The State of the States 2006: Background

By Evatt Foundation

The following is a background briefing on the The State of the States 2006.

What is The State of the States?

The State of the States is a series of publications on the performance and policies of Australia's state governments. Every year since 1994 a State Government League Table has been published, in conjunction with substantive analyses of government policies. In addition to the League Table, this year's volume contains four chapters with substantive analyses of the state of the Australian public sector by specialists in this field.

What is the State Government League Table?

The State Government League Table ranks the State governments according to 15 social, environmental, and economic indicators. The idea is to assess the comparative performance of the governments in achieving the perfect balance: excellent social services, strong environmental protection and buoyant job-generating economic activity. Comparisons are based on data from the Commonwealth Grants Commission (9 indicators), the Australian Bureau of Statistics (5 indicators), and the Australian Greenhouse Office (1 indicator). The League Table results are carefully analysed in the body of the report.

What are the Key Indicators?

SOCIAL

• health
• education
• welfare
• transport
• public safety

ENVIRONMENTAL

• national parks and wildlife
• culture and recreation
• water sanitation and environmental protection
• greenhouse gas emissions
• greempower awareness

ECONOMIC

• industry assistance
• capital investment
• full-time jobs
• total jobs
• production

Who produces the League Table?

The League Table is produced by the Evatt Foundation, which is located at the University of NSW.

The Evatt Foundation is the think tank of the Australian labour movement. It was founded in 1979 and named in honour of Dr Herbert Vere Evatt, one of the Australian labour movement's greatest statesmen. The Foundation is an independent research organisation. It is not affiliated with any political party.

How do I get a copy of the full report?

The State of the States 2006 report (100 pages) is available from the Evatt Foundation for $24.95, plus postage.

This special 13th issue contains a special feature on the state of the public sector, containing chapters on the debate over the size of the public sector, the question of government borrowing, the health system and local government.

While the League Table is published on the Evatt Website, you can only get the detailed descriptions, analysis and commentary on the results and the special feature on the public sector by purchasing the full report. Limited back issues of The State of the States are also available.

To order a copy of the full report you can contact the Evatt Foundation in the following ways:

• Purchase a copy securely online
• Click here and download the order form from the link at the bottom of the page and post to: Evatt Foundation, University of NSW, NSW, 2052.
• Tel: 02) 9385 7137
• Email: evatt@unsw.edu.au

For more information

• Book editor: Christopher Sheil, 0419 436 052 (m)
• Evatt Foundation: Jeannette McHugh (Secretary), (02)9387 3199 (h)

Related articles on the Evatt site:

• Read the editor's introduction to The State of the States 2006.
• Read all the results from The State of the States 2006.
• Read about the assessment methodology used in The State of the States 2006.
• The State of the States 2006, about the book.
• You can purchase The State of the States 2006 securely online. Click here for more information.

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