This study aimed to identify which characteristics may contribute to explain the fiscal responsibility level of large Brazilian cities. It was conducted with panel data, within the period from 2002 to 2009, and the results indicated that the cities under analysis present an incipient fiscal responsibility level. The variables economic level and financial autonomy presented a significant positive relation to the fiscal responsibility level, and the variable debt, a negative relation. The estimated regression model revealed that region, location, and year can also influence the fiscal responsibility of cities. It is expected that this study contributes to the discussion on variations in the fiscal responsibility level of cities by suggesting evaluation metric, in addition to the devices listed in the normative instruments.
fiscal responsibility; large city; evaluation metrics
