Roberto Montero Granados

La financiación del nivel acordado de la Ley de Dependencia: el coste de una evolución hacia variables reales de dependencia

INTRODUCTION The system for the Promotion of Personal Autonomy and Care of Dependent Persons established by Act 39/2006 is funded through private contributions of dependent individuals and earmarked transfers in three main funds: a minimum level, an agreed level distributed among the various autonomous regions according to their relative needs, and a further voluntary additional contribution by Spains autonomous regions. The resources distributed by the state to the regions are assigned, among other less important variables, according to the potentially dependent population and, to a lesser extent, according to the population already evaluated as dependent. OBJECTIVE Because the concept of what constitutes disability has changed over the years from the population potentially dependent according to an estimate (estimated dependent individuals) to the actual number of dependent individuals recognized as such (declared dependent), some autonomous regions may have been overfunded or underfunded. METHODS The funding obtained by the autonomous regions each year from 2007 to 2011 was compared with the funding that would have been assigned to each region if, since 2007, the variables and weighting that will be representative of the funding needs for 2013 (distribution mainly according to declared dependent individuals) had been taken into account. RESULTS From 2007-2011, regions where declared dependent persons outnumbered estimated disabled persons were underfunded (in Andalusia by more than 100 million euros). In contrast, regions where the situation was reversed were overfunded (by 49 million euros in Madrid and 37 million euros in the region of Valencia). CONCLUSIONS There is wide variation in public funding to the autonomous regions, depending on the number of individuals declared as dependent. Among other no less serious consequences, this situation could hamper the implantation of the Promotion of Personal Autonomy and Care of Dependent Persons Act in underfunded regions.

Fiscal Decentralization and Economic Growth. The Recent Experience of Latin America

En este articulo se analiza la relacion entre la descentralizacion fiscal (DF) y el volumen de produccion per capita, con datos de 17 paises de Latinoamerica durante el periodo de 1990 al 2009. Se realizo un analisis de limites extremos, a fin de determinar si la DF es una variable explicativa robusta del crecimiento. Se ofrece evidencia del impulso positivo y de largo plazo de la DF al crecimiento. Puede que una mayor autonomia haya promovido incentivos positivos y que el fomento de bienes colectivos potencie la tasa de crecimiento y de utilizacion de recursos productivos.We examine the relationship between fiscal decentralization (FD) and volume of per capita production, with panel data from 17 Latin American countries during the period 1990-2009. There are different estimates in an extreme-bounds analysis, to determine whether FD is a robust explanatory variable of economic growth. It is found empirical evidence of the long-term and positive momentum of DF on economic growth. Maybe broader levels of autonomy could have promoted positive incentives. It is also possible that promotion of collective goods might enhance the growth rate and utilization of productive resources.

La financiación del nivel acordado de la Ley de Dependencia, el coste de una evolución hacia variables reales de dependencia

INTRODUCTION The system for the Promotion of Personal Autonomy and Care of Dependent Persons established by Act 39/2006 is funded through private contributions of dependent individuals and earmarked transfers in three main funds: a minimum level, an agreed level distributed among the various autonomous regions according to their relative needs, and a further voluntary additional contribution by Spains autonomous regions. The resources distributed by the state to the regions are assigned, among other less important variables, according to the potentially dependent population and, to a lesser extent, according to the population already evaluated as dependent. OBJECTIVE Because the concept of what constitutes disability has changed over the years from the population potentially dependent according to an estimate (estimated dependent individuals) to the actual number of dependent individuals recognized as such (declared dependent), some autonomous regions may have been overfunded or underfunded. METHODS The funding obtained by the autonomous regions each year from 2007 to 2011 was compared with the funding that would have been assigned to each region if, since 2007, the variables and weighting that will be representative of the funding needs for 2013 (distribution mainly according to declared dependent individuals) had been taken into account. RESULTS From 2007-2011, regions where declared dependent persons outnumbered estimated disabled persons were underfunded (in Andalusia by more than 100 million euros). In contrast, regions where the situation was reversed were overfunded (by 49 million euros in Madrid and 37 million euros in the region of Valencia). CONCLUSIONS There is wide variation in public funding to the autonomous regions, depending on the number of individuals declared as dependent. Among other no less serious consequences, this situation could hamper the implantation of the Promotion of Personal Autonomy and Care of Dependent Persons Act in underfunded regions.