Pub Date : 2022-07-18DOI: 10.1177/0160323X221115358
Zachary Spicer, Joseph Lyons
On September 1, 2020, the Township of Zorra, Ontario, Canada began a compressed work week pilot project designed to add flexibility for its employees in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Office-based employees who opted into the pilot were given either Monday or Friday off from work and then worked longer shifts for the four remaining days. This field note provides information on the program's design and implementation and reports on the findings of pre- and post-pilot surveys designed to gauge attitudes of workers toward the compressed work week. Results indicate that the pilot was received positively and managed to avoid concerns typically associated with compressed work weeks, namely increased fatigue and staffing challenges. In addition to the evaluation of the pilot, we also provide insight into how organizational scale can aid in the development and design of public sector workplace innovations.
{"title":"Small Town, Short Work Week: Evaluating the Effects of a Compressed Work Week Pilot in Zorra, Ontario, Canada","authors":"Zachary Spicer, Joseph Lyons","doi":"10.1177/0160323X221115358","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/0160323X221115358","url":null,"abstract":"On September 1, 2020, the Township of Zorra, Ontario, Canada began a compressed work week pilot project designed to add flexibility for its employees in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Office-based employees who opted into the pilot were given either Monday or Friday off from work and then worked longer shifts for the four remaining days. This field note provides information on the program's design and implementation and reports on the findings of pre- and post-pilot surveys designed to gauge attitudes of workers toward the compressed work week. Results indicate that the pilot was received positively and managed to avoid concerns typically associated with compressed work weeks, namely increased fatigue and staffing challenges. In addition to the evaluation of the pilot, we also provide insight into how organizational scale can aid in the development and design of public sector workplace innovations.","PeriodicalId":52260,"journal":{"name":"State and Local Government Review","volume":"55 1","pages":"73 - 81"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-07-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44889640","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-07-13DOI: 10.1177/0160323X221113366
Michele Tantardini
This article examines the mediating role of public service motivation (PSM) between organizational social capital and performance information use. This topic is worth studying since it allows to understand how organizational level factors and individual level traits interact. Using a multiple informant survey distributed to county managers in Florida, this article finds support that organizational social capital is an important predictor of performance information use, and that this relationship is mediated by the role of PSM. The article concludes with recommendations on how to capitalize on these internal resources for the effective implementation of performance management reforms and practices.
{"title":"Organizational Social Capital and Performance Information use: The Mediating Role of Public Service Motivation","authors":"Michele Tantardini","doi":"10.1177/0160323X221113366","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/0160323X221113366","url":null,"abstract":"This article examines the mediating role of public service motivation (PSM) between organizational social capital and performance information use. This topic is worth studying since it allows to understand how organizational level factors and individual level traits interact. Using a multiple informant survey distributed to county managers in Florida, this article finds support that organizational social capital is an important predictor of performance information use, and that this relationship is mediated by the role of PSM. The article concludes with recommendations on how to capitalize on these internal resources for the effective implementation of performance management reforms and practices.","PeriodicalId":52260,"journal":{"name":"State and Local Government Review","volume":"54 1","pages":"202 - 220"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-07-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47481256","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-07-11DOI: 10.1177/0160323X221113367
Saman Shafiq, Evgenia Kapousouz, Michael D. Siciliano, Jeffrey M. Gawel
Conventional benchmarking methods that rely on pre-existing measures may not be best suited for many of the challenges confronting local service delivery. This paper introduces an issue-based benchmarking method and describes the six-stage cycle implemented by a benchmarking collaborative in the Chicagoland region. Each stage of the process is discussed to highlight the approaches and tools used to identify the most salient issues and relevant performance measures. In the final section, we reflect on the changes we made to the process and overall lessons learned that we believe will help others attempting to engage in similar benchmarking efforts.
{"title":"Benchmarking Local Government Services: Applying an Issue-Based Approach","authors":"Saman Shafiq, Evgenia Kapousouz, Michael D. Siciliano, Jeffrey M. Gawel","doi":"10.1177/0160323X221113367","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/0160323X221113367","url":null,"abstract":"Conventional benchmarking methods that rely on pre-existing measures may not be best suited for many of the challenges confronting local service delivery. This paper introduces an issue-based benchmarking method and describes the six-stage cycle implemented by a benchmarking collaborative in the Chicagoland region. Each stage of the process is discussed to highlight the approaches and tools used to identify the most salient issues and relevant performance measures. In the final section, we reflect on the changes we made to the process and overall lessons learned that we believe will help others attempting to engage in similar benchmarking efforts.","PeriodicalId":52260,"journal":{"name":"State and Local Government Review","volume":"54 1","pages":"267 - 279"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-07-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45687726","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-06-28DOI: 10.1177/0160323X221110484
Luke Fowler, Dalten Fox
The authors examine whether there are geographic biases in public administration research. They use a dataset of 557 research articles from top public administration journals in which specific state names appear in the title or abstract. Findings suggest that not only is a mass of public administration research concentrated in four states (Florida, California, New York, and Texas), but specific thematic topics and policy areas are associated with each of those states. In general, this suggests that authors need to consider if continuing these trends creates a blind spot for research bias in the field, where the collective understanding of a specific topic is disproportionately influenced by data from a single state. The broad implications are that how states serve as a research setting should be actively considered by authors.
{"title":"Is Florida Really that Interesting? State Geographic Bias in Public Administration Research","authors":"Luke Fowler, Dalten Fox","doi":"10.1177/0160323X221110484","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/0160323X221110484","url":null,"abstract":"The authors examine whether there are geographic biases in public administration research. They use a dataset of 557 research articles from top public administration journals in which specific state names appear in the title or abstract. Findings suggest that not only is a mass of public administration research concentrated in four states (Florida, California, New York, and Texas), but specific thematic topics and policy areas are associated with each of those states. In general, this suggests that authors need to consider if continuing these trends creates a blind spot for research bias in the field, where the collective understanding of a specific topic is disproportionately influenced by data from a single state. The broad implications are that how states serve as a research setting should be actively considered by authors.","PeriodicalId":52260,"journal":{"name":"State and Local Government Review","volume":"55 1","pages":"62 - 72"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-06-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47693055","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-06-27DOI: 10.1177/0160323X221111065
A. Deslatte, Rachel M. Krause, Christopher V. Hawkins
When confronting complex challenges, governments use basic bureaucratic design heuristics -- centralization and specialization. The complexity of environmental and climate issues has drawn recent attention to the ways in which fragmented authority influences, and often challenges, the policy choices and institutional effectiveness of local governments. Sustainability planning and improved performance are potential benefits stemming from the integration of responsibilities across silos. Our central proposition is that institutionalized collective-action mechanisms, which break down siloed decision-making, foster more successful implementation of sustainability policies. We empirically examine this using two surveys of U.S. cities and find evidence that formal collective-action mechanisms positively mediate the relationship between broader agency involvement and more comprehensive performance information collection and use. However, we identify limits to the role of planning in fostering a performance culture. Specifically, cities that have engaged in broader planning conduct less-comprehensive performance management, likely due to measurement difficulty and goal ambiguity.
{"title":"The Road to Routinization: A Functional Collective Action Approach for Local Sustainability Planning and Performance Management","authors":"A. Deslatte, Rachel M. Krause, Christopher V. Hawkins","doi":"10.1177/0160323X221111065","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/0160323X221111065","url":null,"abstract":"When confronting complex challenges, governments use basic bureaucratic design heuristics -- centralization and specialization. The complexity of environmental and climate issues has drawn recent attention to the ways in which fragmented authority influences, and often challenges, the policy choices and institutional effectiveness of local governments. Sustainability planning and improved performance are potential benefits stemming from the integration of responsibilities across silos. Our central proposition is that institutionalized collective-action mechanisms, which break down siloed decision-making, foster more successful implementation of sustainability policies. We empirically examine this using two surveys of U.S. cities and find evidence that formal collective-action mechanisms positively mediate the relationship between broader agency involvement and more comprehensive performance information collection and use. However, we identify limits to the role of planning in fostering a performance culture. Specifically, cities that have engaged in broader planning conduct less-comprehensive performance management, likely due to measurement difficulty and goal ambiguity.","PeriodicalId":52260,"journal":{"name":"State and Local Government Review","volume":"54 1","pages":"310 - 327"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-06-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46406114","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-06-01DOI: 10.1177/0160323x221109472
S. Gavazzi, E. Gee
In this and like communities, public sentiment is everything. With public sentiment, nothing can fail; without it nothing can succeed. Consequently, he who molds public sentiment, goes deeper than he who enacts statutes or pronounces decisions. He makes statutes and decisions possible or impossible to be executed. – Abraham Lincoln, August 21, 1858. The Lincoln quote above, uttered during his first debate with Stephen Douglas, became a central theme for us during the writing of our recent book What’s Public About Public Higher Ed? Halting Higher Education’s Decline in the Court of Public Opinion (Gavazzi and Gee 2021). Throughout the assembly of our manuscript, time and again we found ourselves in complete agreement with Lincoln’s position on public sentiment. That is, the both of us fervently believed that great leadership power resided in a keen understanding of the will of the people those leaders are supposed to be serving. Regrettably, our sense has been that many leaders of our public institutions of higher learning largely have been indifferent, if not fully oblivious and unresponsive, to the wants and needs of the very citizens to whom they are accountable. While such a nonchalant stance may have been tolerated once upon a time, this is an impossible position to maintain within the contemporary American landscape. Leaders of these public institutions of higher learning are all too aware of the fact that the availability of taxpayer dollars is shrinking at the very time that demands on public funding are rapidly increasing. Within such a context, therefore, we have been sounding the alarm that these universities ignore public opinion at their own peril. Our reasoning on this subject matter was rooted in the writing of our earlier book Land-Grant Universities for the Future: Higher Education for the Public Good (Gavazzi and Gee 2018). In this prior work, we had conducted extensive interviews with university presidents and chancellors using a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis framework. Our main intent was to understand how higher education leaders were positioning their publicly funded institutions to respond to the needs of the communities they were designed to serve. Themes developed from the qualitative data generated from these interviews were compared
{"title":"Everything Universities Wanted to Know About Public Opinion* (*but Were Afraid to Ask)","authors":"S. Gavazzi, E. Gee","doi":"10.1177/0160323x221109472","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/0160323x221109472","url":null,"abstract":"In this and like communities, public sentiment is everything. With public sentiment, nothing can fail; without it nothing can succeed. Consequently, he who molds public sentiment, goes deeper than he who enacts statutes or pronounces decisions. He makes statutes and decisions possible or impossible to be executed. – Abraham Lincoln, August 21, 1858. The Lincoln quote above, uttered during his first debate with Stephen Douglas, became a central theme for us during the writing of our recent book What’s Public About Public Higher Ed? Halting Higher Education’s Decline in the Court of Public Opinion (Gavazzi and Gee 2021). Throughout the assembly of our manuscript, time and again we found ourselves in complete agreement with Lincoln’s position on public sentiment. That is, the both of us fervently believed that great leadership power resided in a keen understanding of the will of the people those leaders are supposed to be serving. Regrettably, our sense has been that many leaders of our public institutions of higher learning largely have been indifferent, if not fully oblivious and unresponsive, to the wants and needs of the very citizens to whom they are accountable. While such a nonchalant stance may have been tolerated once upon a time, this is an impossible position to maintain within the contemporary American landscape. Leaders of these public institutions of higher learning are all too aware of the fact that the availability of taxpayer dollars is shrinking at the very time that demands on public funding are rapidly increasing. Within such a context, therefore, we have been sounding the alarm that these universities ignore public opinion at their own peril. Our reasoning on this subject matter was rooted in the writing of our earlier book Land-Grant Universities for the Future: Higher Education for the Public Good (Gavazzi and Gee 2018). In this prior work, we had conducted extensive interviews with university presidents and chancellors using a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis framework. Our main intent was to understand how higher education leaders were positioning their publicly funded institutions to respond to the needs of the communities they were designed to serve. Themes developed from the qualitative data generated from these interviews were compared","PeriodicalId":52260,"journal":{"name":"State and Local Government Review","volume":"54 1","pages":"95 - 101"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48612688","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-05-26DOI: 10.1177/0160323X221101559
M. D’Agostino, Nicole M. Elias
This research explores the priorities of the gender equity commission in New York City over forty-five years. Archival commission data was organized thematically to understand the history of gender equity and suggest future possibilities for gender equity beyond New York City. In our historical analysis, we see an expansion of the definition of gender and an adoption of an intersectional approach to gender. We identify four historical gender priorities: sexual harassment and violence, pay equity and economic advancement, health and safety, and gender recognition and celebration. To address systemic issues of gender inequity, we recommend local level administrators embed an intersectional approach in their policies and programming and move away from the commission model to one of a permanent office or agency. These recommendations will better equip municipalities with the resources to increase gender equity, particularly during COVID-19 recovery.
{"title":"Gender Equity Commission Priorities: An Archival Study and Prospects for the Future","authors":"M. D’Agostino, Nicole M. Elias","doi":"10.1177/0160323X221101559","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/0160323X221101559","url":null,"abstract":"This research explores the priorities of the gender equity commission in New York City over forty-five years. Archival commission data was organized thematically to understand the history of gender equity and suggest future possibilities for gender equity beyond New York City. In our historical analysis, we see an expansion of the definition of gender and an adoption of an intersectional approach to gender. We identify four historical gender priorities: sexual harassment and violence, pay equity and economic advancement, health and safety, and gender recognition and celebration. To address systemic issues of gender inequity, we recommend local level administrators embed an intersectional approach in their policies and programming and move away from the commission model to one of a permanent office or agency. These recommendations will better equip municipalities with the resources to increase gender equity, particularly during COVID-19 recovery.","PeriodicalId":52260,"journal":{"name":"State and Local Government Review","volume":"54 1","pages":"102 - 119"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-05-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45522126","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-05-11DOI: 10.1177/0160323X221101005
P. Rocco, A. Kass
Emergency fiscal transfers to state, local, tribal, and territorial governments have been at the core of the U.S. federal government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The most extensive of these transfer programs is the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (CSLFRF) program, contained in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. The CSLFRF is not only larger than prior rounds of emergency aid, it was also designed to address a broader series of crises, address pre-existing inequities, and provide greater discretion to public officials in deciding how to allocate funds. In this article, we consider the extent to which this program represents a departure from what some have called “fend for yourself” federalism. We conclude that while the coordinated effort of intergovernmental organizations resulted in a greater measure of federal fiscal activism and flexibility than might have been anticipated, lingering political conflicts and legacies of austerity will continue to inflect the CSLFRF's implementation.
{"title":"Flexible Aid in an Uncertain World: The Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds Program","authors":"P. Rocco, A. Kass","doi":"10.1177/0160323X221101005","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/0160323X221101005","url":null,"abstract":"Emergency fiscal transfers to state, local, tribal, and territorial governments have been at the core of the U.S. federal government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The most extensive of these transfer programs is the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (CSLFRF) program, contained in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. The CSLFRF is not only larger than prior rounds of emergency aid, it was also designed to address a broader series of crises, address pre-existing inequities, and provide greater discretion to public officials in deciding how to allocate funds. In this article, we consider the extent to which this program represents a departure from what some have called “fend for yourself” federalism. We conclude that while the coordinated effort of intergovernmental organizations resulted in a greater measure of federal fiscal activism and flexibility than might have been anticipated, lingering political conflicts and legacies of austerity will continue to inflect the CSLFRF's implementation.","PeriodicalId":52260,"journal":{"name":"State and Local Government Review","volume":"54 1","pages":"346 - 361"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-05-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43630354","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-05-06DOI: 10.1177/0160323X221097711
Brad A. M. Johnson, Darrin Wilson, Eric Stokan, Michael Overton
The COVID-19 pandemic pressured local governments to employ creative and untested economic development strategies to stabilize private businesses. To explore how the uncertainty of the pandemic impacted the priorities and strategies of economic development officials, we surveyed officials about their initial economic development response to the pandemic coupled with subsequent in-depth interviews in the Cincinnati metropolitan region. Our analysis suggests that local officials did not drastically alter their use of supply-side tools during the pandemic. However, they did start coupling supply-side with demand-side policies in unique ways compared to past economic crises. This study also finds that the pandemic affected collaboration processes, leading officials to deepen and forge relationships with other local governments. We find that these shifts have proven durable over the past year as municipalities continue to grapple with changing economic conditions due to COVID-19. As additional waves are likely, we suggest that administrators must consider the skills required to manage evolving economic conditions as well as both the supply and demand sides of local economic development.
{"title":"Patterns in Local Economic Development in Light of COVID-19","authors":"Brad A. M. Johnson, Darrin Wilson, Eric Stokan, Michael Overton","doi":"10.1177/0160323X221097711","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/0160323X221097711","url":null,"abstract":"The COVID-19 pandemic pressured local governments to employ creative and untested economic development strategies to stabilize private businesses. To explore how the uncertainty of the pandemic impacted the priorities and strategies of economic development officials, we surveyed officials about their initial economic development response to the pandemic coupled with subsequent in-depth interviews in the Cincinnati metropolitan region. Our analysis suggests that local officials did not drastically alter their use of supply-side tools during the pandemic. However, they did start coupling supply-side with demand-side policies in unique ways compared to past economic crises. This study also finds that the pandemic affected collaboration processes, leading officials to deepen and forge relationships with other local governments. We find that these shifts have proven durable over the past year as municipalities continue to grapple with changing economic conditions due to COVID-19. As additional waves are likely, we suggest that administrators must consider the skills required to manage evolving economic conditions as well as both the supply and demand sides of local economic development.","PeriodicalId":52260,"journal":{"name":"State and Local Government Review","volume":"54 1","pages":"174 - 191"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-05-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48979992","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-04-18DOI: 10.1177/0160323X221094805
Sungchan Kim, Soyoung Q. Park
Revenue condition needs to be considered in the design of balanced budget rules (BBRs), because revenue stream, which varies across state governments, is an important factor in balancing the budget. Also, revenue factors may influence state responses to economic crises through the employment of BBRs.Thus, this study examines the influence of BBRs on states’ fiscal performance depending on revenue structure using a panel data set from 1997 to 2016. The results demonstrate that the strongest BBRs are effective in reducing deficit shocks, although this amplifies fiscal volatility. However, the weakest BBRs play a role in stabilizing volatility. Considering revenue structure, if a state government is concerned about deficit shocks, it would do well to adopt the strongest BBRs, with lower levels of own-source revenue. Conversely, if a state government wishes to pursue fiscal stabilization, it should adopt the weakest BBRs, with lower levels of own-source revenue and less diversified source.
{"title":"How Do Balanced Budget Rules Impact Fiscal Performance Based On Revenue Structure?: Evidence From U.S. States","authors":"Sungchan Kim, Soyoung Q. Park","doi":"10.1177/0160323X221094805","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/0160323X221094805","url":null,"abstract":"Revenue condition needs to be considered in the design of balanced budget rules (BBRs), because revenue stream, which varies across state governments, is an important factor in balancing the budget. Also, revenue factors may influence state responses to economic crises through the employment of BBRs.Thus, this study examines the influence of BBRs on states’ fiscal performance depending on revenue structure using a panel data set from 1997 to 2016. The results demonstrate that the strongest BBRs are effective in reducing deficit shocks, although this amplifies fiscal volatility. However, the weakest BBRs play a role in stabilizing volatility. Considering revenue structure, if a state government is concerned about deficit shocks, it would do well to adopt the strongest BBRs, with lower levels of own-source revenue. Conversely, if a state government wishes to pursue fiscal stabilization, it should adopt the weakest BBRs, with lower levels of own-source revenue and less diversified source.","PeriodicalId":52260,"journal":{"name":"State and Local Government Review","volume":"54 1","pages":"146 - 164"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48765342","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}