This article highlights a voluntary approach to local government reform in the state of South Australia, in contrast with mandatory reform in Victoria, which was featured in a 1996 Public Management article. Discusses how the state legislature established a Local Government Boundary Reform Board to 1) achieve a reduction in the number of councils and 2) reduce the overall costs of providing local government services. Includes information on performance criteria to assess benefits of structural reform and questions and incentives to evaluate such reform. Concludes with some of the resulting amalgamations that have occurred.