In search of the optimal size for local government: an assessment of economies of scale in local government in Croatia

Antonija Buljan, Sandra Švaljek and Milan Deskar-Škrbić

Local Government Studies, 2022, vol. 48, issue 4, 604-627

Abstract: This paper brings an empirical assessment of economies of scale in local government units in Croatia. Using cross-section OLS models, we found statistically significant U-shaped relationship between local per capita expenditures and population size, while controlling for various demographic, socio-economic and institutional factors. The choice of control variables in the paper is based on the existing empirical literature but also includes factors capturing the specificities of Croatian economy and local government institutional setup. Using estimated regression coefficients we calculated the optimal size of local units and showed that population size is below optimal in 72% of cities and 76% of municipalities (based on median results).

Date: 2022
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:taf:flgsxx:v:48:y:2022:i:4:p:604-627

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DOI: 10.1080/03003930.2021.2007080

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