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Within the hierarchical system of China, local governance actions are fundamentally shaped by the attention of political leaders at upper levels. The potential impact of central leaders’ attention on local governments and the mechanism of transmission have not been thoroughly explored. Based on panel data from 30 Chinese provinces spanning 2007 to 2019, this study has adopted the attention theory to empirically examine the relationship between central leaders’ attention and local governance actions, thereby validating influencing mechanisms. The results indicate that the increased attention of central leaders would promote local governments to mitigate carbon emissions, which passed a series of robustness tests. Furthermore, the analysis of influencing mechanisms reveals that central leaders’ attention could mitigate local carbon emissions through three pathways: economic scale, industrial structure, and technological capacity. Therefore, this study has contributed to understanding the relationship between central leaders’ attention and local governance actions within China’s hierarchical system, offering valuable insights for achieving the targets of carbon peak and carbon neutrality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Like their urban counterparts, rural local governments' relationships with their states have become varied and complex, particularly as rural America has become increasingly prominent in state and national politics, and the challenges facing rural communities have increased. However, a focus on this subset of local governments has been limited in scholarship on American federalism. Using survey data of rural local governments in Wisconsin, this article examines the degree to which rural governments perceive state assistance as helpful in addressing community challenges. Results indicate significant support for additional state assistance but also concerns about current levels of state financial support and state-imposed revenue limitations. Rural local governments with greater expenditures, worse financial conditions, lower levels of existing state aid, a more agriculture-dependent economy, and an older population are more likely to perceive additional state assistance as beneficial. Overall, these results provide additional clarity on rural local governments' perceptions of—and interactions with—their states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article studies local government investments using a panel data set of Norwegian municipalities in the period 2003–2019. We investigate variations in investments across local governments and their relation to fiscal capacity, needs based on population growth, and political factors. Our results suggest that expected population growth and fiscal capacity largely explain variations in investments. The finding that expected population growth is a strong determinant, while other factors such as political composition of the local council has little if any effect, indicates that Norwegian local governments are quite rational in deciding their investment policy. On the other hand, we do observe indications of election cycles, where investments increase in election years. We also find results suggesting that increased investments can increase the vote-share for the incumbent coalition, although we see no additional effect from increasing investments in election years. Hence, investments do not seem to be completely insulated from political considerations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study attempts to understand to what extent the actual priority setting in the municipalities of Türkiye as a developing country aligns with idealised rational models based on theoretical principles and successful cases in developed countries. For that purpose, the study examines the cases of priority‐setting process of service provision in Turkish municipalities through an exploratory qualitative research method involving focus group meetings with the representatives of 30 municipalities and field observation in two municipalities. The findings reveal key aspects of the prioritisation process, including approaches taken by the municipalities, citizen and stakeholder engagement, the role of managers, criteria used for the assessment of alternatives, and evaluation methods. The analysis identifies two distinct patterns, that is the idealised rationalist versus pragmatic, in all the key aspects examined. These findings contribute to a better understanding of what aspects of idealised rationalist and pragmatical decision‐making processes are distinct from each other, and to a more comprehensive international perspective in public organisations, especially in which top manager such as the mayor is elected into office in developing countries. The study cautions against uncritical acceptance of oversimplified rationalistic as well as universalistic assumptions behind priority‐setting models and advocates for a more substantiated and contextualised understanding of decision‐making processes. Points for practitioners: Adopting a priority‐setting approach (technique, method, or criteria) necessitates considering the unique conditions and challenges of one's organisation and the local context. It is imperative to blend theoretical principles with practical realities to achieve optimal decision‐making and superior outcomes.Priority setting in public organisations of developing countries diverges from idealised rational models used in developed countries due to contextual factors like culture and limited resources. Policy advisors from international organisations and developed countries should endorse knowledge and experience sharing that acknowledges both ideal and practical realities. Concurrently, practitioners in developing countries must critically assess the applicability of advised models to their specific context before adoption.If the mayor takes a dominant role in the priority setting that outweighs institutional strategies and priorities, effective prioritisation among alternatives may be hindered. To rebalance power, it is crucial to foster an organisational culture that embraces participative decision‐making and professionalism and implements mechanisms such as auditing, transparency, and accountability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines how budget transparency affects budget credibility, i.e., how it affects budget current revenue/expenditure deviations. Specifically, the first objective is to describe how budget transparency affects budget credibility or accuracy of the enacted budget at the local level. The second is to examine if and in which direction budget deviations are systematically biased. The third is to link the accuracy of enacted budgets with political budget cycles' literature. Budget transparency is measured by the number of published key budget documents on the City's official websites. Budget credibility is measured by the difference between the planned amount minus the actual amount divided by the actual amount. Our sample comprises balanced panel data for 120 Croatian cities during the period 2016-2021 and system GMM method was used. The findings indicate that cities with greater budget transparency typically underestimate their revenues and overestimate their expenditures. Less transparent cities, on the other hand, frequently overestimate their revenues and underestimate their expenditures, yet ultimately spend more than intended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the responses of the Moroccan public sector to global economic fluctuations, focusing on reforms inspired by New Public Management within OECD countries. Morocco has initiated reforms affecting local governments to address various challenges, such as advanced regionalization, financial crises, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the adoption of a new development model. The study examines the crucial role of local governments in socioeconomic development and highlights the importance of management control to improve governance. The objective is to analyze the effectiveness of these local governments, the application of New Public Management, management needs, human resource competence, and models of good governance, identifying how management control tools can support their improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates whether local government expenditure correlate with the Quality of Life (QoL) of the local population and whether high public expenditure are indicative of high or low QoL. Data, including information on public expenditure and objective QoL indicators, were gathered for Finnish municipalities from several existing databases and cover a period of 2015–2019. A composite indicator was constructed to measure municipal QoL performance. The results indicate that there is a clear correlation between public expenditure and QoL: the higher the public expenditure the lower the QoL of the local population. This is due to a greater demand for public goods in municipalities that have low QoL levels. Further, QoL and public expenditure levels are a fairly constant phenomenon. There was no evidence that changes in public expenditure and QoL would affect each other in the short term. The added value of this paper is that it fills parts of the research gap concerning our knowledge on the empirical links between public expenditure and QoL at the local level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores how the public sector engages citizens for innovation purposes. It connects the related but currently separate debates concerning the transition from the 'new public management' to the 'new public governance' paradigm and the application of different helix models to public sector innovation. Through a case study of a Danish municipality, the process for changing normativity and the perception of citizens' roles is illustrated. This includes the application of both new structures and instruments for engaging citizens in collaboration and a pragmatic approach to quadruple helix collaboration, which is context-driven rather than strictly compliant with theoretical models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Empirical quantitative methodologies are increasingly in demand in academic publications overall, and in the fields of public administration and local government studies, in particular. In this study, we review the evolution of quantitative studies in Local Government Studies (LGS) over the past 20 years. Using bibliometric analysis, we demonstrate the substantial impact of empirical studies in LGS. Additionally, the keyword co-occurrence analysis has revealed the main research topics, where quantitative analyses are used to explore or confirm theories. We compared these results to the topics in quantitative analysis within the fields of public administration and urban studies. Methods such as panel data and quasi-experimental techniques including differences-in-differences and synthetic control are briefly discussed. We conclude by highlighting the increasing importance of data transparency and accessibility for advancing empirical research in local government studies. We anticipate that this research will provide methodological insights for advancing research in this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article draws from scholarly debates over three decades to argue for a shift in the study of digital transformation in local governments founded in the understanding that technology is an unavoidable tool for local government reform and that academic research in this field needs to be driven by real-world situations that local governments face when they undertake digital transformation processes and assess their results. The article advocates for four specific changes: 1) the acknowledgement that the relationship between the organisation and the use of technology is bi-directional, 2) the adoption of a multi and interdisciplinary perspective in the scholarship of digital transformation in local governments, 3) the study of public value creation as the result of digital transformation processes and local government reforms, and 4) the need to significantly advance the field by building on existing research and findings when a new technology comes into play. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some studies speak of the financial and economic benefits of urban sprawl indicating that there is little evidence that compact cities outside of high-income countries are more productive. Considering the contradictions, this research seeks to identify and analyze the financial factors driving or impeding urban sprawl in one of the Iranian large cities, Qom City. The results show that urban sprawl is a costly phenomenon for the municipality in the long term. However, urban officials have some incentives to encourage urban sprawl. The most significant advantage of urban sprawl is the increase in income from the sale of municipal (immovable) property. More than 50% of the municipality's revenues are provided from land and related developments and this increases the incentive to expand the city and the lack of control over the urban sprawl. Urban sprawl also imposes financial costs on the municipality, and the most significant financial obstacle is the increase in the costs of urban transportation and traffic improvement(26% on average up to 55% in some years). Iranian municipalities mainly rely on unsustainable revenue sources, and a large part of their revenues are provided through urban sprawl and its related revenue sources, threatening peripheral environments more than ever. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the South African local government domain, municipalities’ ability to execute legislative and executive powers is vested in municipal councils (section 151(2) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996). Given the importance of a municipal council from a functionality perspective, any suspension of executive or legislative decision-making powers can impede the realization of municipal councils’ constitutional purpose, specifically, the objective to provide democratic and accountable governance to local communities. In recent years, local coalition governments have been seen more frequently, partly due to the number of hang councils in South Africa. Governance suffers because of the resulting volatility caused by political standoffs. The departing premise hereto is that the realization of a democratic and accountable government depends on the degree of functionality of every municipal council. Conversely, in councils, volatility can adversely compromise democratic and accountable governance. During recent years, coalition governments in local government have been seen more frequently, partly due to the number of hung councils in South Africa. This article builds on the legal insight provided in the case of the Premier, Gauteng and Others v Democratic Alliance and Others; All Tshwane Councillors who are Members of the Economic Freedom Fighters and Another v Democratic Alliance and Others; African National Congress v Democratic Alliance and Others [2021] ZACC 34. The authors considered using governance mechanisms to provide better support and guidance to ensure the continuation of democratic and accountable government practices, where fractured coalitions have caused governance fallouts in municipal councils.

This research discusses the issue of legal protection for the community in the Complete Systematic Land Registration Program, which is motivated by the issuance of the Joint Decree of the Minister of Agrarian and Spatial Planning/Head of the National Land Agency, Minister of Home Affairs, and Minister of Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration Number 25/SKB/V/2017, Number 590-3167A Year 2017, Number 34 Year 2017. This decision opens up opportunities for local governments to adopt additional regulations related to the financing of PTSL, which is often a loophole for illegal extortion. This study raises the question of how legal protection of the community in the process of implementing PTSL. The research method used is a regulatory and legal one with the use of the statutory and conceptual approaches. The results of the analysis show that the Ratio Legis of the Joint Decree is philosophically a form of application of Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution, especially Article 33 paragraph (3) and Article 28D paragraph (1), which emphasize protection and legal certainty for the community. Sociologically, the program is designed to accelerate land legalization by considering the geographical conditions and social diversity of Indonesian society. However, legal protection in PTSL is mostly repressive, while preventive protection is inadequate. Regulatory adjustments are needed, including the determination of fair fees based on geographical difficulties and land contours, as well as continuous evaluation and supervision to prevent corrupt acts and illegal levies in this program. This is important to ensure transparency, accountability and a focus on social justice for all segments of society.

Ensuring a broad degree of financial autonomy is a fundamental issue for local government. In the context of the administrative modernization of recent years, several legislative measures have been taken which have directly or indirectly limited the financial and economic autonomy of local governments in Hungary. The paper gives a brief overview of the development of the Hungarian local government system in 1990, comparing the initial regulation with the standards of the European Charter of Local Self-Government. It discusses, then, the restructuring of the system in 2011, and lists the legal institutions which, in the author’s view, have led to restrictions on local government management. The paper covers the introduction of the task-financing system, the establishment of district offices, the restructuring of the role of county governments, and the constitutional and other legal obstacles to municipal borrowing.

The decentralised local government system makes funds available to local governments to develop the communities and improve living conditions of the people. In Ghana, however, the people in the communities complain of poor service delivery including the provision of poor amenities. This deprives them of decent livelihood and there is despondency at the local level. This study investigated the situation by examining the operations of local governments to ascertain the management of resources at the local level. Using the transaction cost theory and the institutional theory, desk research was conducted based on successive Auditor-Generals’ reports and other relevant documents on local governance in Ghana. The data were subjected to thematic analysis for interpretation and comparison. The study found that the local governments performed their basic functions but successive Auditor-Generals’ reports contained irregularities which were the result of mismanagement of resources. The management of resources in local governments is, therefore, a bane rather than a boon to development at the local level in Ghana. The Head of Local Government Service should severely sanction perpetrators of irregularities.

Dijital dönüşüm hizmetleri, yerel yönetimlerin akıllı şehirler haline gelmesini sağlamaktadır. Çalışma kapsamında Türkiye’de yapı sektöründe dijital dönüşüm uygulamaları 9 yerel yönetim üzerinden incelenmiştir. Her bölgeden bir il en yüksek gelişmişlik düzeyine göre seçilmiştir. İstanbul ve Ankara şehirleri dijital dönüşümde ilk uygulama alanlarından oldukları için ayrı analiz edilmiştir. Yapı sektöründe dijital dönüşüm denildiğinde akla gelen akıllı şehir bileşenleri illerin karşılaştırılma analizinde kullanılmıştır. Seçilen büyükşehir belediyelerinin 2020-2024 yıllarını kapsayan stratejik planları, 2022 senesine ait faaliyet raporları, belediyelere ait web siteleri, akıllı şehir uygulamaları incelenerek, Çevre, Şehircilik ve İklim Değişikliği Bakanlığı tarafından yayınlanan “2020-2023 Ulusal Akıllı Şehirler Stratejisi ve Eylem Planı’nda yer alan Akıllı Şehir Bileşenleri üzerinden analiz edilmiştir. Ayrıca belediyeler akıllı şehir bileşenlerine örnek teşkil eden uygulamalara göre karşılaştırılmıştır. Seçilen şehirlerden İstanbul, Bursa, Ankara ve Antalya şehirlerinin akıllı şehir bileşenlerinin çoğunu kullandığı tespit edilmiştir. Çalışmanın yapılma amacı belediyelerin akıllı şehir ve dijital dönüşüm kavramına ait politikalarını belirlemektir. Belediyelerin akıllı şehir uygulamaları tablolaştırılıp hangi alanlarda çalışmaları olduğu tespit edilmeye çalışılmıştır. Böylelikle yapılan bu çalışma başarılı uygulamaların yapıldığı şehirlerimizdeki çalışmaların geliştirilmesine uygulamanın olmadığı şehirlerimizi ise teşvik edip, bu şehirlerimize örnek niteliği taşımaktadır.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Solid waste management in Ecuador is the responsibility of the municipal autonomous decentralised governments and is structured in a value chain from waste collection to final disposal. This study aims to assess the impact of municipal governance, public engagement, and the presence of regulations on the quantity of solid waste collected and the probability of service delivery within the value chain. The existing body of research concerning solid waste management at the municipal level in Ecuador is relatively sparse, particularly in terms of longitudinal studies. This gap highlights the need for further investigation, as the current limitations in data hinder a comprehensive understanding of the subject.METHODS: The estimation of the relationships was developed through panel data models, focusing on both the volume of collections and probability of providing recovery, storage, transfer and disposal services. The explanatory variables are quality of the territorial development and land use plan goals, targets and indicators. Furthermore, these factors involve the execution of the investment plan budget financial sustainability, efficiency of expenditure, fiscal dependence, participation system, participation mechanisms, participatory budget, control mechanisms, public accountability, ordinance, municipal agency and gross value added. The current study investigates solid waste collection and the delivery of services in the value chain as the dependent variables, analyzing data from 221 municipalities in Ecuador during the timeframe of 2017 to 2022.FINDINGS: The findings indicate that in smaller municipalities, citizen participation ­– either through participatory budgeting or control mechanisms – influences solid waste collection. In the realm of financial management, the significance of fiscal dependency and financial sustainability is prominent; however, the aspect of planning typically does not exhibit a considerable impact. The chances of offering services such as storage, transfers, and utilization, characterized by limited regulatory oversight, are shaped by fiscal reliance and the existence of relevant ordinances, with no observable effect from citizen participation.CONCLUSION: The outcomes related to citizen participation and waste management are generally more favorable in smaller municipalities. This phenomenon can be linked to their enhanced social cohesion and less complex administrative systems, which promote the successful implementation of policies and initiatives that cater to the unique needs of the community. On the other hand, larger municipalities face greater challenges, such as bureaucracy and complexity in service coordination, which limits the impact of citizen participation. To increase the efficiency of solid waste management services in municipalities, irrespective of their size, it is crucial to innovate in fiscal management and to adopt clear regulatory frameworks.

The present study seeks to understand under which conditions cities enact inclusionary policies and practices for irregular migrants. Previous research points out the influence of political ideology, local autonomy, economic capacity, diversity, or civil society alliances. We argue that a city's proactive and supportive stance towards irregular migrants may not be explained fully by one or another single factor, but rather by their combination. Through a fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis of 13 European cities, it was found that the combination of a political discrepancy between the local government and national state, as well as local alliances between the municipality and local civil society organizations, is a necessary condition for municipalities to take a proactive and supportive stance towards irregular migrants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine the complex relationship between campaign spending and electoral outcomes in local elections. We focus on (1) how spending influences the distribution of votes across candidates; (2) its impact on voter turnout; and (3) the differential effects of different types of campaign spending. Using the case of Chile’s 2016 mayoral elections, a candidate-level dataset, and linear regression techniques, we estimate the impact of campaign spending on the share and dynamics of votes obtained. The study reveals that an additional investment of 50 cents per voter correlates with an average 5% increase in vote share as a proportion of elegible voters. This increase is attributed to a double effect: mobilizing new voters and attracting support from competitors. The disaggregated analysis shows that radio advertising is especially impactful for campaign dissemination. These results enrich the literature on electoral strategies, campaign finance dynamics and financing regulations in multi-party systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Poland, responsibility for educational tasks has mainly been delegated to local governments, although the state still plays a decisive role. Municipalities finance these tasks using educational subsidies and targeted grants from the central budget. Because transfers from the state budget cover an ever-decreasing share of the costs of educational tasks, municipalities increasingly need to engage their own resources. Such a situation (due to the limited funds of these units) poses a threat to the proper implementation of other tasks, which may ultimately negatively affect their sustainable development. This study aimed to determine the impact of the financial gap from implementing educational tasks on the sustainable development of communes and cities with county rights. The research primarily employed linear ordering methods and Spearman's rho correlation. It also employed the nonparametric Kruskal–Wallis test and the Page test for trends. This study utilized two types of data: secondary data from Statistics Poland covering 2477 municipalities and primary data collected through a survey of 482 local government representatives. The correlation analysis revealed that sustainable development indicators decreased as the financial gap widened between 2012 and 2022. The highest correlation coefficients were observed in all communes combined and in cities with county rights. The weakest correlations between the financial gap and sustainable development were found in urban municipalities. Representatives of local governments had similar observations. According to 63.1% of respondents, the imbalance between funds transferred from the state budget for educational tasks and the expenditure incurred by the municipality for this purpose negatively affects the sustainable development of local governments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past two decades, tax nudging has gained popularity as a method to boost tax compliance and help revenue authorities increase tax collection. However, most evidence on the effect of behaviourally informed tax letters comes from environments with high administrative capacity, which raises doubts about its generalizability. Against this background, this article tests the compliance effect of including messages that trigger deterrence or reciprocity beliefs in tax letters through a randomized controlled trial implemented in two mid‐sized Mozambican municipalities, Vilankulo and Dondo. Conducted in 2018, the experiment focuses on property taxation, a tax overwhelmingly perceived to perform well below its potential in many low‐ and middle‐income countries. The analysis relies on administrative data and exploits the complete universe of registered property tax taxpayers, including individuals and enterprises. The results indicate that (i) receiving a notification letter – not necessarily common practice in many contexts – has a significant positive impact on compliance; (ii) among enterprises, the message alluding to reciprocity backfires, while the most effective message to include generally is the one alluding to deterrence; and (iii) previously compliant taxpayers react negatively to the letter, regardless of the message included. These results carry relevant policy implications, indicating the large scope for behaviourally informed letters to help increase tax compliance, even in low administrative capacity settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

State-owned forest farms are key players in managing forestry resources worldwide, playing a pivotal role in advancing the development of the non-timber forest product industry. This paper constructs a tripartite evolutionary game model involving "government–state-owned forest farms–farmer households" to delve into how state-owned forest farms collaborate with governments and farmer households to propel the growth of the non-timber forest product industry. Additionally, it explores the interactive relationships among multiple stakeholders and their asymptotic stability. The findings reveal that (1) under certain conditions, the game model can achieve four stable equilibrium strategies: (0,0,0), (0,1,0), (0,1,1), and (1,1,1). (2) Key factors influencing the tripartite game include the political performance and administrative costs of local governments involved in the industry's development, assessment performance and reduced management and protection expenses of state-owned forest farms, and sales revenue and planting costs of farmers' under-forest products. (3) The market development costs shared by state-owned forest farms and government subsidies for under-forest planting should be within a reasonable range. This ensures effective promotion of farmers' participation in under-forest planting while maintaining the willingness of state-owned forest farms and governments to actively engage. These findings provide concrete guidelines that policymakers can use to spur sustainable growth in the NTFP sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainability is a critical societal aim, and local governments (LGs) play an important role in fostering sustainability, as the implementation of the global aims set by the United Nations—namely, the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs offer novel accounting, reporting, and management perspectives for LGs. The objective of the study is to understand the role of the accounting–management nexus which is needed to institutionalize sustainability in LG practices. We adopted an institutional work perspective to investigate how actors at the field, organizational, and suborganizational levels of LGs can foster sustainability in accounting and management. Based on interviews with managers and other representatives from the 18 largest LGs in Finland, we found that although sustainability integration is still in the early stages and there is considerable heterogeneity in LGs' handling of sustainability issues, there is clear potential for the simultaneous deployment of different institutional work types. This has positive implications for the institutionalization of sustainability accounting and management practices in LGs, enhancing understanding of how sustainability is fostered in public sector accounting and management by focusing on organizational‐level institutional work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the narratives of local public officials involved in leading efforts to develop climate change policies in innovative Turkish municipalities. The objective of the article is to offer insights into the leadership roles of these public officials, aiming to uncover distinct leadership features while crafting climate change policies within Turkish municipalities and to propose distinctive types of leadership they exhibited. To elucidate the dimensions of public officials' leadership, the research employs a narrative research approach. Accordingly, leadership features identified from the literature are utilized as the analytical framework for the narratives. The results demonstrate that the interviewed public officials exhibited common leadership attributes that impact the shaping of climate change policies. This is particularly valuablein cases where the central government may not be sufficiently ambitious in taking steps forward. Additionally, the research indicates that officials' leadership styles vary, even though they exhibit common leadership features. Plain language summary: Exploring Climate Leadership of Public Officials in Turkish Municipalities In this research, I look into the narratives of public officials in Turkish municipalities leading efforts to develop climate change policies. I aim to uncover the distinct leadership features exhibited by these officials, shedding light on their roles in shaping climate policies within local governments. Addressing the climate crisis requires significant transformations in human systems, and local leadership is crucial in this process. Through the study, I seek to understand the leadership roles of public officials in Turkish municipalities, acknowledging their potential impact on climate change policymaking. I employed a narrative research approach, capturing the stories of five public officials involved in pioneering climate change policymaking in Turkish municipalities. I analyzed these narratives using established criteria defining climate leadership. I found that the interviewed public officials shared common leadership attributes involving visionary thinking, taking action, and acting in a certain way; however, their leadership styles varied. I highlighted the significance of these officials in adopting a pro-environmental approach and acting within the framework of three identified key leadership features. The findings emphasize the importance of recognizing public officials, alongside well-known political leaders at the local level, for their vital role in climate change policymaking. Their consistent leadership becomes crucial when the central government lacks ambition in climate change policymaking. Acknowledging these officials' unique advantage in assuming this responsibility can enhance climate action. However, I recognize the need for caution in generalizing case-specific findings and call for further research on political and climate leadership in different contexts to improve policymaking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gender differences in local financial management are, according to empirical grounds, a reality that predetermines differences in the fiscal performance of municipalities led by women and men. The position of women leaders in public administration and their influence on sources of income, the nature of expenses, and the level of indebtedness have been a popular research issue in recent years, but it includes an almost unexplored gender dimension that needs deeper analysis. For this reason, the main aim of the paper is to examine the relationship between women's representation in local politics (mayor and councilors) and local indebtedness, emphasizing the assumption about observed better fiscal discipline in municipalities led by female local authorities. The econometric estimations based on the panel data approach are conducted on the sample of twenty-seven European Union countries in the period 2011-2021 using the share of female mayors and female local councilors as explanatory variables. Further, we test the effects of the moment of the EU accession and the degree of fiscal decentralization to offer deeper insights into the problem. Results support the assumption of an inverse relationship between female mayors and local indebtedness, while female local councilors do not cause any statistically significant impact on local indebtedness. Other results show that the number of women in local politics and the degree of fiscal decentralization are important to consider when examining this relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Issue prioritization is the first stage of attention-based theories of decision-making, but remains theoretically and empirically uncharted territory in public administration research. We propose and test how issue prioritization is informed by the characteristics of the performance information on which decision-makers rely, in particular its source (internal or external information), nature (objective or subjective information), aspiration level (historical, social, or coercive aspirations), and required cognitive effort (attention costs). Furthermore, we theorize how these characteristics of performance information determine issue prioritization decisions of political and managerial decision-makers in different ways. We empirically examine issue prioritization decisions in road maintenance and primary school education using a discrete choice experiment among 2,313 local government officials. The experiment reveals that decision-makers are more likely to prioritize issues that are signaled through objective performance measures and that are articulated relative to coercive aspirations, but that the effects of the information's source and attention costs differ between policy domains. Comparison of observational variation regarding decision-makers' roles indicates that public managers more strongly prioritize road maintenance issues that are articulated in objective performance information, but not in primary school education. The study advances public administration research and theory with a "horizontal" behavioral perspective on decision-makers' information processing to prioritize between simultaneous performance issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The financing of nutrition in educational institutions is one of the cornerstones of the activities of local governments in Poland. Proper management of this area is crucial to ensuring that children and young people have access to wholesome meals, which directly affects their health, physical development, as well as educational effectiveness. Objective: This study aimed to examine how school principals and parents perceive the role of local governments in managing school nutrition in Poland, given the growing importance of nutrition programs for children's health. Methods: A survey was conducted with 200 school principals and 1000 parents, assessing satisfaction with the implementation, quality, and organization of nutrition programs overseen by local authorities. Results: The results revealed significant differences between the two groups. While 75% of principals expressed satisfaction with the quality of meals provided in schools, only 55% of parents shared this view. Similarly, 80% of principals rated the organization of cooperation with food suppliers positively, compared to only 50% of parents. Regarding allergen information, 65% of principals felt adequately informed, while only 30% of parents agreed. These differences were statistically significant in several key areas, including adherence to nutrition standards (p = 0.009), frequency of health inspections (p = 0.009), and availability of allergen information (p = 0.013). Conclusions: The findings highlight a need for improved communication and collaboration between schools, parents, and local governments to enhance the effectiveness of nutrition programs. It is recommended that regular informational meetings be held and that the flow of information be improved to increase parental satisfaction and the overall effectiveness of school nutrition initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

'Urban citizenship' connotes to statuses and practices centred around the relationship between a locality and (all) individuals present or residing within its territory. This alternative imagination of citizenship (as opposed to formal nation-state citizenship) is based on a presumption of belonging for persons present/resident in the locality (ius domicii) and includes those typically excluded by the nation-state, in a radical vision of equality and non-discrimination. But domestic legal competences of local governments vary significantly across jurisdictions. This article, based on field research in Turkey and Switzerland, explores what role such domestic competences, or the regulation of local governments, plays in facilitating, encouraging, discouraging or obstructing local governments' engagement with radically inclusive urban citizenship practices. First operationalising the concept of 'regulation' and establishing Turkey and Switzerland as low- and high-regulation country contexts respectively, this article identifies four ways in which regulation shapes urban citizenship practices of local governments: (a) by shaping local governments' perception on their own autonomy; (b) by influencing whether local governments engage in legally foreseen or extra-legal practices; (c) by informing whether and how much local governments categorise different groups of rights-holders and; (d) by affecting which scales these urban citizenship practices are exercised in (upwards, downwards, horizontal). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several remedies can be adopted in the fight against organized crime and mafias. One of the most effective is the confiscation of their assets. After confiscation, assets can be used to provide services to citizens, frequently thanks to the support of non-profit organizations. With a focus on Italy, this study investigates the transparency of the confiscation process and the factors that explain why local governments provide (or do not provide) information on confiscated assets. Points for practitioners: To facilitate dialogue with citizens, it is essential to consider the perspective of data users, so as to avoid focusing on the data provider. Such a dialogue can aid the adequate reuse of assets confiscated from the mafia and other criminal organizations, contributing to the 'social' fight against them. This article contributes to the debate on both transparency and studies on mafia organizations, providing a new insight through the consideration of how external pressures can drive public-sector entities to be more transparent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Territorially, Spanish public administrations are organized into State Administration, Autonomous Community Administration, and Local Administration. Local government has the closest contact with citizens and therefore the powers and decisions taken by local institutions have the greatest impact on the social welfare of citizens. To ensure this well-being, it is necessary to analyze and pay attention to the administrative and financial autonomy of local governments. Financial autonomy translates into the capacity of local entities to govern their respective finances, determining, within certain limits, the level of the volume of their own resources and organizing their expenditures. In this work, we study the Financial Autonomy Indicator, which aims to determine the tax resources available to the local entity. Taking into account that Spanish municipalities have, depending on their population size, different obligations when providing services to citizens, the convergence of financial autonomy is studied to detect whether there are common trends by applying the techniques of β -convergence and σ -convergence. It is analyzed whether municipalities starting from lower indicators achieve higher growth over time (β -convergence), and whether dispersion between municipalities is reduced (σ -convergence). Points for practitioners: Local autonomy grants local entities the freedom to manage their own interests within the State's legal framework. Greater economic diversity and the ability to raise more money on their own through taxes, fees, and other sources characterize larger communities. They have a wider tax base thanks to their higher economic diversification, which opens up more opportunities for revenue collection. The speed of convergence is highest in the smallest municipalities. Knowing whether there is convergence or divergence in financial autonomy can help policy makers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most microeconomic models consider that expanding the land supply would enlarge the housing stock, reducing the pressure on house prices to increase. Using 234 prefecture-level city data from 2011 to 2020 in China, we find land supply is positive with house prices, suggesting this widely used conclusion is invalid in China. Besides, the positive relation between house prices and land supply is more pronounced in the higher house price area. We consider local governments utilize the relevant land revenue to attract industries and build infrastructure, resulting in a positive externality of increased land supply and a rise in housing prices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the economic impacts of the energy crisis (2022-2023) on local governments in the Slovak Republic and the Czech Republic, specifically analyzing the budgets of the Trenčín and Zlín self-governing regions. Topics include the extent of budget limitations faced by local governments, the suspension of development activities due to high energy prices, and the effectiveness of governmental support in mitigating these impacts.

The article focuses on leadership and communication in the sustainable management of local governments, specifically through the perspective of Slovak mayors. Topics include the role of mayors in promoting sustainability, the need for improved knowledge and resources from the state, and the importance of effective communication strategies to engage citizens in sustainability efforts.

In recent years, sustainability as a concept has become the subject of several scientific debates. Along with the smart city trend, emphasis is also being placed on the sustainability of cities and towns, yet there is a research gap for smaller municipalities where there is no current scope for increasing the level of digitization or implementing smart city practices. Sustainability here has to be achieved differently, in particular through communication and transparency. This issue is addressed in the present research, which examines 116 Slovak municipalities, as well as their strategic documents and online communication with citizens, using a content analysis method. The study aims to provide knowledge about the functioning of online communication in Slovak local governments by answering seven research questions. These are linked to two research hypotheses, which are also evaluated using a statistical test. One of the main findings is that the overall sustainability work in a local government is dependent on its size. Thus, larger local governments are more likely to implement sustainability. It was also found that larger villages and towns use term sustainability more actively in their strategies than the smaller ones. Additionally, more information channels do not always mean better informing about plans and strategies connected to sustainability in local governments. This paper presents the findings from our research, which can contribute to the field of local government research and management by broadening the view on smaller villages and their functioning in terms of online communication with inhabitants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The February 06, 2023, Kahramanmaraş earthquake brought great destruction and loss of life to the region. In times of crisis, effective disaster communication is crucial to ensure public safety and facilitate response efforts. Local governments play a critical role in managing and disseminating information during disasters using various communication channels, including social media. This research aims to analyze the role of local governments in disaster communication during the Kahramanmaraş earthquake. In particular, it examined how local governments use social media for disaster communication, the strategies they use to manage information dissemination, and the effectiveness of their communication efforts. By exploring these key issues, this study aims to provide insights into the vital role of local governments in disaster communication and contribute to improving future disaster response efforts. In this context, using the case study method, the posts of Kahramanmaraş Metropolitan Municipality on X accounts were analyzed between February 06, 2023, and March 09, 2023.

Purpose: the purpose of the article is to conduct an analysis of the features, forms and procedures for the protection of land rights in local self-government bodies, to identify legal defects in the specified area and to justify proposals aimed at guaranteeing the land rights of subjects of land legal relations in Ukraine. Methodology. The methodology includes a comprehensive analysis and generalization of the available scientific and theoretical material and the formulation of relevant conclusions and recommendations. During the research, such methods of scientific knowledge were used: comparative-legal, systemic-structural, analysis and synthesis, historical method.Results. In the process of research, it was established that the protection of land rights in local self-government bodies can be carried out in the following forms: consideration of citizens’ appeals and resolution of land disputes. In the science of land law and in practice, the role of local self-government bodies in the protection of land rights and the resolution of land disputes is not unequivocally assessed, because there are problems associated with the low efficiency of the procedures for the protection of land rights by local self-government bodies, in particular at the stage of implementation of their decisions in the land spores.Originality. In the course of the conducted research, it was found that the resolution of land disputes by local self-government bodies has the following features: an exhaustive list of land disputes that they are authorized to resolve; the decision of the local self-government body regarding a certain land dispute does not have prejudicial significance; to ensure the resolution of land disputes, local self-government bodies may form conciliation commissions, the decisions of which are not recognized as the actual decision of the local self-government body, however, the protocols of the conciliation commissions of local self-government bodies may be accepted as evidence in the process of judicial resolution of a land dispute. Practical significance. The results of the study can be used in the research field – for the further development of the problems of legislative regulation of the resolution of land disputes by local self-government bodies, as well as in the rule-making work – in the preparation of projects of normative legal acts aimed at improving the legislative regulation of the protection of land rights of land subjects legal relations in Ukraine.

Everyone has the right to feel welcome, safe and be able to access public green spaces without fear, anxiety or stress. However, the term "accessibility" is primarily used in relation to physical accessibility, while social and cultural dimensions of accessibility to urban public green spaces remains underexplored. Methods and tools for universal design and management that also meets the needs of marginalised groups, are needed. This requires involvement of both users and potential users through participatory methods, building on individual needs and perspectives. In Sweden, traditionally marginalised groups and non-users are rarely engaged in the development of public urban green spaces. Local governments may have the will, but lack resources and appropriate methods in order to do so. Research has recently described a further engagement of users as an unleashed potential in relation to planning and management of urban green spaces. Based on the study of three test beds and the use of public green space governance and management theory, we developed a process model for user participation in green space maintenance with focus on involving marginalised groups and non-users. The model balances what is theoretical optimal with what is practically feasible within the daily work of a municipal organisation. We present an empirically tested process model that can form the basis for future maintenance of urban green spaces, with the use of limited resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current Japanese Regional Revitalisation policy emerged from a unique combination of demographic, geographical and socio-economic challenges to address growing disparities between urban and rural areas. This is due to the over-concentration of population and economic activities in Tokyo and other metropolitan areas, combined with the out-migration of the youth from lagging regions, especially, young females. In response to a call for international comparative policy research and analysis to tackle similar societal challenges, this paper analyses the policy contexts of the Japanese Regional Revitalisation and the UK Levelling Up agendas. It highlights a series of place-based industrial policy measures in Japan over the last decades illustrated by two local case studies of city-regions. The Japanese decentralisation process may be unique as it presents a form of top-down transfer of industrial policies to local governments including innovation and start-up supports. The decentralisation must be accompanied by adequate funding and fiscal autonomy, enabling local and regional governments to manage their own resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Municipal administrative management plays a crucial role in the progress of local communities, with its effectiveness and efficiency being determining factors for the economic growth and sustainable development of a region. Therefore, it is essential to understand how local governments approach administrative management with a view to promoting sustainable practices. This research focuses on analyzing municipal administrative management from a global and multidimensional perspective, examining both its competencies and its phases and dimensions. The methodology employed is a systematic literature review using PRISMA. Among the findings, the thematic diversity in municipal management stands out, with a particular focus on performance evaluation and quality. The main competencies of local governments include the promotion of social welfare and sustainable development. The key dimensions of administrative management focused on sustainability encompass social, organizational, environmental, economic, and political aspects, highlighting the complexity of municipal management. Strategic planning is identified as essential, along with a balanced focus on all phases of implementation, control, and improvement. This research provides an understanding of how local governments can play a fundamental role in improving the quality of life of their communities through effective and sustainable management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research investigates residents' pro-environmental behavior from the unique perspective of government-resident interactions. Guided by social movement theory, how local governments regulate residents' waste-sorting behavior in Chinese rural tourism destinations is assessed. This longitudinal study (lasting from 2016 to 2022) uses participant observation, in-depth interviews (N = 25), and secondary data as the key research techniques. The dual roles of local governments (i.e., resource mobilization and power redistribution) jointly shape residents' pro-environmental behavior in the waste-sorting campaign. Resource mobilization enhances knowledge of waste-sorting and raises individuals' environmental consciousness. Power redistribution within groups activates social networks in rural communities and changes groups' social capital to influence residents' collective behavior. Results are discussed in relation to how the organizational-level resource mobilization and power redistribution influence the individual-level environmental psychological and sociological factors in shaping residents' waste-sorting behavior. Practical recommendations are offered for sustainable tourism management from a social interaction perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The investment and development of tourism resources projects in rural tourism destinations is a specific form of rural industrial integration and development for local governments to carry out rural revitalization. The introduction of social capital to the countryside is an important source of rural tourism capital investment. Due to information asymmetry and inconsistent interest goals, there is a contradiction between efforts and supervision between local governments and leading enterprises with principal-agent relationship. Starting from Chongqing rural tourism destinations, this paper analyzes the Nash equilibrium under different comparisons of operating income and additional costs brought by enterprise efforts by constructing a static game model. Combined with the principal-agent theory, an incentive mechanism considering the uncertainty of efforts and the inability to effectively supervise is constructed. The research shows that under the condition of satisfying the incentive compatibility constraints and participation constraints, it can encourage enterprises to work hard at a high level, and can also effectively encourage enterprises to consciously choose the optimal level of effort expected by the government, so as to achieve the coordination of the interests of enterprises and the government. This paper introduces the research perspective of principal-agent game to explore the relationship between the level of enterprise efforts and government supervision and incentive, and also proposes to introduce an incentive mechanism of intelligent governance based on blockchain to alleviate the principal-agent relationship between government and enterprises. The research findings have important theoretical and practical significance for revealing how to achieve the incentive constraints of the coordination of the interests of tourism leading enterprises and the government. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]