Direct and Indirect Benefits of Intergovernmental Contracting for Police Services (From Privatizing the United States Justice System: Police, Adjudication, and Corrections Services From the Private Sector, P 67-81, 1992, Gary W Bowman, Simon Hakim, et al., eds. - See NCJ-137785)

• NCJ Number: 137789
• Author(s): S L Mehay; R A Gonzalez
• Date Published: 1992
• Length: 15 pages
• Sale Source: McFarland & Company, Inc.
• Publication Type: Survey
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

The Lakewood intergovernmental contracting plan developed in California is analyzed with respect to its relationship to the Niskanen model of bureaucracy, its effectiveness, and its effects on adjacent jurisdictions.

Abstract

The Lakewood system represents a highly developed example of nonprofit contracting of public services. Under the Lakewood system, municipalities purchase basic public services from county government departments rather than provide the services in-house. Prior research has found that municipalities taking part in the Lakewood Plan tend to benefit by obtaining services at a lower cost than when the service is provided in-house. The current research indicated that the Lakewood Plan also provides secondary benefits to public agencies and taxpayers in jurisdictions other than the municipalities that directly contract with the county. These benefits occur because the Lakewood system generates a flow of information regarding production cost for a particular service. The findings also suggested that one major assumption of the Niskanen theory of bureaucracy does not apply to all local service production environments. Figure, tables, notes, and 38 references