Municipal Administrators' Receptivity to Citizens' and Elected Officials' Contacts

Abstract

A significant question in urban politics and administration is how the responsiveness of municipal bureaucracies to citizens' needs and demands can be increased.' Research indicates that these bureaucracies exercise significant control over service delivery decisions and that they are not subject to influence by citizens or elected officials.2 The question of administrative responsiveness is important not only for individuals who depend on municipal services, but also for democratic theory since administrators are supposed to be responsible directly to mayors and council members and ultimately to citizens. Citizens may obtain greater responsiveness from administrators indirectly through the electoral process. If they are dissatisfied with services, they may vote out one set of representatives and vote in another who promise better service delivery. The electoral system has a number of limitations, however-low turnout, limited choice, the volunteerism of elected officials, and the limited opportunity for reprisals.3 Also, Lineberry notes, Mayors and councils come and go; bureaucracies and their decision rules are more permanent.' Consequently, elections are seldom effective means for citizens to increase administrators' responsiveness. A more direct means for citizens to influence administrative action is through communicating complaints or demands to government officials. Mladenka argues that citizen contacting may represent one of the few distinctly political influences on the generally apolitical process of municipal service delivery.' Also, Vedlitz and Veblen in their study of voting and contacting found that many citizens who voted did not engage in contacting, and vice versa. This led them to conclude that the local level it is useful to view voting and contacting as different types of participation.' A number of studies have examined contacting and some conclusions emerge. First, although only a minority of citizens engage in contacting, the proportion of contactors is similar to that of voters in local elections.7 Second, contacting is related to citizens' need for services.8 Third, contactors are primarily concerned with specific problems rather than policy issues.9 Contacts, then, are instrumental acts directed at narrow, short-range goals.