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Copyright of Revista de Treball Social is the property of Col·legi Oficial de TreballSocial de Catalunya and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper uses action learning as a basis for producing research data that help explore the relationship between learning and listening in public organizations. The regional government of Gipuzkoa in northern Spain is engaged in a sustained effort to change the way it interacts with and interprets the future needs of society. Based on grounded theory and on a review of key concepts about critical action learning, a reflexive analysis of the implementation of the methodology of action learning with policy makers was conducted. The paper explores the learning journey participants undertake when implementing a governmental programme of citizen engagement, and shows that a space for criticality resulted in participants learning to listen to each other, and consequently to society, in ways which had previously been beyond reach. The paper concludes by discussing the learning implications for listening to society.

Purpose: This paper aims to report on a case study concerning the development of sustainable energy partnerships involving engineering faculty and undergraduate students at the University of Girona, Catalonia, Spain. Design/methodology/approach: Faculty were motivated to seek partnerships with public and private entities in the local area for the purposes of realising mutually beneficial outcomes. The educational programmes of future engineers, when sustainability is considered, are analysed. Education for sustainable development has to include multidisciplinary active learning as a desirable competence. Active learning can be obtained when problems are based on real life because they are most motivating for students. Constructive alignment component is obtained because learning objectives are linked with learning activities related to the needs of public and private entities. Findings: Through the provision of technical expertise, the adoption and success of renewable energy projects was facilitated on the one hand, while final year undergraduate students benefited in terms of hands-on experience in helping to bring these projects to life, drawing on the knowledge and skills they had acquired throughout their degree programmes. These works are addressed to students by faculty members with the aim of developing and promoting renewable energies. Outcomes from partnerships surpassed expectations; not only were different benefits realised as were initially hoped for, but this success led to partnerships being sustained over time. Originality/value: Fossil fuel-based energy systems are associated with a myriad of negative environmental and social externalities. It is difficult to overstate the importance of transitioning towards alternative low carbon energy sources for climate change mitigation which are less centralised compared to the status-quo for energy security and energy independence. By actively facilitating the development of decentralised renewable energy sources in Catalonia, the projects reported herein are of significant value in social environmental and educational terms.

This paper provides theoretical and methodological arguments to study the politics of space in small marginal and depopulated areas of Spain. The case for research is the Riaza river valley in the province of Segovia. Usually the analysis of rural space (and the geographical space in general) provides opposing presentations: vertical, between global and local or horizontal between urban and rural or in community-out of community. Fewer contributions adopt as an objective the configuration of spatial categories "into" a small area. This contribution differentiates the politics of small rural areas into three main levels or spheres: (1) official, (2) unofficial or intermediate and (3) community or spontaneous. Between these levels there is conflict but also collaboration, founded on the specific nature of the situation or problem and the agents and actors involved in each one. The methods are mainly qualitative with complementary documentary sources (local newspapers, official documents from regional and environmental administration). The interview program presents two phases: (1) with people involved in the decision-making process at an area level and (2) with representative figures (in professional and social term) in the study area. The conclusions confirm the existence of different parallel and segmented discourses in each level and also between levels of decision-making. (Contains 2 maps and 1 table.)

Copyright of Revista Telos is the property of Revista Telos and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Starting from the assumption that interpreting is a norm-governed type of communication and that within this communicative "pas de trois" or "situated activity" (Wadensjo) which is "socially bounded" (Inghilleri), the interpreter's presence appears as a defining feature, this paper tries to identify preliminary and operational norms intervening in the institutional, interpersonal and professional projection of this activity in connection with the integration of foreign populations in need of interpreting services in Spain. In order to identify these norms, I will resort to contexts as reflected by status, regulations and practice in health care in the province of Alicante in the case of Romanian immigrants. (Contains 4 figures and 3 notes.)

This paper provides evidence about the effects of facilitating internal control mechanisms on the financial sustainability of local governments. Specifically, it explores the effect of Spanish regulation mandating that municipalities prepare the Annual Financial Control Plan (PACF for its acronym in Spanish). The study is based on the PACFs of 77 Spanish municipalities and relates the quality of risk analysis and the scope of planned public audit activities to the financial sustainability of the municipalities. Our results show that higher quality risk-based planning and increased use of operational audits contribute to financial sustainability. We also find that municipalities with less complex structures and women in positions of responsibility, such as mayor or controller, have greater financial sustainability. In contrast, a lack of resources for the development of the control function is a limiting factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International organisations assert that political corruption is a major global problem. However, it is still unclear how to combat corruption. Previous research has studied corruption in central or local governments, rarely in regional ones. In this paper, we aim to identify factors influencing political corruption in regional governments. Using panel data, we analyse the statistical association between 29 economic, financial, political and socioeconomic variables and the corruption perceived by citizens, from January 2006 to September 2019. The results reveal that perceived political corruption is affected by government spending and ideological distance, among other factors. We propose several measures to reduce political corruption. Points for practitioners: The study has found that political corruption needs to be combatted through different measures for each administrative level. Our results support the idea that the following variables influence the perceived level of corruption within the regional governments: the volume of government borrowing, the ideological distance between the voter and the government, the percentage electoral participation and the volume of dependent and immigrant population of the region. Likewise, we also confirm that regional governments with higher values on the Quality of Government Index are perceived as less corrupt. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to investigate the extent of intellectual capital disclosure (ICD) through websites and social media in Spanish local government (SLG) and analyze the factors that explain their disclosure. Design/methodology/approach: The study applies content analysis and regression techniques. The ICD is analyzed for Spanish municipalities with more than 100,000 inhabitants and provincial capitals over a period from January 2018 to February 2020. Findings: Findings emphasize that the quantity of disclosed information on intellectual capital (IC) is in the low level, particularly with regard to human capital (HC). Furthermore, the results show that the information provided via social media mainly concerns the relational capital (RC). On the other hand, results obtained indicate that larger municipalities, with lower financial autonomy and whose citizens have a high income level use the online media (both websites and social media) more actively to disclose information about IC. Finally, municipalities led by women and with high level of citizens' education exert a positive influence in the ICD only on websites. Practical implications: This paper makes a number of key contributions to the existing body of knowledge, focusing on ICD, a neglected area in the public sector accounting literature. It explores and identifies the supply-side and demand-side determinants of information affecting the ICD in local governments. The results of this research could be useful for policymakers, regulators and governments' managers to improve the online information addressing ICD issues. Originality/value: This paper adopts an innovative perspective by investigating the use of alternative tools for ICD in local government context (websites and social media). To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study that focuses on investigating the determinants of online ICD in local governments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Catalana de Dret Públic is the property of Revista Catalana de Dret Public and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper analyses the socio-territorial conflict prompted by Los Merinos: a residential–tourism project constructed in an ecological reserve that is vital to Andalusian livelihoods. It examines disputes concerning discourses, authorities and rules in order to understand the struggle over land and water. Using the echelons of rights analysis (ERA) framework, the paper scrutinizes the multiscale forces and strategies adopted by business and opposing movement networks in order to shape territory, thereby engaging local and supra-local governments. The authors' political–ecology lens on environmental justice and territorialization enhances the understanding of the relevance of social movements in contesting the misappropriation of socio-natural environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Female representation may be a key factor in improving the quality of governance. In fact, the literature considers that the presence of women in organisations tends to improve performance. In this context, this paper attempts to analyse whether the presence of women in municipal councils has an influence on the efficiency of public services for a sample of 141 Spanish municipalities with more than 50,000 inhabitants for the period 2014–2018. Our results show a U-shaped relationship between the number of female councillors and the level of efficiency in Spanish municipalities. This means that the presence of women is positively associated with municipal efficiency but only if the number of female councillors is relatively high. On the contrary, their voice and personal characteristics are diluted among their male counterparts, and efficiency may be reduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Estudios de la Administración Local y Autonómica is the property of Instituto Nacional de Administracion Publica and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Public Money & Management is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper identifies some of the important factors that influence the financial sustainability of regional governments. Data from all of Spain's regional governments show that unemployment, immigrant population, dependent population, structure of revenues and expenditures, and the source of debt had impacts on financial sustainability. IMPACT This paper will help policy-makers and managers in regional and local governments to improve the management of risk and opportunities, as well as to prevent or resolve sustainability problems. The paper provides lessons, based on the Spanish experience, for politicians and practitioners to improve the management of regional governments' financial sustainability. The authors stress the need to estimate the longer term financial effects of a migrant population and the unemployed; to analyse the long-term financial impact of subsidies from other levels of government; to monitor proportionality between awarding grants and making capital investments; and to look at ways of increasing a regional government's contribution to its own revenue (for example through fees, taxes and rates). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of community manager is gaining importance as the proper usage of social media becomes a key factor for achieving more active involvement of citizens in social and political issues. Focused on Spanish local governments and in line with the literature of Excellence Theory, this paper aims to analyze whether some characteristics of the community manager function are determinant in their fostering of citizens’ online engagement via social media. In particular ‘independence’, ‘having access to the dominant coalition’, ‘gender diversity’, ‘continuous training’ and ‘culture of the organization’ are the characteristics considered in this paper. As to the main findings, this study confirms that community managers have not as yet achieved their goal of embedding the use of social media by citizens as a means of establishing more direct contact with their local governments. Moreover, in line with Excellence Theory, community managers of local governments should be aware of the importance of having direct access to key managers of the organization in order to better achieve the objectives of the organization and, more specifically, to increase citizens’ engagement. Furthermore, continuous training in issues related to social media truly helps develop the skills and potential of community managers. Likewise, an excellent communication department should rely on good professionals no matter their gender, and, in this sense, the gender of community managers is not a significant factor in their performance. However, the results of this study also reveal that in the case of public sector community managers, an authoritarian culture seems to be a determining factor for obtaining better results in enhancing citizens’ engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Former industrial premises provide material and symbolic resources for grassroots creative production, but planning is complex as these sites are transitory and excessive intervention may stifle creativity. This paper analyses the transformations of La Ribera (Bilbao), a mixed-use peninsula waiting to be redeveloped, where, in the meantime, creative-based grassroots projects have settled. Drawing upon relevant planning documents, documentary material and interviews with key actors, the paper explores (i) the spatial and built form advantages of these spaces, (ii) their impact on neighbourhood life and (iii) the contradictions faced in the planning process. The analysis suggests that spatiality plays a critical role, but it is threatened by market pressures, local governments’ interest to encourage the city's reputation and neighbours’ mistrust for the changes they may trigger. As a result, we contend that art spaces’ institutionalization in the neighbourhood is decisive for their sustainability, but the conflicts that arise for the symbolic appropriation of space should be considered. Regarding policy, governance approaches that preserve users’ autonomy and spaces’ built form and atmospheric qualities are rather suitable responses if they are part of a comprehensive agenda that includes local socio-economic conditions and neighbours’ aspirations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of El Profesional de la Información is the property of EPI SCP and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Rect@: Revista Electrónica de Comunicaciones y Trabajos de ASEPUMA is the property of ASEPUMA Asociacion Espanola de Profesores Universitarios de Matematicas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Comparative studies of urban adaptation have evaluated the progress, means and scope of adaptation planning. Practice on the ground shows that the local politics of climate adaptation advance through various strategies to align different interests and spheres of action or disrupt mainstream practices, which translates into a wide range of interventions. This paper focuses on understanding the dynamics and tools that enable the institutionalisation of adaptation practices in local governments, i.e. the means through which adaptation practices, beyond plans and policies, are embedded in the routines of urban governance. It presents a framework to analyse the institutionalisation of adaptation that maps stages and tools with the potential to deliver adaptation in urban areas. Adaptation is framed as a learning process involving overlapping phases of recognition (of needs, capacities and actors), groundwork (knowledge generation) and action on the ground (change). The framework compares three Spanish local government initiatives (Bilbao, Barcelona and Madrid). The analysis shows that adaptation can be effectively incorporated into standard rules, norms and practices using combinations of tools and spatial and temporal scales. The coupled stages of recognition, groundwork and action highlight the importance of long-term learning processes to engage with the temporal dimensions of adaptation governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the relationship between government efficiency—an important dimension of quality of government—and economic growth at the municipal level in 1,820 Spanish municipalities during the period 2008–2015. At this level of disaggregation, the literature is virtually nonexistent due to severe data constraints. The efficiency of local government provides an accurate indicator of how good local authorities are in managing their budget. This variable is expected to be highly correlated with other more traditional quality of government indicators, such as corruption. After computing our measure, we then use it in a growth regression framework. We find a dominant positive effect of government efficiency on income per capita growth, which is robust to a wide variety of scenarios. Our findings also suggest that increases in local government quality are particularly rewarding for the poorest municipalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In rural destinations different programmes coexist to promote tourism which involves many organizations and relationships. The complexity of stakeholder networks in some cases implies that the result of the application of the programmes is not efficient enough. This paper aims to explore some of these challenges regarding destinations located in rural areas taking the case study of Castilla-La Mancha (Spain). While much of the literature focuses on pinpointing the factors that have a bearing on destination governance, this research attempts to sort the importance of each factor. Structured qualitative questionnaires have been held with rural tourism suppliers (n = 52). The findings highlight that public-private partnerships, coordination on both horizontal and vertical levels, marketing management skills and integration of local activities are shown as priorities according to supply-based stakeholders' opinions. A consolidation of a neoliberal approach of tourism governance is necessary, in which local governments assume a secondary role, and management is decentralised through community-based public-private partnerships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background This paper is about spatial patterns of by corona virus disease-2019 (COVID-19). Methods Using data for the first 21 weeks from municipalities in Catalonia, we analyse whether reported positive cases appear randomly or following some kind of spatial dependence. Global and local measures of spatial autocorrelation are used. Results There are some clusters alongside Catalan municipalities that change over time. Conclusions Use of spatial analysis techniques is suggested to identify spatial disease patterns and to provide spatially disaggregated public health policy recommendations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In governments throughout the world, bank lending excesses, solvency issues and worsening credit ratings have all contributed to raising risk premiums and impeding access to credit, thus provoking a major financial problem in the public sector. Accordingly, tax authorities and regulators need to analyse the causes of public sector bank debt, doing so through the joint study of idiosyncratic and systematic variables, an area that has been neglected in previous research. This paper examines idiosyncratic and systematic factors that may influence local government credit risk through an empirical study of the performance of 148 large Spanish municipalities during 2006–2011. We identify individual factors relevant to the probability of local government default (such as dependent population, per capita income and debt composition) and also determinants associated with macroeconomic developments, such as gross domestic product and the risk premium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper contributes to the scarce literature on government transparency by analysing the impact of political and socio-economic factors on municipal financial transparency. Our sample covers the 100 largest Spanish municipalities in 2008. Compulsory publicity and transparency are key to public management (rule-of-law theory). Our data show that Spanish municipalities are providing financial information beyond the legal requirements, thus exceeding the compulsory disclosures required by the rule-of-law theory. The more taxes and more transfers per capita, the more financial information is disclosed and, accordingly, the higher the transparency is. Therefore the municipalities are not taking advantage of fiscal illusion or principal-agent effects, since they are not concealing higher levels of taxes and transfers from citizens. Furthermore, left-wing parties are more transparent than right-wing ones. Finally, the population also has a positive effect on the achievement of financial transparency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Why do some local governments privatize water services, while others opt for public management? Economic literature has been unable to demonstrate that private management is more efficient than public management, so there must be other reasons that lead governments to privatize the service. But what are they? This paper presents the results of a study that analyses the factors behind the privatization of water services with data from 741 municipalities located in the South of Spain over a period dating from 1985 to 2006. A discrete choice model analyses the influence of each factor on the likelihood of privatization. One of the novelties of this paper is that we take the value of the explanatory variables at the time when water services are privatized. Among our findings, it is worth highlighting the importance of the size of municipalities, their financial burden and the neighbouring effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the 1990s, the EU Urban policy has provided several opportunities to explore innovation at local level. This policy is based on the so-called Integrated Sustainable Urban Development (ISUD) approach. This paper explores to what extent the URBANA programme, launched by the Spanish government in the frame of the EU Cohesion Policy 2007–2013, has promoted a 'new way of doing things' in local administrations. The research addresses three main objectives. Firstly, to identify which abilities are linked to the ISUD approach. Secondly, to understand how urban managers' capacity has been developed within local administrations in the frame of the URBANA programme. Finally, to assess the effect of URBANA Institutional Capacity (IC) on the local administration. The information has been obtained from the analysis of EU and Spanish official documents, in-depth interviews and a questionnaire targeted to the local technicians. The general conclusion is that there is evidence of an urban Europeanisation in Spain. The mainstream of the ISUD approach is clear at formal level, but also in the level of acceptance of these requirements by the Spanish municipalities. The ISUD approach remains as a 'way of doing', even if proposals are not co-funded by EU funds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Studia Histórica: Historia Moderna is the property of Ediciones Universidad de Salamanca and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In the first years of the 21st century, there was a building boom in Spain, which triggered many corruption cases in municipalities. This paper contributes to the scarce literature on this issue by analysing the impact of socio-economic and financial factors on urban political corruption. Our sample covers the 110 Spanish largest municipalities for 2000-2009. The findings indicate that higher politicians' salaries and more transparency are connected with lower corruption levels. In this way, we confirm theoretical assumptions that posit that municipalities where politicians have higher salaries present less corruption cases. Finally, municipal transparency should be enhanced, because it is related to lower corruption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The need to reduce public sector costs and debt has resulted in the implementation of requirements in many countries. Spain belongs to a group of countries which monitor the financial health of their local governments, using financial indicators enforced by law, and reporting this information periodically. The objective of this paper is to analyse whether the introduction of the 2012 Spanish legislation regarding fiscal stability and budgetary balance and Ministry of Finance Order 1781/2013, which develop new indicators, have led to improvements in the financial health of local governments. The results of our analysis show that the introduction of legal requirements is effective and that the disclosure of indicators for benchmarking purposes has been beneficial and positive, although this is not so in all cases. The practical implication of this study is that the dual demands of evaluating the financial situations of local governments and disclosing this information reinforce their responsibility with respect to the general interest. This enables the comparative evolution of indicators, concluding that requirements are also needed to ensure that the goals are achieved, thereby helping to restore the reliability and transparency of their activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the causes of legal political rent extraction by using a direct measure of it, namely, local top politicians' wages. In particular, we investigate whether local politicians' incentives to extract rents by setting their own wages are influenced by the degree of political competition and voter information. We use a sample of the largest Spanish municipalities over the years 2008-2010. The results indicate that weaker political competition and lesser voter information are related to more rent extraction. In an additional analysis, we show that higher wages do not ensure better financial management. These findings confirm that when politicians can set their own salaries, higher wages do not mean better management, but they are just political rents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The aim of this study is to analyse the level of environmental, economic, and social engagement disclosed by local governments, taking into account factors such as political ideology and media pressure. Design/methodology/approach – The authors analysed 102 large Spanish municipalities, using data from 2011. An econometric model was used based on dependency techniques for cross-sectional data. The Tobit technique is suitable, since it enables the authors to address particular considerations of extreme scores on the dependent variable. Findings – The results show that local governments report less strategic and socio-economic information when subjected to strong media pressure, because the press tends to focus on unusual, negative news, and ignores other issues such as the environment. However, in municipalities governed by left-wing parties, media pressure actually promotes disclosure of this type of information. Research limitations/implications – It would be interesting to create an information index which includes local governments' disclosure, spanning a period of several years. Practical implications – Particularly in municipalities governed by a left-wing party, media pressure favours the disclosure of sustainability information, including information about the municipal corporation and strategic and social issues. Originality/value – This study analyses the impact of the press on the disclosure of sustainability information by local governments and also tests the moderating effect of the ruling party's political ideology. The authors did not find any paper that had analysed this impact before. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Local Government Accounting and Financial Reporting in Spain has been recently reformed by the new Accounting Instructions published in 2103 and in force since the 1st of January 2015. Once the financial reports corresponding to 2016 fiscal year have been published, the main purpose of this paper is to empirically evaluate, the perceptions and opinions that local governmental accountants have about the recent reform. Our analysis has found a clear gap between the aims of the reform and the opinion of local governmental accountants, who consider the system too complex and clearly biased towards financial accounting information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Athenaeum: Polskie Studia Politologiczne is the property of Faculty of Political Science & Security Studies Nicolaus Copernicus University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Interest in transparency is increasing worldwide. Literature on their determinants is evolving but is still in early stages. So far, it has typically focused on national governments while neglecting local governments. This paper examines the economic, social, and institutional determinants of local government transparency in Spain. We broaden the traditional fiscal focus by including corporate, social, contracting, and planning transparency indexes. Our results indicate that large municipalities and left-wing mayors report better transparency indexes; while the worst results are presented by provincial capitals, touristic cities and mayors with absolute majority. The analysis of specific transparency categories generally shows the consistent impact of these determinants. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper studies the influence of ideology and political motives on the choice of management for urban water services. Our contribution is two-fold. Firstly, we use a considerably more detailed set of variables to represent ideological and political motives than previous research. Secondly, the variables that explain local politicians' decisions are observed at the time decision-making occurs, rather than at a later date. Beyond pragmatic reasons, we find that ideological and political motives also matter when explaining decisions regarding the management of water services. Furthermore, considering the time dimension of decision-making noticeably improves the explanatory power of our model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides additional evidence about the possible relationship between performance and public or private governance of urban water utilities. Data envelopment analysis (DEA) techniques are used to compute technical efficiency scores for a sample of Spanish water utilities. The principal contribution of this research is adaptation of the DEA technique to programmatic efficiency estimation in order to analyse the link between ownership and efficiency. From a first specification of the model, which allows a conventional estimation of efficiency, additional estimations, taking quality and hydraulic yield into account, were made. The results show that private management is more efficient when the estimations are made using the original model and when quality is taken into account. However, there are no significant differences between private and public management when hydraulic yield is included. The results suggest that public managers are more sensitive to the sustainable management of water resources. They also suggest that local governments follow a strategy of privatising water services when they are in financial difficulty, with fewer resources for maintaining distribution networks. This is an aspect that needs further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

NPM reforms have become a global trend and performance management systems are considered suitable to enhance the decision-making process and accountability. The aim of the paper is to carry out a comparative study on the adoption of performance measurement tools in Italian and Spanish (medium-sized and large) local governments. It seeks to find out how widespread these tools are and how their usefulness is perceived. The results show differences between the two countries and that the presence of professional managers – experienced with performance measurement tools – positively affects the adoption of these tools. Moreover, performance measurement tools are perceived as a support for accountability purposes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Spatial Economic Analysis is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The aim of this paper is to analyse the level of implementation by Spanish local authorities of the Transparency Act (19/2013), and their voluntary information disclosure in areas where such disclosure is obligatory in other EU countries. We identify the main factors that may influence the implementation of this Act and the self-regulation policies adopted. Our analysis highlights the existence of delays among some local authorities, with notable differences between municipalities with larger and smaller populations, in implementing the Act, and also the fact that many municipalities are committed to achieving transparency, often going beyond minimum legal requirements. Factors such as population size, the political ideology of the governing party and the education level and economic capacity of the population are related to the level of implementation of transparency and self-regulatory policies in this respect by local authorities. We acknowledge that the 2013 Act was still being implemented during the period analysed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Española de Documentación Científica is the property of Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper analyzes an operational method that regional government agencies can use to enable locally-based firms to compete effectively in their industries. This method, which emerged in southern Spain after the transition to democracy, embodies many precepts found in the contemporary public management literature. The paper begins the task of cumulating the clinical knowledge needed to translate action plan precepts into specific managerial decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

LEADER development programs have a primary objective of enhancing the quality of life. However, their evaluation has been limited due to the extensive time required for analysis. This report investigates the contribution of the LEADER approach to improving the quality of life through a thirty-year case study in the Alcarria Conquense region of Spain (1991-2021). Funding for projects focused on rural heritage, infrastructure, and essential services has played a pivotal role in creating conditions for a prosperous life in the region. Nonetheless, limitations have emerged, including deepening territorial imbalances, a heavy reliance on local government entities, and potential drawbacks to the innovation and management capacity of other economic and social actors. While LEADER offer a valuable tool for policymakers seeking to enhance rural communities' quality of life, further analysis is necessary to refine their implementation and maximize their overall impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated if and how financial sustainability affects the ability of local governments to meet the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) established by the United Nations. Two samples consisting of Italian and Spanish local governments were analyzed for the analysis. These municipalities were selected, as they provide many essential services largely linked with several SDGs. Findings show that local governments with better financial conditions devote more effort to achieving the SDGs connected with the biosphere, as well as social and economic development. Our results can stimulate politicians and managers to fight against tax evasion to increase their resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High levels of debt, provoked by a situation of economic and financial crisis, constitute a major threat to the financial sustainability of governments in the euro zone and in many other parts of the world. This delicate state of public finances also affects local governments and has led researchers to study the variables that influence the volume of bank debt. However, few have specifically analysed the causes of local government default, although it has provoked spending cutbacks and tax increases in many countries. The aim of this paper is to examine political factors that may increase the risk of local government default. Using a logit model for panel data and applying the Basel II rules, we studied the financial performance of large local Spanish governments for the period 2006-2011. Our empirical findings reveal four political factors that may increase the risk of default (the mayor’sknowledge of finance and economics, a low percentage of women councillors, a left-wing ideology and ideological alignment with the regional government).These findings are of great interest for stakeholders who may be affected by local government default, including voters, taxpayers, users of public services, managers, policymakers, financial institutions, creditors, fiscal authorities and central government. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – Cases of corruption, embezzlement, theft and fraud, abuse of discretion, favoritism, nepotism, clientelism, and abuse of power in governments have led to a growing demand from society to access public information. In response to this demand, governments have been forced to be more transparent in the conduct of their activities. The information transparency index (TI) may be conditioned by economic and political characteristics of local governments affecting the information provided. What factors influenced the index of municipal transparency? Literature about transparency is largely based on the explanations of the agency theory and the legitimacy theory. Based on the postulates of both theories, the purpose of this paper is twofold. First, study the index transparency in Spanish municipalities, and, second, determine the main features that are affecting the index of transparency. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected from Transparency International Spain ranking and from official sources. Univariate and multivariate analysis are performed for the treatment of data. Findings – The results shows that political factors like electoral turnout, political ideology, and political competition have a significant effect on the index of transparency. Gender has no significant effect on the index of transparency. Originality/value – This study is a contribution to the growing body literature of transparency in order to understand what explains the variations of the TI among municipalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]