CITY-COUNTY CONSOLIDATION: ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR METROPOLITAN REVENUES, SERVICES, AND ADMINISTRATION
Abstract
Employing an interrupted time-series design to analyze the budgetary data of the consolidated cities of Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Nashville, Tennessee; Jacksonville, Florida; and Indianapolis, Indiana, and a case study of the Indianapolis merger, the dissertation attempts to determine the effect that city-county unification has had on revenues, services, and administration in a metropolitan area. The basic premise of the study is that urban consolidation will result in additional intergovernmental and own-source revenue, a greater percentage of the budget being devoted to services, and a lesser percentage being used for the political and administrative infrastructure.The findings indicate that the anticipated changes occur for Jacksonville and Indianapolis, but that revenues change only slightly for Baton Rouge and that Nashville experiences a revenue decrease. The hypothesized service and administration relationship also occurs for Baton Rouge and Nashville. However, for all four cities the changes appear to be only minor interruptions in general trends. Regression lines indicate that pre-consolidation patterns will be re-established in the near future. The general conclusion is that, while some revenue, service and administrative changes may occur, they are temporary. The main benefit of city-county merger appears to be the consolidation of political power in a metropolitan area by a particular political party or faction.
Degree
Ph.D.
Subject Area
Political science
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