Municipalities’ Contracting Out Decisions: An Empirical Study on Motives

Understanding Mixed Forms of Refuse Collection, Privatization, and Its Reverse in the Netherlands

“…Interestingly, the effect of income on privatization disappears, which gives some indication that the efficiency motive has become less relevant to decision making. Nevertheless, as the financial position of most Dutch municipalities will deteriorate because of the financial crisis, more municipalities will discuss their mode of service provision (Wassenaar, Groot, and Gradus 2013). We suggest that municipalities should retain the capacity to monitor costs and should re-internalize contracted waste collection.…”

Impact of Product Characteristics and Market Conditions on Contract Type: Use of Fixed-Price Versus Cost-Reimbursement Contracts in the U.S. Department of Defense

“…There is relative agreement that two interrelated sets of factors influence the likelihood of contract success or failure: product characteristics (e.g., Brown & Potoski, 2005;Brown, Potoski, & Van Slyke, 2010;Carr, LeRoux, & Shrestha, 2008;Levin & Tadelis, 2010) and market characteristics Wassenaar, Groot, & Gradus 2013). Later in the article, we will unpack these factors and their impact on contract type-the focus of the study-but the basic finding from this raft of studies is that uncompetitive markets and products whose outcomes are difficult to specify and lend themselves to monopoly provision increase the likelihood of cost overruns, delivery delays, and poor product quality (e.g., Brown, Potoski, & Van Slyke, 2013).…”

Making a Market out of a Welfare State: Swedish Local Politicians’ Perspectives on Elderly Care Marketisation

“…For instance, Schneider, Fink, and Tenbücken (2005) studied the changes in the shares held by the government of the dominant provider in three infrastructure sectors (telecommunications, electricity, and aviation sectors) between 1970 and 2000, and they found that partisan differences seen in the 1980s disappeared in the 1990s. Bel and Fageda (2007) held the view that the ideological orientation of the municipality had no apparent influence on the privatisation decision, which is an idea supported by several other authors, for instance, Boggio (2016);Fernandez, Ryu, and Brudney (2008); Hefetz, Warner, and Eran (2012); Wassenaar, Groot, and Gradus (2013).…”