Is There a Demand for Extensive Financial Reporting on Local Government from the Most Important Stakeholders: Residents?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.52152/22.3.228-247(2024)Keywords:
local government units, transparency, credibility, financial reporting, local budgetAbstract
The study aims to identify residents’ perception of such aspects of public finances as transparency and credibility, in particular, their level of interest and needs regarding increasing the scope of financial reporting at the local level. The study was conducted in 2023 among residents of the 12 largest Polish cities, using the computer-assisted telephone interviews (CATI) technique on a sample of N = 400 residents of each city. A total of 4,800 respondents took part in the survey. The qualitative study was conducted using the focus group interview technique (FGI online). The research results indicate a noticeable lack of demand for information regarding local finances and a lack of trust in the transparency and honesty of public funds management. Bearing in mind that residents rely on economic experts and financial analysts as sources of information with the highest credibility, a large field opens up for experts such as independent auditors.
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