Local Government Units In Poland Research Articles

Financial Condition of Local Government in Poland vs StructuralReforms of Municipal Government in Scandinavian States

The authors have undertaken an analysis of the phenomenon of debt of local government units in Poland. It is a dynamic phenomenon, which affects vast majority of municipalities and districts. A barrier to debt expansion has been established in the form of the Individual Debt Index (IOI), which has been in place since 2014 and its new elements entered into force on 1 January 2020. The structure of the index is intended to allow regional accounting chambers (RIO) to control the process and prevent its progression. The authors indicate, however, that the main problem for local self-government units is insufficient own income, which forces them to increase the pool of funds transferred from the central budget to self-governments in the form of grants and subventions and to look for various forms of loans for their activities. Using the experience of the Scandinavian countries, the authors propose to start territorial and resource consolidation reforms of small local government units – municipalities and districts. The aim is to facilitate better use of endogenous resources of territorial self-government units and use of economies of scale related to local economy and social resources. This should result, as in Scandinavia, in the development of public entrepreneurship, higher social efficiency and effectiveness, and stabilisation of the income of individual units. After more than 20 years of operation, small local government units in Poland have become structurally and functionally obsolete and do not guarantee modern development of local communities.

Bases of International Cooperation of Local Governments

At the turn of the 21st century, we witnessed a civilisational change that resulted in decentralisation and deconcentration of power. As a result, international cooperation between local authorities has increased. This article is to indicate the legal basis for international local government activities, forms of cooperation and their impact on regional development. The legal bases for this cooperation can be classified as follows: 1. Sources of public international law, 2. EU Community law, 3. Sources of national law. Having this in mind, the article will discuss the selected legal bases for international self-government activity in Europe, starting with the acquis of the Council of Europe, then moving on to the activities of the European Union. Finally, an analysis of forms of international cooperation of local government units in Poland are going to be presented. These considerations are largely of a theoretical nature, based in particular on jurisprudential analysis.

The Principle of Open and Competitive Recruitment to Official Posts in Local Government Units in Poland

This article is to present the principle of open and competitive recruitment for official positions, applicable under the Polish Act on local government employees. The point of departure for the discussion on the provisions of the Act is the Constitution of the Republic of Poland. Not only has the analysis covered the regulation contained in the Act on employees of local government , but also addressed the relationship between the employer's specific obligation to re-employ the employee on the basis of the provisions of the Polish Labour Code and the rule of general recruitment for official positions applicable under the Law on local government employees. These considerations are largely of a practical nature, based in particular on the relevant case-law and on the professional experience of the author herself, who is a local government staff member employed as an attorney-at-law in a local government unit of the regional level.

Rola nadwyżki operacyjnej w budowaniu stabilności finansowej i potencjału inwestycyjnego jednostek samorządu terytorialnego

Niniejsze opracowanie ma na celu ocenę poziomu nadwyżki operacyjnej jako wskaźnika determinującego stabilność finansową samorządów lokalnych oraz poznanie kwoty wydatków inwestycyjnych świadczących o potencjale inwestycyjnym jednostki. Zastosowano następujące metody: analizę piśmiennictwa, analizę wskaźników budżetowych (dochody i wydatki bieżące, wydatki majątkowe, wynik operacyjny) oraz metody statystyki opisowej. Do analizy przyjęto dane finansowe wszystkich typów jednostek samorządu terytorialnego w Polsce, a więc 16 województw, 314 powiatów i 2478 gmin za lata 2015-2017. Przeprowadzona analiza pozwoliła na częściowo pozytywne zweryfikowanie hipotezy zgodnie, z którą wynik operacyjny determinuje zarówno stabilność finansową jak i wyznacza poziom potencjału inwestycyjnego JST.

Participatory Budget as a Tool Supporting the Development of Civil Society in Poland

Abstract Although three decades have passed since the fall of communism in Poland, the observed level of social activity in the country is relatively low. Participatory budget emerged as an idea to increase the involvement of citizens in decision-making processes concerning their immediate surroundings. In addition to their inclusion in the activity of local government, this form of citizen participation is expected to have a positive impact on residents’ involvement in activities for the benefit of the local community. The aim of this article is to indicate the conditions that influenced the implementation of the idea of the first participatory budget in Poland and emphasizing the importance of the civic budget in managing public administration through partial decentralization involving local communities in social dialogue for local investment initiatives, especially in large provincial cities in Poland. The following research question was adopted in the paper: has the introduction of a participatory budget in Poland increased social activity and has it been conducive to the development of civil society. In Poland, the initiative to create a civic budget met good political conditions in the relatively small city of Sopot, which had the resources to implement the project. After successful implementation, this initiative was relatively quickly adopted by other Polish local governments, which then on their own introduced social consultations called the civic budget. Not all poviats introduced the civic budget of their own volition. The government, seeing the possibility of political discounting of this new solution, decided to introduce a mandatory participatory budget in town counties and ordered the allocation of funds from their budgets, no less than 1 % of budget expenditure. The article relies on the case-study method, comparative analysis and trend analysis, qualitative and quantitative methods of description, document analysis and statistical data. The analysis focuses on the town of Sopot and provincial capitals. Local conditions are important for understanding the processes of shaping active civic attitudes in Poland, because cities are the poles of development of civil society and give impetus to innovative changes in the entire socio-economic system. The materials used in the article include reports, documents and legal acts regarding the functioning of the town of Sopot. The study showed that the participatory budget indeed activates the local community around various projects. At the same time, the question of directly translating this activity into an increase in the number of organizations, associations and foundations remains debatable. The introduction of the participatory budget to administrative management practice in local-government units in Poland should be considered in terms of the soft power impact of administration on the shaping and development of civil society, which is still in the development stage in Poland.

The Contribution of ICT Adoption by Local Governments to Sustainability—Empirical Evidence from Poland

ABSTRACT The model developed in this paper aims to explain how ICT (information and communication technologies) adoption by local governments contributes to sustainability. The model is empirically tested using survey data gathered from local government units in Poland and semistructured interviews with Poland-based experts. The results suggest that ICT quality, information culture, and ICT management of local government units have a significant positive impact on sustainability, whereas outlay on ICT does not have such an impact.

Multiannual expenditures in state budget and local government budgets in Poland

Purpose – The purpose of the article is to assess the significance of multiannual expenditures in the state and budgets of local government units in Poland. Research method – In order to achieve the objective, the methods of comparative analysis of budget expenditures extending beyond one financial year of the state and local government units were used. The research period covers the years 2014-2018. The source of data utilised for the analyses are reports relating to the performance of the state budget and information on the performance of the budgets of local government units, as well as databases on multiannual financial forecasts of local government units. The analysis used data on expenditure related to the implementation of multiannual programmes (in the state budget) and expenditure on undertakings shown in multiannual financial forecasts (in the budgets of local government units). The analysis also included the non-expiring expenditures. Therefore, it was possible to indicate the share of expenditures extending beyond one financial year in the budgets executed annually. Results – The research results indicate that despite the existence of solutions for long-term budget planning at the level of the state and local government units in Poland, the scale of implementation of multiannual expenditures in annual budgets remains relatively small. In addition, differences in the implementation of multiannual expenditures between specific categories of local government units were pointed out.

Charytatywna działalność gminnych rad młodzieżowych – analiza zagadnienia

Youth Councils are entities that serve as consultative and advisory bodies to local government units in Poland. The councils, which have been functioning for over 30 years, take part in the activities of local governments and undertake a number of social projects, including those of a charitable nature. The paper presents the results of research that was carried out as part of the project "The importance and role of Youth Councils in the functioning of local governments." The research concerns Youth Councils from 18 voivodeship cities, where local government councils and voivodeship offices are located. The results of the research, presented in the ensuing paper, show the activity of Youth Councils in the field of charitable work.

The importance of management control in the implementation of public tasks by local government

The concept of management control in the Polish legal system has been implemented together with the amendment to the provisions of the Public Finance Act of 27 August 2009. The essence of management control concerns a different view of local government decision-makers on managerial activity in public administration. Management control solutions contribute to increasing the quality, efficiency and effectiveness of public services. In the activities of local government units, the concept of management control may also contribute to the self-improvement of local government administration. The main purpose of the article is an attempt to assess and demonstrate the functioning of management control in local government units in Poland. The practical goal was to illustrate the solutions that local government decision-makers can implement to design management control systems in offices. The research hypothesis is as follows: The effective implementation of public tasks by the local government depends on the quality of the management control system. The hypothesis was verified by means of an electronic questionnaire. The research conducted demonstrated that the proper functioning of management control depends on the involvement of the head of a local government. A helpful instrument in assessing management systems is the use of internal audit. The research results illustrated that an obligatory audit commission is of little importance in ensuring the efficiency of management systems in local government administration. As for risk management, respondents pointed out that the main barrier to achieving this goal of management control is, unfortunately, a lack of a uniform risk management methodology in the public sector.

Real estate cadastral system and cadastral tax system – legal and organisational conditions

Proposals to introduce a cadastral tax ("municipal tax") into the Polish tax system have a long history. The solutions that are currently proposed in the literature have a political subtext and do not contain any substantive proposals for normative solutions, contrary to the model of the proposed draft laws package in the mid-nineties. Poland is a unitary state and it does not seem that there will be a need for a radical change of the state system. Local government units in Poland have a constitutionally guaranteed and protected wide scope of independence This study presents and critically evaluates these contemporary proposals, at the same time points out the precondition for the change of the real estate tax regime – the need to finish the construction of the real estate cadastre system – the Integrated Real Estate Information System, which allows for the appraising of real estates and basing their value on it, and not only for tax purposes. Indeed, this system is a necessary but difficult prerequisite for the continuation of future real estate taxation reforms and would also serve the needs of many other public authorities by enabling communication between the existing public registers (including the CEIDG and the KRS). The introduction of a cadastral tax alone, the tax basis for which would be an updated and credible real estate value, also requires a number of new economic, sociological, functional as well as social and political studies to be carried out beforehand on the tax matters, in particular when taking into account the increase in the tax burdens and the relevant legal analyses of the proposed models of system solutions.

Spatial and Institutional Analysis of the Voivodships Expenditure on Culture in the Years 2003 – 2015

Abstract Following the completion of the process of decentralisation of public administration in Poland in 2003, a number of tasks implemented previously by the state authorities were transferred to the local level. One of the most significant changes to the financing and management methods of the local authorities was the transfer of tasks related to culture and national heritage to the set of tasks implemented by local governments. As a result of the decentralisation process, the local government units in Poland were given significant autonomy in determining the purposes of their budgetary expenditures on culture. At the same time, they were obliged to cover these expenses from their own revenues. This paper focuses on the analysis of expenditures on culture covered by the voivodship budgets, taking into consideration the structure of cultural institutions by their types, between 2003-2015. The location quotient (LQ) was applied to two selected years (2006 and 2015) to illustrate the diversity of expenditures on culture in individual voivodships.

The sources of competitive advantage from the perspective of project management – results of empirical studies

The aim of the paper is entering the discussion concerning the sources of competitive advantage in project management in basic local government units in Poland. The focus of the paper is placed on the selected elements of the sources of competitive advantage in basic local government units in Poland, namely tasks implemented in projects. The paper consists of two main parts. In the first part of the paper, a starting point was the presentation of the essence of competitiveness and competitive advantage in the process of project management from the perspective of local government units in Poland. In the second one, the results of the research proceedings concerning the importance of tasks implemented in projects in projects in basic local government units in Poland were discussed. The considerations presented in the paper refer to the results of the research proceedings, which took place in two stages. The first stage of the studies was conducted in 2013 and it concerned the years 2010-2012, the second stage – in 2018, and it concerned the years 2016-2018.

Prevention of overweight and obesity undertaken by local government units in Poland

BackgroundBased on the estimates of World Health Organization (WHO), in European Union countries overweight or obesity affects more than 60% of men and over 50% of women. According to the nationwide European Health Interview Survey (EHIS) survey conducted in 2014, in Poland over 62% of men and nearly 46% of women carried excess weight in 2014. ObjectiveThe objective of the paper is to present health policy programmes aimed at prevention of overweight and obesity developed, implemented and funded by local government units (self-governments of voivodeships, counties, municipalities) in Poland in 2010–2016. MethodsThe study was based on a desk research. It covered data from two sources, i.e. data included in annual reports formulated by voivodes and submitted to Minister of Health concerning all health policy programmes implemented by local government units and data published online as part of reviews of draft programmes by the Agency for Health Technology Assessment and Tariff System (AOTMiT). ResultsIn the period under review local government units implemented a total of 333 overweight and obesity prevention programmes. 18 programmes were reviewed by AOTMiT. Most programmes have been implemented in the Zachodniopomorskie and Mazowieckie Voivodeships, whereas the least in the Podlaskie, Lubelskie and Kujawsko-Pomorskie Voivodeships. Around 99% of municipalities, 97% of counties and 86% of self-governments of voivodeships did not complete any overweight and obesity prevention programmes in the period under review. ConclusionInsufficient engagement of local government units in the prevention of overweight and obesity – one of the primary objectives of the National Health Programme for 2007–2015 and 2016–2020. Differences in terms of the number of programmes implemented by particular types of local government units and the financial resources employed in the implementation of the programmes. Failure to fulfil the statutory obligation to obtain a review from AOTMiT. Failure to address the actual health needs of local communities related to overweight and obesity prevention by some of the voivodeships.

Jak PPP może wpłynąć na rozwój regionalny Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej?

Głównym celem niniejszego artykułu jest zaprezentowanie związku pomiędzy partnerstwem publiczno- prywatnym (PPP) a rozwojem regionalnym Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej w kontekście potencjalnej atrakcyjności inwestycyjnej regionów Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej. Na podstawie badań desk research, studium przypadku n = 90 projektów PPP i przeglądu literatury przedmiotu zbadano wpływ projektów PPP na rozwój regionalny Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej w kontekście atrakcyjności inwestycyjnej tych regionów, które realizują projekty PPP. Ponadto dokonano przeglądu kluczowych wyzwań, jakie stoją przed państwami Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej, a są związane m.in. z niewystarczającym poziomem rozwoju infrastruktury, którą cechuje wysoki stopień zużycia czy wysoki poziom długu publicznego brutto, w szczególności na poziomie jednostek samorządu terytorialnego (JST). Artykuł przedstawia również syntetyczną charakterystykę ram instytucjonalnych, państw Europy Środkowej i Wschodniej, niezbędnych do wspierania rozwoju PPP oraz przedstawia propozycje koniecznych zmian regulacji w zakresie PPP, aby przyspieszyć rozwój regionalny Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej w kontekście atrakcyjności inwestycyjnej. Ponadto JST w Polsce nie wykorzystują efektu synergii (dla wzrostu rozwoju regionalnego) z dostosowania realizowanych projektów PPP do regionalnych strategii rozwoju czy innowacji.

Wykorzystanie serwisu społecznościowego LinkedIn w marketingu oferty inwestycyjnej jednostek samorządu terytorialnego w Polsce

Globalna gospodarka rynkowa stwarza przedsiębiorstwom możliwość prowadzenia swojej działalności z najbardziej odpowiadającego realizacji ich celów biznesowych miejsca na świecie. Przedsiębiorstwa są przekonywane przez państwa, miasta oraz różne jednostki podziału terytorialnego do wyboru danej lokalizacji za pomocą kompleksowych ofert inwestycyjnych podsumowujących możliwe korzyści do osiągnięcia przez działalność w wybranym miejscu. Do promocji tych ofert wykorzystywane są różne narzędzia marketingowe, w tym nowoczesne formy promocji internetowej. W artykule poddano analizie działania polskich jednostek samorządu terytorialnego prowadzone w największym na świecie serwisie społecznościowym skierowanym do odbiorcy biznesowego – LinkedIn. Opisano wykorzystywane sposoby prezentacji oferty oraz powiązane z nimi instrumenty. Podjęto również próbę określenia stopnia rozwoju tej formy terytorialnej promocji inwestycyjnej w Polsce i jej perspektyw na przyszłość w porównaniu do przykładów wykorzystania LinkedIn przez jednostki administracji z Europy i świata.

Intellectual Capital Statement Model for Counties in Poland

The role of intellectual capital as a developmental factor has been constantly growing in both private and public sectors. World literature presents a variety of models for intellectual capital (IC) measurement, but so far IC in local government units such as counties (2nd tier local government unit in Poland) has been non-recognized. The purpose of this paper is to fill in this gap. The authors propose an original IC measurement concept developed on the basis of already existing models. The model was created following an analysis of the results of studies performed in local government units (counties) in Poland. The authors are of the opinion that the model can be used for developing IC measurement models for local government units in other countries.

Breast cancer and cervical cancer prevention programmes carried out by local government units in Poland in 2009-2014.

BackgroundIn 2014 the standardised incidence rate for breast cancer in Poland reached 51.6/100,000, while the mortality rate reached 14.8/100,000. The incidence rate for breast cancer in the EU was 106.6/100,000, the mortality rate – 22.4/100,000. In 2014 the incidence rate for cervical cancer in Poland was 8.8/100,000, the mortality rate – 4.5/100,000. The incidence rate in the EU was 11.3/100,000 and the mortality rate – 3.7/100,000.ObjectiveThe aim of the paper was to establish the number of health policy programmes concerned with breast cancer and cervical cancer in women carried out in 2009–2014 by local government units, with specification of the type of programme, type of local government units that carried out the programmes and the costs of implementation of the programmes.MethodsThe study was based on a desk research. The analysis covered data included in annual reports submitted by voivodes to Minister of Health, concerning health policy programmes implemented by local government units in 2009–2014.ResultsThe greatest number of programmes concerned with prevention of breast cancer and cervical cancer were implemented in municipalities, followed by counties and finally – self-governed voivodeships. The number of programmes concerned with primary prevention was three times smaller (656) than the number of programmes concerned with secondary prevention (2,229). The greatest number of primary prevention programmes were implemented in Dolnośląskie, Wielkopolskie and Mazowieckie Voivodeships, and the greatest number of secondary prevention programmes – in Wielkopolskie, Mazowieckie and Zachodniopomorskie Voivodeships.ConclusionIt was found that the number of programmes implemented by particular local government units and the financial resources employed in the implementation of the programmes were different. It is probable that some of the initiatives of local government units related to secondary prevention coincide with the actions undertaken under the National Programme for Fighting Cancer. The entities that carry out breast cancer and cervical cancer prevention programmes need to coordinate their actions.

Samodzielność dochodowa jednostek samorządu terytorialnego – Polska na tle wybranych krajów Unii Europejskiej

Revenue autonomy is one of the fundamental pillars of self-government in the economic sense. The assurance of LSUs to a significant share of own revenue should be based on their character, above all the impact on their size, the predictability, the freedom of disposal and the independence of local governments from the state budget. The level of fiscal autonomy of self-government is a derivative of national solutions adopted in Poland, the level of decentralization, the amount, type and efficiency of self-government income sources combined with the spatial distribution of the tax base and the scope of taxation power of the self-government sector. It largely determines the development opportunities of local communities. Hence, it is important to address this topic in various aspects. This work aims to analyze the level of revenue autonomy of local government units in Poland against the background of selected European Union countries, indicating the importance of taxation power in creating this autonomy.

Dochody budżetowe jednostek samorządu terytorialnego z perspektywy absorpcji funduszy unijnych

Goal – The article aims to present the specificity of budget revenue of local government units in Poland in the context of obtaining EU funds by these entities in the years 2007-2016.Research methodology – In order to achieve the assumed purpose, different research methods were used. The research procedure involved non-reactive research methods, the method of analysis of official documents as well as the historical and comparative method. The financial situation of local government units can be described trough various aspects, including e.q. the analysis of budget revenue, the examination of budget expenditure, the characteristics of the budget result and the frequently related issues of municipal debt. Budget revenue shapes the expenditure possibilities of local government units. A special role is played by their own revenue, which is increased by supplementary revenue, i.e. the general subsidy and total allocations, that make up the entire budget revenue. Due to having appropriate financial resources, local government units are able to carry out the public tasks assigned to them. Thanks to the availability of EU funds for Poland, the budget revenue of local government units have become an important determinant conditioning the absorption of financial resources from the European Union budget.Score – Budget revenue is an important element of the financial system of local government units. It affects the ability of local government units to carry out their public tasks because it enables their financing. The analysis shows the specificity of budget revenue of local government units and its important role from the perspective of absorption of financial resources from the European Union budget. The collected data proves the involvement of local government units in Poland in the years 2007-2016 in the absorption of EU funds.

Conditions of Operations of Local Government Units in Unstable Economic Environments

Purpose – The goal of this article is to present conditions for the operation of Poland’s local government units in the 2007–2016 period from the perspective of these entities’ finances. The subject is considered with regard to major changes which took place in the economic environment of local government units in the past few years. Design/methodology/approach – Such a complex study area requires various research methods to be applied in order to achieve the planned goal. The research procedure includes nonreactive research, a comparative historical approach and an analysis of official documents. Findings – The analyses performed revealed the conditions of Polish local government units in 2007–2016 regarding the finances of these entities. The collected data points to frequent changes to the units’ economic environment which require that the new challenges be appropriately addressed. An unstable economic setting shapes the conditions of the operations of gminas, cities with powiat rights, powiats and voivodships. Consequently, it uniquely affects the activities of local government units. Originality/value – the analyses of the subject confirm that the operations of local government units are affected by various stimuli coming from the economic environment. For the past few years it underwent dynamic changes that made local government entities react to them and stand up to emerging challenges. Local government units’ operations are determined by a group of interrelated conditions. The analysis of the operations of local government units in Poland in 2007–2016 indicates that finances are the foundation of the functioning of each local government unit and an indicator of reality and success of the public tasks performed.