New Working Paper in the IDEAGOV Working Paper Series

IDEAGOV is pleased to announce the publication of a new Working Paper entitled “Heterogeneous fiscal decentralisation in Italian regions”, authored by Carlo Gianelle (European Commission, DG REGIO), Agnese Sacchi (University of Urbino; IDEAGOV) and Simone Salotti (European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Seville).

The paper provides a comprehensive analysis of Italy’s fiscal decentralisation process, which is characterised by persistent and institutionalised asymmetries between regions with special statutes and those operating under ordinary regimes. Drawing on the newly released OECD REGOFI and MUNIFI datasets, combined with official national and European statistics, the study offers a detailed examination of fiscal dynamics at both regional and municipal levels.

The findings show that special statute regions enjoy significantly higher fiscal autonomy, while municipalities in ordinary regions tend to be more fiscally autonomous. These patterns are further reinforced by the north–south development divide, raising concerns that increased differentiated autonomy could deepen territorial disparities and affect equitable public service provision.

Overall, the paper offers policy-relevant insights into the challenges of balancing autonomy, cohesion and equity in decentralised governance systems.

📄 The Working Paper is available at: https://www.ideagov.eu/wp