DOI: 10.3886/icpsr07487
title: Decision-Related Research on the Organization of Service Delivery Systems in Metropolitan Areas: Solid Waste Management
title: Archival Version

description: This study represents one of four research projects on
service delivery systems in metropolitan areas, covering fire
protection (DECISION-RELATED RESEARCH ON THE ORGANIZATION OF SERVICE
DELIVERY SYSTEMS IN METROPOLITAN AREAS: FIRE PROTECTION [ICPSR 7409]),
police protection (DECISION-RELATED RESEARCH ON THE ORGANIZATION OF
SERVICE DELIVERY SYSTEMS IN METROPOLITAN AREAS: POLICE PROTECTION
[ICPSR 7427]), public health (DECISION-RELATED RESEARCH ON THE
ORGANIZATION OF SERVICE DELIVERY SYSTEMS IN METROPOLITAN AREAS: PUBLIC
HEALTH [ICPSR 7374]), and solid waste management (the present
study). All four projects used a common unit of analysis, namely all
200 Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas (SMSAs) that, according to
the 1970 Census, had a population of less than 1,500,000 and were
entirely located within a single state. In each project, a limited
amount of information was collected for all 200 SMSAs. More extensive
data were gathered within independently drawn samples of these SMSAs,
for all local geographical units and each administrative jurisdiction
or agency in the service delivery areas. Two standardized systems of
geocoding -- the Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) codes
and the Office of Revenue Sharing (ORS) codes -- were used, so that
data from various sources could be combined. The use of these two
coding schemes also allows users to combine data from two or more of
the research projects conducted in conjunction with the present one,
or to add data from a wide variety of public data files. The present
study investigated the delivery of solid waste collection and disposal
service, focusing on the differences in efficiency and effectiveness
of the public and private sectors. Six major research tasks were
undertaken in the first phase of the project: identification of the
prevalence of alternative collection arrangement types, analysis of
prevailing solid waste collection practices, analysis of cost
components of residential refuse collection, econometric analyses of
the relative efficiency of the three main arrangement types (municipal
collection, local contract service, and franchised service),
efficiency of alternative regulatory schemes for residential solid
waste collection, and identification of prevailing service
arrangements for solid waste disposal. For the purposes of the study,
estimates of true cost were made from a variety of data sources. The
basic research instrument was a telephone survey conducted in 1,377
cities with populations exceeding 2,500, located in the 200 previously
selected SMSAs. This survey obtained information on the means of
collection, means of payment, quality of service, and coverage of
households. In 102 of these cities, subsequent field visits were used
to obtain cost information for municipal collection. In an additional
163 cities, where individuals arranged for their own collection, a
telephone survey of households was conducted to identify contracting
firms and to ascertain the quality of service. Additional data were
collected from 42 franchise operators and from contractors in 242
cities. Legal information was collected on contract and ordinance
provisions, regulatory matters, and state law relating to arrangements
for the provision of these kinds of services. Information from these
sources was combined with data obtained from the International City
Management Association and the 1970 Census of Housing and
Population. Part 1 contains all the data collected at the city
level. Part 2 provides information for the 281 counties in which the
1,377 municipalities were located.
description: For a more in-depth analysis, a subsample of 41 SMSAs was
 created by selecting from the universe all SMSAs with populations
exceeding 2,500.
description: Datasets: 
DS0: Study-Level Files
DS1: Municipal File
DS2: County File
description: Waste management services in SMSAs with populations
of less than 1,500,000 and located entirely within one state.