Local Government and Public Service Reform Initiative Public Perception of Local Governments Edited by PAWEL SWIANIEWICZ Second edition PUBLIC PERCEPTION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTS L OCAL GOVERNMENT AND PUBLIC SERVICE REFORM INITIATIVE O PEN SOCIETY INSTITUTE Address Nádor utca 11. H-1051 Budapest, Hungary Mailing address P.O. Box 519 H-1357 Budapest, Hungary Telephone (36-1) 327-3104 Fax (36-1) 327-3105 E-mail [email protected] Web Site http://lgi.osi.hu Second Edition—CD attached First published in 2001 by Local Government and Public Service Reform Initiative, Open Society Institute–Budapest © OSI/LGI, 2001 TM and Copyright © 2003 Open Society Institute ISBN: 963 9419 61 3 OPEN SOCIETY INSTITUTE The publication of these country reports has been funded by the British Department for International Development and the Local Government and Public Service Reform Initiative of the Open Society Institute in Budapest within the framework of the Local Government Policy Partnership Programme. The judgements expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the views of the above two sponsors. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Copies of the book can be ordered by e-mail or post from LGI. Printed in Budapest, Hungary, November 2001. Design & Layout by Createch Ltd. 2 DFID–LGI LOCAL GOVERNMENT POLICY PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM Contents List of Tables and Figures ............................................... 5 Foreword ..................................................................... 13 1. Between Active Appreciation, Passive Approval and Distrustful Withdrawal................................... 15 Pawel Swianiewicz 2. Public Perception of Local Government in the Czech Republic ........................................... 41 Jaroslav Borecky´, Libor Prudky´ 3. Hopes and Reality: The First Decade of the Hungarian Local Government System in the Eyes of the Public ...................................... 115 György Hajnal 4. Sympathetic Disengagement: Public Perception of Local Government in Poland .......................... 169 Pawel Swianiewicz 5. Public Perception of Local Government in Slovakia ........................................................... 223 Magdaléna Bernátová, Peter Kuklis,š L’udmila Malíková, Ivan Roncák,š Anna Vanováš List of Contributors ................................................... 279 3 PUBLIC PERCEPTION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTS 4 DFID–LGI LOCAL GOVERNMENT POLICY PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES List of Tables and Figures TABLES CHAPTER 1 Table 1.1: Size of Municipal Governments in Countries Analyzed ................ 20 Table 1.2: Goals of Local Government as Seen by Local Mayors ................... 24 Table 1.3: Do You Think Local Governments in Your Town (Village) Activity Represent Interest of: Almost All Citizens, Most Citizens, and Small Part of Citizens or Very Small Groups Only?................ 25 Table 1.4: Turnout in Local and the Closest Parliament (Lower Chamber) Elections .......................................................... 26 CHAPTER 2 Table 2.1: Structure of Communities in the Czech Republic by Size ............. 49 Table 2.2: Trends in Perception of the Relative Importance of Common Problems ................................................................. 51 Table 2.3: “Tensions” Regarding Social Problems in the Czech Republic (1995) ....................................................... 52 Table 2.4: Trust in Local Government as Expressed by Citizens and Local Authority Officials ..................................... 58 Table 2.5: Councilors’ and Officials’ Views on Citizens’ Participation in Public Activities........................................................................ 67 Table 2.6: Citizens’ Willingness to Participate in Public Activities ................ 69 Table 2.7: Turnout and Outcome of 1990 Local Elections in the Czech Republic .................................................................. 71 Table 2.8: Local Elections in 1994 by Community Size ................................ 72 Table 2.9: Outcome of Local Elections in 1998 by Community Size as a Percentage of Total Mandates................................................. 74 5 PUBLIC PERCEPTION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTS Table 2.10: Turnout and Outcome of Regional Elections (2000) .................... 76 Table 2.11: Outcomes of Elections to the Chamber of Deputies, 1990–1998 ..................................... 78 Table 2.12: Outcomes of First-round Elections to the Senate, 1996–2000...... 79 Table 2.13: Outcomes of Local Elections to Communities (1990, 1998) and Regions (2000) ...................................................................... 80 Table 2.14: Expected Improvement Due to New Regional Governments (Year 2000)...................................... 84 Table 2.15: Importance of Social Problems in Liberec ..................................... 91 CHAPTER 3 Table 3.1: Size Structure of Local Governments in Hungary (1999) ........... 121 Table 3.2: Citizens’ Assessment of the New Local Government System versus the Communist System (1991)......................................... 124 Table 3.3: Citizens’ Assessments of Present Versus Communist Local Government Systems in 1991 and in 2000 .... 129 Table 3.4: Voter Turnout at Local Government and Parliamentary Elections, 1990–1998 ................................... 132 Table 3.5: Patterns and Main Determinants of Citizens’ Evaluation of Local Governmental Performance in Various Fields of Public Services (2000) ............................................................ 141 Table 3.6: Citizens’ (1997) and Local Government Chief Officers’ Assessments of the Influence of Various Policy Actors on Local Decision Making (2000) .............................................. 146 Table 3.7: Number of Local Referenda by Type of Issue (January 1999–September 2000)................................................ 152 Table 3.8: Frequency and Type of use of Internet Communication of Major Hungarian Towns (January 2001)................................ 154 Table 3.9: Percentage of Local Governments Having an “NGO Rapporteur” to Liaise with Local NGOs in Various Settlement Size Categories (2000).............................. 158 6 DFID–LGI LOCAL GOVERNMENT POLICY PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES CHAPTER 4 Table 4.1: Distribution of Local Governments by Population Size in Poland (1999) .......................................... 174 Table 4.2: Turnout in Local, Parliamentary and Presidential Elections in Poland ........................................... 177 Table 4.3: Do you Feel That Decisions Made by the Following Institutions have a Significant Impact on Your and Your Family’s Life?.................................................. 177 Table 4.4: The Importance of Local Government Elections ........................ 179 Table 4.5: Do you know personally… ......................................................... 180 Table 4.6: Citizens’ Opinions on Motives of Local Government Decisions “Do Local Governments...?” ....................................................... 183 Table 4.7: Has Local Government Activity Improved or Worsened During Last Few Years?—Citizens’ Opinions ......... 186 Table 4.8: Who Should Manage the Following Functions? ......................... 190 Table 4.9: Are You for or Against Transferring Responsibility for Primary Schools to Local Governments? ................................. 191 Table 4.10: Opinions on the Powiat Reform—Percentage Agreeing with Following Opinions............................................................ 195 Table 4.11: Opinions on the Regional (Województwo) Reform —Percentage Agreeing with Following Opinions (03/1998) ...... 197 Table 4.12: In Case of a Referendum Would You Vote for the Introduction of the Powiat and Regional Self-governments (March, 1998) ................................................ 198 Table 4.13: Whose Interests are Most Often Pursued by Local Councillors in Your Municipality? ................................ 205 Table 4.14: Citizens’ Feelings of Influence on Local Matters ......................... 207 Table 4.15: Number of Referenda to Dissolve Local Councils....................... 210 Table 4.16: Frequency of Information Sources .............................................. 215 Table 4.17: Evaluation of media usage frequency .......................................... 216 7 PUBLIC PERCEPTION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTS CHAPTER 5 Table 5.1: Municipalities by Population Size ............................................... 227 Table 5.2: Expenditures of Local Self-governments in Slovakia, 1991–1998.............................................................. 229 Table 5.3: The Development of the Level of Trust in Self-government........ 230 Table 5.4: The Level of Trust in Self-government and Other Institutions.... 231 Table 5.5: Comparison of Turnouts in Slovakian Parliamentary and Local Elections .................................................................... 238 Table 5.6: Turnout in Parliament Election According to Size of Municipality............................................... 239 Table 5.7: Reason Given by Citizens for Not Voting in the 1990 Local Elections ........................................................ 241 Table 5.8: When Making Decisions as Mayor, to What Degree Do You Feel It Is Important to