Economies of scope in Portuguese local government using an augmented Hicks–Moorsteen approach

Whereas a substantial empirical literature has investigated scale economies in local government, by contrast little effort has been directed at economies of scope. To address this gap in the literature, this paper empirically examines economies of scope in 308 Portuguese local governments and the extent to which it explains differential council performance. We employ a new methodology using geometric distance functions, an augmented Hicks–Moorsteen index, and partial frontiers for (in)efficiency assessment in local government. The results demonstrate that most councils that ‘externalize’ service provision face diseconomies of scope, which increase in proportion to the externalization of service provision.