Budgetary behaviour in local government — A case study over 3 years

Abstract

A case study of budgetary behaviour over three years revealed behaviour characterised by a confrontation between central and local actors during the first years of stagnating income. During the following year, this confrontation changed into disillusionment with the “unrealistic” expenditure limits. The general level of inflation also contributed to a refusal by the actors to take responsibility for the budget. In the final year mistrust of the whole budgeting procedure changed the focus of attention to a reorganization of the budgeting procedure. Budgeting was again fairly undramatic, but the procedural change did nothing to solve the underlying financial problems which the actors were in the process of discovering when the case study ended. Although Wildavsky's (1975) framework was found useful in explaining the observed behaviour, the context of the budgetary process was also found to be of critical importance.