Except for the dramatic rise in mixed public-private provision, trends in the use of alternative service delivery approaches over the decade have been flat. Yet nearly twice as many local governments in 2002 as in 1992 reported studying the feasibilty of alternative service delivery (58% v. 31%), driven primarily by internal attempts to cut costs (88%) and external fiscal pressures (50%), as well as by proposals from service providers (21%). Considerably fewer respondents cited such factors as politics, citizen groups, and government mandates. These findings show that alternative service delivery is primarily a pragmatic management effort rather than a politically motivated decision, and that its lack of growth most likely reflects a lack of potentail for additional cost savings or quality improvement.
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