000			01612pab a2200181 454500
008			180718b2016 xxu||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d
100			_aDrew, Joseph
245			_aHow high should they jump? an empirical method for setting municipal financial ratio performance benchmarks
260			_c2016
300			_ap.53-64.
362			_aMar
520			_aHeightened concerns regarding the financial sustainability of local councils have resulted in an increasing reliance by municipal regulators on financial ratio performance benchmarking. However, these benchmarks are often assigned without explicit justification and despite a paucity of empirical evidence. Furthermore, regulators typically allocate a single performance benchmark across an entire local government system despite the fact that individual councils may face entirely different operating environments. Failure to take account of the environmental challenges facing councils can result in inappropriate or unattainable performance benchmarks that may give rise to unintended consequences, such as the well-documented threshold effects. To address this problem, we develop an empirical method for allocating performance benchmarks with respect to the current level of performance and environmental constraints facing individual local authorities. We demonstrate this technique in a case study using data drawn from New South Wales local authority operating ratios. - Reproduced.
650			_aLocal finance
650			_aLocal government
700			_aDollery, Brian
773			_aAustralian Journal of Public Administration
909			_a110491
999			_c110486 _d110486