Factors Affecting Municipal Revenues and Expenses (Case Study: Tabriz Municipality)

Abstract

The lack of a comprehensive perspective on municipal revenue sources within the framework of the country's macroeconomic system, alongside occasional interventions and the implementation of self-reliance and self-sufficiency policies for municipalities, has led to instability in the revenue sector of municipalities. The restriction of legal and reasonable avenues for generating municipal income has resulted in a heavy dependence on urban construction and the sale of excess building density. The continuation of this situation has created adverse effects and social, cultural, and infrastructural costs for urban management. Therefore, the present study aims to identify the factors affecting the revenues and expenses of Tabriz Municipality. The research is applied in terms of its purpose and descriptive-analytical based on a survey method using a structural modeling approach for data collection. The statistical population of the study consists of senior, middle, and operational managers, as well as experts from Tabriz Municipality, and a standard questionnaire was used to collect data. The results showed that legal solutions, the role of stakeholder groups (Ministry of Interior), the role of stakeholder groups (private sector), and the adoption of appropriate methods and provision of automated services have a positive and significant impact on the management of municipal revenues and expenses.