Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to analyze public financing in the unified institutions of kindergarten and nursery school in underpopulated areas. A case study was conducted in Shirahamayoujien in the town of Shirahama, Wakayama Prefecture. Shirahama Town is an underpopulated area, and thus is eligible for financial assistance programs run by the national government. The town quickly responded to the policy of unification of kindergarten and nursery school, founding a unified institution, which employs many temporary employees, and realized cost cuts. The chief administrator of the institution manages its finance, and is responsible in dealing with financial difficulties. The allocated tax to the local government from the national government is an important source of revenue in the unification of kindergarten and nursery school. The local allocation tax provides 19.0% of the kindergarten budget and 18.2% of the nursery school budget. In order to eliminate the gap among municipal governments, the national government should secure finance for unified institutions in order to keep quality education and care for future children.
