The Finance of Local Services

Abstract

It emerges from our discussion of the needs of Japanese cities that a great expansion of infrastructure and services will be required before they can be restored as pleasant and healthy places in which to live and work. We now have to examine the finances which are available to carry this heavy burden. But before we do so it may be helpful to review briefly the duties ascribed to local government and the division of the responsibility between Prefectures, cities and private enterprise for such services. Broadly we can identify four categories of outlay, roughly in order of their fiscal importance taking the country as a whole: (1) education, (2) public works, (3) social security, health and hospitals, (4) socially oriented enterprise, such as housing, water and transport.