Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/204800 
Year of Publication: 
2019
Series/Report no.: 
MAGKS Joint Discussion Paper Series in Economics No. 05-2019
Publisher: 
Philipps-University Marburg, School of Business and Economics, Marburg
Abstract: 
We analyze the factors driving the emergence of inter-municipal cooperation (IMC) in tasks of internal administration in West-Germany between 2001 and 2014. In line with the Institutional Collective Action Approach, we find similarities in political ideology to foster cooperation. Cost pressure drives IMC. Given substantial cost hysteresis in administrative tasks, we expect IMC to be more frequent among shrinking municipalities. Our results supports this notion. However, there is no evidence that municipalities make use of complementarities from divergent population dynamics. We apply a hazard model that allows us to analyze the timing of IMC arrangements. We find state subsidies for IMC are an important driving force behind IMC. IMC agreements are less likely to emerge in election years when municipalities face low cost pressure while the opposite is true for municipalities with high cost pressure.
Subjects: 
Inter-municipal cooperation
public administration
elections
hazard model
Germany
survey
JEL: 
H77
D72
Document Type: 
Working Paper

Files in This Item:
File
Size
506.59 kB





Items in EconStor are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.