Financial Sustainability in Public Administration (eBook)

Manuel Pedro Rodríguez Bolívar is Professor of Accounting at the University of Granada, Spain. He has authored numerous articles in international journals, which include Public Money & Management, International Public Management Journal, Journal of Environmental Policy & Planning, and the Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, among others. He is also a member of the Editorial Board of Government Information Quarterly and Associate Editor for other leading international journals. 

Foreword 5
Preface 8
Contents 12
Contributors 15
List of Figures 17
List of Tables 19
Part I Introduction 21
1 Financial Sustainability in Governments. A New Concept and Measure for Meeting New Information Needs 22
1The Importance of Public Finances in the Public Management 22
2The Evolution in the Management of Public Finances 24
3Some Notes About the Measurement of the Financial Sustainability 26
4Internal and External Factors for Financial Sustainability 30
5Conclusions 33
References 34
Part II Prior Research in the Management of Public Finances. 40
2 Financial Conditions and Financial Sustainability in Higher Education: A Literature Review 41
1Introduction 41
2The Development of the Concept of Financial Sustainability in the HE Sector 43
2.1Financial Distress and Financial Conditions 44
2.2Financial Sustainability and Financial Viability (or Autonomy) 53
3Closing Remarks 61
References 64
Part III Theoretical Underpinnings and Methods Used to Calculate Financial Sustainability in Governments 72
3 Financial Sustainability in Local Governments: Definition, Measurement and Determinants 73
1Introduction 73
2Definition of Financial Sustainability 76
3Measurement of Financial Sustainability 80
4Determinants of Financial Sustainability 83
5Conclusions and Directions for Future Research 90
References 94
4 The EU’s Concern About the Influence of Demographic Factors on Financial Sustainability 100
1Introduction 100
2Financial Sustainability and Demographic Variables. Hypotheses Formulation 103
3Empirical Research 108
3.1Sample 108
3.2Methodology 109
3.3Results Analysis 113
4Discussion and Conclusions 118
References 120
5 Accounting for Financial Sustainability. Different Local Governments Choices in Different Governance Settings 124
1Introduction 124
2Accounting, Financial Sustainability, and Governance Settings in Local Governments: The Missing Link 126
3Methodology 133
4The Governance Setting Cases 136
4.1Municipality A: A Corporate Governance Case 136
4.2Municipality B: A Contracting Out Case 137
4.3Municipal Consortium C: A Devolution Case 138
4.4Municipality D: A Public–Public Collaboration Case 139
4.5Municipal Consortium E: A Public–Private Partnership Case 140
5Dealing with Coordination, Cooperation, or Conflict? 141
5.1The Coordination Problem in Corporate Governance Settings 141
5.2The Conflict Problem in Market Governance Settings 142
5.3The Cooperation Problem in Network Governance Settings 143
6Conclusion 145
References 147
6 Enabling Financial Sustainability Through Integrated Reporting 154
1Sustainability—A Tool Connected with Integrated Reporting: Theoretical Framework 154
2Research Design 158
3Conceptual Models for Financial Sustainability and Integrated Reporting 160
4Overlapping the Models: Crossing the Integrated Reporting Construct Versus the Pillars of Financial Sustainability 166
5Conclusions 173
References 175
Part IV Comparing International Experiences in Managing and Monitoring Financial Sustainability in Governments 179
7 Financial Sustainability and Public Debt Management in Central Government 180
1Introduction 180
2Governing Financial Sustainability of Central Government: Accounting and Ruling 182
2.1The Convergence Trend Between Private and Public Sector 182
2.2Financial Reporting and the Balance Sheet Accounting Approach for Deficit Spending and Debt Position 183
2.3Ruling Financial Sustainability of Central Governments: The European Union Experience 184
3The Specificity of Financial Sustainability for Central Government 189
3.1How Does Public Debt Management Work? 189
3.2Refinancing: Financial Sustainability and the Monetary Base 190
3.3Pension Obligations: A General Interest Mission Linked to Intergenerational Solidarity and Redistribution 193
4Concluding Remarks 196
References 199
8 The Sustainability of Local Government Finances in England, Germany, and the Netherlands: The Impact of Intergovernmental Regulatory Regimes 205
1Introduction 205
2On the Relevance of the External Regulation of LG Debt and Deficit Making 208
3Fiscal Rules on LG Debt and Deficit Making 211
3.1Aggregate Level Regulations 211
3.2LG Meso-Level Regulations 213
3.2.1 LG Meso-Level Regulations in the Dutch System 213
3.2.2 LG Meso-Level Regulations in the English System 215
3.2.3 LG Meso-Level Regulations in the GermanNRW System 217
4Monitoring Regimes in Comparative Perspective 218
4.1The English Monitoring Regime on LG Finances 219
4.2The GermanNRW Monitoring Regime on LG Finances 221
4.3The Dutch Monitoring Regime on LG Finances 222
5Financial Emergency Procedures: Rules and Approach 225
5.1Intensified Supervision in the GermanNRW System 225
5.2Intensified Supervision in the Dutch System 228
5.3Intensified Supervision in the English System 229
6Conclusions and Policy Recommendations 230
References 234
9 The Financial Sustainability of Public Universities in Spain 238
1Introduction 238
2Measuring Governmental Financial Sustainability: An International Approach 240
3The Control of Financial Sustainability in the Spanish Public Administration 242
4The Determinant Factors of Financial Sustainability in Public Universities in Spain 246
5Study Method and Sample Population 250
6Results 253
6.1Descriptive Analysis 253
6.2Explanatory Analysis 255
7Conclusions 257
References 261
Part V Conclusion 266
10 Financial Sustainability in Public Administration. A Synthesis of the Contributions for Improving Financial Sustainability 267
1Introduction 267
2Measurement and Methods Used to Calculate and Report Financial Sustainability 269
3International Experiences in Managing and Monitoring Financial Sustainability in Governments 271
4Concluding Remarks 272
References 272
Index 274