COMPARING BUDGETARY STRUCTURES AND PROCESSES The cases of Paris and São Paulo

Abstract

Abstract This article compares the structure of the city budget of São Paulo and Paris and their processes between 2008 and 2018, aiding in the understanding of budgetary decisions and contributing to the literature on public budgets, more focused on national and federal levels. As the budget process is very technical and standardized, one should observe several similarities between both cases This article demonstrates how similar the budget structures and processes of these two metropolises are. It indicates, for example, that both present incrementalisms in their budget base, as expected according to theory. However, the study also indicates differences within similarities as both cases, with very different macro institutions (federal versus unitary States), similar meso-institutions (organization of municipal institutions, municipal public policies), but certain different rules, generate important differences in their processes and some divergence in their results.