000			01878pab a2200193 454500
008			180718b2016 xxu||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d
100			_aEbinger, Falk
245			_aDecentralizing for performance? a quantitative assessment of functional reforms in the German lander
260			_c2016
300			_ap.291-314.
362			_aJun
520			_aIn the last 10 years, the governments of most of the German Lander initiated administrative reforms. All of these ventures included the municipalization of substantial sets of tasks. As elsewhere, governments argue that service delivery by communes is more cost-efficient, effective and responsive. Empirical evidence to back these claims is inconsistent at best: a considerable number of case studies cast doubt on unconditionally positive appraisals. Decentralization effects seem to vary depending on the performance dimension and task considered. However, questions of generalizability arise as these findings have not yet been backed by more objective archival data. We provide empirical evidence on decentralization effects for two different policy fields based on two studies. Thereby, the article presents alternative avenues for research on decentralization effects and matches the theoretical expectations on decentralization effects with more robust results. The analysis confirms that overly positive assertions concerning decentralization effects are only partially warranted. As previous case studies suggested, effects have to be looked at in a much more differentiated way, including starting conditions and distinguishing between the various relevant performance dimensions and policy fields. - Reproduced.
650			_aLocal government
650			_aFedrealism
650			_aDecentralization
700			_aRichter, Philipp
773			_aInternational Review of Administrative Sciences
909			_a111549
999			_c111544 _d111544