentralization indicators, the provincial panel data and dynamic spatial econometric model are used to empirically test the impact of environmental decentralization on carbon emissions from spatial perspective. The study found that: (1) China's provincial carbon emissions have a significant positive spatial autocorrelation, showing a clear trend of high-high, low-low aggregation, and the carbon emissions of the previous period and the current have an obvious positive relationship. (2) At the national level, environmental decentralization, environmental administrative decentralization and environmental monitoring decentralization significantly reduce China's carbon emissions, while environmental supervision decentralization and fiscal decentralization significantly aggravate carbon emissions, which means that China's current environmental decentralization systems are generally conducive to carbon emission governance. The interaction between fiscal decentralization and environmental decentralization with its decomposition indicators significantly promotes carbon emissions, and its impact is related to the category of environmental decentralization, indicating that when local governments have greater environmental management power and fiscal autonomy, the combination of the two will push up carbon emissions. (3) The carbon emission effects of environmental decentralization in different regions are spatially heterogeneous. In the central region, environmental decentralization, environmental administrative decentralization and environmental supervision decentralization can promote carbon emissions apart from environmental monitoring decentralization. In the western region, the carbon emission suppression effect of environmental decentralization, environmental administrative decentralization and environmental monitoring decentralization is stronger than the eastern region, but the inhibitory effect of fiscal decentralization and environmental decentralization with its decomposition index interaction on carbon emissions in the eastern region is significantly better than the central and western regions. The above results provide policy ideas and theoretical support for the construction of the environmental management system with long-term carbon emission control in China in terms of regional differences and categories of environmental management power.

Political and administrative decentralization and responses to COVID-19: comparison of the United States and South Korea

PurposeThis study explains the variation of government responses to the pandemic by focusing on how centralization/decentralization in politics and administration creates conflicts and coordination problems. Specifically, the authors make comparisons between the U.S. and South Korea to reveal differences in macro-level structures and associated responses. One of the key points of comparison is the centralized, hierarchical governance system, which may thwart or facilitate a coordinated response.Design/methodology/approachThis is an in-depth comparative case study of the two countries that showed different trajectories during the initial response to COVID-19. The comparison allows us to highlight the long-standing debate about centralization/decentralization and offers implications for government responses to crises shaped by political systems and administrative structures.FindingsWhile there are inherent pros and cons to decentralization, the COVID-19 pandemic highlights the institutional limitations in American federalism and the advantages that centralized administrative coordination creates during times of crisis. American federalism has unveiled systematic problems in coordination, along with the leadership crisis in polarized politics. The response from South Korea also reveals several issues in the administratively centralized and politically polarized environment.Research limitations/implicationsWhile the authors risk comparing apples and oranges, the variation unveils systematic contradictions in polarized politics and offers important implications for government responses in times of crisis. However, this article did not fully account for individual leadership as an independent factor that interacts with existing political/administrative institutions.Practical implicationsThere is certainly no one best way or one-size-fits-all solution to mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic in countries under different circumstances. This article demonstrates that one of the essential determining factors in national responses to the pandemic is how the political and administrative dimensions of centralization/decentralization are balanced against each other.Originality/valueUnlike previous studies explaining the country-level responses to COVID-19, this study focuses on the variance of political and administrative decentralization within each country from the political-administrative perspective and reveals the systematic contradictions in coordination and the leadership crisis in polarized politics.

Predictions of State and County Top Civil Servants Regarding the Abolition of County State Administration Offices: Two Sides of the Same Coin?

In January 2020, county state administration offices, as first-line state administration offices in Croatia, were abolished and their competences transferred to county second-level units of local self-government. This organizational change represents administrative decentralization. The purpose of this article is to examine whether there are any differences in the predictions regarding the effects of this organizational change between two groups of civil servants: state civil servants (heads of county state administration offices and heads of their internal organizational units) and county civil servants (heads of county organizational units), and which are the factors that shape their predictions. A questionnaire was sent to the respondents in June 2019. The statistical analysis of the data (response rate 52%) shows a statistically significant difference between the predictions of the two groups in relation to all four categories of effects of this organizational change (inputs, processes, outputs, and outcomes). There is only one point where there is no difference: both groups agree that the county governor’s role will grow. The difference in predictions is explained by two factors of cognitive biases: the organization’s interest to survive and expand its power, and uncertainty (strategic, structural, and job-related). The paper offers an academic contribution to the field of administrative decentralization by giving insights into the predictions of different actors on the effects of such change before its implementation and by introducing factors of cognitive biases as explanations for discrepancies in the predictions.

Conceptual aspects regarding local autonomy

Defining the principle of local autonomy, as a basic one of the administrative process, is absolutely crucial. There are different opinions in this regard, being related to other concepts such as administrative decentralization, local democracy and others. The article aims to formulate some general conceptual aspects of self-government based on various ideas, historical events and acts.