Central European Public Administration Review (E-Journal)
Not a member yet
448 research outputs found
Sort by
Centralization and Reduced Financial Resources: A Worrying Picture for Hungarian Municipalities
Full text linkThe article provides an overview of governmental regulations affecting the operation and economic situation of local self-governments in Hungary during the pandemic crisis. The research covers the period from the declaration of the state of emergency in March 2020 until the end of the year. The study aims to explore the implementation of the European Charter of Local Self-Government’s special provisions related to local democracy concerns in times of crisis. The article analyses the relationship between the pandemic and governmental measures that affected the economic position of local self-governments. It does not provide an objective assessment, but rather presents and analyses the relevant resources. The article is primarily based on the review of the legal framework and the relevant Constitutional Court’s decisions. The analysis demonstrates that the Constitutional Court did not or only partially defended the legal interests of local self-governments. The governmental measures ‘stood the test of constitutionality’. The study confirms the initial assumption that the excessive centralization process was significantly reinforced, while the position of local self-governments in the state organs system weakened. However, some measures cause concern as they highlight deeper problems in the Hungarian legal system, irrespective of the pandemic
Efficiency of Medical Laboratories after Quality Standard Introduction: Trend Analysis of EU Countries and Case Study from Slovenia
No full textThe evaluation of efficiency and effectiveness in the public sector has a long tradition in literature. The data envelopment analysis (DEA) method is hereby a commonly applied method for examining the efficiency of individual public sector units. It also applies to healthcare; however, research on individual parts of this activity is rare, particularly as regards the evaluation of laboratory-based activity. In this article, the DEA method is used to evaluate the efficiency of biomedical laboratories and the change upon quality standards introduction. This is the first example of verification of a change in technical efficiency in relation to the accreditation of ISO standards. In the article, the analysis of the efficiency of Slovenian medical laboratories is presented in terms of the obtained quality standard; moreover, a comparison of Slovenian medical laboratories and two laboratories from neighbouring countries, Austria and Italy, is provided. The results show that the use of the DEA method and the Malmquist index do not indicate an improvement in the technical efficiency of accredited laboratories but the quality indicators indicate a higher quality of performed work. The comparison of Slovenian and foreign laboratories indicates high technical efficiency of accredited laboratories, as they are the highest-ranked; however, the knowledge of laboratories indicates that there are also other reasons for such a ranking. These research results can be utilised in comparable areas and countries
The Ne Bis In Idem Principle in Tax Law: European and Italian Frameworks
Full text linkIn the national and supranational legal area, the need to address the ne bis in idem principle is justified by the growing interest aroused by the most recent pronouncements of the European Courts. The principle prohibits anyone who has already been acquitted or convicted in a previous trial from being tried again. Moreover, it has become a fundamental right enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU. The interest in the issue also derives from the need to understand whether the approach of the Italian legal system – or any other similar national order – can be considered compliant with European tax law and case law, based on the definitions of criminal and tax offences. Thus, talking about a European legal space means rethinking the idea of punitive power in a dimension that tends to be ‘solidarity-based’. The State can consider itself impervious to repressive demands from outside but is instead called to cooperate actively to safeguard its own guarantees. The traditional self-referential conception of criminal repression effectively summarised in the expression ‘punitive sovereignty’ gives way to an idea of jurisdiction that draws directly from the principle of mutual recognition. In this scenario, the profile of the protection of the individual from the risk of a duplication of the exercise of punitive power for the same fact in different states assumes the role of the first magnitude. Hence, there is a need to act on two levels at the same time: to seek solutions aimed at resolving possible conflicts of jurisdiction (prohibition of competing prosecutions for the same fact), and to attribute, within each Member State, preclusive effects to the previously judged foreigner (ne bis in idem)
Talent Management in the Public Sector
Full text linkOver the past decade, researchers and human-resource managers, particularly in larger private sector organisations, have shown an increased interest in talent management, while this issue has been overlooked in the public sector. The purpose of this paper is to present the literature review about talent management in the public sector and to show how the existing legislation allows the creation of a talent management system for Slovenian public sector organisations. The main methodological approach used was qualitative research with document analysis. The paper sought answers to three research questions: (How) are talented employees treated differently from other employees? What types of models or practices in the field of talent management are applied in European countries? What are the legal limitations in the field of civil servant talent management in Slovenia? The literature review shows that organisations that are aware of the importance and contribution to the ultimate organisational objectives treat talented employees differently from other employees in the organisation. Models or practices in the field of talent management vary widely among different European countries. The limitations in Slovenia are strict observance of the principle of equality and thus equal opportunities for inclusion in the system of talented civil servants with limited reward opportunities and, consequently, for the promotion of civil servants. In order to enable good practices in Slovenia, a change of the legal framework is necessary
Form over Substance: Possibilities to Prove Electoral Irregularities under Serbian Law
Full text linkThe article analyses Serbian legislation and case law applicable to electoral disputes, in particular those relevant to the determination of facts in these disputes, and the potential influence of procedural rules on the efficiency of protection of constitutionally guaranteed electoral rights. Besides Serbian legislation and case law, the analysis leans on the relevant European standards, including the case law of the European Court of Human Rights. The results show that in practice, electoral commissions and courts use a limited circle of means of evidence and that the evidence submitted by complainants is not evaluated in the same way as the one coming from electoral boards. Although the application of general rules on administrative disputes is explicitly envisaged in electoral laws, the Administrative Court usually defers to the decisions and reasoning of electoral commissions, without supplementing the facts within court procedure, and relatively rarely or selectively decides in full jurisdiction. The author suggests amendments to the relevant legislation, aiming at a more explicit inclination towards the relevant procedural norms or, possibly, special regulation of evidencing in electoral legislation. In her view, a more explicit direction towards the application of the rules of general administrative procedure, in particular rules on evidencing, would lead to their more consistent application in practice
Judicial Review of Administrative Action at National Level under the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and General Principles of EU Law
Full text linkThis article aims to determine when the national authorities have the obligation to comply with EU fundamental rights, in the framework of administrative procedures carried out in the EU Member States. It also aims to determine the legal remedies available at national level in the context of judicial review in case of violation, by the national authorities, of EU fundamental rights guaranteed by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU or as general principles of EU law. To this end, this study explains the impact of the legally binding EU Charter on public administration of the Member States and the field of application of the EU Charter at national level. The article also deals with the distinction between EU fundamental rights as primary EU law guaranteed by the EU Charter and EU fundamental rights as general principles of EU law. With reference to the judicial remedies available to national courts, the study outlines the effects of EU law (primacy of EU law, direct effect, direct application) in relation to the EU fundamental rights and the measures that can be adopted by the national courts when the action of the national administrative authorities is not compatible with EU fundamental rights. Finally, the article presents the most important findings concerning judicial protection of EU fundamental rights at the national level, especially from the perspective of the right to an effective remedy and to a fair trial stipulated by Article 47 of the EU Charter.
 
Is VAT Administration System Efficient? The Case of the Czech
Full text linkThis paper is focused on the efficiency of VAT collection under the standard credit invoice method. It discusses several approaches on how to evaluate the efficiency of the VAT system. The authors create their own indicator called the C-Coefficient that determines how many times must one unit of currency be checked by the financial authority to collect it into public budgets. The C-Coefficient is calculated from the data on VAT revenues and total VAT paid on all taxable supplies performed in the economy. The concrete results are shown for the Czech Republic for the period 2005 to 2018. The C-Coefficient reaches the values between 7.92 and 11.56, meaning that in the most efficient year (2018) the tax authorities had to inspect each collected CZK more than 7 times, whereas in the least efficient year (2008) they had to audit each collected CZK more than 11 times. Authors also discuss what influences the C-Coefficient. Among important factors are measures against VAT fraud, especially the specific reverse charge, as well as the number of VAT payers in the production and distribution chain and the difference between the average VAT rates applicable on final and intermediate consumption
Understanding Differences between Equal Public Governance Models
Full text linkPublic administrations try to address changes in societies with various styles through various reforms based on different governance models, which are frequently transformed into domestic frames regardless of local specifics. The need for a tool with which the ideal types of governance models could be accommodated with national goals is, in times of increasing complexity, more and more relevant. As data as such are produced through numerous predispositions, the article proposes Ashby’s variety to capture the latter, through which it is possible to get closer to a successful administration of goals. On the other hand, Douglas’s grid and group model, Miles et al.’s organisational strategy, structure and process, and Hofstede’s cultural dimensions are used for the identification of needs. Even though public bodies are aware of the impact that culture/values has/have on models of public administration, countries base their decisions on it/them only indirectly. This article emphasises that certain values should be directly included in the governance models in accordance with their cultural backgrounds. The latter are always present in decisions’ predispositions (from which decisions obtain their frames and weights), and a successful administrator should not disregard them.