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Institute
The contribution summarises the scientific discussion and research activities of the EGPA Permanent Study Group 4 (PSG 4) “Local Governance and Local Democracy”, founded in 2005. The impetus for proposing this specific PSG was the growing importance of the local level within the multi-level governance system in the European Union and most of its member states. The PSG 4 acts as a European network of research activities inside and outside EGPA, producing joint publications and organising scientific debates on many problems of the development of municipalities and local authorities. Our focus was on discussing both how to improve democracy by increased participation and deliberation, and how to secure provision of services in an efficient way in developed welfare societies. This includes analysing several forms of administrative changes and reforms at the local level and research of representative, direct and cooperative democracy at local level in a cross-European comparison.
Future Outlook and Scenarios
(2021)
Where is local self-government heading in the future? Among trends identified is firstly an intensification of multilevel, intermunicipal, and cross-border governance. In the future even more of cooperation and coordination among different political and administrative levels will be required. Territorial boundaries have become increasingly incongruent with functional public activities. Secondly, the innovative potential of introducing markets as templates for organisational reform has reached its end. Future reforms will most likely try to adapt market reforms to local public contexts, or even reverse the development. Finally, a tightening of state steering and an increased dependence on state funding to uphold local services is expected. Waves of amalgamations might slow down this process but they will not make financial problems disappear completely.
Inhalt: 1. Vorbemerkungen 1.1. Zur Wahl der Methode bei der Erhebung und Auswertung von Interviews 1.2. Zur Konzeption des Interviewleitfadens 1.3. Zur Auswahl der Probanden 2. Kreisgebietsreform in Brandenburg 2.1. Leitidee und Gestaltungsoptionen 2.2. Politische Umsetzung 2.3. Bewertung und Vergleich 3. Hypothesen zu möglichen langfristigen Auswirkungen 4. Auswertung der Interviews 4.1. Generelle Bewertung der Kreisgebietsreform 4.2. Strukturpolitische Ergebnisse 4.3. Verwaltungsaufbau und Personal 4.3.1. Standortkonzept 4.3.2. Personalzusammenführung 4.4. Kreisidentität und Partizipation 4.4.1. Kollektive Identität und Kreise 4.4.2. Einschätzung des erreichten Standes der Kreisidentität 4.4.3. Kreisverwaltung und Kreisidentität 4.4.4. Parteien bzw. Verbände und Kreisidentität 4.4.5. Bürgerpartizipation auf Kreisebene 4.5. Kreise und Land bzw. Gemeinden/Ämter 4.5.1. Kreise und Land 4.5.2. Kreise und Gemeinden bzw. Ämter 4.6. Kreise und Verwaltungsreformen 5. Fazit – Thesen zu den langfristigen Auswirkungen der Kreisgebietsreform 5.1. Zusammenfassung 5.2. Ausblick
Unter dem Titel “Kommunale Politik und Verwaltung” widmen sich mehrere Autoren der Basis des demokratischen Verwaltungsstaates in Deutschland. Detailliert werden Kommunal-, Gemeinde- und Kreisverfassungen dargestellt. Der Aufbau der einzelnen Organe und Organisationsstrukturen wird dabei auch unter zu Hilfenahme übersichtlicher Tabellen behandelt. Einen besonderen Schwerpunkt bildet die im dritten Kapitel vorgestellte reformierte Kommunalverwaltung Brandenburgs. Das Buch stellt somit ein umfangreiches Nachschlagewerk für ein Thema dar, das ansonsten wenig Beachtung erfährt.
Gegenstand dieses Abschlussberichtes sind die Ergebnisse der Steuerung des personalpolitischen Wandels und der Mitarbeiterbeteiligung im Rahmen der Kreisgebietsreform in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern zwischen Mai 2006 (Annahme des entsprechenden Gesetzes) und Juni 2007 (Urteil des Landesverfassungsgerichtes, welches zum Abbruch der Reform führte). Diese Reform sollte 6.347 Stellen umfassen, 1.730 davon sollten vom Land auf die neuen Kreise übertragen werden sowie 4.617 aus Kernverwaltung der Ausgangkreise betroffen sein. Die Studie wurde in enger Zusammenarbeit mit dem Aufbaustab zur Bildung des Regionalkreises Westmecklenburg erstellt. Dieser schuf ab Juni 2006 Rahmenbedingungen für die Steuerung des Fusionsprozesses und beschränkte sich auf die Erarbeitung von Konzepten zu Schwerpunktthemen. Ausdifferenzierte Umsetzungsstrategien sollten ab Mitte 2007 entwickelt werden, wozu es wegen des Abbruchs der Reform aber nicht mehr kam. Die Projektgruppe Personal und Organisation des Aufbaustabes hatte bereits eine Grobstruktur des künftigen Behördenaufbaus erarbeitet. Dabei sollte der erfolgreiche Entwicklungspfad des Altkreises Ludwigslust fortsetzt und eine einheitliche moderne Kreisbehörde geschaffen werden. Weitere Planungsschritte wie die Einführung des Neuen Steuerungsmodells, die Personalauswahl zur Stellenbesetzung der Führungskräfte und der freien Stellen bis 2009 sowie die Einführung der Leistungsvergütung nach TVöD sollten 2008 in ein gemeinsames Konzept zur Personalentwicklung münden. Im Aufbaustab dominierte eine aufgabenorientierte Bedarfs- und Entwicklungsplanung. Einspareffekte waren nur ein Randthema. Die Effektivität der Aufgabenerledigung der künftigen Regionalkreisbehörde und deren Personalsteuerung standen im Zentrum des Fusionsprozesses. Für die Steuerung des Personalüberhanges sowie der zukünftigen Personalstruktur wurde die Altersteilzeit im Blockmodell präferiert. Eine passive oder aktivierende Steuerungsstrategie konnte nicht mehr ausgearbeitet werden. Die Beteiligungsintensität im Aufbaustab war vorbildlich. Unter dessen Leitung wurde eine differenzierte Projektorganisation geschaffen, viele Grundsatzentscheidungen getroffen und Steuerungskonzepte erarbeitet. Mitglieder der Personalvertretung waren an diesem Prozess angemessen beteiligt. Leider waren in den Ausgangsbehörden keine reformbezogenen Projektgruppen zur Unterstützung der Delegierten beim Aufbaugremium installiert worden. Auch die Information und Kommunikation der von der Fusion betroffenen Mitarbeiter war defizitär. Die Studie belegt anhand des Beispiels des Aufbaustabes zur Bildung des Regionalkreises Westmecklenburg die Chancen zur Optimierung des Ressourcengefüges der Kreisebene in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern durch die Kreisgebietsreform. Durch die geplante Behördenneubildung hätten die Strukturen tief greifender verändert werden können als durch isolierte Einzelmaßnahmen und binnenstrukturelle Reformen. Es bestand für das Land die historische Chance, suboptimale Entwicklungspfade beim Leistungs- und Steuerungspotential zu verlassen. Sie wurden letztlich nicht genutzt.
DDR-Bürger und Perestroika
(2019)
Die DDR und Polen
(2019)
The chapter begins with a brief historical overview of Germany’s transition in the twentieth and twenty-first century from a transit and emigration country to one of immigration. The next part of this chapter looks at the challenges and problems facing German immigration policy within a multi-level federal system. Finally, the chapter gives an analysis of some of the trends in German migration policy since the refugee crisis in 2015, such as changes in the party system and in the concepts underlying migration policies to better manage, control and limit immigration to Germany.
This chapter focuses on the relationship between public opinion on migration and its media coverage. Different explanatory models, including individual characteristics, cultural factors and the impact of media and politics, have been proposed to explain public attitudes towards migrants. Understanding the local context is important, as the shares of migrants living in each region and city vary considerably. Providing correct statistical information, stressing the diversity of current migration patterns in Europe and taking part in media and public discussions are ways in which to impact public attitudes at the local level.
When I took up the task of writing a review of the Routledge handbook of international local government, it occurred to me, as a member of the generation of the 1950s, that I had not even considered whether such compendiums were even necessary in times of easy internet searching. This review will look at whether that is indeed the case.
Social-science handbooks naturally are very broad. This also applies to the particular handbook under review. It comprises six content-thematic parts with 33 chapters by 73 authors from 21 countries, with the UK and USA dominant. The focal points, discussed in more detail below, are local elections and local governance, local governments in different jurisdictions, the challenges of local government services, citizen engagement in local affairs, and local authorities in multi-level finance systems that shape how municipal governments ‘get and spend’ public money. These are exactly the topics actually discussed in the international community of political scientists.
As a preliminary, the editors work out the theoretical-methodological foundations of the topic. They define ‘the local’ as ‘geographically defined sub-national state administrative or political divisions’ (p. 3). As next steps, they analyse the difference between government and governance, and investigate whether local government is globally important and relevant. Fortunately, they conclude that this is indeed the case.
Part I of the handbook illustrates ‘substantive variations’ in the local electoral systems and ‘notable divergences in the values and assumptions of local governance among democratic countries’ (p. 23). That topic is indeed central to local authorities’ legitimacy in democratic political systems. The focus of this part of the handbook is on current research and debates around local electoral systems, the challenges of local political leadership and the councillor’s role in modern local policy. Current trends at the local level are analysed from the actors’ perspectives or from an economic point of view by comparing institutionalised differences in city managers, mayors and council members across different jurisdictions. Sections that investigate traditional leadership and local government in Pacific Island countries are of particular interest to most Western readers, because in Europe and North America we know too little about such issues in that part of the world.
Part II of the handbook presents current development processes and challenges in various local government systems. The chapters are territorially oriented around nation states or sub-national regions. This part of the handbook deal with local government in the Pacific Islands, Latin America, and New Zealand and in the Caribbean. However, the rationale behind country selection is not always clear; important countries like China, India and Nigeria, just to name a few, are absent. Unfortunately, there is no summary article highlighting similarities and differences, as well as the challenges in local government, relating to the countries studied in the book.
The development of local services is the focus of Part III of the handbook, however, the definition of local services remains highly controversial and their scope varies widely between the countries. From the 1980s onwards, there was a long-term trend towards the marketisation and economisation of local politics, but since the turn of the millennium, there has been a counter-trend of the return of municipalities and third sector in the fields of local public services (Wollmann 2018). The book analyses the US and Georgia as case studies for development trends, finding that local government entrepreneurship remains an important factor in promoting economic development and strengthening capacities.
I was pleased to see that Part IV, the next and most extensive part of the handbook, deals with citizen engagement, because the future of local self-government across the world depends not only on top down activities by local governing elites, but above all on the commitment of the inhabitants of cities and municipalities. Practices and challenges of citizen participation in local government are analysed in inspiring case studies of mid-sized cities in Russia and the United States. The contribution on urban governance of austerity in Europe is also of particular interest. The 2008 global financial crash and the subsequent severe budgetary pressure on municipalities in many countries was a key event in the history and development of local self-government, confronting municipalities with ‘the harsh realities of political economy’ (p. 293). Several articles analyse the causes of the declining confidence of the citizens in local authorities in some countries. In contrast, the open budget tool in Brazil is as a positive example of collaborative stakeholder engagement.
Part V deals with multi-level governance. With the exception of Australia, it is all about Europe, especially the role of municipalities in the EU’s multilevel system. The authors conclude that ‘local authorities are essential for executing EU legislation, and this turn allows them to shape EU policies’ (p. 401). This part of the handbook includes the issue of local territorial reforms, which are central to local autonomy, combined with analyses of redesigning regional government and local-level Europeanisation. Subsequently, by comparing the local government systems of Southern Europe (France, Italy, Portugal and Spain), the authors underline convincingly the role of traditions, identity, legal frameworks and institutions in local government.
Part VI of the book deals with the financial dimension of local self-government under the heading ‘Getting and spending’. This is indeed the ‘key source of dispute between local and central government’ (p. 467) and the crucial factor shaping true local autonomy. Meritoriously, this part also contains a chapter on the fight against corruption and unethical behaviour by public servants. Based on research linking corruption to transparency and accountability, two case studies describe how Tbilisi (Georgia) and Lviv (Ukraine) try to reduce corruption in government budgeting and procurement. Enhancing Value-For-Money audit in local government highlights another important side of local finance. An interesting comparison reveals significant differences in local government revenues in European Union member states between 2000 and 2014.
Of course, even in a 530-page book, some important aspects remain underexposed. Above all, I would have liked more attention on some of the enormous future challenges facing democratic systems and with them local governments all over the world, such as digitisation (e.g. in smart cities), the integration of migrants or climate change. The international networking of municipalities should also be given greater prominence.
To sum it up, The Routledge Handbook on International Local Government is indeed ‘ambitiously titled’ as the editors underline. Yet, despite my critical objections about its focus on current issues rather than future challenges, they largely fulfil this promise and their general approach has worked well. Across continents and political-administrative cultures, illustrated with many new research findings, they have created an outstanding publication focusing on the challenges and policy of local self-governmental authorities and other local stakeholders. There is a good chance that this handbook will belong in future to the social science standard works on local issues, and be included in academic political science teaching. May the publisher’s wish come true; that this book stimulates its readers to develop further research ideas.
Finally, I come back to my initial question. ‘Old fashioned’ printed handbooks like these continue to make sense, even in modern digital times.
Schlussbemerkungen
(2008)
Netzwerke für demokratie statt Achsen mit Autokraten : für einen Neuansatz deutscher Ostpolitik
(2005)
This study is analysing the transformation of Slovak administration in the telecommunication sector between 1989 and 2004. The dynamic telecom sector forms a good example for the transition problems of post-socialist administration with special regard to the regulation regime change. After describing briefly the role of the telecom sector within economy, the Slovak sectoral policy is analysed. The focus is layed on telecom legislation (including the regulation framework), liberalization of the telecom market and privatisation of the former state owned telecom operator. The transformation of the organizational structure of the "Slovak telecommunication administration" is analysed in particular at the level of the ministry and the regulating agency.
Agricultural policy in the transition states of Central Eastern Europe is a very complex issue – ranging from privatisation of farm land, the establishment of agricultural markets to detailed questions of veterinary care, plant health and animal nutrition. Its main elements are the introduction of market liberalization, farm restructuring, privatisation, the reform of the sector and the creation of supporting market institutions and services.1 In this process central state agriculture administration plays a decisive role. This paper is summing up the research of the author on Slovak agricultural administration between 2002 and 2004. This work was part of a DFG-funded research project on “Genesis, Organization and Efficiency of the central-state Ministerial Administration in Central and Eastern Europe”. The project was analysing the processes, results and efficiency of administrative structures at central-state level in Estonia, Poland and Slovakia with reference to public administration in the policy fields of agriculture and telecommunications. The paper is reflecting the situation in the sector and its administration at the beginning of 2004. At first, an overview of the role of the agricultural sector in Slovak economy in the past and presence is provided (section I). Against this background, the development of the agricultural policy in the different periods since 1989 will be analysed, mainly what privatisation, accession to the EU and subsidy policy are concerned (section II). A detailed study of the developments in agricultural administration forms the next part of the paper (section III), i.e. the changes taking place in the ministry of agriculture and in the other institutions responsible for the implementation of agricultural policy. The role of interest groups in agriculture is briefly analysed (section IV). In the conclusions two different scenarios on the further development of Slovak agricultural administration will be deployed.
Die UdSSR und der Golfkrieg
(1991)