Local Government and Municipal Administration

The curricular unit is described by an interdisciplinary interdependence in the areas of management, economics, law, sociology of organizations, accounting, public policies and political science.

Teaching methods:

Expository method, using theoretical presentations of the syllabus, combined with the application of practical cases prepared in accordance with the objectives of the course unit.

The main objective of this course is to understand, apprehend and apply, on the part of the student body, the specificities of local authorities and their management.

In this perspective, the present curricular unit has as specific objectives:

• Provide solid training in Local Government and Municipal Administration;
• Identify the influence of different models of public management in the current administration of local authorities;
• Provide students with the capacity for critical appraisal with regard to the current lines of reform underway in the local sector;
• Understand the functioning and evolution of municipal management in the Portuguese context;
• Cover the specific aspects of the management of local authorities and their competences;
• Know the dynamics of local authorities and enable students with theoretical and practical skills to analyze, evaluate and understand the current problems facing these institutions.

In terms of skills and knowledge acquired, at the end of the semester students should be able to:

• Expose the characteristic aspects of municipal management;
• Characterize the initiatives for administrative modernization of the local sector carried out in Portugal in recent decades;
• Identify and use the necessary instruments for an efficient and modern municipal management;
• Understand the structure of local power and the current system of local governance in Portugal;
• Analyze the impact of the New Public Management on the reform and administrative modernization of local authorities;
• Explain the way in which local public services are organized, taking into account the multiplicity of legally admissible mechanisms.
• Distinguish and explain the nature, purpose and importance of spatial planning and urban management policies in the local context.

1. Introduction to local governance

1.1 Revisiting basic concepts: State, public administration, public management administration

1.2 The different concepts associated with governance: from local governance to multi-level governance

1.3 Local governance trends

1.4 The influence of international organizations on good local governance

2. Characterization of local power in Portugal

2.1 The concepts of local administration, autarchy and local power

2.2 The historical context of the evolution of local authorities and local power

2.3 The current legal framework of local authorities: most relevant diplomas

2.4 The constitutional principles of local authorities

2.5 Local authorities

2.5.1 duties and competencies

2.5.2 election of representative bodies

2.5.3 composition of representative bodies

2.5.4 Operating regime of representative bodies

2.5 Portuguese particularities of local government bodies

3. Administrative reform and modernization in local government

3.1 The concept of administrative reform: objectives

3.2 Different contexts, motivations and meanings of reforms in local administration

3.3 Recent aspects of the reorganization of territories:

3.3.1 the merger of parishes

3.3.2 decentralization of competences

3.3.3 the new role of regional coordination and development commissions

4. Public management models in the municipal context: between hierarchy, market and networks

 4.1 Remnants of the classic public administration paradigm: bureaucracy

4.2 The new public management: market ideas in the context of the municipal reality

4.3 Features of the new public governance: the network governance model in the reality of local authorities

5. Local Finance Management

5.1 The taxing power of local authorities: sources of revenue

5.2 local authority budget process: budgetary principles and rules

5.2.1 The municipal budget

5.2.2 The plan’s major options: the multi-year investment plan and the most relevant activities

5.2.3 Processing the budget preparation process

5.3 The different financial pieces that make up the budget approval process

5.4 Execution of the municipal budget: expenditure and revenue

5.5 Municipal debt

5.5.1 Guiding principles

5.5.2 Global debt limit

5.5.3 Calculation of municipal debt

5.5.4 Municipal debt ratios

5.5.5 Municipal financial recovery mechanisms: access conditions, optional and mandatory

5.5.5.1 Financial sanitation and financial recovery

5.6 The municipal support fund

6. The management and organization of local public services

6.1 Direct and indirect administration in the context of local authorities

6.2 The universe of local administration: municipal and intermunicipal entities

6.3 Local business activity:

6.3.1 The concept of local company

6.3.2 The nature of local companies: legal regime and principles of incorporation

6.4 Organizational formats for local service provision

NAO

Fundamental Bibliography

Bilhim, J. (2004). A governação nas autarquias locais. Estoril: Principia.

Bravo, A.  & Vasconcellos e Sá, J. (2000). Autarquias locais: Descentralização e melhor gestão. Lisboa: Verbo.

Castanheira, M. (2004). Governo e administração local. Coimbra: Editora Almedina.

 Madeira, M. (2016). A Governança Municipal: Os desafios da gestão local nas modernas democracias. Lisboa, Edições Colibri.

 Montalvo, A. (2003). O processo de mudança e o novo modelo da gestão pública municipal. Coimbra: Edições Almedina.

 Neves, M. (2020). Os Eleitos Locais, 3.ª Edição revista e ampliada. Braga: AEDREL.

 Oliveira, A. (2021). A Democracia Local em Portugal. Lisboa: Fundação Francisco Manuel dos Santos.

 Pereira, P., Dias, R., & Almeida, M. (2016). Autarquias locais: democracia, governação e finanças. Coimbra: Editora Almedina.

 Ralha, J. (2018). Da Gestão, em Autarquias: Para melhorar as competências em Gestão, dos Eleitos. Lisboa: Edições Sílabo 

 Ribeiro, A. (2019). Lei das Finanças Locais, comentada e anotada. Lisboa: Edições Sílabo.

 Ribeiro, A. (2021). Governo Local: Conceitos, estratégias e práticas. Lisboa: Edições Sílabo.

 Rocha, J. (2019).  Direito Financeiro Local: Finanças locais, 3ª Edição. Lisboa: Edições Almedina.

 Teles, F. (2021). Descentralização e Poder Local em Portugal. Lisboa: Fundação Francisco Manuel dos Santos.

 Complementary Bibliography

Araújo, J. & Silvestre, H. (2013). Coletânea em Administração Pública. Lisboa: Escolar Editora.

 Azevedo, A. (2008). Administração Pública Modernização Administrativa – Gestão e Melhoria dos Processos Administrativos CAF e SIADAP. Porto: Vida Económica.

 Carapeto, A.  & Fonseca, M.  (2014). Administração pública: modernização, qualidade e inovação, 3ª Edição. Lisboa, Editora Sílabo.

 Denhardt, J. & Denhardt, R. (2007). The new public service: Serving, not steering. ME Sharpe.

 Evans, J & Lindsay, W. (2016). Managing for Quality and Performance Excellence, 10.ª edição. Boston: Cengage Learning.

 Fonseca, F. & Carapeto, C. (2009). Governação, inovação e tecnologias: O estado rede e a administração pública do futuro. Lisboa: Edições Sílabo.

 Madureira, C. & Ferraz, D. (2014). The need of a XXI century governance paradigm for public administration: the specific case of Portugal. Public Policy and Administration, 31, p. 35-48.

 Pereira, P., Afonso, A., Arcanjo, M. & Santos, J. (2016). Economia e Finanças Públicas, 5ª Edição. Lisboa: Escolar Editora.

 Silvestre, H. (2010). Gestão pública: modelos de prestação no serviço público. Lisboa, Escolar Editora.