The Reform of Italian Local Utilities: Revolution or business as usual? - The Italian Parliament has recently passed a new reform of local utilities. Compulsory competitive tendering will be the rule, while direct public management will be confined only to very special cases. The article discusses the scope of the reform and its main weaknesses: the excessive width of the focus, the uncertainty on auction design issues and the lack of a proper regulatory framework besides the tender. Policy reform recommendations are proposed with the aim of informing the next phase of the policy, namely the translation of the frame legislation into detailed regulation.
Key words: local utilities; liberalization.
JEL classifications: L9, H4