Problem indicators and territorial restructuring: do institutional decision rules matter?

Territorial restructuring through amalgamating local authorities has figured prominently on the agendas of European governments for many decades. Precisely where and when restructuring occurs is poorly understood, although it is broadly assumed to be initiated in response to fiscal stress, urbanization, and functional decentralization. Using a large-N approach with a 30-year time series for 39 European countries, this article demonstrates that associations between these problems and territorial restructuring depend on institutional decision rules, specifically whether the power to decide on local government amalgamations is centralized or dispersed. The findings indicate that policymakers at the local level are particularly attentive to demographic problems, whereas policymakers at the central level pay more attention to problems related to policy delivery. We outline theoretical and practical implications.