Interests Of Local Governments Research Articles

When Rents of Certain Owners are Controlled by Their Local Government, Does this Constitute a Regulatory Taking?

Rent control may or may not substantially advance the asserted interests of local governments, and it may or may not provide a benefit to the community as a whole. What is true, however, is that rent control violates the fairness aspect of placing the burden on a few for the benefit of the entire community, and in doing so interferes with the reasonable investment-backed expectations of property owners. This paper takes a look at rent control as a regulatory taking and analyzes the results in view of Monongahela and certain Penn Central Factors as well as other selected issues that the courts have addressed following Penn Central.

Has the management of infrastructure assets (IAs) improved with the use of the accrual method in local government?

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to investigate how senior accounting staff in Victorian local authorities are recording and reporting infrastructure assets (IAs) with their relevant depreciation in General Purpose Financial Reports (GPFRs) and the decisions made from this information. IAs are long‐lived assets such as roads, drains and bridges. The introduction of Australian Accounting Standard No. 27 Financial Reporting by Local Governments (AAS27), which applies to all Australian local authorities require IAs to be reported in the balance sheet and depreciation to be charged in the operating statement in order to reflect the loss of service potential in the operating period concerned. Before AAS27, the purpose of public sector accounting was to demonstrate that funds have been raised and expended strictly within the authority of the annual budget on a cash basis. The efficiency and effectiveness of decision‐making by users of this cash‐based information was impaired with this short‐term charge/discharge objective. The study was carried out to determine if information provided in an accrual accounting environment would be more efficient and effective for decision making by users than cash‐based information.Design/methodology/approachThe study included a comprehensive literature review then interviews with 15 chief financial officers from Victorian local authorities. These authorities represented inner metropolitan, outer metropolitan, rural city, large rural and small councils.FindingsThe study reported the implications for change to accrual accounting method in accounting for IAs and the efficiency and effectiveness for decision making by both internal and external users. The question answered is whether the information provided by accrual accounting is used in the management of IAs. In some areas, it has been used and the benefits show from both an efficiency and effectiveness perspective. Concerns with this issue were identified by academics, parliamentary inquires, accounting authorities and local government interest groups.Originality/valueThis study is a comprehensive review of how senior local government accounting management are using the information generated from AAS27 on IAs and what value it has in their decision making.

Fiskalne obciążenia zatrudnienia w małym przedsiębiorstwie an tle wydajności pracy

The knowledge about mechanism of shaping costs of labour in the enterprise enables to undertake rational decisions in its all-important areas. Information about these mechanisms should be the subject of interest of state and local government. These authorities are able to modify law regulations in such directions, which enable to prevent potential bankruptcy of many enterprises, small enterprises as well. The trends and mechanism presented in this article take place in many enterprises quite usually. The directions of following changes should not only bother politicians but also incline to refl ection about the condition of many small enterprises in Poland. In the present study the trends and mechanisms of fl uctuations of employment costs in small production enterprise have been presented. These trends were shown on the background of changes of corporate efficiency of labour. Empirical researches have been carried on the base of monthly data coming from 1996–2006. The study instrument was dynamic econometric model.

No longer Sukumbasis: Challenges in grassroots-led squatter resettlement program in Kathmandu with special reference to Kirtipur Housing Project

The paper is the outcome of a systematic effort to study and analyze the experiences of the Kirtipur Housing Project (KHP), the first ever grassroots-led squatter resettlement project in Kathmandu. It is widely hailed as a success story as it has been able to provide a legal, affordable and good quality housing solution to the Sukumbasis through grassroots mobilization. The paper analyses the dynamics of this mobilization and the roles of different actors to show how community empowerment, civil actions and local government interests have converged to create a constructive partnership in line with wider enabling principles. Apart from meeting the narrowly defined objective to rehouse 44 households, the project reflects capacity of the community, quite apart from lobbying and protest, in areas of project planning and management. While no grassroots mobilisation can be expected to replicate in a dynamic environment, the paper draws some policy insights that indicate the ability of the grassroots mobilization in Kathmandu to continue and grow. Conversely, the lessons learned from the project also point to limitations in terms lack of prerequisite critical mass or economic benefits to influence the government to prepare a policy framework under which it can foster in a more structured way.

Cluster or Capture? Manufacturing Foreign Direct Investment, External Economies and Agglomeration

Phelps N. A. Cluster or capture? Manufacturing foreign direct investment, external economies and agglomeration, Regional Studies. This paper reviews the nature and significance of external economies associated with multinational enterprise (MNE) participation in the manufacturing industries of host economies. It argues that the balance of forces of internalization and externalization is currently skewed towards the former and the interests of MNEs rather than the latter and the interests of local and national communities and governments. A stylized comparison of developmental and competition state interventions in relation to MNEs and their foreign direct investment (FDI) suggests that in the absence of co-ordinated interventions by governments, there will commonly be a failure of the logic of internalization to permit localized processes of externalization. Indeed, the experiences of the ‘competition states’ of the UK and the USA highlight the potential for the partial internalization or ‘capture’ of local institutions and collective consumption expenditures rather than the externalization associated with clustering is highlighted. Phelps N. A. Regrouper ou conquérir? L'investissement direct étranger industriel, les économies externes et l'agglomération, Regional Studies. Cet article cherche à faire la critique des caractéristiques et de l'importance des économies externes qui s'associent à la participation des sociétés multinationales aux industries des pays d'accueil. On affirme que l'équilibre des effets internes et des effets externes tendent vers ceux-là et les intérêts des sociétés multinationales plutôt que vers ceux-ci et les intérêts des communautés et des gouvernements locaux et nationaux. Une comparaison stylisée des interventions de développement et de compétition de l'Etat par rapport aux sociétés multinationales et à leur IDE laissent supposer que la logique des effets internes, qui suscite des effets externes locaux en l'absence des interventions coordonnées gouvernementales, va généralement échouer. On souligne effectivement les expériences des ‘états de compétition’ au R-U et aux E-U, le potentiel des effets internes partiels ou la ‘prise’ des institutions locales et des dépenses publiques plutôt que les effets externes qui s'associent à la notion de regroupement. Regroupements industriels Sociétés multinationales Investissement direct étranger (IDE) Effets internes Effets externes Phelps N. A. Cluster oder Einbindung? Ausländische Direktinvestitionen in produzierende Betriebe, externe Ökonomien und Agglomeration, Regional Studies. In diesem Beitrag wird die Art und Bedeutung externer Ökonomien untersucht, die mit der Beteiligung multinationaler Unternehmen an der produzierenden Industrie in der Wirtschaft der Gastgeberländer verbunden sind. Es wird die These aufgestellt, dass das Kräftegleichgewicht zwischen einer Internalisierung und Externalisierung momentan zugunsten der Internalisierung und der Interessen der multinationalen Unternehmen verschoben ist, also zu Lasten der Externalisierung und der Interessen der lokalen und nationalen Gemeinden und Regierungen geht. Ein stilisierter Vergleich zwischen den staatlichen Interventionen in den Bereichen Entwicklung und Wettbewerb im Zusammenhang mit multinationalen Unternehmen und ihren ausländischen Direktinvestitionen lässt darauf schließen, dass es ohne koordinierte Interventionen durch Regierungen häufig zu einem Versagen der Logik der Internalisierung zur Ermöglichung lokalisierter Prozesse der Externalisierung kommt. In diesem Zusammenhang wird auch auf die Erfahrungen mit den ,konkurrierenden Staaten' von Großbritannien und den USA, auf das Potenzial für eine teilweise Internalisierung oder ,Einbindung' lokaler Institutionen sowie auf die kollektiven Konsumausgaben statt der mit einer Clusterbildung einhergehenden Externalisierung hingewiesen. Branchencluster Multinationale Unternehmen Ausländische Direktinvestitionen Internalisierung Externalisierung Phelps N. A. ¿Agrupación o integración? Inversión directa extranjera, economías externas y aglomeración de empresas manufactureras, Regional Studies. En este artículo se analizan la naturaleza y la importancia de las economías externas relacionadas con la participación de empresas multinacionales (EMN) en las industrias manufactureras de economías anfitrionas. Se sostiene que el equilibrio de las fuerzas entre interiorización y exteriorización está actualmente a favor de la primera y los intereses de las EMN en vez de la exteriorización y los intereses de las comunidades y los gobiernos nacionales y locales. Una comparación estilizada de las intervenciones estatales en el campo del desarrollo y la competencia con respecto a las EMN y su inversión directa extranjera (IDE) indica que sin intervenciones coordinadas de los gobiernos, ocurre normalmente un fallo de la lógica de la interiorización para permitir procesos localizados de exteriorización. En este contexto destaco las experiencias de los ‘estados en competencia’ del RU y los EE.UU., el potencial para la interiorización parcial o ‘integración’ de las instituciones locales y los gastos colectivos de consumo más que la exteriorización asociada a la agrupación. Agrupaciones de la industria Empresas multinacionales (EMN) Inversión directa extranjera (IDE) Interiorización Exteriorización

Local tax rebates, corporate tax burdens, and firm migration: Evidence from China

Conflicts of interest between local governments and the central administration in China have yielded many local policies that only serve the interests of local governments. The policy of first levying and then rebating taxes is an example of how local governments eschew the national tax regulations to boost local economies rather than national interests. In 2001, the Chinese government announced the termination of local tax rebates, which had some expected outcomes. We find that local governments complied with the new tax policy even though it no longer allowed local governments to grant tax incentives. However, some companies found ways to avoid the greater tax burdens by moving their business registration locations to tax havens. We also find that firms controlled by local governments were less likely to change registration locations. Our study examines the national tax regulation in China and explores how tax rules influence company decisions. In addition, we show that non-tax incentives, such as local economic development, may also influence company decisions.

Impacts of China's Rural Land Policy and Administration on Rural Economy and Grain Production

AbstractThe distinctive changes in China's rural land policy and administration have exerted significant impacts on China's rural socioeconomic development and grain production, either positively or negatively. This article reviews the changes of China's rural land policy and administration in the recent 5 decades. After the land reform accomplished in 1952 and the people's commune system implemented during 1952–1978, China adopted a house responsibility system, which was proven to be effective for increasing grain output and peasants’ income. Yet, it preserved the urban–rural dichotomous economy, formed in the people's commune era, which placed agriculture in a secondary position. The low efficiency in agricultural production and the small‐scale household management, under the current rural land policy and administration, stimulated the transfers of agricultural laborers to the nonagricultural sectors and cultivated land to urban land. Grain production and cultivated land protection in China are conducted most times under the political mandates rather than the economic guidance. Although the previous rural land policies and the strict residence registration helped China to avoid problems prevailing in prime cities of other developing countries, compulsorily asking peasants to grow more grain and to stay in their native land resulted in outstanding social injustice, vulnerable grain production systems, and poverty in rural areas. There are also outstanding conflicts among the interests of central government, local governments, collectives, and peasant households. More flexible rural land policies and more strict cultivated land administrations could be solutions for improving the profitability of grain production and protecting the rapidly declining cultivated land. Compensations for the low profitability in grain production are also needed to encourage an increase in grain output and rural economy.

BEYOND THREE GORGES: NU RIVER HYDROPOWER AND ENERGY DECISION POLITICS IN CHINA

This paper examines hydropower development on the Nu (Salween) River in China. A 13-dam, 21-Gigawatt cascade scheduled for ecologically and culturally rich western Yunnan was halted in 2004 by Premier Wen Jiabao, a decision lauded by environmental protection and cultural preservation advocates. Labeled “predatory development” by the Minister of Water Resources, the status of the projects remains unclear, yet preliminary work continues, signaling a disjuncture between central planners on the one hand and local government and hydropower industry interests on the other. This paper details the cascade and situates it in a rapidly changing institutional background fraught with tensions created by new laws, old habits, and increasingly open debate. The Nu River case highlights the greater flexibility for opportunistic behavior brought by recent hydropower reforms and the continued marginalization of communities impacted by China's hydropower program.

Facilitating multi-sector dialogue for natural resource management: Examples of rural governance in two Queensland regions

The definitions and interpretations of rurality and rural governance in Australia are being expanded through the current natural resource management (NRM) regional arrangements. Part of these expanding definitions is the notion of inclusive NRM decision-making in rural communities through multi-sector dialogue (e.g. between primary producers, local government, conservation, Indigenous and other community interests). Drawing on triangulated case study data collected over a 12-month period using multiple methods, this paper examines the functioning of multi-sector dialogue in two rural Queensland regional NRM bodies. Although subject to the same stakeholder representation, NRM plan and regional investment strategy accreditation requirements, the two organisations differed markedly in their philosophies and approaches towards multi-sector dialogue. Comparing the two approaches, the authors highlight the innovative solutions that each offers for more inclusive rural governance. Suggestions for improving multi-sector dialogue at the regional scale include strengthening the role of regional group’s collectives to provide for greater knowledge exchange between groups. Regional bodies also need to be encouraged, through collective forums, to access education and training programs that promote the adoption of innovations for facilitating sustainable NRM practices.

Regional decentralization and fiscal incentives: Federalism, Chinese style

Aligning the interests of local governments with market development is an important issue for developing and transition economies. Using a panel data set from China, we investigate the relationship between provincial government's fiscal incentives and provincial market development. We report three empirical findings. First, we find that during the period of “fiscal contracting system” the discrepancy between ex ante contracts and ex post implementation was relatively small, suggesting that the fiscal contracts were credible. Second, we find a much higher correlation, about four times, between the provincial government's budgetary revenue and its expenditure during 1980s and 1990s as compared to 1970s, demonstrating that provincial governments faced much stronger ex post fiscal incentives after reform. Third, we find that stronger ex ante fiscal incentives, measured by the contractual marginal retention rate of the provincial government in its budgetary revenue, are associated with faster development of the non-state sector as well as more reforms in the state sector in the provincial economy. This holds even when we control for the conventional measure of fiscal decentralization. Finally, we compare federalism, Chinese style, to federalism, Russian style.

Reforming regional and local development policy in France

This article analyses the Voynet Act of 1999 and its implementation in two regions, assessing the explanatory value of conceptual approaches such as the institutionalisation of collective action, cognitive frameworks and regional governance. Institutionalisation of collective action accounts for the strategy adopted by the central state, but takes insufficient account of the state's diminishing normative capacity in the overall policy process. Under the influence of the cognitive framework established within each region, normative functions have been exercised largely by an emergent regional government in Rhône-Alpes, while in Brittany, norms determined by local government interests have prevailed over regional governance trends.

State and Local Government Organizations and the Formation of the Help America Vote Act

Several state and local government organizations lobbied Congress during the formation of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA). This article distinguishes between “general” government organizations (those that represent the general interests of state and local governments) and “functionalist” organizations (those that implement specific programs or functions). Whereas generalists sought to advance “spatial” interests, functionalists sought to advance “administrative” interests. We also apply theories of congressional organization and committee leadership to explain the access of state and local governments to Congress and their influence over policy. The organizations had more access to, and influence in, the House Committee on Administration than in the Senate Rules and Administration Committee. The differences were primarily the result of three factors: informational demands, partisan considerations, and the personal qualities of committee leaders.

The New Political Management in Local Government: Public Engagement or Public Indifference?

The modernisation of English local government has created new forms of executive leadership. These aim to deliver better management and greater public engagement. Drawing from a recent study of the views of elected councillors in a sample of contrasting councils, this paper considers how far the new political management has succeeded in enhancing public interest and involvement in local government. It is suggested that executive and non-executive councillors differ in their perceptions of the new arrangements and that public interest is still largely perceived as relating to issues of immediate and personal concern. Backbench councillors may feel relatively powerless in taking up issues. Stepping down from elected office could even provide greater opportunities to be involved in public and political affairs. Equally, there are many examples of positive initiatives to involve the public, including area-based organisation and the effective use of scrutiny. Elected mayors were more optimistic than councillors in their perception of public involvement, tending to see themselves as having a direct line to the public and serving to 'reconnect' council and public. Overall, however, public engagement remains the great unfinished business of local government modernisation.

The Hearing of Local Government Interests in State Legislatures: The Effects of Prior Service in City or County Government

The Hearing of Local Government Interests in State Legislatures: The Effects of Prior Service in City or County Government

Is History Repeating Itself?

This study compares urban renewal in the United States in the 1950s and 1960s with inner-city redevelopment in China since the late 1980s. It finds that both programs use government authority and subsidies to make large-scale private or quasi-private investment attractive in the name of ameliorating living conditions. Cautiously applying Logan and Molotch’s “growth coalition” concept to China, the authors assert that a “growth machine” has formed during China’s economic decentralization processes. Despite the similarities, America’s urban renewal was an ill-fated federal program in which the local government and downtown business interests cooperated to boost declining inner-cities that were competing with burgeoning suburbs. In contrast, China’s redevelopment has been propelled by emerging local elites using decentralized state power to pursue fast growth in rising real estate markets. Greater insights into urban redevelopment can be gleaned through this comparative analysis.

The Domestic Politics of Quebec's Quest for External Distinctiveness

For more than forty years now, the Quebec government has conducted a distinct diplomatic activity, taking advantage of all the room for maneuver given by the Canadian constitution and using its political leverage inside the federation. The goal of this article is to examine the internal motivating factors for Quebec's international actions and, as it does so, it attempts to respond to the following questions: To what can we attribute the specific character of Quebec's case with respect to other manifestations of international involvement by noncentral governments? What are the most important international objectives pursued by Quebec? What methods and strategies are used in order to attain these objectives? Are these strategies proving to be effective; that is, are these objectives being attained? Such an exercise could not be accomplished without raking into consideration the highly intersubjective nature of Quebec's international presence and status--a fact underscored by the content and structure of this special issue. In the first place, there would obviously be no call for truly international dealings on the part of Quebec if there were no foreign partners available to undertake such relations with its official representatives, sometimes at the highest levels. More importantly perhaps, Quebec's foreign policy makers, who are well aware of the situation, are primordially concerned by the interpretation that will be made outside Quebec of the ultimate purpose of this policy, and they integrate this information into their strategies. Therefore, Quebec's objectives of international assertion are adapted to different registers of meaning from which foreign actors would interpret its foreign policy behavior. Thus, from the decolonization era of the 1960s to our current postmodern period, and depending o n the sensitivity of their interlocutors, Quebec officials have tried to craft their interventions in order to be considered as representatives of a nation, a province, a homeland, an economy, a people, a state. Similarly, Quebec's identity itself, on whose behalf this autonomous foreign policy is pursued, is the object of constant negotiation between the way in which Quebeckers perceive themselves and how this corresponds to the types of legitimate expression of identity emerging within the world order. (1) The task I have been assigned in this special issue leads me to explore the domestic side of these matters. An Identity-Based Paradiplomacy Recent works on the international involvement of noncentral governments (NCGs) have shown the importance of distinguishing between two manifestations of this phenomenon, widely referred to as paradiplomacy. (2) On the one hand, in most cases, paradiplomacy is triggered by functional interests--that is, interests of local governments as agents of economic development and managers of the human and environmental resources of a given territory. In such cases, the development of paradiplomatic activities will generally be decentralized, strongly associated with specific transnational issues, and erratic. In Canada, the Alberta government is a good example of functional interest-based paradiplomatic activity; its activities are strongly linked to the state of Canada-U.S. relations in the area of energy policies. On the other hand, some NCGs are pursuing a paradiplomacy in the name of identity-based interests. In those cases, the existence of a common identity and of a certain kind of national interest gives coherence and continuity to the involvement in international affairs, while subjecting it to the politics of identity and nation-building. In her analysis of the foreign policy of the Belgian federated entities, which most closely approach Quebec in their form and level of development, Francoise Massart-Pierard clearly demonstrates that this identity aspect makes all the difference. (3) This leads her to consider the Belgian Communities and Regions as hybrid international actors, half nation-state and half regional authority, where the task of reinforcing identity is superimposed on that of responding to the functional needs (for example, economic, environmental) of the region they govern. …

Brownfields Redevelopment, Preferences and Public Involvement: A Case Study of an Ethnically Mixed Neighbourhood

A survey was conducted with over 200 residents of a largely Hispanic census tract in the City of Perth Amboy, NJ, in order to identify their preferences for brownfield redevelopment and the extent to which residents want to participate in the redevelopment process. We found that residents preferred recreation, cultural and other community facilities, followed by new housing. They were less interested in industry and business. Three-quarters of respondents indicated a desire to participate in the redevelopment process. Those who were most interested in participation tended to be optimistic, less trusting of authority, distressed by brownfields and focused on providing opportunities for youth. In light of the fact that US brownfields redevelopment has been promoted as a way to bring industry and commerce back to inner-city neighbourhoods, the findings of this study imply that local government and business interests need to work closely with local communities to build support for commercial land uses. Alternatively, processes need to be developed that will fund the clean-up of brownfield sites to residential and recreation land-use standards.

Rural industrial pollution and environmental law enforcement in China

The rapid development of township and village enterprises (TVEs) in China is posing a serious threat to the rural environment. Although China has a fairly well developed environmental legislation system, environmental law enforcement remains a major problem in the rural areas. This study analyzes the measures designed for environmental law enforcement and their applicability in the rural areas. It reveals that the dispersed distribution of TVEs, lack of environmental monitoring, conflicting interests of local governments, and poor environmental awareness of the rural people are responsible for the spread of industrial pollution into the rural areas. This paper argues that government regulations and law enforcement measures for pollution control must reflect the political and economical realities of rural areas.

Housing Abandonment in Inner Cities-The Politics of Low Demand for Housing

Abandonment of property in all housing tenures is a problem in some British inner cities, especially in the north of England. The paper outlines the causes of this phenomenon and describes some of the social problems that arise in areas containing significant quantities of abandoned property. A principal underlying cause of abandonment is low demand creating, initially, voids and vacancies in the dwelling stock and ultimately housing abandonment. The paper considers the relationship between empty stock and abandonment particularly in the social housing sector. It reviews the US and UK literature and concludes that the UK literature and research agenda is deficient in its analysis of the problem of abandonment. The paper then explores evidence of the source of the abandonment problem in the low demand for housing in some parts of the country, particularly those affected by industrial collapse. Abandonment is also explained as a case of policy failure particularly due to the housing subsidy system and the conflicting interests of central and local government. Finally, the social consequences for communities afflicted by low demand and abandonment are explored and evidence is presented of the severe impact on neighbourhood stability.

THE VERTICAL AND HORIZONTAL EXPANSIONS OF CHINA'S CITY SYSTEM

Most studies of the size, growth, and distribution of cities have been based on Western economies and have identified economic factors such as scale and agglomeration economies and level of economic development as major determinants of urban growth. It is unclear whether these generalizations are applicable in socialist economies. In this paper, I argue that institutional factors have played key roles in shaping China's city system, which is characterized by declining population concentration across cities and by tremendous vertical (population growth of cities) and horizontal (addition of new cities) expansions. The empirical analysis focuses on describing the size distribution of cities, estimating a multivariate model predicting the population growth of cities, and performing a logistic regression analysis of new and existing cities. The findings underscore the effects of urban and regional development policies, socialist institutions, changes in the urban administrative system, and state and local government interests, and suggest that they as a whole are more important than economic factors in explaining the attributes and changes of China's city system. [Key words: urban growth, city system, institutional factors, China.]