Closing provincial branch offices of state agencies could be part of an overhaul of Thailand’s public administration system under plans being drawn up by the The Office of the Public Sector Development Commission (OPDC).
Deputy Prime Minister Pakorn Nilprapunt said the cabinet would be asked to approve the proposal because many state agencies operate provincial branch offices whose responsibilities overlap with those of provincial governors.
There is no law recognising the establishment of these branch offices, he said.
Mr Pakorn said the OPDC board has resolved that the branch offices should be replaced with online services as part of efforts to streamline the bureaucracy and eliminate duplication.
Measures have been prepared to support affected officials, including transfers back to headquarters or participation in voluntary early retirement programmes, he said.
‘The cabinet will be asked to replace these costly branch offices with online systems. More administrative services can be delivered online, while a standardised monitoring system would help reduce opportunities for corruption,’ he said.
Mr Pakorn also said the government is reviewing the pay structure for senior local government executives after finding wide disparities in salaries and benefits.
Some executives of local administrative organisations receive higher salaries and allowances than ministry permanent secretaries, despite the latter overseeing national policy, he said.
The deputy prime minister attributed the disparities to the autonomy of local administrative organisations in setting their own benefits rather than following the pay structure for central government officials.
He said the Comptroller General’s Department will develop a central accounting system to standardise financial management and strengthen oversight of local government spending.
Mr Pakorn also said the ‘hometown tax’ programme will encourage large companies to support small local administrative organisations with annual revenues of less than 25 million baht.
The scheme offers tax deductions to companies that donate money to support local development, with funding to focus more on improving quality of life and promoting the circular economy than on road construction, he said.
The programme will also help narrow the financial gap between better-funded and less well-funded local administrative organisations while improving access to public services.