WARNER, Mildred <br/><br/>
Local government restructuring :  privatization and its alternatives 

 -  2001 
<br/><br/> Local government restructuring should no longer be viewed as a simple dichotomy between private and public provision. A 1997 survey of chief elected township and country officials in New York shows that local governments use both private and public sector mechaninsm to structure the market, create competititon, and attain economies of scale. In addtition to privatization and inter-municipal cooperation, two alternative forms of service delivery not previously researched - reverse privatization and governmental entrepreneurship - are analyzed here. Logistic regression on the 201  responding governemtns differentiates the decision to restructure from the level and complexity of restructuring. Results confirm that local governments are guided primarily by pragmatic concerns with information, monitoring, and service quality. Political factors are not significant  in the restructuring process and unionization is only significant in cases of simple restructuring  (privatization or cooperation used alone). Fiscal stress is not a primary motivator, but debt limits are associated with more complex forms of restructuring. restructurig service delivery requires capacity to take risks and is more common among experienced local officials in larger, higher-income communities. Restructuring should  be viewed as a complex, pragmatic process where governments combine public and private provision with an active role as service provider and market player