Although local governments are essential providers of public services and infrastructure across Europe, they ultimately depend on funding from higher levels of government. The clear relevance of local government finances necessitates effective regulation in order to ensure financial...

European countries employ heterogeneous and complex systems to regulate local government budgets. Although the topic has become increasingly relevant in the face of past and future economic and budgetary crises, there is a lack of cross-country studies in this field, due in part to the...

Introduction: The Relevance and Conceptualisation of Local Public Finance Regulatory Regimes -- PART I. Concepts of Regulation -- Budget Institutions for Subnational Fiscal Discipline: Local Fiscal Rules in Post-Crisis EU Countries -- Fiscal Rules at the Local Level: The Challenge of Enforcement...

This book is based upon a comparative public administration research project, initiated by the Hertie School of Governance (Germany) and the Bertelsmann Foundation (Germany) and supported by a network of researchers from many EU countries. It analyzes both the regimes and the practices of local...