Alternative Service Delivery Arrangements in Local Municipalities in Israel: A Case Study

Abstract

The adoption of alternative service delivery arrangements (ASDAs) is not a new phenomenon in Israeli local government. The current study is based on empirical quantitative research which examined the effect of economic and political factors on the scope of privatization and alternative service delivery arrangements (ASDAs) in local municipalities in Israel. The "economic constraint" model and the "political choice" model served as the theoretical framework for examining considerations underlying service privatization. The contribution of the current study to previous literature on ASDAs is in examining the effect of moderator variables on the scope of privatization (SOP). A study of 29 services in 106 local municipalities in Israel indicated that political factors have a dominant effect on the scope of privatization in local municipalities while the effect of economic factors is small and statistically insignificant. The following variables were found to have a statistically significant effect on the scope of privatization: number of employees, age of local municipality, employee costs and characteristics of the head of the local municipality.