Local governments and their arm's length bodies

In this paper, we discuss the state of the art on the creation of arm's length bodies (ALBs) by local governments. We make three main contributions. First, there are many different types of ALBs and each country has its own categories; an expert survey was held identifying three common types of...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Local government studies 2020-01, Vol.46 (1), p.1-21
Main Authors: Van Genugten, Marieke, Van Thiel, Sandra, Voorn, Bart
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Accountability
Arm's length bodies
Companies
Comparative analysis
Comparative studies
Local government
municipally owned corporations
Outsourcing
public service delivery
semi-autonomous agencies
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Summary:In this paper, we discuss the state of the art on the creation of arm's length bodies (ALBs) by local governments. We make three main contributions. First, there are many different types of ALBs and each country has its own categories; an expert survey was held identifying three common types of body, to enable future comparative research. Second, we point out that the creation of ALBs has led to a number of new challenges for local governments, particularly regarding governing bodies at arm's length to ensure ALBs' good performance. A lack of capacity and information have to be countered, for example, by increased monitoring - also for democratic accountability purposes. Special attention is needed for the multiple principal problem that arises when local governments jointly create ALBs. Third, research into local ALBs is still in its early stages. We present a research agenda to develop knowledge on the topic.
ISSN:0300-3930
1743-9388
DOI:10.1080/03003930.2019.1667774