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SMEs Performance in Public Procurement and the Italian Legality Rating

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This study investigates the impact of the Italian Legality Rating (LR) on small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in public procurement. The LR, issued by the Italian Antitrust Authority, evaluates firms based on fiscal transparency, anti-corruption practices, corporate responsibility, and sustainability. While larger firms are more likely to obtain higher LR scores, SMEs benefit significantly from holding the certification. Using firm-level data and a Regression Discontinuity Design, we find that the LR increases SMEs’ tender-winning probabilities by 12.9 percentage points, highlighting its role as a strong institutional signal. Our findings emphasize the LR’s potential to enhance SME competitiveness in public procurement.

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  • Andrea Fazio & Erminia Florio & Gustavo Piga, 2024. "SMEs Performance in Public Procurement and the Italian Legality Rating," CEIS Research Paper 587, Tor Vergata University, CEIS, revised 17 Dec 2024.
    • Handle: RePEc:rtv:ceisrp:587
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    1. Erica Bosio & Simeon Djankov & Edward Glaeser & Andrei Shleifer, 2022. "Public Procurement in Law and Practice," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 112(4), pages 1091-1117, April.
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    4. Olga Chiappinelli & Friedemann Gruner & Gustav Weber, 2019. "Green Public Procurement: Climate Provisions in Public Tenders Can Help Reduce German Carbon Emissions," DIW Weekly Report, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research, vol. 9(51/52), pages 433-441.
    5. De Silva, Dakshina G. & Dunne, Timothy & Kosmopoulou, Georgia & Lamarche, Carlos, 2012. "Disadvantaged business enterprise goals in government procurement contracting: An analysis of bidding behavior and costs," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 30(4), pages 377-388.
    6. Nakabayashi, Jun, 2013. "Small business set-asides in procurement auctions: An empirical analysis," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 28-44.
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    8. Albano, Gian Luigi & Cesi, Berardino & Iozzi, Alberto, 2017. "Public procurement with unverifiable quality: The case for discriminatory competitive procedures," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 145(C), pages 14-26.
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    10. Hoekman, Bernard & Onur Taş, Bedri Kamil, 2024. "Discretion and public procurement outcomes in Europe," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
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    Cited by:

    1. Elisabetta Iossa & Chiara Latour, 2025. "Firms’ Legality and Efficiency: Evidence from Public Procurement," CEIS Research Paper 592, Tor Vergata University, CEIS, revised 10 Feb 2025.

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    Keywords

    SMEs; Legality Rating; Public Procurement;
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