The impact of the European Union on local government in the Netherlands

Why are some municipalities constrained and others not in using the new EU opportunities for subnational government? With this leading question, the paper considers the impact of the EU on Dutch local government political-administrative institutions. The key explanation of why this impact varies from municipality to municipality involves the actual receipt of EU funds. Then not only 'absorption' but also 'organizational adaptation' and in some cases 'proactive attempts' are institutionalized. The bigger a municipality, and possibly the worse its social economic position, the more it makes use of EU opportunities. Location in a border region does not appear to be a factor that can explain variations among municipalities.