2024/10/09 by Jan Erling Klausen · 1 voice
Economics, Econometrics and Finance · Social Sciences · #Local Government Finance and Decentralization #Public Policy and Administration Research #Taxation and Compliance Studies
paper · doi:10.1080/21622671.2024.2406524
openalex publication_date 2024/10/09 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/09
For several decades, European governments have pursued amalgamations of local governments, mainly to improve municipal service provision, efficiency and governing capacities. Some reforms resulted in comprehensive territorial restructuring; others had little impact. This study investigates the strategies and policy tools European governments implemented to achieve municipal amalgamations. I propose a new three-fold typology of reform strategies and analyse the policy instruments used in each strategy throughout the reform periods, using comparative evidence on 29 amalgamation reforms implemented by central and regional European governments since 2000. I assess the outcomes of each strategy and discuss the findings’ implications for multi-level reform governance.