Reduction Of Administrative Burdens Research Articles

Challenges of Cohesion Policy at the Level of the European Union - Simplification Tools

Abstract Economic and social cohesion ensures security among the priorities of the European Union, being among the key objectives of European and national policies. Therefore, the center-periphery development model specific to the European economy emphasized the need for public interventions to favor regional growth and convergence, highlighting the importance and complexity of the European cohesion policy. This article starts from the empirical study of cohesion policies at the European level and has as its main purpose the determination of simplification solutions and their implementation in favor of the member states. Among the main scientific research methods used in order to elaborate the paper, we can mention: the comparison method, which was used especially to highlight the differences between the socio-economic situation of the regions and the member states, which joined the European Union in different waves; the historical method - was used to capture the evolution of the Cohesion Policy, the descriptive method - was used to present the programming periods of the Cohesion Policy within the European Union. It can be observed that, at the level of the European Union, the need to coordinate, standardize and simplify the cohesion policy is an often-discussed topic, with the constant aim of identifying new methods to make this policy more efficient. In this context, the new regulations establish tools to ease the life of the executing authorities and beneficiaries, such as, among others: clearer eligibility conditions, simplification of reporting and audit checks, reduction of administrative burdens, unification of rules.

Exploring the feasibility and acceptance of an optimised physiotherapy approach for lateral elbow tendinopathy: a qualitative investigation within the OPTimisE trial

ObjectivesTo explore the acceptability of an optimised physiotherapy (OPTimisE) intervention for people with lateral elbow tendinopathy (LET) and feasibility of comparing it to usual care in a randomised controlled trial.DesignSemistructured...

Types of administrative burden reduction strategies: who, what, and how

Abstract This article contributes to the growing body of research on administrative burdens by providing a theoretically and empirically driven typology of governments’ burden reduction strategies. Despite the mounting interest in burden reduction, the literature still lacks a typology for systematically identifying and classifying such strategies. The article identifies three analytical dimensions of burden reduction: distributive (who bears the burden), intensiveness (what the level of burden is), and relational (how burden is experienced in bureaucratic encounters). Based on these dimensions, and drawing on a systematic analysis of the case of social security in Israel, we identify, define, and characterize seven distinct strategies of burden reduction: shifting, sharing, discarding, simplifying, expediting, communicating, and respecting. The article concludes with a discussion of these strategies, their applicability, practical implications, and directions for the research agenda on burden reduction.

Can sustainable development goals go hand in hand with economic growth? Evidence from Morocco

This study investigates the influence of implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on the economic growth of Morocco. The main purpose is to empirically verify whether the pursuit of sustainable development goals can go hand in hand with economic growth. Employing a robust least squares regression, this paper analyzed carefully chosen data that closely aligns with the essence of the SDG indicators. The findings reveal a positive correlation between financial inclusion and financial stability and the economic growth. Conversely, the poverty reduction exerts a positive effect on economic growth, while the quality of education does not sufficiently account for changes in GDP. Moreover, the estimates indicate a favorable outcome stemming from the enhancement of institutional quality, reflected in improved economic freedoms, as well as the reduction of administrative burdens, both of which positively contribute to economic growth. Furthermore, the results demonstrate a negative impact of renewable energy and a negligible influence of energy efficiency on Morocco’s economic growth. The negative impact of renewable energy can be attributed to a number of sources, including high initial costs, structural changes in the industry and the need to set up infrastructure for production. The positive effects of adopting renewable energies on economic growth can take time to be realized over the very long term.

ПОДДЕРЖКА МАЛОГО И СРЕДНЕГО ПРЕДПРИНИМАТЕЛЬСТВА В ЭКВАДОРЕ И РОССИИ: СРАВНИТЕЛЬНЫЙ АНАЛИЗ

This article presents the results of a study of support measures and state regulation of small business in Ecuador and the Russian Federation. The article provides a comparative analysis of the criteria for classifying economic entities as micro-enterprises, small and medium-sized companies, measures of state support for small businesses in these countries. The development of small business is the most important link in the economy of Russia and Ecuador; for this purpose, an effective system of its state regulation and support is needed. In Russia, in order to support small businesses, such tools as the issuance of preferential loans, the introduction of credit holidays, limits on commissions for acquiring, a moratorium on scheduled inspections, postponement of tax payments and reporting, reduction of admin-istrative burden, subsidies for starting a business, and new measures to support the information technology sector. In Ecuador, on the other hand, a set of laws and agencies has been developed to plan, execute and control public policies related to business development in general and for small and medium-sized organizations. The state has also developed special economic measures, including the creation of an entrepreneurship platform, a unified craft register, a unified register of small and medium-sized business entities, a national register of entrepreneurs, a portfolio of services for entrepreneurs and the Ecuador Entrepreneur virtual platform.

ПОДАТКОВЕ АДМІНІСТРУВАННЯ І КОНТРОЛЬ В КОНТЕКСТІ ЗАБЕЗПЕЧЕННЯ ЕКОНОМІЧНОГО РОЗВИТКУ СУБ’ЄКТІВ ГОСПОДАРСЬКОЇ ДІЯЛЬНОСТІ

The article examines the current system of tax administration in Ukraine. The purpose of the study is to determine areas for improving tax administration. The information base of the research is the works of domestic and foreign scientists, regulatory and legal documents. Digitalization is a determining factor in business today. The development of information technologies provides new powerful tools for both business and government agencies. Digitalization of tax administration and control will improve the interaction between taxpayers and tax authorities. Digitalization will reduce the costs of tax administration and control and increase the speed and quality of tax services. World practice shows that the tax authorities of various countries are increasingly using modern information collection and analysis technologies. The main types of digital technologies that can be applied in tax administration and control include: Artificial intelligence, Machine vision, Robotic process automation, Cloud computing, Big data, Blockchain, Cognitive automation, Data cubing. The expected result of digitalization of tax administration and control includes: reduction of administrative burden and administrative barriers; expanding the ability of taxpayers to self-service, which will reduce the costs of tax authorities' personnel; formation of trust relations between tax authorities and taxpayers; reduction of time spent on data processing and information exchange; reducing the risks of technical errors; increasing the speed of searching for necessary documents; strengthening control of individual operations of taxpayers; the possibility of remote control; reduction of time for conducting tax audits and reduction of their number; improving the quality of inspections. Under the conditions of digitalization, the shadow economy will be reduced, the openness of information will create obstacles for committing tax offenses, and this will increase tax revenues for budgets of various levels, digitalization will create conditions for voluntary compliance with tax legislation by taxpayers.

Evaluation of e-Government Information and Services among Students in the City of Wroclaw

Undoubtedly, information and communication technologies (ICT) have brought tangible changes not only in the way people communicate on an interpersonal level but also with government offices. Hence, ICT are an enabling tool for the state government to rebuild its relations with citizens by providing better and easier access to the government-related information and services. The efficiency of ICT is acknowledged by almost all states and actions are taken to establish robust e-government system. Surveys, exploring benefits of the implementation of e-government, basically reach to positive conclusions about the consequences of implementation of e-government. It is argued that e-government influences reduction of administrative burden, decrease of repetition of the same administrative procedure, increase financial benefits for the state and citizens. Moreover, e-government increases satisfaction from the government by providing less timeconsuming, easy and cheap e-services. However, currently there is still scarcity of data to what extent citizens are satisfied with e-government information and services based on the above-mentioned criteria. With the purpose of assessing the quality of e-information and e-services and satisfaction with them among the students an online survey has been run. 100 participants, studying at the University of Wroclaw, Wroclaw Medical University, Wroclaw University of Economics and Business evaluated their access to e-information and e-services used by them on e-government website. The survey shows that most of therespondents are somewhat satisfied with e-information found on the local government website. When it comes to evaluation of e-services by three criteria; time effectiveness, cost effectiveness and user-friendliness(easiness), most of the respondents are not sure that e-services are less timeconsuming or cheap compared to offline ones, while most of them find e-services quite easy to get.

Реформа контрольно-надзорной деятельности: как построить систему управления рисками в сфере высшего образования?

The reform of control and supervision activities, which began in 2019, implies a significant revision of the mandatory requirements system, as well as reduction of administrative burden through introducing a risk-based approach. This article analyzes results of inspections carried out by The Federal Service for the Supervision of Education and Science (Rosobrnadzor), as well as data from monitoring the activities efficiency of higher education institutions in 2015–2019. Based on this analysis, the authors identify a list of indicators that can be used as risk indicators in transition to risk-oriented regulation of educational activities of higher educational establishments.

Singular or plural? Administrative burden and doing business in China

Under what configuration of factors does administrative reform improve a business environment? What role does administrative burden play in government-business interactions? This article approaches these questions by examining the configuration of administrative reforms in the Chinese context and exploring administrative burden reduction through a new analytic framework. By analyzing provincial empirical data with the fsQCA method, we found that administrative reform could help improve a business environment by way of three pathways: the balance-developed path, the reform-oriented path, and the resource-driven path. Promoting a business environment is plural rather than singular. And, administrative burden reduction is the mechanism underlying this process. This configuration study of administrative reform and business environment construction in China not only adds to our understanding of administrative burden theory but also offers practitioners several pathways towards a higher quality business environment.

Цифровизация контроля за трансграничным движением капитала российских резидентов — физических лиц

The article discusses the main directions of creating the global system of control over the payment of taxes on income received by residents of some states from sources in other states. One of this directions is the development of technical solutions.
 The author comes to the conclusion that information technologies give the state wide opportunities in counteracting financial violations. At the same time, these opportunities should contribute to the further development of a risk-based approach, to the administrative burden reduction on the residents, as well as to improvement of the position of bona fide taxpayers.

Public Administration Reform in Bulgaria: Top-down and Externally-driven Approach

The article examines public administration reform (PAR) in Bulgaria and the main factors that shaped the reform agenda and dynamics. PAR is examined along five key dimensions – transparency and accountability, civil service and human resources management (HRM), public service delivery and digitalisation, organisation and management of government, and policy-making coordination and implementation. The article argues that there are four main factors influencing reform dynamics and determining policy outcomes in the Bulgarian case: the specific political choices made by government elites, external influence of the EU and of past national legacies, and the importance of institutions and reform mechanisms. To illustrate these factors at work, the article examines three policy initiatives, i.e. e-government, the reduction of administrative burden, and civil service reform. The article presents a longitudinal analysis and a qualitative case-study approach, utilising Annual Reports on the Status of the Public Administration 2001–2018, mapping European Semester Documents 2011–2017, an inventory of PAR initiatives 2005–2018, and interviews of public officials. The pushes for reform have been top-down, externally-driven, and stop-and-go in nature. The results confirm previous findings that Bulgaria is among the EU countries with the poorest record in PAR, struggling to overcome communist legacies and high levels of corruption and politicisation. The Bulgarian case highlights several important lessons: the importance of political will and political dynamics for the outcome of reform efforts; the importance of external pressure and financing; the difficulty of uprooting long-standing legacies in administrative traditions; and the limitations of the top-down approach as an obstacle to the sustainability of reform efforts.

Evaluation of the business environment quality through the perception of business as part of the ongoing reform of the state supervisory oversight reform

Purpose: the current research aims to study the influence of the subjective perception of control and supervisory activities by regional business on the business environment quality as part of the ongoing state control and supervisory activities reform. The article has solved the following tasks: key factors determining the quality of the business environment and the perception by entrepreneurs of the state economic policy have determined; entrepreneurs' perception of the state activity in reforming state control (supervision) in the Tver region has assessed; main problems arising during the implementation of state control (supervision) measures have identified ); ways have proposed t for their elimination.Methods: study based on systematization and analysis of the results of sociological polls to assess the impact of state and municipal control (supervision) on business, which conducted in Tver region for three years (from 2016 to 2018) and covered more than three hundred heads of small, medium and large enterprises of all municipalities of the region. Content analysis of the regulatory framework and economic and statistical evaluation of the results of sociological surveys carried out; tabular and graphical data visualization methods applied.Results: despite the implementation of the reform and the reduction in the number of inspections in Tver region, an analysis of the results of a survey of entrepreneurs indicates a contradictory situation in the administrative conditions of the business environment. There is no reduction in the administrative burden on business in the subjective perception of entrepreneurs. At the same time, the firm orientation of inspectors for the collection of fines and the fiscal orientation of inspections remains.Conclusions and Relevance: conceptual approach to the implementation of the ongoing reform of state control and supervision activities involves the identification and elimination of administrative barriers with the active participation of the business community. Entrepreneurs do not feel the reduction of administrative burden on business according to their subjective perception. The perception of control and supervisory measures by business representatives determines the quality of the business environment, which has a significant impact on the motivation and performance of business entities. There is no change in the fundamental model for the implementation of state control and supervisory activities according to the business community.

Digital Service Maturity: Development of an e-Cohesion-Specific Model

This paper presents a new approach to measure the impacts of e-government concepts on the reduction of administrative burdens, in the domain of European fund management.The present European legislation specifies that Member States shall provide online portal services for beneficiaries to reduce the administrative burdens of cohesion policy. This concept is marked with the term “e-Cohesion” in the scientific discourse. Based on former studies, the concept has several attributes that leverage its impact on burden reduction. Nevertheless, the level of their influence has not been underpinned by evidence-based research yet.The present paper has three main aims. First, to present the methodology and findings of an international research on the capabilities and impacts of e-Cohesion portals. Second, to evaluate the relevance of the above attributes based on these findings. Third, to make suggestions for the development of an e-Cohesion specific maturity model to measure the effectiveness of electronic portals.

ECohesion: How to measure the main drivers of administrative burden reduction

This paper presents a new approach to measure the effects of e-government concepts on the reduction of administrative burdens, in the domain of European fund management.
 The topic may receive considerable interest since the present European legislation specifies that Member States shall provide online portal services and offer paperless fund management possibilities for beneficiaries in order to reduce the administrative burdens of cohesion policy. This concept is marked with the term “eCohesion” in the scientific discourse. Based on former studies, the concept has several micro- and macro-level attributes that leverage its effectiveness and impact on burden reduction. Nevertheless the level of their influence has not been underpinned by evidence based research yet. Consequently this paper outlines a research design for the measurability and impact assessment of the above attributes.
 The development of the research design is based on the Standard Cost Model, the widely-used methodology for the measurement of administrative burdens. The present paper applies the model to the attributes of eCohesion by formulating research hypotheses in order to make them measurable and to assess their relevance. The design created paves the way for a further quantitative research and methodologically supports Member States in developing a deeper understanding of the nature of eCohesion.

Interoperability: how to improve the management of public financial resources

The article deals with the application of interoperable digital solutions in the domain of public financial management in order to improve the effectiveness of administrative procedures.
 The practical relevance of the topic is derived from the Digital Single Market Strategy for Europe which promotes the interconnection of public portals to elevate the added value of the digitisation of public services. The interconnection of portals and electronic registers can notably facilitate the reduction of administrative burdens, foment the creation of new digital services and contribute to the creation of the Digital State. Nonetheless, there has been little research on how it works in practice and on its impact on the efficiency of public financial management.
 The paper systematically reviews the main concepts of public financial management and the relevant strategies on the interoperability of public services. Based on this, it aims to analyse a series of Hungarian practices on interoperability to identify success factors that could support the design of new digital solutions to improve the management of public financial resources.

E-Cohesion maturity: How to measure the efficiency of digital cohesion policy

This paper focuses on the maturity of e-government services on the domain of European fund management, to explore the measurability of potential efficiency gains.
 The practical relevance of the topic is that the current European legislation prescribes that Member States shall offer electronic fund management services to beneficiaries to foment the efficient use of European Structural and Investment Funds. The main driver of this concept is the reduction of administrative burdens which can be achieved by the Europe-wide utilization of paperless fund management tools and by harnessing the interoperability of information systems. In the scientific discourse, the above concept is labelled as “e-Cohesion”. However, the legislation sets quite broad requirements for its implementation, so the e-Cohesion landscape and the intended efficiency gains may appreciably differ from country to country. The exploration of this “digital efficiency divide” offers a new relevant research opportunity. Therefore, this article is dealing with the measurability of efficiency of e-tools to methodologically support Member States in the realization and fine-tuning of their national e-Cohesion concepts.
 It is presented in this paper that the level of potential efficiency gains is connected to e-government readiness, i.e. the maturity of e-Cohesion systems. The paper, therefore, systematically reviews the relevant e-Government literature on the issue of maturity. Based on this, it aims to identify the most important models and methodological elements which address the main attributes of e-Cohesion to pave the way for further empirical research and the creation of an e-Cohesion-specific maturity model.

Implementation of the Once Only Principle in a Maritime Domain

The document entitled Study on eGovernment and the Reduction of Administrative Burden indicates three ways to reduce administrative burdens in Europe: implementation of the once-only principle, simplification and personalisation strategies and digital-by-default strategies. The implementation of the once-only principle should be the first step towards reducing administrative burdens, as this principle lays the foundations for the other two strategies. Without the implementation of the once-only principle, it will not be possible to simplify administrative procedures for citizens and businesses, nor will it be possible to digitalize them. Numerous measures are being taken in Europe to put the once-only principle into practice, but they primarily focus on the implementation of this principle at the national level. For the first time, the TOOP project undertook to develop a technical solution that will enable the implementation of the once-only principle at the European (cross-border) level. What is important, this solution will be practically tested by the countries participating in the project. The fact that implementation of the once-only principle is becoming a priority in the EU, as evidenced by the fact that this principle is included in the Proposal for a Regulation on establishing a Single Digital Gateway should be assessed positively. Combining the efforts undertaken at the European Commission level within the framework of proposed legislative initiatives and in the Member States under the projects such as the TOOP project should bring visible benefits for citizens and entrepreneurs in the near future. The scale of these benefits can be very huge, as is shown by estimates indicating that the implementation of the once-only principle in Europe could generate annual savings of €5 billion.

Recent Regional Developments in Red Tape Reduction – A Content Analysis of Web of Science Journals

The economic crisis has led to slowdowns in both national and wider regional economies. A comparatively successful approach to mitigate its impacts is red tape or administrative burden reduction through procedural and other simplifications. This paper explores the relevant public policies examined in 70 scientific articles, classified in the Web of Science under “red tape” or “administrative burden” and related terms and published between 2013 and 2015. The study focuses on the understanding of red tape in terms of regional relevance, dominant doctrinal and disciplinary framework and types of cooperation in research, in an attempt to identify inter-boundaries dialogue as a means of cross-regional learning. The research findings show a prevailing field role of economic, managerial and procedural measures since red tape reduction is most often considered within organizational performance and the neo-liberalistic doctrines. Moreover, cooperation between regions is low, the geographic focus is rather limited, and there is little evidence of collaboration between scholars and practitioners as well as a low practical applicability of research. This means that more holistic policies to withstand economic slowdowns and pursue sustainable societal development are less effective than they would be if they were grounded in inter-regional cooperation and good governance interdisciplinarity.

Administrative Burden Reduction Policies in Slovenia Revisited

Abstract This article explores non-stimulating regulatory environment that can effect economic activities. Specific focus is on the so-called administrative burdens as it has been established that administrative burden reduction is an internationally used policy with questionable outcomes. This is tested on a case study of Slovenian administrative burden reduction policy concluding that administrative burdens are mostly considered unnecessary but to some extent (34.5%) also necessary, however, as a subject of possible optimisation. The most burdensome is time spent in order to comply with regulation, following successiveness of the burdens (one following the other). Additionally,based on the case study policy, we can conclude that businesses are not well informed about government administrative burden reduction policies.

E-Government for Lowering Administrative Burden: An Empirical Research on European Rural Businesses

ABSTRACTAdministrative burden reduction is in the policy agenda in European countries and international organizations. The objectives of this article are to measure administrative burden of rural businesses in three European case studies and to assess the use of semantic electronic government services for its reduction. The main findings are that rural businesses do not perceive the administrative burden significance for entrepreneurship; public administration could implement semantic electronic government services to reduce rural businesses’ administrative burden; and future administrative burden reduction policies should take into account the type and location of businesses to achieve an efficient business environment.