Race, Politics and Elites: Testing Alternative Models of Municipal Service Distribution

Abstract

Does the racial composition, political allegiance, or economic character of a neighborhood affect the share of municipal services it receives? This study of the distribution of police and fire protection resources in Boston, Massachusetts, in the early 1970s presents evidence that residential neighborhoods with high levels of previous support for the mayor and those containing high levels of business activity receive relatively high per capita service allocations. While, in an absolute sense, black neighborhoods did not receive smaller shares of service benefits, they do receive less than comparable white neighborhoods. Black neighborhoods, in general, have greater needs for urban services than others, and equal or near-equal inputs of neighborhood-oriented services do not compensate for this need gap.