R H J M Gradus
Biographic Data
| ID | 3588938 |
|---|---|
| NAME | R H J M Gradus |
| GIVEN NAMES | R H J M |
| FAMILY NAME | Gradus |
| SIGNATURE | GRADUS R H J M |
| AFFILIATIONS | Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-4519-4633 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 21 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 205 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 21 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2007 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 9 |
Reversal of Local Party System Nationalization
Nationalization of local party systems takes place in several countries. However, in the Netherlands, this process shows signs of reversal. Using data from seven municipal elections between 1998 and 2022, we observe that the local party system nationalization index decreases considerably over time, meaning more independent local parties in the local council. In addition to size, we find that rurality and center-periphery differences are important…
The impact of independent local parties on spending
To what extent do independent local political parties make different decisions on municipal spending categories compared to their locally operating national counterparts? In this paper, we empirically analyze whether independent local parties affect public finances in Dutch municipalities. Using a matching strategy, we compare municipalities that are similar in their observable characteristics except for the presence of an independent local party…
Political and financial factors motivating privatisation, its reverse and corporatisation of municipal waste collection
This paper analyses different modes of provision for household waste collectionand changes in that by Dutch municipalities in the period between 1998 and2018. Based on a transition matrix, the shifts in the mode of waste collection aremade transparent. In more than half of the municipalities, shifts took place, 56%towards outside production and 44% towards inside production and in laterperiods, inside production has become important. Furthermore,…
Dutch municipal elections 1998-2018
Using data for Dutch municipal elections between 1998 and 2018, this paper finds two dominant trends: more political fragmentation and increasing electoral success of independent local parties. The relative size of local parties in the council rises from 25% in 1998 to 37% in 2018 and the relative share of their aldermen from 21% to 32%. When understanding the increasing share of local parties, the number of inhabitants, regional diversity, the s…
Re-municipalization of public services
Re-municipalization is part of a broader set of reverse privatization reforms. We argue the term re-municipalization lacks conceptual clarity, confusing municipal level reversals from national ones, new service delivery from reversals, and mixed market positions from full public control. This conceptual confusion makes measurement of re-municipalization difficult. While more case studies are being discovered, quantitative time series studies do n…
Re-municipalization of local public services
Since the turn of the century, a global trend of re-municipalization has emerged, with cities reversing earlier privatizations and returning infrastructure and public service delivery to the public sector. The reversal of privatization measures is not an entirely new phenomenon. In the US, for example, returning public services to in-house production has been a long-standing feature of ‘pragmatic public management’. However, many cases of re-muni…
Assessing social media use in Dutch municipalities
Drivers of service delivery modes in Dutch local government
This study investigates the influence of service, financial and political characteristics on municipalities’ choices of four service delivery modes in the Dutch local government setting, thereby making a distinction between services in the physical and in the operational domain. It shows that, overall, use of inter-municipal cooperation and, to a lesser extent, municipality-owned firms increased substantially from 2010 to 2018. For use of private…
Political and Institutional Explanations for Increasing Re-municipalization
This article analyzes shifts in the delivery mode of waste collection in Dutch municipalities between 1999 and 2014. In approximately half of these entities, shifts took place, with 60% toward outside production and 40% toward inside production. In recent years, the number of shifts dropped remarkably, and re-municipalization has become more important. In addition, the amount of municipalities with reverse privatization is larger than that of pri…
Citizen engagement and trust
Highlights• The relation between forms of direct citizen engagement and citizens' trust is complex as analyzing citizen panels of three Dutch municipalities show.• In particular, attending a council meeting, having a conversation with an official and other forms of engagement by social media and the number of times citizens use a particular method of engagement seem to be negatively associated to the amount of trust that citizen panel members hav…
Assessing electronic service delivery in municipalities
In the Netherlands, electronic service delivery has become an important issue in many municipalities. Using the Internet for service delivery is seen as an important element of e-government. Based on 2014–2016 panel data for all Dutch municipalities, we show that there is a large variety among the municipalities in the extent to which they offer their service delivery digitally. By exploring the factors that may explain the differences among the …
The effects of market concentration on costs of local public services
Different concentration indexes are calculated for the Dutch waste collection market and all show that this market was highly concentrated in 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014. The estimation results in 2002 show that private collection is cheaper but high concentration increases costs of private collection and therefore (partly) offsets the advantage of contracting out. In 2006, the savings gained from privatisation and also the effect of concentration …
Privatisation, contracting-out and inter-municipal cooperation
We briefly review recent advances in the empirical analysis of the privatisation and inter-municipal cooperation of local public services and discuss the potential of these studies. The core issues examined include the identification of factors driving delivery choices and the effects of privatisation and cooperation on service provisions. In addition to reporting the specific empirical findings of each study, we highlight the innovative methodol…
A Cost-effectiveness Analysis for Incineration or Recycling of Dutch Household Plastic Waste
Is there still collusion in the Dutch waste collection market
Concentration indexes based on regional markets show that the Dutch market for refuse collection is highly concentrated in 2002 and 2010. Similar to earlier work in 2007, the results indicate some evidence that high concentration increases costs and therefore (partly) offsets the advantage of contracting out. In 2002, results with respect to concentration are somewhat less robust. In 2010, the cost-advantage effect of private provision becomes sm…
Municipalities’ Contracting Out Decisions
Municipalities have various motives behind their decisions about the modes of their task execution. Empirical studies have not yet provided a fully satisfying explanation for municipalities' contracting out decisions. Therefore, we interviewed several Dutch principal municipal managers to evaluate the causes and motives for the choices of the current structures for the delivery of their services. This study investigates the relevance of common pu…
Reforms to Limit Increases in Health Care Expenditures, with Special Attention to the Netherlands
In Europe, an ageing population and technological innovation are the most significant drivers behind public health care expenditure increases. Several reforms are needed in order to limit these increases. International research has shown that market mechanisms and better public management have the most effective impact on limiting expenditures. Budget caps can also be important in lowering costs, though they may have some drawbacks. Other instrum…
The Consequences of Implementing a Child Care Voucher Scheme
In the Netherlands, the USA and Australia, public funding has promoted parental choice by introducing a voucher scheme for child care, where parents are free to choose the provider. The policy experiments and the outcomes in these three countries provide useful information about the consequences of introducing a voucher scheme in the child care market. We show the voucher system can be effective in increasing demand, but there can be uneven suppl…
Similar Problems, Different Solutions
Because of differences in institutional arrangements, public service markets, and national traditions regarding government intervention, local public service provision can vary greatly. In this paper we compare the procedures adopted by the local governments of The Netherlands and Spain in arranging for the provision of solid waste collection. We find that Spain faces a problem of consolidation, opting more frequently to implement policies of pri…
Contracting Out
In 2003, the Dutch government introduced a VAT-compensation fund in order to create a level playing field for local governments with respect to Value Added Tax (VAT). This fund eliminates the effect of the tax difference between local governments that supply services themselves and local governments that contract out services to the private sector. However, as this article shows, according to most municipalities, differences in their treatment in…
Collusion in the Dutch waste collection market
In this paper we analyse whether collusion exists in the Dutch waste collection market, which shows a high degree of concentration. Although scale effects might be in accordance with this market outcome, the question is whether this concentration is in fact a result of fair competition. Using data for (nearly) all Dutch municipalities we estimate whether collusion exists and what the impact is on tariffs for waste collection. The results indicate…
Political and Institutional Explanations for Increasing Re-municipalization
This article analyzes shifts in the delivery mode of waste collection in Dutch municipalities between 1999 and 2014. In approximately half of these entities, shifts took place, with 60% toward outside production and 40% toward inside production. In recent years, the number of shifts dropped remarkably, and re-municipalization has become more important. In addition, the amount of municipalities with reverse privatization is larger than that of pri…
Municipalities’ Contracting Out Decisions
Municipalities have various motives behind their decisions about the modes of their task execution. Empirical studies have not yet provided a fully satisfying explanation for municipalities' contracting out decisions. Therefore, we interviewed several Dutch principal municipal managers to evaluate the causes and motives for the choices of the current structures for the delivery of their services. This study investigates the relevance of common pu…
Privatisation, contracting-out and inter-municipal cooperation
We briefly review recent advances in the empirical analysis of the privatisation and inter-municipal cooperation of local public services and discuss the potential of these studies. The core issues examined include the identification of factors driving delivery choices and the effects of privatisation and cooperation on service provisions. In addition to reporting the specific empirical findings of each study, we highlight the innovative methodol…
Assessing electronic service delivery in municipalities
In the Netherlands, electronic service delivery has become an important issue in many municipalities. Using the Internet for service delivery is seen as an important element of e-government. Based on 2014–2016 panel data for all Dutch municipalities, we show that there is a large variety among the municipalities in the extent to which they offer their service delivery digitally. By exploring the factors that may explain the differences among the …
Similar Problems, Different Solutions
Because of differences in institutional arrangements, public service markets, and national traditions regarding government intervention, local public service provision can vary greatly. In this paper we compare the procedures adopted by the local governments of The Netherlands and Spain in arranging for the provision of solid waste collection. We find that Spain faces a problem of consolidation, opting more frequently to implement policies of pri…
Collusion in the Dutch waste collection market
In this paper we analyse whether collusion exists in the Dutch waste collection market, which shows a high degree of concentration. Although scale effects might be in accordance with this market outcome, the question is whether this concentration is in fact a result of fair competition. Using data for (nearly) all Dutch municipalities we estimate whether collusion exists and what the impact is on tariffs for waste collection. The results indicate…
Assessing social media use in Dutch municipalities
The Consequences of Implementing a Child Care Voucher Scheme
In the Netherlands, the USA and Australia, public funding has promoted parental choice by introducing a voucher scheme for child care, where parents are free to choose the provider. The policy experiments and the outcomes in these three countries provide useful information about the consequences of introducing a voucher scheme in the child care market. We show the voucher system can be effective in increasing demand, but there can be uneven suppl…
Drivers of service delivery modes in Dutch local government
This study investigates the influence of service, financial and political characteristics on municipalities’ choices of four service delivery modes in the Dutch local government setting, thereby making a distinction between services in the physical and in the operational domain. It shows that, overall, use of inter-municipal cooperation and, to a lesser extent, municipality-owned firms increased substantially from 2010 to 2018. For use of private…
Is there still collusion in the Dutch waste collection market
Concentration indexes based on regional markets show that the Dutch market for refuse collection is highly concentrated in 2002 and 2010. Similar to earlier work in 2007, the results indicate some evidence that high concentration increases costs and therefore (partly) offsets the advantage of contracting out. In 2002, results with respect to concentration are somewhat less robust. In 2010, the cost-advantage effect of private provision becomes sm…
Dutch municipal elections 1998-2018
Using data for Dutch municipal elections between 1998 and 2018, this paper finds two dominant trends: more political fragmentation and increasing electoral success of independent local parties. The relative size of local parties in the council rises from 25% in 1998 to 37% in 2018 and the relative share of their aldermen from 21% to 32%. When understanding the increasing share of local parties, the number of inhabitants, regional diversity, the s…
Citizen engagement and trust
Highlights• The relation between forms of direct citizen engagement and citizens' trust is complex as analyzing citizen panels of three Dutch municipalities show.• In particular, attending a council meeting, having a conversation with an official and other forms of engagement by social media and the number of times citizens use a particular method of engagement seem to be negatively associated to the amount of trust that citizen panel members hav…
Contracting Out
In 2003, the Dutch government introduced a VAT-compensation fund in order to create a level playing field for local governments with respect to Value Added Tax (VAT). This fund eliminates the effect of the tax difference between local governments that supply services themselves and local governments that contract out services to the private sector. However, as this article shows, according to most municipalities, differences in their treatment in…
Re-municipalization of local public services
Since the turn of the century, a global trend of re-municipalization has emerged, with cities reversing earlier privatizations and returning infrastructure and public service delivery to the public sector. The reversal of privatization measures is not an entirely new phenomenon. In the US, for example, returning public services to in-house production has been a long-standing feature of ‘pragmatic public management’. However, many cases of re-muni…
Political and financial factors motivating privatisation, its reverse and corporatisation of municipal waste collection
This paper analyses different modes of provision for household waste collectionand changes in that by Dutch municipalities in the period between 1998 and2018. Based on a transition matrix, the shifts in the mode of waste collection aremade transparent. In more than half of the municipalities, shifts took place, 56%towards outside production and 44% towards inside production and in laterperiods, inside production has become important. Furthermore,…
A Cost-effectiveness Analysis for Incineration or Recycling of Dutch Household Plastic Waste
The effects of market concentration on costs of local public services
Different concentration indexes are calculated for the Dutch waste collection market and all show that this market was highly concentrated in 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014. The estimation results in 2002 show that private collection is cheaper but high concentration increases costs of private collection and therefore (partly) offsets the advantage of contracting out. In 2006, the savings gained from privatisation and also the effect of concentration …
Collusion in the Dutch waste collection market
In this paper we analyse whether collusion exists in the Dutch waste collection market, which shows a high degree of concentration. Although scale effects might be in accordance with this market outcome, the question is whether this concentration is in fact a result of fair competition. Using data for (nearly) all Dutch municipalities we estimate whether collusion exists and what the impact is on tariffs for waste collection. The results indicate…
Similar Problems, Different Solutions
Because of differences in institutional arrangements, public service markets, and national traditions regarding government intervention, local public service provision can vary greatly. In this paper we compare the procedures adopted by the local governments of The Netherlands and Spain in arranging for the provision of solid waste collection. We find that Spain faces a problem of consolidation, opting more frequently to implement policies of pri…
Contracting Out
In 2003, the Dutch government introduced a VAT-compensation fund in order to create a level playing field for local governments with respect to Value Added Tax (VAT). This fund eliminates the effect of the tax difference between local governments that supply services themselves and local governments that contract out services to the private sector. However, as this article shows, according to most municipalities, differences in their treatment in…
The Consequences of Implementing a Child Care Voucher Scheme
In the Netherlands, the USA and Australia, public funding has promoted parental choice by introducing a voucher scheme for child care, where parents are free to choose the provider. The policy experiments and the outcomes in these three countries provide useful information about the consequences of introducing a voucher scheme in the child care market. We show the voucher system can be effective in increasing demand, but there can be uneven suppl…
Reforms to Limit Increases in Health Care Expenditures, with Special Attention to the Netherlands
In Europe, an ageing population and technological innovation are the most significant drivers behind public health care expenditure increases. Several reforms are needed in order to limit these increases. International research has shown that market mechanisms and better public management have the most effective impact on limiting expenditures. Budget caps can also be important in lowering costs, though they may have some drawbacks. Other instrum…
Municipalities’ Contracting Out Decisions
Municipalities have various motives behind their decisions about the modes of their task execution. Empirical studies have not yet provided a fully satisfying explanation for municipalities' contracting out decisions. Therefore, we interviewed several Dutch principal municipal managers to evaluate the causes and motives for the choices of the current structures for the delivery of their services. This study investigates the relevance of common pu…
Is there still collusion in the Dutch waste collection market
Concentration indexes based on regional markets show that the Dutch market for refuse collection is highly concentrated in 2002 and 2010. Similar to earlier work in 2007, the results indicate some evidence that high concentration increases costs and therefore (partly) offsets the advantage of contracting out. In 2002, results with respect to concentration are somewhat less robust. In 2010, the cost-advantage effect of private provision becomes sm…
A Cost-effectiveness Analysis for Incineration or Recycling of Dutch Household Plastic Waste
Citizen engagement and trust
Highlights• The relation between forms of direct citizen engagement and citizens' trust is complex as analyzing citizen panels of three Dutch municipalities show.• In particular, attending a council meeting, having a conversation with an official and other forms of engagement by social media and the number of times citizens use a particular method of engagement seem to be negatively associated to the amount of trust that citizen panel members hav…
Assessing electronic service delivery in municipalities
In the Netherlands, electronic service delivery has become an important issue in many municipalities. Using the Internet for service delivery is seen as an important element of e-government. Based on 2014–2016 panel data for all Dutch municipalities, we show that there is a large variety among the municipalities in the extent to which they offer their service delivery digitally. By exploring the factors that may explain the differences among the …
The effects of market concentration on costs of local public services
Different concentration indexes are calculated for the Dutch waste collection market and all show that this market was highly concentrated in 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014. The estimation results in 2002 show that private collection is cheaper but high concentration increases costs of private collection and therefore (partly) offsets the advantage of contracting out. In 2006, the savings gained from privatisation and also the effect of concentration …
Privatisation, contracting-out and inter-municipal cooperation
We briefly review recent advances in the empirical analysis of the privatisation and inter-municipal cooperation of local public services and discuss the potential of these studies. The core issues examined include the identification of factors driving delivery choices and the effects of privatisation and cooperation on service provisions. In addition to reporting the specific empirical findings of each study, we highlight the innovative methodol…
Assessing social media use in Dutch municipalities
Drivers of service delivery modes in Dutch local government
This study investigates the influence of service, financial and political characteristics on municipalities’ choices of four service delivery modes in the Dutch local government setting, thereby making a distinction between services in the physical and in the operational domain. It shows that, overall, use of inter-municipal cooperation and, to a lesser extent, municipality-owned firms increased substantially from 2010 to 2018. For use of private…
Political and Institutional Explanations for Increasing Re-municipalization
This article analyzes shifts in the delivery mode of waste collection in Dutch municipalities between 1999 and 2014. In approximately half of these entities, shifts took place, with 60% toward outside production and 40% toward inside production. In recent years, the number of shifts dropped remarkably, and re-municipalization has become more important. In addition, the amount of municipalities with reverse privatization is larger than that of pri…
Re-municipalization of public services
Re-municipalization is part of a broader set of reverse privatization reforms. We argue the term re-municipalization lacks conceptual clarity, confusing municipal level reversals from national ones, new service delivery from reversals, and mixed market positions from full public control. This conceptual confusion makes measurement of re-municipalization difficult. While more case studies are being discovered, quantitative time series studies do n…
Re-municipalization of local public services
Since the turn of the century, a global trend of re-municipalization has emerged, with cities reversing earlier privatizations and returning infrastructure and public service delivery to the public sector. The reversal of privatization measures is not an entirely new phenomenon. In the US, for example, returning public services to in-house production has been a long-standing feature of ‘pragmatic public management’. However, many cases of re-muni…
Dutch municipal elections 1998-2018
Using data for Dutch municipal elections between 1998 and 2018, this paper finds two dominant trends: more political fragmentation and increasing electoral success of independent local parties. The relative size of local parties in the council rises from 25% in 1998 to 37% in 2018 and the relative share of their aldermen from 21% to 32%. When understanding the increasing share of local parties, the number of inhabitants, regional diversity, the s…
The impact of independent local parties on spending
To what extent do independent local political parties make different decisions on municipal spending categories compared to their locally operating national counterparts? In this paper, we empirically analyze whether independent local parties affect public finances in Dutch municipalities. Using a matching strategy, we compare municipalities that are similar in their observable characteristics except for the presence of an independent local party…
Political and financial factors motivating privatisation, its reverse and corporatisation of municipal waste collection
This paper analyses different modes of provision for household waste collectionand changes in that by Dutch municipalities in the period between 1998 and2018. Based on a transition matrix, the shifts in the mode of waste collection aremade transparent. In more than half of the municipalities, shifts took place, 56%towards outside production and 44% towards inside production and in laterperiods, inside production has become important. Furthermore,…
Reversal of Local Party System Nationalization
Nationalization of local party systems takes place in several countries. However, in the Netherlands, this process shows signs of reversal. Using data from seven municipal elections between 1998 and 2022, we observe that the local party system nationalization index decreases considerably over time, meaning more independent local parties in the local council. In addition to size, we find that rurality and center-periphery differences are important…
Economics (16 works) · Business (15 works) · Political science (12 works) · Politics (8 works) · Public Administration (8 works) · Public Administration (8 works) · Public economics (8 works) · Local Government Finance and Decentralization (7 works) · Public Policy and Administration Research (7 works) · Finance (6 works)