Special District Research Articles

The effect of tenure on auditor realization rates

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to test whether the realization rate on audit engagements increases with auditor tenure in competitive markets, suggesting the presence of initial audit lowballing. Design/methodology/approach – Using regression analysis, we test this hypothesis with fee- and cost-related data from a sample of local governments audited by a single audit firm. Based on representations of the firm, we classify the audit market for the 127 cities, counties and school districts in our sample as competitive and the audit market for the 93 special district audits as non-competitive. Findings – As hypothesized, we find that in the competitive market, the realization rate on audit engagements increases with auditor tenure but does not do so in the non-competitive audit market. Research limitations/implications – We cannot identify the specific engagements which were subject to a competitive bidding process, so we rely on the auditor’s representation of competitiveness by entity type. Originality/value – To our knowledge, the central prediction of audit pricing models that the auditor’s realization rate increases with auditor tenure has not been tested in real audit markets because proprietary cost data are rarely available. Testing this prediction is the primary contribution of this paper.

The default of special district financing: Evidence from California

In response to a series of legislative measures curbing property tax revenues, special taxation districts emerged as a mechanism of financing public infrastructure by local governments in many U.S. states. Community facilities districts (CFDs) in California are but one example. These districts are financed by issuing a special type of land-secured municipal bonds known as CFD or Mello–Roos bonds, and levying special taxes to service the debt. Using a unique comprehensive data set on California CFD bond issues since the moment of their inception until 2006, we study the default experience of these largely nonrated bonds. Contrary to the general belief that the “dirt” CFD bonds are very risky, we find that their lifetime performance is at least as good as that of Standard and Poor’s B to BBB rated municipal bonds. Using duration analysis, we explore the dependence of the likelihood of CFD default on issue characteristics and macroeconomic and industry factors. We find that the state of local economy and construction industry are strong predictors of CFD default. The default is positively linked to the risk premium of the CFD bonds measured as the spread between their interest rate and the AAA rated general obligation municipal bonds yield index. We also find aging effects and relate them to stages of CFD development.

S2110102 青葉山キャンパス次世代移動体システム実証フィールド構築について

This paper introduces a concept to construct a practice field of advanced technologies on advanced mobility of autonomous driving and electric vehicles in Tohoku University Aobayama Campus by collaboration of Sendai City and Tohoku University Next-Generation Advanced Mobility System Research Project. From January to February 2015, the Cabinet Office in Japan Government raised proposals of special district for field operation test of advanced technologies. The authors performed a proposal named "the construction of the Aobayama campus next-generation advanced mobility system proving field" in cooperation with Sendai city. The proposal was accepted as the second designation of the national strategic special district, and the first of the regional rebirth special district. In this paper the contents of proposal and prospects are to be introduced.

W211003 自動運転システムに関する規制とイノベーション

The practical use of autonomous driving system is rapidly pushed forward as one of the nation's growth strategy which assumed Tokyo Olympic Games in 2020. However, the autonomous driving system is much more required to be proved and implemented in the district region with depopulation and aging to provide a way of daily transportation. In 2015, Sendai city "Social Innovation Creation Special District" was recognized as one of national strategy special ward, and practical research & development of autonomous driving systems and related advanced technologies will be performed by cooperation with Tohoku University. In this presentation, the deregulation and law revision issues and the prospects of expected innovation to be practiced and studied in this special district will be stated.

1P2-G05 搭乗型移動支援ロボット『ROPITS^[○!R]』の開発 : 類似画像検索による自己位置ロストからの回復

We are developing a mobility-support robot "ROPITS" traveling on pedestrian road autonomously to realize a next generation short-distance transportation system in compact-cities. In order to raise the level of autonomous navigating technologies to a practical use, we have made various experiments of autonomous running on the public pedestrian road in the Mobility Robot Experiment Special District in Tsukuba-city, Ibaraki prefecture. We found some places of this district having large position errors, caused by map-matching failures. Therefore, we introduce the recovery method. In this paper, we show the validity of our proposal method and comparison with existing technique.

Diversity, density and management of trees in different agro-forestry practices of Yem Special District, Southern Ethiopia

Conserving tree species diversity cannot be restricted to forest areas because of increasing encroachment to remaining forests. Agricultural landscapes can also maintain tree species diversity where the native habitats are heavily diminished and/or merit conservation. The present study was conducted in the agroforestry practices of Yem Special District, Southern Ethiopia, to determine the diversity, composition and density of trees, and assess farmers’ tree management practices. The data were collected through two consecutive field surveys involving structured household questionnaires administered in 126 households, and making inventory of the woody species. Data were analyzed using one way anova, and Chi-square, Kruskal-Wallis, and Mann-Whitney tests. The status of tree species richness and diversity were quantified for the different agroforestry practices. A total of 100 tree and shrub species belonging to 57 families and 83 genera were recorded in the different agroforestry practices of individual household farms, of which 11 (or 11%) were exotic and 89 (or 89%) native species. The mean value of tree species per household for the overall agroforestry practices was 14.04 and it was found to be significantly different among sites, mainly due to differences in agroecology and road access. Tree species richness was influenced by distance to major roads, wealth status, farm size and family size. The study revealed that the agroforestry practices contribute to the conservation of agrobiodiversity.

Ars Memoria'dan Postmnemonik Topluma: Levent-Gültepe'de Kayıp Zamanın İzinde

In this article I explore the change in the experience of time by focusing on a special district, Levent-Gultepe, more specifically Gultepe neighborhood and the urban renewal taking place in and around. I start from the deep impact of modernization in the organization of urban space and time, and respectively has its mark both in our understanding and experiences of daily life. Urban renewal in general or the urban renewal taking place in Gultepe area, in particular, is part of this modern upheaval. Having this in my mind, I made several visits to Levent-Gultepe district between 2013 and 2014 first out of curiosity, shortly after for ethnographic observations. In this article, I use the results of my ethnographic observations as well as vast literature on urban renewal in general, and specifically in Istanbul. I also resort to the Web. 2.0., which appear as the new memory places of our time. I exemplify the change in time and space in Gultepe with a couple of photos that I took in September, 2014. In this respect, I argue that urbanrenewal transforms the memory which I define as a capacity to remember and experience and open up this argumentfor discussion.

Advertising Arrangements: An Attempt in Improving the Visual Quality of Urban Areas

Advertisement plays a role to create an effective communication among societies and urban environment. Its existence has enabled urban society to access information. In the very dynamic era of Yogyakarta society today, advertisement undeniably has been becoming one of the essential components in modern urban landscape. However, inaccuracy of advertisement design conversely can emerge inconvenience and interruption for society. Again it can also lead to the decline of the urban visual quality. Advertisement regulation in Yogyakarta, therefore, is required. In this paper, a study on advertisement regulation in Yogyakarta is conducted using a descriptive-qualitative approach based on the analysis on the communication aspect and spatial aspect. The results are used in recommending for the advertisement regulation based on three criteria: aesthetics, ethics, and safety. Aesthetics is in consideration of cultural values suitable in Yogyakarta (Local Regulation of Special District of Yogyakarta (DIY) No.4/2011) and visual consideration (American Society of Landscape Architects, 1979). Meanwhile, ethics is in accordance with Government Regulation 109/2012 and Law No. 11 Year 2010 and safety, in turn, is in accordance with Government Regulations No. 34 year 2006 and Regulations on Building No. 28 Year 2002.

Pola makan, obesitas, dan frekuensi serangan pada pasien artritis gout

Background: Trend of gout arthritis prevalence is increasing every year. Obesity, high purine diet, especially from an animal source, are some risk factors for recurrent gout attacks.Objective: To evaluate the relationship between diet, obesity, and frequency of gout flares in gout arthritis patients.Method: This study was a cross-sectional study with patients from RSUP Dr. Sardjito, RSUD Wirosaban, RSUD Panembahan Senopati that ever diagnosed as gout arthritis within February 2010 - February 2012 which can be seen in the medical record and live in Special District of Yogyakarta with the full address provided, as the respondents of this study. The home visit was done for dietary assessment, waist circumference measurement, and interviewing the respondent about gout flares frequency during the last year.Results: Vitamin C consumption in the 1st and 2nd tertiles increase the odds to have any gout flare (OR=5.5; 95% CI: 1.08-27.77 and OR=1.5; 95% CI: 0.29-7.35, respectively). Obesity tends to increase the odds of having any gout flares up to 1.4 times (95% CI: 0,38-5,25).Conclusion: Low consumption of vitamin C significantly increases the odds of having any gout flares. The odds is also higher in patients with obesity, though this relationship is statistically insignificant.

How to Face Financial Reality: An Interdisciplinary Network Model of Local Governance Actors

Managing financial resources and financial obligations are essential to the implementation of good governance. In particular, the constituents and leaders in smaller local governments and not-for profit entities confront a host of challenges in understanding and communicating about their financial situation. Using insights from five disciplines (Governmental Accounting, Political Science, Network Sociology, Cognitive Psychology and Data Visualization), this paper develops a systematic approach to categorizing the main and supporting actors and how they perceive and communicate financial reality among themselves. The main actors are the Leaders, the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and the Constituents; the supporting actors are the Media, the Auditors and Outside Experts/Powers (OEP). The model is beneficial for both researchers and practitioners: researchers can more efficiently and rigorously conduct case studies regardless of sample size while practitioners can quickly and exhaustively map and respond to gaps in their overall governance systems. The model can be expressed mathematically in a series of equations or visually using a “triforce” network map. The paper concludes with example cases across different jurisdictional scopes (e.g. school district, city, special district, nonprofit, etc).

「水産業復興特区」による危機突破―石巻市桃浦地区の被災地漁業者の挑戦―

「水産業復興特区」による危機突破―石巻市桃浦地区の被災地漁業者の挑戦―

Special Assessment District's Ability to Fund Transit

This paper reviews four transit projects funded by using special assessment districts (SADs) across the United States. The paper examines the SAD revenue yield and stability and focuses on the actions taken by public agencies to enhance them; this examination results in three important findings. First, SAD revenues are highly stable and can be expected to generate large sums of money. However, as a proportion of project cost, such revenues might fund a small portion of capital-intensive transit projects such as heavy rail. Second, SAD revenues typically do not accrue up front because property owners have the option to pay the fee over time. Therefore, public agencies must rely on other funding sources (usually assessment fee-backed bonds) to address this revenue-expenditure mismatch. Finally, to ensure that assessment revenues do not decline in real dollars when paid over time, public agencies charge property owners interest, usually on the basis of the interest paid to service the assessment-backed bonds. Public agencies can take the following steps to enhance SADs’ revenue yield and stability. First, try to capture as large a portion of the property value increase as is politically feasible. Second, use SADs to demonstrate local community support for a transit project, thereby leveraging state and federal funds. Third, minimize the number of properties exempt from paying assessments. Fourth, minimize real estate market risks to SAD revenues by formulating a revenue calculation methodology based on factors other than or in addition to property value, such as a parcel's street frontage and size and a property's building area. In addition, the assessment fee could be a proportion of the property's previously assessed value or a proportion of a fixed property value increment. Fifth, ensure full payment of fees.

伝統的建造物群保存地区制度成立に至る議論から見た集落の保存概念

This paper aims to clarify preservation concepts of villages in the policy establishing process of preservation districts for groups of traditional buildings (hereinafter the Denken policy). The following three points were clarified. 1. The discussion about the relation among a preserved building, its regional bond and its surrounding environment developed the following new three policies in the law for the Protection of Cultural Properties in 1975. 1) enablement to designate the building site and its relating properties ( Clause 1, Article 2 ), 2) environmental conservation (Clause 1, Article 45) and 3) preservation districts for groups of traditional buildings (Clause 6, Article 2 and Article 142) 2. Ahead of the Denken policy, villages were preserved as historic sites by so called a freeze-preservation method; nevertheless, there were research theories and flexible conservation concepts to deal with "living" historic sites as whole historic living environments. 3. In the early period of the policy establishing process of the Denken policy, there were preservation concepts to define a historic living environment as a whole and preserve a special exterior district as part of it.

Study on the Condition of the Special Land Use District Designated since 1998

Study on the Condition of the Special Land Use District Designated since 1998

2A1-I02 広域空間における磁気収集を目的としたパーソナルモビリティロボットの開発(つくばモビリティロボット実験特区を活用した実証実験)

Many studies on autonomous mobile robots field have been worked. However, mobile robots which work in actual environments are not developed yet. We have developed a personal mobility robot which supports persons in civil environment. The robot can also collect magnetic data during driving. It is permitted that we conduct experiments with use of the robot in Tsukuba Mobility Robot Special District. In the report, the specification of the robot is described. Moreover, the possibility is indicated that a constructed magnetic map by the robot can be shared by other robots. Finally, we discuss about the knowledge obtained by developing the robot.

Study on Ethno Veterinary Practices in Amaro Special District Southern Ethiopia

Background: Ethno veterinary knowledge covers up people’s knowledge, skills, methods, practices and beliefs about the care of their animals and themselves, and has been used over many centuries. Aim: To documented traditional medicinal plants that used to prevent and control ailments in Amaro Special District, Southern Ethiopia. Method: A purposive sampling technique study was carried out using a semi-structured questionnaire, field observational and survey to document indigenous knowledge. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze and summarize the ethno-botanical data. A total of 24 herbalists aged between 35-69 years old, 71% were over 46 years old (elders) and 29% were between 35 and 45 years old (younger). The majority informants were males, 87.5% and the experiences year from 29-32 years were 58.33% and the remaining 41.67% were from 5-20 years. Result: Twenty four medicinal plants against a total of 29 animal and human ailments were reported and botanically identified as belonging to 24 plant families. Most frequently used plants were from Solanaceae (16.67%), Lamiaceae (12.5%), Fabaceae (8.33%), Cucurbitaceae (8.33%) and Asteraceae (8.33%). The medicinal plant parts that were more commonly utilized for the preparation of ethno veterinary medicines were leaves (41.67%), roots (25%) and bark (12.5%). The findings showed that herbaceous accounted for 41.67%, followed by trees (29.17%), climbers (16.67%) and shrubs (12.5%). 83.33% of medicinal plants reported were collected from wild habitats and 16.67% from home garden. The preparations were applied through oral administration accounted for (58.3%), followed by topical application (29.17%). The identified and documented medicinal plants predominantly used to animal ailments treatment (65%) and followed by human and animal aliments (both) treatment (25%). Conclusion: The people of the district have sound ethno veterinary knowledge and practices for preventing and controlling their animal and themselves from ailments, but this facing the risk of disappearing due tocombined effect factors. So, training on the awareness creation and rising and documentation are highly recommended. Scientific investigations should be carried out to ascertain their effectiveness of the identified medicinal plants used in animal and human health management.

搭乗型移動ロボットのための移動リスク低減アルゴリズムとつくば市ロボット特区における実証実験

搭乗型移動ロボットのための移動リスク低減アルゴリズムとつくば市ロボット特区における実証実験

The implantation process of oral health services in indian communities of the rivers Tiquié and Uaupés – special indian sanitary district for the Alto Rio Negro – Amazonas

This study reconstitutes the implantation process of oral health services in Indian communities of the rivers Tiquie and Uaupes – Special Indian Sanitary District for the Alto Rio Negro – Amazons. In the political, administrative, anthropological and socioeconomic context, it aims at identifying its contribution to the organization of basic attention in oral health and its reflexes in the assistance provided. The reality in the realm of contracts 439/99 and 2349/00 is established as a recut, celebrated between Fundacao Nacional de Saude and the Associacao Saude Sem Limites in the period of 2000 – 2001 which object is the organization of health services in the Tiquie and Uaupes rivers area, in the implantation process context at the Rio Negro’s Special Indian Sanitary District. It reveals the strategical dimension of establishing, in the field of organization and operation of the services, the guiding principles of Unique Health System. It points out, as fundamental in the oral health basic attention, the local planning, with emphasis in a greater visualization of life reality of the local population. Its daily practice reflects the restrictions regarding the political, technical and administrative sectors in order to define projects propose intervention mechanisms, allocate and manage the existing resources and the potential ones including human resources. It is necessary that the managers assume the challenges of power, work and knowledge relations between the population and the professionals and among different groups of these segments.

68 Injury related death of production worker in Shenzhen from 2007–2011

ObjectivesThere are many production workers in Shenzhen, a city of immigrants, which is a public problem, should be concerned. This study aimed to explore the nature of injury related death...

Knowledge About Malaria, and Coverage and Utilization Pattern of Mosquito Nets in Pawe Woreda, Northwest Ethiopia: A Community Based Survey

Malaria is a major public health problem and the leading communicable disease in Ethiopia. Interruption of contact between humans and mosquitoes through the use of insecticide-treated mosquito nets (ITNs) is an encouraging approach to protect people from malaria infection. This paper reflects on how people in an area of seasonal malaria, perceive the cause and transmission of the disease, and also assesses the coverage and utilization pattern of long-lasting insecticidal mosquito nets (LLINs) in Pawe special District, Beneshangul-Gumuz National Regional State, Northwest Ethiopia. Both a cross-sectional household survey using a pre-tested interviewer administered semi-structured questionnaire and qualitative methods, including focus group discussions (FGDs) and key-informant interviews were employed in the data collection. Data were collected primarily from mothers. Although the study revealed that the Pawe community largely believes malaria to be preventable, the majority of the respondents could not correctly answer the cause, transmission and diagnosis methods of malaria. The survey also showed that 427 (98.8%) respondents reported to own at least one mosquito net. In conclusion, it is recommended that efforts on the prevention and control of malaria should be enhanced by increasing awareness of the community about the correct cause; transmission and diagnosis methods; appropriate utilization of mosquito nets, and on the nature of LLINs. Keywords : malaria, insecticide-treated mosquito nets, utilization pattern, Beneshangul-Gumuz, Northwest Ethiopia