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Open access: Tommasi on state capacity in Latin America
 Debates about state reform in Latin America often focus on fashions such as developmental statism or neoliberalism. But what really matters "is not so much what you do, but how you do it," says Mariano Tommasi of Argentina's Universidad de San Andr�s. In the new issue of Governance (24.2, April 2011), Tommasi says that policy success hinges on the capacity of political systems to implement effectively, assure stability over the long run, and adapt policies to changing circumstances. If countries do not have these capabilities, Tommasi concludes, policies will not achieve good outcomes, "no matter how good they look on paper." Open access to the commentary.
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Civil service reform after joining the EU: Sometimes progress, sometimes reversal
The eight countries that joined the European Union in 2004 were required to professionalize their civil services as a condition of membership. In the new issue of Governance (24.2, April 2011), Jan-Hinrik Meyer-Sahling of the University of Nottingham examines what happened next. Three Baltic states continued on the path of reform; four countries -- Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovenia -- reversed course; while in Hungary, developments are hard to interpret. The EU "failed to address the issue of post-accession durability," Meyer-Sahling says, and "devised virtually no instruments to prevent backsliding." Read the article.
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Ten years later, a policy half-completed: Performance pay in Italian municipal government
Ten years after Italy's parliament passed a law requiring pay-for-performance systems for senior officials in municipal government, almost half of municipalities have failed to implement the reform. In the new issue of Governance (24.2, April 2011), Greta Nasi, Daniela Cristofoli, Alex Turrini and Giovanni Valotti examine the reasons why some municipalities complied, while others did not. Economic pressures were "not important at all,' the authors conclude. What mattered more was the desire for improved public legitimacy, the leadership of top bureaucrats, and the degree of consensus among key internal stakeholders. Read the article.
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Call for papers: SOG Workshop on The Future of the Regulatory State
 SOG is calling for paper proposals for a workshop on the future of the regulatory state to be held in Oslo on September 15-16, 2011.
One of the most widely made claims over the past three decades has been that we are living in the age of the regulatory state. However, events such as the financial crisis have pointed to potential weaknesses in the 'orthodoxies' that underpinned the ideas of the regulatory state. This workshop therefore intends to discuss the future of the regulatory state. We are interested in papers that explore themes, such as the limits of regulatory regimes; the limits of market-based problem-solving; and the limits of national regulatory capacity.
More details about the workshop can be found here. Please submit paper proposals (max 250 words) by 20 May to Nick Sitter and Martin Lodge. SOG is the Structure and Organization of Government research committee of the International Political Science Association. It is the sponsoring organization of Governance.
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 Governance newsletter receives All Star Award
Constant Contact has received a 2011 All Star Award from Constant Contact. Awards are given to newsletters that have unusually high open and click-through rates -- in plain language, newsletters that recipients actually read.
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 Governance is published by Wiley for the IPSA Research Committee on the Structure and Organization of Government (SOG). It is co-edited by Alasdair Roberts and Robert H. Cox, and book review editor Clay Wescott.
For further details about this newsletter, contact co-editor Alasdair Roberts, Suffolk University Law School, 120 Tremont Street Office 210C, Boston MA USA 02108
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