Local Fiscal Problems in Thailand: The Perceptions of Municipal Mayors

Abstract

Based on field research, this article seeks to unravel local fiscal issues in Thailand by examining the perceptions of local government chief executives. In doing so, the author relies on in-depth interviews with several key informants in Thai local governments, including mayors and municipal clerks from 64 Thai municipalities. As this article singularly focuses on the local government officials’ perspectives, it may not reflect the entire picture of the Thai local government landscape and hence is likely to suffer from the local government executives’ biases and personal opinions.

Despite those potential shortfalls, this research encompasses direct practical experiences of those who actually work in the local government setting and provides academics and practitioners with the necessary information for formulating and
implementing policies related to Thai local government, fiscal management, and the overall decentralization reform process. Throughout this research, these local government executives’ perspectives are not solely their complaints about the
difficulty of running their local jurisdictions, but useful insights for policymakers who strive to disentangle a complex web of local fiscal problems in Thailand.