Persistence in government spending fluctuations: New evidence on the displacement effect

In spite of Peacock and Wiseman's 1961 NBER study demonstrating the “displacement effect”, simplistic theoretical and empirical distinctions between temporary and permanent spending are common. In this paper, impulse response functions from ARMA models as well as Cochrane's non-parametric method support Peacock and Wiseman's conclusion by showing 1) government spending in the aggregate displays strong persistence to temporary shocks, 2) simple decomposition methods intended to yield a “temporary” spending series have a weak statitistical foundation, and 3) persistence in spending has increased during this century. Also, as a basic “fact” of government spending behavior, the displacement effect lends support to interest group and bureaucracy models of government spending growth.     

Managerial efficiency in local government: Implications on jurisdictional consolidation

Using data from Maine, estimates of size economies in the production of public education services are provided under the alternative assumptions of managerial efficiency and inefficiency. While size economies were identified under the traditional assumption of managerial efficiency, limited or no size economies were identified under the more general assumption of managerial inefficiency. These results question the validity of the traditional economies of size literature and the jurisdictional consolidation policy which follows from the traditional literature.     

Determinants of government size: evidence from China

This paper investigates the determinants of government size at the provincial level in China. We employ the panel data model as a platform for empirical analysis and control for endogeneity in the study. Our study shows that openness to trade and foreign direct investment (FDI) may curtail government expansion, and that the provincial-level public sector is characterized by economies of scale. This study also documents that Wagner’s law does not hold true for China. Moreover, both expenditure decentralization and revenue decentralization contribute to the expansion of China’s government.     

政府规模与行政效率比较审视

在过去的一个世纪中 ,东西方政府的规模都扩大了 ,而政府规模与行政效率之间存在着紧密的关系 ,政府规模过大就会影响行政效率。转型中的中国政府就面临着政府规模比较大的问题 ,中国政府应该制定战略缩减政府规模以提高行政效率 ,促进我国的经济增长。     

电子政府与新公共管理

电子政府是信息化社会的必然选择。许多国家政府把建设电子政府作为优先发展战略,以显现本国的竞争优势,以面对全球范围内的国际竞争和知识经济的挑战。电子政府是当代新公共管理理念与信息技术相融合的产物,是面向现代化、面向未来的新型政府。     

Parties and institutions: empirical evidence on veto players and the growth of government

Does the effective number of veto players in a political system explain the rate of government growth? Panel data analyses are conducted in order to test several measures of veto players against each other, and these results are compared with similar analyses of government fractionalization. The analyses indicate that veto players and especially government fractionalization exert a constraining effect on changes in the size of government, but also that the effect is not consistent over time: neither veto players in general nor fractionalization of government in particular exerted any constraining effect during the decades of rapid government growth due to welfare state creation and expansion in the 1960s and 1970s. The strength of government fractionalization vis-a-vis the veto player measures in explaining changes in the size of government suggest that the constellation of partisan veto players within coalition governments matters, while the effect of institutional veto players remains uncertain.     

Local government in practice: evidence from two villages in northern Albania

This article examines how local government operated in two villages in northern Albania and describes how these two communities organized themselves to negotiate with the state. Post‐communist local government is examined by means of its functions as a provider and an organizer. The reluctance of central government to devolve power was reflected in the resources allocated to local government institutions and thus on their performance. While Albanian cultural traditions were a source of support and cohesion in the villages, they were no substitute for the development of the capacity to collectively negotiate with the state. There was a link between the way in which institutions were socially embedded and the capacity of the villages to form and support representative bodies. The article concludes that local government has been undervalued and argues for greater attention to be focused on the nexus composed of citizens and the institutions of government which are closest to them. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The influence of presidential heads of state on government formation in European democracies: Empirical evidence

Theories of coalition politics have paid little attention to the role of presidential heads of state in the government-formation process. This article investigates the influence of presidents on the two most important features of government-formation outcomes: the identity of the party of the prime minister and the party composition of the coalition. Substantial evidence is found that presidents in European democracies have managed to induce their preferred governments from the potential alternatives. The results also suggest that parliament-selected presidents and popularly elected presidents have different mechanisms of influence on these outcomes. The investigation sheds new light on the government-formation process in semi-presidential as well as in pure parliamentary systems.     

The New Public Administration: management innovations in government

Over the last two decades there have been some fundamental changes in the working of government which have resulted in major and visible management innovations in the organizational structures and systems of government aimed at delivering greater efficiency, and more responsive and flexible public services. The innovations have led to the ‘New Public Administration’. This article identifies the innovations in thinking about the role and functioning of government; about service users; about administrative structures and about staff. The article also discusses the strategies and actions employed in the new synergy between the public and private sectors, as well as the reforms in financial planning and control systems. In conclusion, the broad objectives of these reforms have been to shift emphasis from developing plans to developing key strategic areas; to shift emphasis from inward-looking systems to developing partnerships; to shift emphasis from inputs and processes to outputs and outcomes; and to shift emphasis towards managing diversity within a unified public service. Finally, managerial pragmatism and political conviction are highlighted as essential to motivating management innovation in government. (© 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)     

论政府能力

政府能力的过剩或短缺,会带来社会对政府的全面依赖以及社会自身的发展动力机制丧失或政府自身弱化和衰落.经济转型时期,政府能力有着比较丰富的内涵,其大小强弱的衡量,主要从政府有效程度、政府权威程度、政府法治程度三个方面来把握.经济转型时期会产生政府能力的流失和过剩、结构失衡和变形问题,必须调整现有的政府与社会关系,奠定强化政府能力的体制基础;创新政府职能,构建提升政府能力的条件.     

Democratization and the size of government: evidence from the long 19th century

We study the consequences of franchise extension and ballot reform for the size of government in Western Europe between 1820 and 1913. We find that franchise extension exhibits a U-shaped association with revenue per capita and a positive association with spending per capita. Instrumental variables estimates, however, suggest that the U-shaped relationship may be non-causal and our fixed effects estimates point to substantial cross-country heterogeneity. Further, we find that the secret ballot did not matter for tax revenues per capita but might have expanded the size of government relative to GDP.     

电子化政府:政府再造新范式

电子化政府不仅是一个新概念,而且是一种新的政府管理模式,其内涵在于建立一个虚拟政府,为公民提供方便、 高质量的公共服务。电子化政府的建立成为世界范围内政府再造的新趋势。本文分析了电子政府对政府治理和服务的创 新,进一步提出了我国构建电子政府的政策选择。     

New evidence on the relationship between democracy and economic growth

It is often maintained that democracy is a luxury which comes at a price in terms of subsequent slower increases in national living standards. However, various recent cross-section studies on economic growth have found evidence that lack of civil and political liberties is negatively correlated with economic growth. Using a new measure of democracy, which is based upon the number of years that a country can be regarded as a democracy, the robustness of this relationship is examined. Both direct and indirect effects of lack of democratic liberties are analysed. Our main conclusion is that the relationship between democracy and economic growth is not rubust.     

少数民族贫困县县级政府职能转变研究

随着我国各项社会事业的发展,政府职能在性质、内容上也都发生了相应变化。县级政府是国家宏观与微观结合处,起着承上启下的作用,进行职能转变的任务最为艰巨。在我国政府职能改革进程中,县级政府在转变自身职能方面都获得了一定成绩。但在少数民族贫困地区,由于县级政府在实现经济发展过程中过多干预,强化了政府权力而弱化了政府公共职能,导致政府在职能转变中存在着诸多困惑。新形势下如何探寻合理、有效的解决思路,是推进少数民族贫困县政府职能转变的关键;是实现伟大"中国梦"的重要依据。