Effective political-administrative steering in municipalities

Katrin Vernau

2002

The reform of German municipalities has ground to a halt due to a decisive bottle neck: The successful realignment of the relationship between politics and administration. After years of internal modernization it has become evident that a new steering system can only produce the desired results if it is possible to incorporate politics into the new steering logic.

Katrin Vernau's systematic investigation, which is based on well-founded theories, describes what a more effective political-administrative steering could look like. In her thesis "Effective political-administrative steering in municipalities. Prospects and limitations of reform" she also examines whether in view of existing interest and power relations, steering reform is even feasible at the interface between politics and administration. The findings are backed up by case studies and practical information, and culminate in feasible recommendations for implementation.