Central European Public Administration Review (E-Journal)
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Public oversight of the audit profession – Comparison of implemented practices in the EU and the U.S.
Get PDFFollowing financial scandals at the turn of the century, the audit profession in the European Union, the United States and elsewhere, has undergone profound legislative and regulatory reforms, including the requirement for intense public oversight of the profession. The article provides an overview of the development of external quality assurance systems in the audit profession in the EU and the U.S. with emphasis on the system of public oversight, implemented after the passing of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 in the U.S. and the Statutory Audit Directive of 2006 in the EU. The aims of the article are: 1) to explain different backgrounds of external quality assurance systems in the EU and the U.S., 2) to describe implemented practices related to the public oversight system in the two regions and 3) to present the main findings of the existing empirical research focusing on the impact of the newly established systems of public oversight on the quality of audit services. Our literature research reveals that the evidence on the impact of the public oversight on the ultimate audit quality in the EU has not yet been provided because the Member States have only finished the implementation of the Statutory Audit Directive requirements into national legislations by the year 2008. In the U.S., on the other hand, first empirical evidence has been presented, suggesting that the quality of auditing has improved after the passing of the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002. So far evidence has been provided to support the proposition that PCAOB opinions are associated with earnings quality of the audit firm’s clients, that auditors have become more conservative and that the new inspectors (as opposed to the former system of self-regulation) can hold the auditors to stricter standards by taking concrete actions against felonious auditors and imposing costly penalties
Assessment of establishment and operations under market conditions for a public equity fund
Get PDFThe government of Slovenia established a publicly funded venture capital fund in order to provide start-up finance for small companies. The fund was meant to fill in the market gap in early-stage equity finance supply. The fund is co-financed from EU structural funds and has to comply with strict regulation regarding possibility of market distortion from such measure. The objective of the study is to give a straightforward answer whether the public fund will behave within the equity market conditions or will impose an unloyal competition to the existing privately financed funds. In accordance to this, an evaluation is given advising that the public fund should not be regarded as a state-aid measure
Competences for Economic Diplomacy and International Business; Convergence or Divergence?
Get PDFThe article discusses whether competences needed for effective contemporary economic diplomacy are different from or similar to those needed by international businessmen, and whether economic diplomats are capable of responding to the challenges of tectonic changes in the world with the competences they now possess. It concludes that a convergence of competences between economic diplomats and international businessmen is taking place; diplomats are increasingly using competences of international managers, and international manages increasingly need diplomatic skills. Special attention is given to: relations between internal and international economic relations, the need for global mindsets, the business intelligence role of economic diplomats and long-term planning. Competences of economic diplomats from small countries are different from those of their large-country counterparts. One basic competence is flexibility, the readiness to change and to adjust to changes. To adjust to changes, there is also a need for reforms in training of economic diplomats and international businessmen
Regulatory Impact Assessment in Macedonia and Estonia: Lessons (to be) Learned
Get PDFConsidering that legislation (primary and secondary legislation) is the most commonly used instrument for policy-making, and that the state reached out to regulate more to improve the environment for doing business in the financial crises of 2008-2009, we look at the Regulatory Impact Assessment (hereinafter RIA), which is an important segment of the policy-making cycle allowing for identification of impact of laws on various segments of society including businesses. This policy analysis instrument has been employed in most the EU member states as well as in the countries that seek for EU accession such as Macedonia. Since RIA is at the early stage of development in Macedonia we have taken Estonia as a case study and identify the lessons Macedonia can learn from Estonia. The analysis shows that in Macedonia RIA was mostly conceived as part of an economic reform package and has resulted in RIA being confined to specific sectors instead of being made fully part of the general policy-making. The current system therefore still falls short of exploring the full potential of RIA as a tool for better regulation. Coordination of the RIA process, the extension of the scope as well as the methods for conducting RIA are some of the areas Macedonia can improve taking the example of Estonia
Local Management and New Public Management
Get PDFEconomic globalization, growingly differentiated and unstable markets, fiscal crises in light of increasing public expenditure are the elements of an uncertain future for local communities. The latter are captured in the growing demand of users or citizens for quality in public services and in the regulation of the state that (sometimes) limits the creative development and competition on a global market of local communities. In the context of this ever demanding environment functions local administration that has to be reformed in order to conform with the elements of this environment. The article presents the specifics of local management and alongside its reform process by the principles of new public management. Empirical part of the article explains findings of an extensive study of local administrations in the European Union and their reforms with implications that show the effects of reformed local administration on the effectiveness of the entire local community
The System of Management of Regional Development in Poland: New Legal and Administrative Proposals
Get PDFThis paper describes the new proposal being advanced regarding the legal and administrative aspects of regional development in Poland, presenting a smallscale survey of part of the legal system as it pertains to regional development. It outlines the new legal proposal for implementation with regard to the preparation of solutions necessary for the next programming period (2014–2020). The results of the analysis suggest that the solutions proposed may be effective and may contribute to improving the system
Zaznavanje razvoja trajnostnega kmetijstva
Get PDFV konceptu trajnostnega kmetijstva se srečujeta obe področji upravljanja Ministrstva za kmetijstvo in okolje, z vsemi družbenimi implikacijami. Kot prispevek k oblikovanju, izvajanju in vrednotenju trajnostnih aktivnosti analiziramo v članku odnos javnosti in kmetov do trajnostnega razvoja v kmetijstvu. Rezultati raziskave kažejo, da obstaja v Sloveniji podpora trajnostnemu kmetijstvu ne le na deklarativni ravni, ampak tudi v javnosti. Statistično značilne razlike med podporo splošne javnosti in kmetov pa so v dojemanju trajnostnega napredka kmetijstva na področju okolja. Vzporedno se kaže neskladje med načelno in dejansko podporo trajnostnemu kmetijstvu. Zato bi bilo smiselno razmisliti o spremembi fokusa ukrepov kmetijske politike iz okoljske na družbeno trajnost in preživetje kmeta, ob poudarjanju pozitivnih okoljskih informacij o slovenskem kmetijstvu
Perceived Development of Sustainable Agriculture
Get PDFWithin the concept of sustainable agriculture, the two fields of administration of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Environment come face to face, resulting in a number of social implications. In order to provide assistance in the shaping, execution and assessment of sustainable activities, in this article we analyse the attitude of the public and farmers towards sustainable development in agriculture. The results reveal that in Slovenia, sustainable agriculture has support not only on the level of declarations, but also among the public. Statistically significant differences between the general public and farmers can be noted in the groups’ respective understandings of the sustainable advancement of agriculture in the field of the environment. In parallel to this, a rift can be noted between support for sustainable agriculture in principle and in practice. For this reason, it would be wise to consider shifting the focus of agricultural policy measures from environmental sustainability to social sustainability and the survival of farmers, along with an emphasis on positive environmental information regarding Slovenian farmers
Are Public Sector Tax Practitioners Satisfied with the Services of South Africa Revenue Service?
Get PDFThe paper discusses the satisfaction with services provided by South Africa Revenue Service (SARS) to public sector tax practitioners to enhance tax compliance. A survey of 375 tax practitioners in eight provinces was made. Tax practitioners appreciate SARS services in paying tax refunds, responding to and handling enquiries, tax practitioners education and the organization of professional training/workshops. Accountants in particular strongly appreciate SARS tax practitioners education. Accountants and older tax practitioners appreciate SARS assistance in completing tax returns. Tax practitioners who work as Financial Managers, Accountants, and those who possess secondary level of education, diploma, degree or have special tax education find tax payer training to be quite useful. Older tax practitioners are more satisfied with SARS office services
The Scientific Analysis of Hungarian Public Administration. New Trends and Methods.
Get PDFThe purpose of this paper is to introduce those scientific methods and new paradigms that are to overcome the one-sided jurisprudential methods of analysis of public administration. On the one hand, as it has been obvious for a long time, a sort of inter- or multidisciplinary method is needed for a strong scientific and material framework which allows further conclusions. And on the other hand, beyond multi- and interdisciplinarity, it is unavoidable to reestablish the philosophic synthesis between the legal norms regulating public administration and the facts of the real operation. Probably this direction will/may be the basis and the realiser of the change of paradigm (also) in Hungarian sciences of public administration. In general it may be stated that due to the crises social sciences more and more shall start examining the real meaning of things, the broader examination frameworks of the analysed phenomena, instead of descriptive questions analysing the ways of operation. In the era of crises, when everyday experiences falsify our expectations, legal and political science become more radical: it shall examine and revise the validity of its preassumptions – which it had considered firm before