QUESTIONNAIRE FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS

Your locality was randomly selected to participate into a research about social services and other aspects of public interest. The data collected will be used for improving the access of the poor to social services programs and for a better relation between local and central authorities. Thank you for your collaboration!

Respondents’ characteristics:

(Operator: please apply the following questionnaire only to one of the following persons)

Q1. Status
  1. Mayor
  2. Vice mayor
  3. City hall’s secretary
  4. City hall accountant
/ Q2. Since when do you live in this locality? (years, months) / Q4. If elected
Since when are you in this position? / Q5. If appointed
Since when were you appointed in this position?
(year) / Q6. Are you a member in any party?
  1. yes
  2. no
/ Q7. If member,
In what party?

LOCALITY

Which was the main problem of your locality in 2002? (2 options)

PB1. ______PB2. ______

Which was the main achievement of local authorities in 2002? (2 options)

RA1. ______RA2. ______

CP. Comparing with other similar localities from your county (either rural or urban), how would you characterize your locality from the following points of view: / 1. much better
2. better
3. at the middle
4. worse
5. much worse
9. DK/NA / CP1. Comparing with the situation in 2000-2001, in 2002 would you say that the things were better or worse regarding…
  1. better
  2. the same
  3. worse
9.DK/NA.
1. Richness/wealthiest of the people / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
2. Economic activities from state’s sector / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
3. Economic activities from private sector / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
4. Roads maintenance / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
5. Household’s heating system / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
6. Water supply system / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
7. Citizens involvement in solving localities problems / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
8. Public order / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
9. Locality cleanliness / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
10. The space for spare time activities / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
11. Social assistance for people in need (poor, unemployed people, elderly, other similar groups) / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
12. Social services to average community members / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9

Which are the Mayoralty/Town Hall’ s first priorities for 2003?

PR1. ______

PR2. ______

PR3 ______

SOC. Which were the main things made by local authorities for providing social services to the community (elderly social help, social services for children, social services for people with special needs) in 2002?

SO1. ______99. DK/NA

SO2. ______99. DK/NA

SO3. ______99. DK/NA

Below we have listed a variety of conditions, which represent problems in some communities but not in others. For each condition please indicate how you see the situation in your own municipality. How frequent are the following situations in your locality?

Very often / Often / Rare / Very rare / DK/NA
PRO1. Pressures from local social organizations like associations and foundations / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
PRO2 Inability of councilors to set priorities regarding different types of municipal activity / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
PRO3.Conflict among different groups of councilors / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
PRO4.Conflict between councilors and the municipal administration / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
PRO5.Too many responsibilities assigned to the municipality by central government given present resources / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
PRO6.Norms and standards imposed in connection with responsibilities assigned by central government are too restrictive / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
PRO7.Unclear division of responsibility between local and central authorities / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
PRO8.Too much interference from county authorities / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
PRO9.Too much interference from national authorities / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
PRO10.Too little discretion for local authorities in determining local government revenue / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
PRO11. Too little discretion for local authorities in determining the expenditures of local budget / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
PRO12.Too little authority in formulating local economic development policy / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
PRO13.Not enough capacity to implement our own local programs / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9

1

MUNICIPAL POLICYMAKING

Does your local government have a currently valid and written program, regulation, or action plans as follows? If the program, regulation, or action plan is still in the draft stages, please circle 3
  1. Yes, initiated by central authorities
  2. Yes, initiated by local authorities
  3. Are only in draft
4. There aren’t any / If yes: PGA.
The program has been implemented in 2002?
  1. Yes
  2. No
8. Not the case / PGB. If yes at PROGR1:
Taking in consideration more aspects (resources involved, impact …) how could you assess the effectofthe program:
1. very high
2. high
3. medium / 4. low
5.very low
8.NC
9. DK/NA
PG1Long term economic development program / 1 / 2 / 8 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 8 / 9
PG2 Long term program for local government investments / 1 / 2 / 8 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 8 / 9
PG3 Public sanitation or environment protection program / 1 / 2 / 8 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 8 / 9
PG4 A program on public education / 1 / 2 / 8 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 8 / 9
PG5 Sports program / 1 / 2 / 8 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 8 / 9
PG6 Cultural program / 1 / 2 / 8 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 8 / 9
PG7 Plan for the financial supervision of local government institutions / 1 / 2 / 8 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 8 / 9
PG8 A program aiming to improve the access of he poor to the public services / 1 / 2 / 8 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 8 / 9
PG9 A plan on how to make the city look more aesthetic / 1 / 2 / 8 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 8 / 9
PG10 A program specifically addressed to the poor strata of the locality / 1 / 2 / 8 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 8 / 9
PG11 Public safety and crime prevention program / 1 / 2 / 8 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 8 / 9
PG12 Health protection program / 1 / 2 / 8 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 8 / 9
PG13 Housing program / 1 / 2 / 8 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 8 / 9
PG14 A communication strategy for informing citizens and the press about the activities / 1 / 2 / 8 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 8 / 9
PG15 A local regulation about the handling of citizens’ requests, over and above any relevant national legislation / 1 / 2 / 8 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 8 / 9

In 2002, the local administration was helped by the support provided by:

If yes, how important was this support?
Yes / No / Very important / Important / Minor
importance / Not important at all / DK/NA
SUP1. Citizens / 1 / 2 / 5 / 4 / 2 / 1 / 9
SUP2. Local state firms / 1 / 2 / 5 / 4 / 2 / 1 / 9
SUP3. Local private firms / 1 / 2 / 5 / 4 / 2 / 1 / 9
SUP4. NGO-s, local associations / 1 / 2 / 5 / 4 / 2 / 1 / 9
SUP5. Churches / 1 / 2 / 5 / 4 / 2 / 1 / 9
SUP6. Schools / 1 / 2 / 5 / 4 / 2 / 1 / 9
SUP7. Other local institutions / 1 / 2 / 5 / 4 / 2 / 1 / 9
SUP8. State firms outside the locality / 1 / 2 / 5 / 4 / 2 / 1 / 9
SUP9. Private firms outside the locality / 1 / 2 / 5 / 4 / 2 / 1 / 9
SUP10. NGO-s /associations from outside the locality / 1 / 2 / 5 / 4 / 2 / 1 / 9
SUP11. Public institutions from outside the locality / 1 / 2 / 5 / 4 / 2 / 1 / 9
SUP12. Development agencies / 1 / 2 / 5 / 4 / 2 / 1 / 9
SUP13. Public influential persons / 1 / 2 / 5 / 4 / 2 / 1 / 9
SUP14. County council / 1 / 2 / 5 / 4 / 2 / 1 / 9
SUP15. others, who………. / 1 / 2 / 5 / 4 / 2 / 1 / 9

TAKING DECISION PROCESS

I would like to ask you something about local councill activity.

CL1.How many meetings of the local councill were in 2002?

SP1. In 2002, how many public meetings have been organized by local administration together with the citizens? ______

If such meetings indeed took place

SP1_1. Could you tell me what topics were discussed at these meetings? ______

______

SP2. How many public meetings were organized at the request of:

a)citizens ______99. DK/NA

b)associations/civic organizations ______99. DK/NA

If such meetings indeed took place

SP2_1. Could you tell me what topics where discussed at these meetings?

______99. DK/NA

______99. DK/NA

CL2. How often did it happened last year that the council meeting to be suspended due to the insufficient members?

1. almost all the time2. often3. rare 4. never9. DK/NA

CL3. How frequently do ordinary citizens influence your local government’s decisions via the following methods? Please answer with help of a 5- point scale on which 1 means not at all and 5 means very often. / 1. not at all 4. often
2. very rare 5. very often
3. rare
9. DK/NA
a. by personally contacting their representative / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
b. by alerting and informing the media / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
c. by personally contacting the mayor / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
d. by contacting civil organizations or interest groups / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
e. by asking support from groups of representatives or factions / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
f. by mobilizing local citizens (petitions, demonstrations) / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
Generally, how would you appreciate the involvement extent of citizens in public projects initiated by … from this locality in …?
1. Very low 2. Low 3. Medium 4. High 5. Very high 9.DK/NA 8. I don’t know about the existence of such activities / AL1.
In 2002 / AL2.
In 2000
1. local authorities
2. civic organizations/associations

DEC3. In the last year, was there a public demonstration in your municipality due to a local government concern?Please count all demonstrations, independent of whether or not they did or did not support the position of the local government.

1.No2.Yes.How many _____9. DK/NA

DEC4. In the last year, have there been actions to collect citizens’ signatures on issues either in support of a proposal to protest against something, or to initiate a local referendum that concerns your local government?

1. No2. Yes.How many _____9. DK/NA

DEC5. How many of these demonstrations and efforts to collect citizens’ signatures were organized to protest against something done or planned by the local government?

______ 99. DK/NA

DEC6. Has a local organization, party or a group of citizens challenged a decision of the local government on a public issue in a court of law or at a higher administrative authority? / Yes / No / If yes,DEC6_1. How many?
99. DK/NA
A. Local NGO/association / 1 / 2
B. Local party / 1 / 2
C. Individuals from locality / 1 / 2

DEC7. Please tell me approximately how many civil organizations participated to the preparation of decisions in 2002 either through membership in a committee or subcommittee of the local assembly or as an expert being consulted by the local government?

…………..organizations99. DK/NA

DEC8. Approximately how many times has a civil society organization submitted its own proposal or written request on a public issue involving the municipal council or the mayor in 2002?

……………organizations99.DK/NA

DEC9. Approximately how many civil society organizations submitted such proposals or written requests in the same year?

…………..organizations

DEC10. And how many civil society organizations obtained financial or in-kind support (e.g. officeequipment for free or at a reduced rate or bookkeeping assistance) from the local government in 2002?

Type of support / NO1. Number of organizations / VAL1. Total value of the support granted in 2002
A / financial
B / In-kind

DEC10_1. And how many NGO’/associations with activity in the field of social services obtained financial or in-kind support (e.g. office equipment for free or at a reduced rate or bookkeeping assistance) from the local government in 2002?

Type of support / NO2. Number of organizations / VAL2. Total value of the support granted in 2002
1. financial
2. In-kind

DEC11. How many civil society organizations were contracted by local government for the provision of public services in 2002?

…………organizations99. DK/NA

DEC11_1. Total value of the contracts ______lei99. DK/NA

DEC12. How severe are the tensions resulted from ……….among the people in your community?

Very little tension / Little tension / Medium tension / High tension / Very high tension / DK
a. differences in income / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
b. differences in religious belief or affiliations / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
c. differences in political views / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
d. differences between urban and rural residents / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
e. differences in ethnic or racial origins / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
f. differences between parts of the municipality / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
g. Differences between people who always lived here and those who moved here only recently / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9

Elected representatives

PM1. Is there any office whose only responsibility consists in the field of social programs/social services. (e.g.: MIG, education, social assistance, other kind of social help).

  1. Yes
  2. No

If yes. PM2.How many employees work in this office? ______

If not. PM3.Is there any member of administrative staff whose only responsibility is to work in social programs/social services? (e.g.: MIG, education, social assistance, other kind of social help).?

1. yes2. No

PM4. How many mayors were in this locality starting with 1996?

No. of mayors ______

PM5. How many elections won the current mayor?

  1. one, in 2000
  2. more, when?1.______2. ______3.______

PM6. How many full time civil servants are employed in the Town Hall at this time?

______

PM6_1. How many of them have been completed university or college education?

______

PM6_2. How many of them have been employed in the local government for more than one year?

______

PM7. How many local councilors are in the local council at this time? ______

PM7_1. Which party has the most local councilors in this locality? ______

PM7_2. How many local councilors belong to that party?______

PM8. Which is the party with the largest number of the local councilors between 1996-2000?

______

PM9. The mayor elected at local elections from 2000 was candidate as…..?

1. independent2. member of a party; which party______

PM9. The mayor elected in 2000 Primarul ales la alegerile locale din 2000 a fost ales ca ...?

1. independent2. membru de partid; care partid? ______

PM10. In present the mayor of the locality is .....?

1. independent2. member of a party; which party______

INFLD. In what extent do……influence the taking decisions process by the Town Hall/local council: / In great extent / In appropriate extent / In a small extent / Not at all / DK/NA
1. business men / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
2. mass-media / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
3. unions / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
4. professional associations / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
5. organizations and NGO-s / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
6. ethnic groups / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
7. teachers / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
8. poor people / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9

Relationship with county/central authorities

DEC. When a decision related to a local development project (like a new road, etc.) had to be taken by the…county/national authorities, were the local governments representatives called for this purpose or the decision was take without them ? /
  1. was consulted every time
  2. was consulted in most of the cases
  3. was consulted in about half of the cases
  4. was consulted in about a quarter of the cases
  5. was never consulted
9. DK/NA
A. County authorities / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
B. National authorities / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
INF. In what extent the county/national government informs the local authorities about their decisions ? /
  1. in a very great extent
  2. in a great extent
  3. in a small extent
  4. not at all
9.. DK/NA / INF1.Comparing with 1999 in 2002 this communication has been:
1. Improved
2. Remained the same
3. Worsened
9. DK/NA
A. County government informs … / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
B. National government informs … / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
INV. For how many times during the last 12 months has the mayor/deputy mayor been … invited to attend a meeting with? / Number of times / If invited. INV1.
How many times he/she attended these meetings?
A. County authorities
B. National authorities
MET. During the last 12 months, did the mayor meet a county/national official in order to solve a specific local problem (social, health, infrastructure, etc)? / Estimate the number of times
  1. No
99. DK/NA
A. A county official;
B. A national official
CONS Do you consider that the following authorities consulted – during the last year - the local council /mayoralty when deciding on issues concerning you locality? /
  1. Always
  2. Often
  3. In about half of the cases
/
  1. Rare
  2. Never
9. DK/NA
A. County authorities / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
B. National authorities / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
INFL. In what extent do you think that local authorities can influence the county/national council’s decisions regarding ….? / To a great extent / Neither small nor great extent / To a small extent / Not at all / DK/NA
a) county investment plans / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
b) national investment plans / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
c) equalization county grants allocation / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
d) equalization national grants allocation / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
e) implementation/designing programs of public services / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
f) implementation/designing social assistance programs / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 9
AU. Please tell me whether you agree or disagree with the following statements: / 1. Fully agree
2. Rather agree
3. Rather disagree
4. Fully disagree
9. Do not know/No answer
a) When the local government approach the county/national authorities with proposed public projects or investments, the county administration is sympathetic and supports these projects / County authorities
National authorities / 1] [2] [3] [4] [9]
1] [2] [3] [4] [9]
b) In general, the local elected leaders are frequently consulted about the important decisions made by the … / County authorities
National authorities / 1] [2] [3] [4] [9]
1] [2] [3] [4] [9]
c) The funds allocation from…..is often based on personal relationships. / County authorities
National authorities / 1] [2] [3] [4] [9]
1] [2] [3] [4] [9]
d) The funds allocations process from…is based on a formula of equalization county/national grants / County authorities
National authorities / 1] [2] [3] [4] [9]
1] [2] [3] [4] [9]
ATT.Would you say that the administration of the county or national administration pay the same, more, or less attention to your commune as compared to the other communes in the county? /
  1. they pay more attention
  2. they pay the same attention to all localities
  3. they pay less attention to this locality
9. DK/NA
A. County administration / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
B. National administration / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
AGRE. In your personal opinion: / Very easy / Easy / Medium / Hard / Very hard / Don’t know
A. How easy/difficult is for local governments to present their problems to….? / 1. County authorities / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
2. National authorities / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9

Very important……………….. No importance DK/NA

B. How much weight do ….. leaders attach to opinions presented to them by local governments? / 1. County authorities / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
2. National authorities / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9

Many possibilities…………………Few possibilities DK/NA

C. How large possibilities do local governments have to make the … take account of their opinions regarding the social programs? / 1. County authorities / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9
2. National authorities / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 9

GENERAL ASPECTS

VMIN.Is there a public work program in this village/community employing the minimum income guarantee beneficiaries?

  1. Yes
/
  1. No

If yes: How many beneficiaries of the MIG program were hired in 2002 ______

SUP1 In your opinion, the local authorities gives to the poor from your locality….?

1. too much assistance2. enough assistance3. less assistance9.DK/NA

SUP2. In your opinion, the mandated national program of assistance to the poor in 2002 was …?
1. insufficient 2. barely sufficient 3. about right 4. excessive 9.DK/NA / SUP2_1
1999
SUP3. Did the following institutions provide support to the poor in 2002 / Yes / No / If yes, how was this support in 2002, comparing with 2001?
  1. greater
  2. the same
  3. smaller
9. DK/NA
a) Mayoralty/Town Hall through its specialized offices/services / 1 / 2 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
b) Central authorities / 1 / 2 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
c) NGO/s/associations from locality / 1 / 2 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
d) NGO/s/associations from outside the locality / 1 / 2 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9
SUP4. According with your acknowledge, did national assistance program reach the poor in your municipality in…?
  1. only the very poor
  2. they reached the poor and people who didn’t need it
  3. they reach primarily persons who didn’t need it 9.DK/NA
/ SUP4_1
2002 / SUP4_2
1999
1 / 2 / 3 / 9 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 9

LPFN. The municipality have been carried out in 2002 local programs that target the people in need?

1. No / 2. Yes, in cash / 3. Yes, in kind / 3. Yes, both / 9. NA

If yes,

Did those local programs target…? / 1.Yes / 2.No / 9. DK/NA
LPF1.Children / 1 / 2 / 9
LPF2. The elderly / 1 / 2 / 9
LPF3. The disabled / 1 / 2 / 9
LPF4. Families with many children / 1 / 2 / 9
LPF5. Single mothers / 1 / 2 / 9
LPF6. Rroma / 1 / 2 / 9
LPF7. Unemployed / 1 / 2 / 9
LPF8. other, ….. / 1 / 2 / 9

LPG. In your opinion, local programs that target the people in need are more effective, the same, less effective in comparison with MIG program designed and implemented by the central authorities?

1. more effective 2. the same3. less effective9.DK/NA

If not,

LPK. What is the main reason? (two options)

  1. ______
  2. ______

LPK_A. Before the implementation of the MIG program, the municipality had local programs that target the people in need?

1. No / 2. Yes, with money support / 3. Yes, with support in kind / 4.Yes with both, money and in kind / 9. DK/NA

LPK_B. In your opinion, local programs that target the people in need were more effective, the same, less effective in comparison with MIG program designed and implemented by the central authorities?

1. more effective 2. the same3. less effective9.DK/NA

SUP5. What should be main two responsibilities of local authorities in providing social assistance (help for elderly, social services for children, social services for persons with disabilities)?

1.______99. DK/NA

2.______99. DK/NA

County ______Code SIRUTA

Locality ______Code SIRUTA

INTERVIEWER'S NAME: ______INTERVIEWER'S CODE |__||__|__|

DUR Duration of interview in minutes|__|__|__|DAY. Day of the interview |__|__|

1