When Efficiency Is Unbelievable: Normative Lessons from 30 Years of City–County Consolidations

by

“…the essential element of a successful consolidation is a group of civic elites who define the economic development vision for the community, determine that the existing political structure is incapable of supporting and implementing that vision, and convince the voters that city–county consolidation is the key to economic development that will benefit the whole community, not just the elites.”

We use a new model of city-county consolidation to analyze 12 local government consolidation attempts during the last three decades. Using a rigorously designed comparative case study, we identify the critical variables that explain why some consolidations succeed and others fail. Arguments for consolidation typically fail when they focus on the increased equity to be gained from the redistribution of revenues from the suburbs to central cities. Traditional arguments that are based on increased efficiency are also unsuccessful.

Published in Public Administration Review | Suzanne M. Leland | 2005, https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/When-Efficiency-Is-Unbelievable%3A-Normative-Lessons-Leland-Thurmaier/d089bf8bbe7e94128278c7c68ebeb5bd3044d0bc

Related posts:

  1. City–County Consolidations “The authors conclude that little empirical research exists to suggest that city–county consolidations actually increase efficiency, promote economic development, or increase equity.” This essay explores city–county consolidations and the extent of alignment between the advantages promised by consolidation advocates and...
  2. Suburbs without a City “The case highlights the power dimension of city-county consolidation, often overlooked by advocates of public choice as well as those favoring metropolitan consolidation.” City-county consolidation is advanced as a good government reform to promote efficiency, equity, and accountability and, more...
  3. Frame the Consolidation Debate with a Sound Argument: A Reply to a Response “The most persuasive argument in favor of city–county consolidation has been—and remains—economic development through the formation of a strong and attractive regional community identity. Empirical evidence consistently demonstrates that appeals to voters based on reducing inner-city/suburban socioeconomic inequity and enhancing...
  4. The economic impact of city–county consolidations: a synthetic control approach “The results from the three cases explored indicate that consolidation does not guarantee development and actually can have negative effects. Additionally, consolidation can deepen the urban-rural divide by accelerating the decline of rural populations relative to those of urban areas....
  5. A Reassessment of City/County Consolidation: Economic Development Impacts “Over the past two decades, a large body of literature has examined the fiscal consequences of city/ county consolidation. Much of this research suggests that consolidation results in expansions in local budgets and in the scope and quality of municipal...
  6. Impact Analyses of City-County Consolidation on Urban Growth in South Korea “The results show that city-county consolidation has a significantly positive impact on growth of population and urbanized areas. Also, consolidated cities, compared to those failing to be consolidated, show a stronger tendency to balanced growth between former central cities and...
  7. The Expenditure Impacts of Unification in a Small Georgia County: A Contingency Perspective of City-County Consolidation ” This study offers evidence of greater efficiency and reduced costs in general government or administrative services when the consolidation occurs in a relatively small county. Based on an analysis of real operating expenditures in the United Government of Athens-Clarke...
  8. The Varieties of Consolidation Experience: A Synthesis and Extension of Local Government Consolidation Models “This article revises and extends Leland and Thurmaier’s (2004a, 2004b) City—County Consolidation (C3) model by synthesizing it with Johnson’s (2004) Theory of Local Constitutional Change (LCC) and Hughes and Lee’s (2002) Evolutionary Consolidation Model (ECM). The result, we find, is...
  9. Where are the cost savings in city–county consolidation? “Although the results of the four cases are mixed, we find that in some cases there are cost savings associated with city–county consolidation, more frequently in specific functional categories than in overall spending. We also find that it is necessary...
  10. Environmental Effects of City–County Mergers in China: Strengthening Governance or Aggravating Pollution? “First, the city–county mergers significantly reduce the environmental pollution of merged cities. The robustness tests support this conclusion. Second, the effects of city–county mergers on environmental pollution control decrease with the increase in geographical distance between the merged cities and...