Polish Local Governments Research Articles

Legal and Functional Determinants of Cooperation Between Polish and Ukrainian Local Governments Since 1990

The social, economic, and political changes which occurred in both Poland and in Ukraine after 1989, led to the formation of mutual relations at various levels and in various spheres of public, social, and economic life. Subsequent administrative reforms introduced from the beginning of the 1990s had an impact on the development of the decentralization and democratization of the public sector. In Poland, these processes took place much more effectively than in Ukraine. Despite this, from the very beginning of the changes, the newly created communes, and after 1998, the poviats and voivodships, undertook cooperation with self-governing partners in Ukraine. In the last three decades, local and regional communities in Ukraine have become an important partner for Polish local and regional governments. Polish-Ukrainian self-government cooperation is implemented in many forms, based on various models and with different results. It also faces many barriers on legal, institutional, and psychological levels. The main obstacle is undoubtedly Ukraine's lack of membership in the European Union, as well as sometimes mutual misunderstanding and non-acceptance of historical experiences. The main goal of the study is to analyze the currently functioning forms of cooperation between local governments from Poland and Ukraine. The main thesis of this article is based on the assumption that despite the many opportunities existing for partnership and cooperation, local governments from Poland and Ukraine establish bilateral and multilateral cooperation too seldom. This is related to many barriers that hinder the development and initiation of cooperation, and affect its quality and expected outcomes. To verify the assumed thesis, institutional and legal methods, document analysis, factor analysis, and comparative methods were used.

Conditions and prospects for cooperation between Polish and Ukrainian local governments

The fact that Poland and Ukraine share a border, the convergence of the political goals of the peoples of both countries, and the constant efforts towards the development of democracy and decentralisation of public life determine the need to intensify cooperation in various areas of the functioning of society and the economy. An important sphere of cooperation is the public sector, in particular at the level of local government. The local government cooperation of both countries was already visible at the beginning of the social and political transformations after 1990. The development of this cooperation, with varying results, took place in the 1990s and, to an even greater extent, after Poland’s accession to the European Union. In the last three decades, local and regional communities in Ukraine have become an important partner for Polish local governments, both at the local and regional levels. The local government cooperation that has been implemented is based on the diversification and multidimensionality of forms and models. Some result from legal regulations, while others are based on mutual experiences, previous contacts, and sympathies of public authorities. The aim of the study is to analyse and present the conditions and forms of Polish-Ukrainian local government cooperation. The aim is also to show the barriers to cooperation and to define proposed solutions to improve partner contacts of territorial units. The local government cooperation of the two countries is undoubtedly hindered by the fact that Ukraine is not a member of the EU, and often by mutual misunderstanding and non-acceptance of historical experiences. On the other hand, common goals at different levels of social, public, and economic life are a significant factor motivating parties to increase cooperation and achieve a synergistic effect thanks to it.

Bottom-Up Initiatives Undertaken by Local Governments to Support Entrepreneurship

The present paper deals with issues related to activities undertaken by local government. The article focuses on the identification and assessment of the significance of local government’s different bottom-up initiatives that support development of local entrepreneurship. The article also indirectly discusses the importance of activities referring to energy efficiency. Through the digitization process and by using digital tools, LGs realize projects, improve local actors’ awareness, and finally achieve new challenges such as a higher proportion of gross final energy consumption being from renewable sources. The aim of the paper is to present the relationship between the LGs’ entrepreneurial activities, which we call bottom-up initiatives, and the local entrepreneurship level, understood as the number of entrepreneurs active on the territory of a LG. This paper presents the results of research carried out on the bottom-up initiatives undertaken by Polish local governments to support entrepreneurship. The research was based on survey and statistical tools and stepwise regression analysis. In the paper, bottom-up initiatives undertaken by local governments (such as organizing events at the national or regional scale that enable networking among entrepreneurs or establishing departments for supporting local entrepreneurship that offer cooperation with local entrepreneurs) were found to influence the number of entrepreneurs active in local government territories. The paper concludes that local governments and their bottom-up activities are an important factor influencing local entrepreneurship development. The presented research results have implications for policy makers and may be useful for local governments in Poland and in other countries in the context of supporting entrepreneurship by undertaking bottom-up initiatives at the local level.

История Лунинецкого местного самоуправления. 1842–1939 гг.

A local government is an association of persons of public law, based on community of interests of residents of a territory determined as units of the administrative and territorial division. It is regulated and administered by organs chosen by residents on their own territory, under control of suitable government organs within the framework of authorizations determined in state law. It acts in its own name, on its own territory and on its own responsibility. It possesses assets and budget, earnings and expenses. The author of the elaboration set the task of examining of the formation and functioning of local government structures on the example of one region and the city of today’s Belarus – Łuniniec. The territorial range which is the subjcet of considered issues covers the territory of the contemporary Łuninice region of Brzesko district on Belarus, as well the area of the Łuniniec administrative district from times of Poleskie province of the Second Polish Republic. Ideas of the local government, though in a limited meaning, were already put into pratice on the area of Łuniniec in the second half of the XIXth century – czar Alexander II’s reforms: enfranchisement (1861), municipal (1864) and urban (1870), and also in the first half of the XXth century. The work, in the initial conception, was thought as a classical monograph devoted to the formation of Łuniniec local government covering the period of almost a hundred years (1842–1939). It was the time when the contemporary Łuniniec region was, at first, a part of the Russian Empire. Then the region became a part of Poleskie province of the Second Polish Republic.Due to needs of the periodicals the whole material was divided into four readable, in terms of content, compact and separate parts. In the first part the administrative division, territorial and the demographic structure of Łuniniecki territory, history of the local government in the first half of the XIXth century were presented, and also the influence of Russian State reforms that took place in the second half of the XIXth century on its functioning. The activity of the local government within a period of 1917–1919 was also mentioned. The second part presented history of the formation of the local government within the period of the Second Polish Republic, when Łuniniec became a capital of a newly formed Polish territorial unit – Łuniniec province. Issues such as: the administrative territorial division and population of Łuniniec area within a period of the Seconf Polish Republic, creation and organization of the local government in Poleskie province in years 1919–1926, the demographic structure and functioning of the authorities in years 1919–1926 were mentioned. In the next part legal bases on the baisis of which Łuniniec local government functioned in years 1927–1932 were presented as well as its activity in 1926–1933; recordings of law from 23 June, 1933 presenting the partial change of structure of the local government were taken into account. The last part presents refers to problems of legal bases concerning activities of Polish local governments in the 30’s of the XXth century. In this part the author described history of the local government of Łuniniec province in 1934–1939. The fourth part is closed by the summary that refers to the whole material presented in all separated fragments of the monograph of the local government of Łuniniec province in 1842–1939. Maps and illustrations enriching the content and making it easier to understand easier were added to each part, and also the bibliography refering to all contents of four elements of the elaboration.

Liabilities of Local Government Units in Poland: Identification and Analysis of Diversification Factors

Purpose: The article aims to identify the factors that influence the levels of debt in Polish local governments. Specifically, we look at the structure of local units' revenue and expenditure and try to determine which of the characteristics have a significant impact on debt levels. Design/Methodology/Approach: We divide our analysis into three types of municipalities, urban, rural, and urban-rural municipalities. We find that each of this type of municipality has different determinants of debt level. Findings: This article provides a solid recommendation for researchers and policy makers to carefully derive conclusions from analyses made on the total population of local units, as their heterogeneity may significantly impact the research results. Therefore, policy recommendations and actions should not be homogeneous across all types of local governments. Practical Implications: The article identifies income factors of local budgets that are statistically significant and influence positively or negatively the size of the public debt of local government units. Practical aspect of the paper means that results can be used to manage local government units or assess their stability by external agencies. Originality/Value: The obtained results are in line with the previous research results and extend the knowledge in the stability and indebtedness of local government units. The study carried out allows to extend this knowledge and proves that the indebtedness of local government units is also affected by the structure of income of these units.

Municipal Urban Waste Management—Challenges for Polish Cities in an Era of Circular Resource Management

Municipal authorities increasingly view environmental protection as one of the goals of city management. The pro-environmental orientation of cities can, therefore, foster the creation of new management methods and instruments and promote reorganization of determining material flows in a municipal system. Activities of this kind should result not only in the reduction of generated waste but also in the creation of closed material cycles. Considering the tasks of Polish local governments, municipalities should pay the most attention to municipal waste. Accordingly, the goal of this study was to identify the problem of mixed municipal waste in cities and assess the influence of investments into fixed assets for environmental protection in the scope of waste management on the quantity of mixed municipal waste in cities. This article also identifies activities for circular resource management that need to be realized by Polish municipalities. The analysis was performed using the panel model, dynamic indexes, and critical analysis of city documents. The conducted research revealed positive trends in cities with respect to the amount of waste collected non-selectively that is conducive to circular resource management. The fact that municipal waste quantity is on the increase should encourage urban authorities to promote pro-environmental waste management behaviors among city dwellers.

Evaluation of coupling coordination degree and convergence behaviour of local development: A spatiotemporal analysis of all Polish municipalities over the period 2003–2019

This paper examines local development processes in the Polish municipalities between 2003 and 2019. In order to take into account the concept of sustainability, local development is represented by six dimensions: economy, demography, housing, society, infrastructure, and environment. First, using an index system and entropy weight method, the local development index (LDI) is calculated. Second, a coupling coordination degree (CCD) model is applied to study whether the processes of local development dimensions change in harmony. Thirdly, employing a convergence analysis, the studied municipalities are grouped into homogeneous clusters regarding LDI and CCD. Finally, the quadrant method and the ordered logit model are used to indicate directions for improvement in LDI and CCD. The research indicates that Polish local governments exhibit significant disparities in terms of LDI, whereby infrastructure and environment dimensions are the main obstacles to growth for the surveyed municipalities. Moreover, the CCD model shows that the vast majority of Polish municipalities are characterised by seriously or slightly unbalanced development, which also implies the conclusion that development processes in Polish municipalities cannot be called sustainable. Furthermore, club convergence analysis estimates inform that there are seven clubs in Poland in terms of LDI and five clubs in CCD. In addition, quadrant analysis reveals that, in general, urban municipalities belong simultaneously to the convergence clubs with high LDI and CCD. On the other hand, rural municipalities tend to be present in clubs with low LDI; therefore, they should take urgent pro-development measures. The latter is indicated through the identified main obstacles to local development as well as in the final stage of the empirical study through the estimation of ordered logit models.

Development of Innovation Economy - Activity of Local Government in Poland

Purpose: The paper aimed to check the activities of local governments contributing to the development of the innovation economy in Poland as well as to find the answer to the questions if local governments both support innovations, as well as implement innovations themselves. Moreover, the purpose of the paper was to find out if activities of local governments depend on their type (rural, urban, urban-rural) or not? Approach/Methodology/Design: In order to achieve that the method of desk research, quantitative and qualitative research were used. The first part of the research was based on a literature review and the second concerned the development of the survey questionnaire based on the literature review. The questionnaire survey was developed and the whole population (2479) of local governments in Poland, was investigated, in early - using the CAWI method. Findings: We have got the answers from 453 local governments. The conducted analysis showed what kind of innovation is undertaken by Polish local governments frequently, we also find out what kind of activities they undertake to increase the innovation economy. Practical Implications: LGUs should continue implementing the innovations resulting from ICT infrastructure and e-government at local level development. Both the world trends as well as last pandemic time confirmed the need of boosting innovations in this area. Secondly, the LG authorities should cooperate with business actors, coming from the other public sector, academia, and civil society. Originality/Value: The research has enabled to develop a conceptual understanding of the relationship between local government and innovative activities.

Communication Management within Community Relations by Local Governments in Poland

Purpose: The authors show the essence of communication management as part of public relations activities, carried out by specific market entities, such as local government units. Design/Approach/Methodology: This article is the result of a broad, although regional, research conducted in Poland in 2020. Findings: Based on the results of empirical research, the article shows the purposefulness and legitimacy of actions taken by Polish local governments in the field of communication with the market environment, in the context of the impact of community relations. Practical Implications: Local government units with activities referred to as territorial marketing are among the numerous spheres of social life in which the marketing method of management is revealed.

Cycles in a cycle: investment expenditures and their composition during the political budgetary cycle

ABSTRACT Previous studies on the Political Budgetary Cycle have used fiscal variables on high levels of aggregation, including, among others, investment expenditure aggregates or capital expenditure aggregates. This article demonstrates the existence of a Political Budgetary Cycle in investment expenditures among Polish local governments, and analyses the composition of investment expenditures during the cycle. Due to the varying visibility of investment expenditures, their composition is also subject to fluctuations. Before elections, there is an increase in investments in culture, tourism and transport infrastructure, and a drop in investments in public safety, education, environmental protection, sports and counteracting social exclusion.

Samorząd terytorialny – 30 lat doświadczeń samorządu (gminnego) w Polsce

The article is an attempt to summarise the achievements of local government in Poland reactivated in 1990, and the topics discussed in the article focus on development and functioning since 1808 Prussian urban reform, which is the organisational model for contemporary local government units in Europe. Much of the article is also devoted to the functioning of Polish local governments in the 1990s and early 2000s, preceding Poland’s accession to the European Union. The issue of the use of pre-accession funds and funds available after 2004 by local governments, which had a significant impact on infrastructure investments in Polish communes, districts and voivodship, was discussed in detail. On the basis of available reports, the article also presents an assessment of the achievements of local government in Poland over thirty years, with its successes and failures. The author also refers to the possibility of using this legacy by local governments of neighbouring countries aspiring to EU membership, mainly Ukraine.

Teleworking and Remote Work in Local Government Administration Management in Poland

Purpose: The research goal adopted in this article is to identify the factors determining remote work, as well as to determine the potential of this form of work in the context of increasing the functionality and efficiency of local government institutions not only in the daily work of these institutions, but above all in crisis situations. Design/Methodology/Approach: The research methodology was based on the construction of a research tool that would allow to collect data on remote work and teleworking in Polish local government administration. The research method used was related to an online survey, which was addressed to all members of the Union of Polish Metropolises (union of the 12 largest cities in Poland). Findings: The main conclusions from the analysis performed include: (1) implementation of tasks in the form of teleworking has not been the object of interest of Polish local governments so far; (2) more than a half of the surveyed local governments assessed positively the preparation of these units to remote work implementation in the period of the SARS-Cov-2 pandemic; (3) the experience regarding remote work gained during the pandemic shows that employees no longer fear this particular form of work. Practical implications: The result of the conducted research was to obtain information on the experience of the surveyed organizations in the field of remote work process implementation before the pandemic period, during its duration, as well as to consider this form of work in the future, taking into account the conclusions presented in the article. Originality/Value: The conducted research is the first of its kind carried out in Poland since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The obtained results are undoubtedly a valuable source of information on how to prepare Polish local governments to carry out work remotely.

Neighbour effect: applicability of tax mimicking concept to setting tariffs for water provision in Poland

Abstract In our paper, tariff mimicking is interpreted as a specific type of yardstick competition. Local authorities compete for political capital and, in order to maintain (or increase) it, they compare their voter-sensitive policies with the policies of other local governments. The phenomenon of mimicking is related to the subject of inter-jurisdictional interactions. We try to identify the phenomenon of mimicking in local fees for water provision in Poland in the period 2013–2017. Our empirical strategy is based on two methods: spatial lag regression and a quasi-experimental design using a difference-indifferences method. In the latter method, we first identify local governments that have considerably increased their tariffs for water. Next, we compare whether their immediate neighbouring municipalities are more likely to follow the change than a ‘control group’ of similar, more distant, local governments. The results of our study confirm the existence of geographical interactions in the tariff policies of Polish local governments. Furthermore the results of our regression models confirm that ‘mimicking interactions’ are stronger in the case of tariffs for water provision than for local tax policies.

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.

Results of European Union Cohesion Policy in Terms of Quality of Life Improvement on a Regional Level (as Exemplified by Eastern Poland)

The aim of the article is to evaluate the significance of the European Union funds supporting the cohesion policy, which the Eastern Polish local governments benefit from in order to improve their residents’ quality of life. Empirical data used in the research concerns five provinces located in Eastern Poland and the research data comes from the sources of the Polish Main Statistical Office in Warsaw. The temporal scope of the study encompasses the period 2004-2018. The choice of the spatial scope of the research is justified by the peripheral location of Eastern Poland, as well as the fact that this region benefits from the EU Programme financially supporting local government units. The article elaborates on the use of the EU funds aiming to enhance the cohesion policy performed by local governments of Eastern Poland and the residents’ opinion on the improvement of their quality of life. The research proves that the provinces of Eastern Poland are particularly qualified to gain financial funding from the European Union due to their lower level of Gross Domestic Product per capita compared to the country as a whole. According to the residents of Eastern Poland, their quality of life has improved and can be treated as comparable to the country’s average, even though slightly worse. The research confirms the elaboration’s hypothesis that the use of the EU funds by the local governments in Eastern Poland results in the increased country cohesion measured by the improvement of residents’ quality of life. This, in turn, constitutes a vital outcome of the European Union cohesion policy.

Subsidiarity, fiscal decentralisation and financial autonomy of local and regional governments in Poland – the past and the future

Background: Past changes in Polish local and regional governments’ financial autonomy give rise to the question whether local and regional governments in Poland still have sufficient finan­cial autonomy to perform in line with the requirements of the principle of subsidiarity. Dimen­sions of special concern are revenue as well as selected recent legislation changes’ potential future impact on Polish local and regional governments’ financial autonomy in terms of both revenue and expenditure.
 Research purpose: The main objective of the article is to reflect upon the notion of local and regional self-governance, and to critically assess the current degree of financial autonomy of local and regional governments in Poland.
 Methods: The article starts with a review of literature covering key concepts – subsidiarity, fiscal decentralisation, and local governments’ financial autonomy. Some of the approaches used to operationalise and measure financial autonomy are also highlighted and later used in the analysis and discussion.
 Conclusions: The article ends with a call for general debate on the future of local and regional governments in Poland as the past trends and expected future developments – in light of discussed legislation changes as well as the potential impacts of the covid-19 pandemic – demonstrate the gradual erosion of the local governance model, which was founded three decades ago on a prem­ise of strong financial autonomy.

Exploring bike-sharing systems in Poland co-financed from the European Union funds

In recent years, numerous Polish cities and municipalities have become involved in the creation of bike-sharing systems. Although the contribution of bike-sharing to creating sustainable transport caused some controversy in the literature, the positive role of cycling in promoting low-emission mobility and a healthy lifestyle is widely acknowledged. As part of the European Union’s sustainable transport agenda, some Polish local governments have obtained funding from structural funds for the implementation of bicycle-sharing schemes. This article presents an overview of selected systems, as well as a preliminary analysis of their users’ activity based on data obtained through a Web API. Although the scope of the data was limited in time due to the shutdown of the systems caused by the COVID-19 pandemic shortly after their spring reactivation, some patterns could be observed. In particular, users activity was more evenly distributed over time in larger cities (over 300 thousand of residents), whereas in smaller cities alternating periods of high and low activity was observed.

Incentives for the development of industrial parks (on the example of the border regions of Poland)

In the search for efficient decisions directed at the stimulation of regional development and improvement of regions’ innovativeness and investment attractiveness, the EU regions have long ago started paying attention to local communities. In particular, Polish local governments are granted an opportunity to conduct an active spatial policy of investment attraction using various instruments. In this context, the industrial parks play an important role among the created institutes of the business environment, because they create advantages for local communities and businesses. In particular, they promote investment attraction, entrepreneurship activation, employment and jobs increase, material cost minimization, etc. At the same time, the development of entrepreneurship environment institutes requires support at national, regional, and local levels. The development will be almost impossible without the creation of proper legal, political, economic, and social conditions for their activity. The paper aims to define major stimuli of industrial park development based on the Polish experience, the economic structure of which is similar to the Ukrainian one. This will contribute to the development of the ways to boost industrial park development in Ukraine, especially in the border areas. For the matter, the author outlines the major instruments used by Polish local communities to boost investment and entrepreneurship activity in the framework of industrial park development. The scientific paper emphasizes the analysis of legislation on creation, functioning, and support of Polish industrial park development, and further perspectives of their activity. Special attention is paid to general characteristics of the condition of industrial parks located in Polish border regions. The advantages of each of them are determined and examples of their creation and development are given. The research resulted in the allocation of two groups of stimuli of industrial parks development which are the precondition, according to the author, of industrial parks becoming the instrument of investment attraction, economic boost of the territories, and entrepreneurship activity growth: the stimuli of development of industrial parks’ organizational structure (public financial assistance; information and advisory support; grans of European funds; international cooperation / partnership; independent spatial policy at the local level) and the stimuli of entrepreneurship development in industrial parks (infrastructure (physical and soft); public financial assistance; tax incentives; investment grants; financial loans).

"Organizational Drivers of Performance Information Use: The Perspective of Polish Local Governments"

Performance management systems have been widely implemented in local governments and deliver performance information (PI) to enhance organizational learning and control. However, such information is not often used. This study examines the relations between the organizational factors that affect performance information use. The study employs the theories of information systems to distinguish the quality and usefulness of performance information from other organizational drivers of the use of performance information. Based on survey data from Polish local governments, the study searches for potential mediators of PI use by testing the relations between the most influential organizational capabilities that drive PI use. The findings suggest that there is a link between the quality and usefulness of performance information, and that other organizational capabilities that drive PI use are independent from quality and usefulness of PI. The study contributes to knowledge of how performance information is used in public organizations in a CEE country.

A Local Government Revenue System under Macroeconomic Pressure - The Case of Poland

This study analyses macroeconomic factors, especially the level of GDP and its changes, in terms of their impact on the revenues of Polish local governments from 1999 to 2016. The importance of the factors in managing local finances is growing because of the increasing threats of globalisation and economies becoming more vulnerable to exogenous shocks. This article attempts to identify the structural weaknesses of the local government revenue system in Poland in the context of macroeconomic circumstances. It follows from our research that the property tax and general state grants are relatively insensitive to GDP changes and that they are capable of ensuring local revenue stability during a crisis. Greater sensitivity to economic fluctuations is shown by shared income taxes. The study analyses Central Statistical Office and Eurostat data using an advanced research approach, the key elements of which are cointegration analysis and a vector error correction model.