Value for money? German local government efficiency in a comparative perspective


Kalb, Alexander ; Geys, Benny ; Heinemann, Friedrich



DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00036846.2010.502110
URL: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/0003684...
Document Type: Article
Year of publication: 2012
The title of a journal, publication series: Applied Economics
Volume: 44
Issue number: 2
Page range: 201-218
Place of publication: Abingdon [u.a.]
Publishing house: Routledge
ISSN: 0003-6846 , 1466-4283
Publication language: English
Institution: Außerfakultäre Einrichtungen > SFB 884
Sonstige Einrichtungen > ZEW - Leibniz-Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung
Subject: 330 Economics
Abstract: In this article, we investigate the cost efficiency of German local governments in the state of Baden-Württemberg in 2004 using a stochastic frontier approach. Besides being the first study on German data, we add two elements to the literature. First, we provide a comparative perspective, allowing us to embed our results in the broader literature. Second, unlike most previous studies, we explicitly account for exogenous or nondiscretionary influences when estimating municipal efficiency scores. The results suggest that disregarding such exogenous factors can lead to significant and systematic bias in the estimated inefficiency levels. Particularly, underestimation of efficiency occurs for municipalities with high tourist activity, while the reverse is true for municipalities with high unemployment.




Dieser Eintrag ist Teil der Universitätsbibliographie.




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