Union Administration Research Articles

Sub-national bureaucracies in the European administrative space

ABSTRACT An important stream of research has developed focusing on the embedding of national central government institutions into an emerging multilevel European Union (EU) administration. The role of sub-national governmental institutions within this integrated administration has however received relatively little attention. Assuming that sub-national bureaucracies are key vehicles in the ‘ground-level’ practicing of supranational law, this study examines how sub-national bureaucrats may find themselves in situations where they balance contending preferences and concerns of multiple, and competing, principals. Benefiting from original survey data gathered in Norwegian and Swedish municipalities, we assess how the notion of ‘multi-hatted’ bureaucratic agents noted in the multilevel union administration literature can be transferred to the sub-national level and provide insights into how sub-national bureaucrats relate to multiple principals and how policy conflicts are resolved in the ‘ground level’ implementation of supranational law.

Small-Dollar Loans in the U.S.: Evidence from Credit Bureau Data

Small-dollar loans were brought into the spotlight in March 2020, when five agencies—the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)—issued a joint statement encouraging their supervised financial institutions to offer such loans to consumers and small businesses in response to the onset of the pandemic.

“Down the Left Hand Path to Perdition”: Equity, the Actors Forum, and Anti-Communism

The Actors’ Equity Association (AEA) is rightly praised for its actions during the height of McCarthyism; certainly, its record of protecting its members far surpasses that of other entertainment unions, including the Screen Actors Guild. A closer look at the AEA archive, however, reveals that the union’s support for its blacklisted members was tempered by its strong anti-communist bent. This position first developed in the 1930s, when the administration was locked in a power struggle with the Actors Forum, a vocal faction within the union that many thought was run by communists. This essay first analyzes the union administration’s reactions to the Forum’s perceived “radicalism” during the 1930s and then addresses how these responses anticipated its treatment of the many ex-Forumites blacklisted two decades later. Among the questions raised by tensions between these two groups are: How do Equity’s clashes with the Forum complicate its legacy as one of the few unions to resist the blacklist and in what ways do they illustrate the increasingly difficult choices the anti-communist left faced during this era?

Türk İş Hukukunda Geçmişten Gününüze Sendika Yöneticisinin Güvencesi

The assurance of trade union administration is first included in our legislation through Trade Union Law no. 274, in 1963. Assurance, in conformity with the purpose of the law, was not enabled between the period when the law no. 274 was enacted and the year 2012, when the law no. 6356 was enacted. Therefore, provisions regulating the assurance of trade union administrators have gone through major changes. In this article we will try to examine the legal framework of the professional and amateur trade union administrators reorganized in the period between Unions of 274 and Unions of 6356 and the Collective Labor Law, and we will explain the assurance and legal consequences which are provided later.

New Local Government System: A Step Towards Community Empowerment?

Failure of the central/provincial governments to adequately capture local preferences and provide basic services strengthened the case for a new local government system for delivery of public services along with the authority to impose fees, taxes, user charges, etc. to finance these services. The new System aims at transferring political, administrative and fiscal powers1 from higher tiers of the government to lower tiers (Figure 1) in order to bring governments closer to common citizens for greater accountability and better understanding of the needs and preferences of people. National Reconstruction Bureau (NRB) was entrusted the task of designing a local government system which presented its first blue print in the form of “Devolution Plan 2000”. As a result of this exercise a new Local Government System has been installed in Pakistan on 14th August 2001 after the promulgation of Local Government Ordinance 2001 by all the four Provinces. The new System comprises a District Government or a City District Government and Zila Council in a district, Tehsil Municipal Administration and Tehsil Council in a tehsil (a Town Municipal Administration and Town Council in a town in a city district) and Union Administration and Union Council in a union. Village/Neighbourhood councils provide an interface with the lowest tier of the Local Government (Union Administration) with the community.

Lobbying in the UK: Towards Robust Regulation

Abstract This article argues that the transparency regime regulating the activities of lobbyists in the UK and the devolved administrations fails to address the core problems of political lobbying and should be replaced. This is particularly important following Brexit because the regulatory landscape will change significantly in the years to come. The Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014 establishes a registry-based system of regulating lobbyists seeking to communicate with the government in Westminster. The Scotland (Lobbying) Act 2016 establishes a similar system, with calls for a lobbying register in Wales also growing. Analyses of existing laws reveal several flaws with those registry-based systems resulting in inadequate levels of transparency. To remedy the shortfall and to get transparency right, this article argues for two changes. First, a more robust register for professional lobbyists premised on greater transparency that is harmonised for Westminster and the devolved administrations. Secondly, the creation of a centralised public website acting as the official forum for advocacy tied to specific legislative proposals.

Comparison of the effects of co-transplantation of bone marrow hematopoietic stem cells and thymic multipotent stromal cells on the immune system of mice depending on methods

Physical interaction of multipotent stromal cells (MSCs) and hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) is a modern approach to effective and focused changes in the properties of HSCs. Resulting of those contact interaction is significant activation of cells with following immune system restoration.
 The purpose of the study is to investigate the effect of co-transplantation of bone marrow hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) and thymic multipotent stromal cells (MSCs) separately and as a union of cells on regeneration of the murine immune system, damaged by cyclophosphamide.
 MSCs were obtained from thymuses of C57BL mice using explant technique. Bone marrow cells (BMCs) were obtained by flushing out the femur with a nutrient medium. BMCs were cocultivated for 2 hours on the monolayer of thymus-derived MSCs. The immune deficiency of mice was modelled by the treatment with cyclophosphamide (CP). After that, the cells were co-transplanted in two methods (separately into different the retroorbital sinus and as a union after co-cultivation) and the parameters of the immune system were evaluated. It was shown, that separate co-transplantation of BMCs and thymus-derived MSCs is associated with the restoration of the number of bone marrow cells, thymus, spleen and lymph nodes with an increase in the proliferation index of lymph node cells by 1.4 times compared to control. It normalized the previous reduced concentration of hemoglobin and hematocrit in the blood. Co-transplantation had a suppressive effect on the blast transformation reaction, induced by phytohemagglutinin, by 4.3 times, but showed a stimulating effect on DTHR response by 1.6 times compared to control.
 Co-transplantation of the union of BMCs and MSCs is associated with the restoration of the number of bone marrow cells, spleen and lymph nodes. The level of spontaneous apoptosis of lymph node cells significantly increased by 3.3 times compared to control. It had not effect on hematological parameters, but is activated to impact the immune system. Thus, as a result of cells union administration showed normalization of the bactericidal activity of peritoneal macrophages, unlike the separate co-transplantation. This cells graft had a suppressive effect on the number of antibody-producing cells in the spleen by 4.2 times compared to control.
 Previous co-cultivation and contact interaction of cells change the properties of cell graft. The effect of co-transplantation of BMCs and thymic MSCs is not a simple additive effect of cells. It is acquiring the features typical to certain cell types, and the expression of new characteristics. We assume this phenomenon as a result development of complex cells cooperative processes in vivo and in vitro

Judicial Annulment of National Preparatory Acts and the Effects on Final Union Administrative Decisions: Comments on the Judgment of 29 January 2020, Case C-785/18 Jeanningros, EU:C:2020:46

The European Court of Justice's classic Borelli doctrine concerned administrative procedures where national authorities adopt preparatory acts which are binding upon the Union administration. In such cases, preparatory acts cannot be reviewed by Union courts as part of the review of the final Union decision and must instead be reviewed by national courts. Jeanningros provided the Court of Justice with an opportunity to clarify one of Borelli's remaining loose ends – the question of whether national courts should review the national preparatory acts even if the Union administration has already adopted the final decision. The Court answered in the affirmative, but nevertheless left new open questions for legal practice and scholarship to confront.

Biurokratyczne załatwianie spraw

The article presents the issue of a bureaucratic disposal of matters by public administration authorities. The letter of dissatisfaction was introduced into Polish law as early as 1950. It was an expression of a negative attitude towards red tape. The prohibition of a bureaucratic disposal of matters is a guideline for the entire public sector. Bureaucracy is the negative behavior of officials: learned helplessness, routine, prejudices against applicants, assurance, conformism, and excessive formalism. The legislator’s pejorative assessment does not refer to bureaucracy itself, but to red tape as a dysfunction of bureaucracy. Red tape is the result of organizational culture. The article presents the model of Weberian bureaucracy and a critique of it. The provisions obliging officials to act in an fair, impartial, reasonable and proper manner are discussed, and the example is given of proper, open, efficient and independent European Union administration. The tool that determines bureaucracy is the document. The creation of excessive amounts of documents, as a manifestation of bureaucracy (red tape), is closely related to the development of office techniques. However, the development of information technology and the dissemination of electronic communication channels have changed the face of bureaucracy. The direct contact between an official with an applicant is changing into screen-level bureaucracy, with the claimant’s application being handled by the IT system. The official’s discretionary power has Hus been significantly reduced. The development of e-administration eliminates inappropriate actions of officials. However, a new type of bureaucracy is emerging by IT experts. Art. 227 of the Code of Administrative Proceedings can become a protective measure against theformalism of e-government.

Adjusting loss forecasts for the impacts of government assistance and loan forbearance during the COVID-19 recession

Since the onset of the COVID-19 recession, loss forecasting and stress testing models have dramatically overpredicted losses. As all models are pattern recognisers trained on past events, such an unprecedented event inevitably leads to model errors. Rather than, however, view the models as broken, they are useful in providing an upper bound of what could have happened if government assistance and loan forbearance had not been provided. The present work develops an approach for quantifying the short- and long-term impacts of these government and lender policies in order to create quantitative model overlays. These overlays express the problem via a set of key parameters that can be set via management judgment or simulation studies. Examples of this approach and parameter sensitivity analysis are provided using time series models of National Credit Union Administration and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation call report data. This paper provides a framework for incorporating simulations, simple to complex, into an existing stress testing framework to better project future losses.

“Green Shoots” for US Credit Union Securitizations: An Examination of the Related NCUA Safe Harbor

Despite the fact that the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) finalized (more than 24 months ago) the new required securitization safe harbor rule and other legal requirements to facilitate securitization by federal credit unions (FCUs), an FCU only recently closed the first securitization of a prime auto portfolio. This is rather surprising because banks and other credit providers have widely and actively used securitization as an important means for funding such credit activities and as a tool for active portfolio management to enhance related investment returns. <b>TOPICS:</b>Credit risk management, information providers/credit ratings <b>Key Findings</b> • Banks and other credit providers have widely and actively used securitization as an important means of funding credit activities and as a tool for active portfolio management to enhance related investment returns. • Securitization has not been widely used by federally insured credit unions (FICU) because of NCUA’s authority to disaffirm or repudiate contracts of a failed FICU, which powers apply to the transfer of financial assets in connection with a securitization. • Recognizing the chilling effect this authority has had on securitizations sponsored by FICU, NCUA has issued a safe harbor that defines the conditions for protection for securitization transactions for any transfer of financial assets. • A recent FICU securitization has demonstrated that the safe harbor is opening the door for future FICU securitizations that rely on the safe harbor.

Upravni postupak u pravu Europske unije

Cilj je ovoga rada raščlaniti razloge koji ukazuju na potrebu donošenja kodificiranih pravila upravnoga postupka u pravu Unije te ocijeniti kvalitetu predloženih rješenja. U ovome radu najprije se nastoji odgovoriti na pitanje postoji li u Europskoj uniji potreba za kodificiranjem pravila upravnoga postupka. To se čini analizom nekih njezinih propisa, ali i stajališta iznesenih u znanstvenoj i stručnoj literaturi. Ukazuje se na dosadašnje „kodifikacijske neuspjehe“ te se kratko prikazuje geneza donošenja i danas aktualnoga prijedloga Uredbe o otvorenoj, učinkovitoj i neovisnoj upravi Europske unije. Zatim se analiziraju ciljevi ovoga prijedloga propisa i u njemu sadržana rješenja. Ona se uspoređuju s aktualnim rješenjima sadržanima u hrvatskom pravnom sustavu i pravnim sustavima nekih država članica Unije, kako bi se utvrdilo hoće li eventualno usvajanje predložene uredbe u praksi zahtijevati značajnije odstupanje u radu institucija, tijela, ureda i agencija Unije od pravila vođenja upravnoga postupka uvriježenih u nacionalnim pravnim sustavima država članica. Time se ukazuje na neke prednosti, ali i nedostatke predloženoga teksta. Konačno, zaključuje se hoće li Unija eventualnom predloženom „kodifikacijom“ stvoriti nove pravne režime ili će se zadovoljiti zakonskim utvrđenjem već postojećih pravila u okviru jednoga propisa.

Credit unions’ acquisitions of banks and thrifts

Purpose In total, 14 credit unions have acquired 16 banks and savings institutions since 2012; 7 additional acquisitions are in progress and are expected to close before year-end 2019. The analysis of the population of these acquisitions spans the paths of annual differences in CAMEL ratios. Most acquirers have a somewhat revised capital structure and are often benefiting from economies of scope, as well as economies of scale. Since their acquisitions, the acquiring credit unions have become less risky, measured by simulated CAMEL ratios, and they are lending a larger share of their deposits. There is no apparent financial reason to discourage credit unions from acquiring additional banks and savings institutions. The National Credit Union Administration does not need to be particularly hesitant to allow credit unions to acquire banks and thrifts. Design/methodology/approach Financial analysis is done via simulated CAMEL ratios. Findings After acquiring banks, credit unions are less risky and lend a greater share of their deposits. Research limitations/implications The study analyzes the population of the credit unions that have acquired banks since 2012, but the population consists of 14 banks acquiring 16 credit unions. Practical implications Credit unions should not be prohibited from further acquisitions of banks and thrifts. Social implications Credit union members are better served after a credit union acquires a bank. Originality/value No previous study has explored the effects of credit unions acquiring banks and thrifts, which began in 2012.

Decisions and Administrative Acts according to the ReNEUAL Model Rules on the EU Administrative Procedure and Proposal for Regulation for an Open, Efficient and Independent EU Administration

The author presents and analyses the notions of a decision according to ReNEUAL Model rules on EU administrative procedure and of an administrative act according to the Proposal for Regulation for an open, efficient and independent European Union administration. The discussion approaches the subsidiary character of the proposed rules and exclusions of their applicability in given cases, the designation and individual character of decisions and administrative acts, as well as their form and content. Additionally, the author considers the possibility of qualifying certain regulations as decisions or administrative acts. According to the conclusion, the scope of application of analysed proposals may turn out to be relatively restricted because of the exclusion of implementing acts in the case of the Regulation proposal and the potentially narrow interpretation of the notion of a decision in the case of the Model Rules.

Merit-based recruitment boosts good governance: how do European Union agencies recruit their personnel?

Studies show that public administrations that practise merit-based recruitment of their personnel are significantly less marked by corruption than administrations that do not recruit in this manner. While we know a lot about how EU member states score with regard to the degree of merit-based recruitment within their administrations, and also how the European Commission administration performs in this respect, recruitment practices within the increasing number of European Union regulatory (decentralized) agencies seem to remain a white spot in the literature so far. In this article, we make a first step in mapping recruitment practices within the secretariats of such agencies. We also investigate if it matters whether a European Union agency is located in a country marked by a non-meritocratic administrative culture or not. The article shows that European Union agencies seem to overwhelmingly apply meritocratic instruments when hiring people, regardless of their location. Points for practitioners This article argues and shows that recruitment based on merit enhances good and non-corrupt governance. The case in point is European Union agencies. The data presented illuminate that these agencies generally apply meritocratic instruments when hiring administrative staff. The study also shows that recruitment practices are not affected by the geographical location of European Union agencies. These agencies tend to practise the common merit-based European Union standards regardless of their location since agencies are components of the European Union administration.

Transparency! Transparency? Comparing the new lobbying legislation in Ireland and the UK

This paper analyses the strength of the new laws regulating lobbying in Ireland and the United Kingdom (UK). This examination was conducted using the Centre for Public Integrity’s (CPI) “Hired Guns” quantitative method for assessing the stringency of lobbying legislation. These laws were introduced, after years of unfulfilled promises and scandals, in an effort to increase the public’s trust in their representative institutions. We find that the Irish Regulation of Lobbying Act 2015 offers a slightly higher level of transparency than the UK’s Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014. Additionally, using the CPI’s index allows our findings to be compared with those from other jurisdictions around the world with lobbying regulations in place.

Financial Performance of Co-operative Banks: An Efficiency Analysis

Banking sector is considered as one of the fastest growing sectors in India. Therefore, a sound financial health of a bank is the guarantee not only to its depositors but is equally significant for the shareholders, employees and whole economy of a country as well. Uniform Financial Institution Rating system, commonly referred to the acronym CAMEL rating, was adopted by the Federal Financial Institution Examination Council on November 13th 1979, and then adopted by the National Credit Union Administration in October 1987 which is also adopted in India by RBI in 1996. The CAMEL model measures the performance of banks from each of the important parameter like Capital Adequacy, Assets Quality, Management Efficiency, Earning Quality and Liquidity. This method has been resorted from time to time, to measure the financial position of each bank and manage it efficiently and effectively. In this study, an attempt has been made to evaluate the financial performance of the two Urban Co-operative Banks (Kannur Co-operative Urban Bank Ltd. (KCUB) and Payyannur Co-operative Town bank Ltd. (PCTB) operating in Kannur District by employing CAMEL rating technique. The study found that the position of the Kannur Co-operative Urban bank is sound and satisfactory only with respect to spread to total income and non-interest income to total income while with respect to CRAR and liquid assets to demand deposits, Payyannur Co-operative Town bank out performed Kannur Co-operative Urban Bank. With respect to all the other parameters concerned there is no significant difference between the two banks.

EFFECT OF CREDIT UNION LOANS ON U.S. REGIONAL ECONOMIC GROWTH

ABSTRACT This paper explores the effect of loans by credit unions on regional economic growth in all five regions in the U.S. according to the National Credit Union Administration. Using a dynamic GMM approach based on panel data from 1990 to 2014 we examine regional differences among seven thousand credit unions. Other relevant decomposition variables include asset size of the CUs, savings, population in the state and membership of average CU. We contend there lacks a significant effect of loan-asset ratio on real GDP per capita growth rate except region 2, the Mideast states and the national capital. However, each region reacts differently in magnitude and direction. Higher loan-asset ratio tends to negatively affect the GDP per capita growth rate though the magnitude is insignificant. Average membership of the CUs is very much tied to population in the state and it is an area to be addressed. Keywords Credit Union, U.S. Regional Economic Growth, GMM

The policy impact of new rules for loan participation on credit union returns

Abstract In recent years, credit unions have increasingly purchased loan-participation agreements in order to diversify their loan portfolios and manage loan growth. Responding to high charge-off rates for these loans and concern for systemic risk, the National Credit Union Administration imposed in 2013 new rules on federally insured credit unions that limited the purchase of loan participations from a single originator to the greater of $5 million or 100% of net worth. This study uses a difference-in-difference framework to examine the effect the policy had on returns. As a result of the policy change, credit unions with a high share of net worth in loan participations earned, on average, a return on assets 47 basis points less than their counterparts. Further, we find evidence that suggests these lower returns were driven by a decline in participation loans with recourse provisions, liquidity issues, and relatively higher interest expenses.

A Discussion of the Certification Officer Reforms

Abstract The Trade Union Act 2016 contains further changes to the role of the Certification Officer (CO) following the changes introduced by the Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014 which gave supervisory, investigative and enforcement powers over new membership record requirements designed to assist with legal challenges to industrial action. The enhanced powers of investigation and the ability to exercise powers without receiving a complaint from a trade union member are now applied across much of the CO’s jurisdiction. To these are added additional enforcement powers and the power to impose financial penalties, with the Secretary of State having power to make provision for the CO to impose a levy on trade unions. The role of the CO, now described by the Government as that of a ‘regulator’, is politicised to an unprecedented degree and is transformed into that of instigator, investigator, prosecutor, adjudicator and sentencer. Unlike even the measures introduced by Conservative governments from 1980 to 1997, the provisions fail to take account of the protection of trade union autonomy in international law. Having already optimised the opportunities for legal challenges to industrial action, these measures are designed to heap unwarranted administrative burdens and expense on trade unions.