Policy Diffusion at the Local Level: Participatory Budgeting in Estonia

2017 ◽  
Vol 54 (2) ◽  
pp. 419-447 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jelizaveta Krenjova ◽  
Ringa Raudla
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Diffusion Process ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Policy Diffusion ◽  
Limited Attention ◽  
Participatory Budgeting ◽  
Predominant Role ◽  
Diffusion Mechanisms ◽  
Scholarly Discussion

The existing studies on participatory budgeting (PB) have paid very limited attention to how this participatory tool has spread across local governments (LGs), what kind of diffusion mechanisms have played a predominant role, and which actors and factors have influenced its adoption. Our article seeks to address this gap in the scholarly discussion by exploring the diffusion of PB across LGs in Estonia, where it is a rather new phenomenon. Our qualitative study demonstrates that the diffusion of PB in Estonia has so far been driven by the interaction of two mechanisms: learning and imitation. We also find that an epistemic go-between, information-technological solutions, and the characteristics of the initial adopter played a significant role in shaping the diffusion process.

scholarly journals Critical Summary and Concluding Remarks

2021 ◽  
pp. 255-267
Author(s):  
Carina Schmitt ◽  
Herbert Obinger
Keyword(s):  
Diffusion Process ◽  
Event History Analysis ◽  
Policy Diffusion ◽  
Event History ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Global Studies ◽  
Theoretical Approaches ◽  
History Analysis ◽  
Diffusion Mechanisms ◽  
Basic Insight

AbstractThis chapter provides a summary and a systematic synopsis of the theoretical approaches and the empirical results. It gives a comparative overview over the temporal and spatial pattern of the diffusion process and critically reflects the theoretical approaches and the applied methods. A basic insight of this comparative conclusion is that the macro-quantitative approach of network diffusion event history analysis has great benefits for global studies on social policy diffusion, but in-depth case studies still remain important for revealing the diffusion mechanisms. Future research should more systematically combine both perspectives.

scholarly journals Can Top Down Participatory Budgeting Work? The Case of Polish Community Fund

2018 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 179-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dawid Sześciło ◽  
Bartosz Wilk
Keyword(s):  
Local Governments ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Collaborative Management ◽  
Participatory Budgeting ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Polish Experience ◽  
Legislative Framework ◽  
Local Initiatives ◽  
Legislative Model

The article addresses the participatory budgeting (PB), which is one of the most recognised governance innovations of recent decades. This global phenomenon represents in practice a shift towards participatory and collaborative management of public resources at the local level. The purpose of this article is to determine when top down approach to PB might be welcomed, taking into account the characteristics of PB schemes all around the world that they emerged as local initiatives, instigated either by civil society groups or local governments. The analysis is based on the description of the PB example as introduced via country-wide legislation, exhaustively regulating PB procedure. The article examines Polish experience in the field of functioning top down approach to PB. It demonstrates that top down PB can effectively work, if it is accompanied with significant incentives and grants, as well as the extensive autonomy and flexibility of local communities. Polish experience suggests that such an initiative might be relatively successful, yet there is a number of conditions that has to be met in order to ensure the dissemination of legislative model of participatory budgeting. The results have practical implications to central government institutions that consider introduction of some legislative framework for participatory budgeting at the local level. The originality of the research is in the analysis of one of successful stories of the PB introduced via country-wide legislation, and determining when this approach can work, also in other countries.

The Nexus of State and Local Capacity in Vertical Policy Diffusion

2017 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 188-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Junghack Kim ◽  
Bruce D. McDonald ◽  
Jooho Lee
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Policy Diffusion ◽  
Institutional Autonomy ◽  
Vertical Diffusion ◽  
Generally Accepted Accounting Principles ◽  
Accounting Principles ◽  
State And Local

This article examines the vertical diffusion of a policy between a state and its local governments. Although policy diffusion typically relies upon multiple mechanisms, diffusion between a state and its local governments relies primarily on coercion. Using a case study of state-mandated adherence to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), we show that the coercion mechanism is dependent upon the capacity of the state and local governments to adopt and implement a policy, as well as the discretion available to a local government. Utilizing data from all 50 states as of 2008, our findings show that the vertical diffusion of a policy is reliant on a state’s fiscal capacity and the personnel capacity of the local government. We also found that strong institutional autonomy at the local level leads a state to adopt a GAAP mandate.

Spatial and Institutional Analysis of the Voivodships Expenditure on Culture in the Years 2003 – 2015

e-Finanse ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 67-75
Author(s):  
Adam Mateusz Suchecki
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Institutional Analysis ◽  
The State ◽  
Cultural Institutions ◽  
Location Quotient ◽  
Local Authorities ◽  
National Heritage

AbstractFollowing the completion of the process of decentralisation of public administration in Poland in 2003, a number of tasks implemented previously by the state authorities were transferred to the local level. One of the most significant changes to the financing and management methods of the local authorities was the transfer of tasks related to culture and national heritage to the set of tasks implemented by local governments. As a result of the decentralisation process, the local government units in Poland were given significant autonomy in determining the purposes of their budgetary expenditures on culture. At the same time, they were obliged to cover these expenses from their own revenues.This paper focuses on the analysis of expenditures on culture covered by the voivodship budgets, taking into consideration the structure of cultural institutions by their types, between 2003-2015. The location quotient (LQ) was applied to two selected years (2006 and 2015) to illustrate the diversity of expenditures on culture in individual voivodships.

Incentives for the development of industrial parks (on the example of the border regions of Poland)

2020 ◽  
pp. 78-87
Author(s):  
Yaroslava Kalat
Keyword(s):  
Local Governments ◽  
Cost Minimization ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Business Environment ◽  
Local Communities ◽  
Financial Assistance ◽  
Industrial Park ◽  
Border Regions ◽  
Industrial Parks ◽  
Spatial Policy

In the search for efficient decisions directed at the stimulation of regional development and improvement of regions’ innovativeness and investment attractiveness, the EU regions have long ago started paying attention to local communities. In particular, Polish local governments are granted an opportunity to conduct an active spatial policy of investment attraction using various instruments. In this context, the industrial parks play an important role among the created institutes of the business environment, because they create advantages for local communities and businesses. In particular, they promote investment attraction, entrepreneurship activation, employment and jobs increase, material cost minimization, etc. At the same time, the development of entrepreneurship environment institutes requires support at national, regional, and local levels. The development will be almost impossible without the creation of proper legal, political, economic, and social conditions for their activity. The paper aims to define major stimuli of industrial park development based on the Polish experience, the economic structure of which is similar to the Ukrainian one. This will contribute to the development of the ways to boost industrial park development in Ukraine, especially in the border areas. For the matter, the author outlines the major instruments used by Polish local communities to boost investment and entrepreneurship activity in the framework of industrial park development. The scientific paper emphasizes the analysis of legislation on creation, functioning, and support of Polish industrial park development, and further perspectives of their activity. Special attention is paid to general characteristics of the condition of industrial parks located in Polish border regions. The advantages of each of them are determined and examples of their creation and development are given. The research resulted in the allocation of two groups of stimuli of industrial parks development which are the precondition, according to the author, of industrial parks becoming the instrument of investment attraction, economic boost of the territories, and entrepreneurship activity growth: the stimuli of development of industrial parks’ organizational structure (public financial assistance; information and advisory support; grans of European funds; international cooperation / partnership; independent spatial policy at the local level) and the stimuli of entrepreneurship development in industrial parks (infrastructure (physical and soft); public financial assistance; tax incentives; investment grants; financial loans).

Concept and components of the financial-investment maintenance of local governance

2020 ◽  
pp. 100-112
Author(s):  
Zenoviy Siryk
Keyword(s):  
Social Services ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Local Governance ◽  
Local Level ◽  
National Standards ◽  
Investment Policy ◽  
Financial Resources ◽  
Financial Investment ◽  
Balanced Development ◽  
And Function

The issues related to the management of financial resources of territorial communities, financial independence of local governments and forming of efficient financial-investment policy to secure the balanced development of local communities and territories become of utmost importance in conditions of financial decentralization and administrative-territorial reform in Ukraine. The problem issues concerning the forming of financial-investment maintenance of local governance directly impact the capacity of a territorial community that should have financial, material, and other resources in the volumes sufficient to completely accomplish the tasks and function of local governments and provide social services to the population at the level stipulated by national standards. The forming of financial-investment maintenance of local governance is revealed to be directly influencing the capacity of a territorial community that should have financial, material, and other resources in the volumes sufficient to completely accomplish the tasks and function of local governments and provide social services to the population. The expansion of local governments’ competences and granting them greater independence are substantiated to be requiring more responsibility in the financial-investment policy implementation on the local level, forming of conditions to perform the economic activity, and develop businesses by all economic entities, and promoting favorable investment climate in the region. Based on the analysis of approaches to the definition of the nature of “financial maintenance” and “investment maintenance” in the context of the peculiarities of local governments’ activity, the paper suggests understanding the “financial-investment maintenance of local governance” as a set of opportunities and activities on distribution and use of financial resources and territories’ resources for the creation of conditions necessary for the efficient functioning of local governments and realization of their competences.

scholarly journals Renewable Energy Attitudes and Behaviour of Local Governments in Poland

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (10) ◽  
pp. 2765
Author(s):  
Joanna Rakowska ◽  
Irena Ozimek
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Local Development ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Environmental Benefits ◽  
Local Authorities ◽  
The Public ◽  
Energy Behavior ◽  
Public Aid ◽  
Energy Projects

The deployment of renewable energy at the local level can contribute significantly to mitigating climate change, improving energy security and increasing social, economic and environmental benefits. In many countries local authorities play an important role in the local development, but renewable energy deployment is not an obligatory task for them. Hence there are two research questions: (1) Do local governments think investments in renewable energy (RE) are urgent and affordable within the local budgets? (2) How do they react to the public aid co-financing investments in renewable energy? To provide the answer we performed qualitative analysis and non-parametric tests of data from a survey of 252 local authorities, analysis of 292 strategies of local development and datasets of 1170 renewable energy projects co-financed by EU funds under operational programs 2007–2013 and 2014–2020 in Poland. Findings showed that local authorities’ attitudes were rather careful, caused by financial constraints of local budgets and the scope of obligatory tasks, which made renewable energy investments not the most urgent. Public aid was a factor significantly affecting local authorities’ behavior. It triggered local authorities’ renewable energy initiatives, increasing the number and scope of renewable energy investments as well cooperation with other municipalities and local communities. Despite this general trend, there were also considerable regional differences in local authorities’ renewable energy behavior.

Law reform for life: how to unleash the guiding principles of ecologically sustainable development to improve human relationships with (the rest of) urban biodiversity

2021 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 66-89
Author(s):  
Lachlan Penninkilampi
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Urban Biodiversity ◽  
Law And Policy ◽  
Guiding Principles ◽  
Ecologically Sustainable ◽  
Ecologically Sustainable Development ◽  
Biodiversity Governance

Urbanization is arguably the most severe and irreversible driver of environmental change, particularly with respect to biodiversity. This is the case even in Australia, a megadiverse country with a sophisticated federal regime of biodiversity governance. Yet, life persists in urban worlds. In the context of global climate and ecological crises, this article endeavours to illustrate how law and policy can grapple with the complexities of urban biodiversity and enable it to flourish. First, the article outlines the current approaches to urban biodiversity: what is it, what is it like, why does it matter and how do humans think of it? Second, the article analyses the current state of biodiversity governance in Australia, focusing particularly on the laws and policies of the Commonwealth, New South Wales, and local governments in Greater Sydney. Finally, the article details a program of reform which revisits the original guiding principles of ecologically sustainable development, illustrating how they could be unleashed for the better governance of urban biodiversity with respect to decision-making, the administration of law, issues at scale, the economy, valuation techniques and community participation. The program includes not only systemic and multi-scalar reforms, but also local-level reforms which have significant yet often overlooked potential to encourage pro-biodiversity behaviours in everyday life. The aim is to reveal just some of the many ways in which hope can be creatively transformed into action for a biodiverse urban future – that is, to reveal the possibilities of law and policy to enable urban biodiversity to be better recognized, understood, valued, protected and enhanced as Australia develops in the twenty-first century.

scholarly journals USING PARTICIPATORY APPROACH TO IMPROVE AVAILABILITY OF SPATIAL DATA FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENT

2016 ◽  
Vol III-4/W1 ◽  
pp. 139-144
Author(s):  
T. Kliment ◽  
V. Cetl ◽  
H. Tomič ◽  
J. Lisiak ◽  
M. Kliment
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Data ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Property Tax ◽  
Open Data ◽  
Quality Level ◽  
Tax Rates ◽  
Geospatial Information ◽  
Data Infrastructure ◽  
Participatory Gis

Nowadays, the availability of authoritative geospatial features of various data themes is becoming wider on global, regional and national levels. The reason is existence of legislative frameworks for public sector information and related spatial data infrastructure implementations, emergence of support for initiatives as open data, big data ensuring that online geospatial information are made available to digital single market, entrepreneurs and public bodies on both national and local level. However, the availability of authoritative reference spatial data linking the geographic representation of the properties and their owners are still missing in an appropriate quantity and quality level, even though this data represent fundamental input for local governments regarding the register of buildings used for property tax calculations, identification of illegal buildings, etc. We propose a methodology to improve this situation by applying the principles of participatory GIS and VGI used to collect observations, update authoritative datasets and verify the newly developed datasets of areas of buildings used to calculate property tax rates issued to their owners. The case study was performed within the district of the City of Požega in eastern Croatia in the summer 2015 and resulted in a total number of 16072 updated and newly identified objects made available online for quality verification by citizens using open source geospatial technologies.

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