Do Municipal Mergers Improve Technical Efficiency? An Empirical Analysis of the 2008 Queensland Municipal Merger Program

McQuestin, D; Drew, J; Dollery, B

Do Municipal Mergers Improve Technical Efficiency? An Empirical Analysis of the 2008 Queensland Municipal Merger Program

McQuestin, D

Drew, J

Dollery, B

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Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Australian Journal of Public Administration, 2018, 77 (3), pp. 442 - 455
Issue Date:: 2018-09-01

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	McQuestin, D https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0137-0260	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Drew, J https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3579-5758	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Dollery, B	en_US
dc.date.available	2020-05-25T19:09:21Z
dc.date.issued	2018-09-01	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Australian Journal of Public Administration, 2018, 77 (3), pp. 442 - 455	en_US
dc.identifier.issn	0313-6647	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/117902
dc.description.abstract	© 2017 Institute of Public Administration Australia Municipal mergers remain an important instrument of local government policy in numerous countries, including Australia, despite some concerns surrounding its efficacy. We consider the claim that amalgamations enhance the technical efficiency of the merged entities by examining the 2008 Queensland compulsory consolidation program that reduced the number of local authorities from 157 to 73 councils. To test the claim, we conduct locally inter-temporal data envelopment analysis over the period 2003–2013 inclusive. Our evidence suggests that (1) in the financial year preceding the mergers, there was no statistically significant difference in the typical efficiency scores of amalgamated and non-amalgamated councils and (2) 2 years following the mergers, the typical technical efficiency score of the amalgamated councils was well below the non-amalgamated cohort. We argue this may be attributed to increased spending on staffing expenses, although comparatively larger operational expenditure also served to diminish efficiency.	en_US
dc.relation.ispartof	Australian Journal of Public Administration	en_US
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1111/1467-8500.12286	en_US
dc.subject.classification	Political Science & Public Administration	en_US
dc.title	Do Municipal Mergers Improve Technical Efficiency? An Empirical Analysis of the 2008 Queensland Municipal Merger Program	en_US
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	3	en_US
utslib.citation.volume	77	en_US
utslib.for	1503 Business and Management	en_US
utslib.for	1605 Policy and Administration	en_US
utslib.for	14 Economics	en_US
utslib.for	15 Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services	en_US
utslib.for	16 Studies in Human Society	en_US
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/DVC (Research)
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/DVC (Research)/lnstitute for Public Policy and Governance
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Strength - IPPG - Institute for Public Policy and Governance
utslib.copyright.status	open_access
pubs.issue	3	en_US
pubs.publication-status	Published	en_US
pubs.volume	77	en_US

Abstract:

© 2017 Institute of Public Administration Australia Municipal mergers remain an important instrument of local government policy in numerous countries, including Australia, despite some concerns surrounding its efficacy. We consider the claim that amalgamations enhance the technical efficiency of the merged entities by examining the 2008 Queensland compulsory consolidation program that reduced the number of local authorities from 157 to 73 councils. To test the claim, we conduct locally inter-temporal data envelopment analysis over the period 2003–2013 inclusive. Our evidence suggests that (1) in the financial year preceding the mergers, there was no statistically significant difference in the typical efficiency scores of amalgamated and non-amalgamated councils and (2) 2 years following the mergers, the typical technical efficiency score of the amalgamated councils was well below the non-amalgamated cohort. We argue this may be attributed to increased spending on staffing expenses, although comparatively larger operational expenditure also served to diminish efficiency.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/117902