Administrative and Fiscal Architectiture of Latvian Local Governments

Abstract

Latvia is a small Eastern European country bordering the Baltic Sea. Local governments in the country were strengthened by a series of legal regulations after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the gaining of independence. In 2009 and 2021, local government amalgamations aimed at improving efficiency in the provision of local public services. With local government amalgamations, the number of urban and rural municipalities reduced to 43 from 550. However, unlike the process in Türkiye, it was structured mainly as voluntary mergers. There are not many differences in terms of duties, powers and institutional structure between urban and rural municipalities. Local governments in Latvia have wide range service delivery responsibilities as education, health, production and distribution of public goods, social welfare, recreation, solid waste and sewage, heating, water provision, urban transportation and infrastructure, culture, environmental protection, zoning, housing, city and regional planning and local economic development. Half of the public employment in the country is provided by local governments. In terms of local government expenditures, wage and salary payments for municipal servants and education service provision expenditures are the biggest items. The most important revenue items for municipalities are tax revenues and transfers from the central government. In terms of transfers, conditional transfers are the dominant source of revenue. The aim of this study is to examine the administrative and financial structures of local governments in Latvia through literature review and compilation.

Keywords

• Latvia
• local governments
• intergovernmental fiscal relations
• local government expenditures
• local government revenue

Letonya’da Yerel Yönetimlerin İdari ve Mali Yapısı

Abstract

Letonya Baltık Denizi’ne kıyısı bulunan küçük bir Doğu Avrupa ülkesidir. Ülkedeki yerel yönetimler, Sovyetler Birliği'nin dağılmasının ve bağımsızlığın kazanılmasının sonrasında gerçekleştirilen bir dizi yasal düzenlemeyle güçlendirilmiştir. Bu kapsamda yerel kamu hizmeti sunumunda etkinliğin sağlanması amacıyla 2009 ve 2021 yılında yapılan hukuki düzenlemeler ile küçük belediyelerin birleştirilmesi yoluna gidilmiştir. Böylelikle 550’yi aşan kentsel ve kırsal belediye sayısı 43’e kadar düşürülmüştür. Ancak Türkiye’deki sürecin aksine Letonya’daki yerel yönetimler reformu, ağırlıklı olarak gönüllülük esasına göre birleşmeleri temel alan bir yapıya sahiptir. Ülkedeki kentsel ve kırsal belediyeler arasında görev, yetki ve kurumsal yapılanma olarak pek farklılık bulunmamaktadır. Letonya’da yerel yönetimler geniş hizmet sorumluluk alanlarına sahiptir. Eğitim, sağlık, kamusal kolaylık üretimi ve dağıtımı, sosyal refah hizmetleri, dinlenme ve eğlence hizmetleri, katı atık ve kanalizasyon hizmetleri, ısınma, şehir içi ulaşım ve ulaşım altyapısı, kültür ve eğlence hizmetleri, çevrenin korunması, imar, konut, şehir ve bölge planlaması, yerel kalkınma gibi hizmetler yerel yönetimler tarafından ifa edilmektedir. Ülkedeki kamu istihdamının yarısı yerel yönetimler tarafından yapılmaktadır. Yerel yönetim harcamalarına bakıldığında çalışanlar için yapılan ödemelerin ve eğitim hizmeti üretim giderlerinin ön plana çıktığı görülmektedir. Yerel yönetim gelirlerinin ise, ağırlıklı olarak vergi gelirlerinden ve merkezi yönetim tarafından yapılan transferlerden oluştuğu söylenebilir. Merkezi yönetim transferleri içerisinde ise, şartlı transferlerin baskınlığı gözlenmektedir. Bu çalışmanın amacı, Letonya'daki yerel yönetimlerin idari ve mali yapısını literatür taraması ve derlemesi temelinde incelemektir.

Keywords

• Letonya
• Yerel yönetimler
• Yönetimler arası mali ilişkiler
• Yerel yönetim harcamaları
• Yerel yönetim gelirleri

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