“…The second theme attributes the formation of special districts to nonfinancial factors, such as competitive political environments (Bourdeaux, 2005), state institutions, public entrepreneurs, and service demand (McCabe, 2000) and demographic characteristics such as population size, area, and urbanization (Frant, 1997). Debates rage about whether or not the special districts are representative of new public management principles of business-like management and efficiency (Berman & West, 2011; Bourdeaux, 2007; Chicoine & Walzer, 1985; Doig, 1983; Wollmann & Thurmaier, 2012). Literature in this theme is less sanguine than in the first as critics view the proliferation of special districts as “private” or “shadow” governments that have created metropolitan fragmentation with a confusing maze of overlapping functions (Deller, 1998; McKenzie, 1994; Stephens, 2008).…”