A Public Environmental Expenditure Review (PEER) examines government resource allocations within and among sectors, and/or at national and subnational levels of government, and assesses the efficiency and effectiveness of those allocations in the context of the environmental management framework and priorities. In addition, it identifies reforms needed to improve the effectiveness, efficiency, and sustainability of public spending for environmental management.
PEERs offer a way of systematically assessing the equity, efficiency, and effectiveness of public environmental spending. The data and insights they yield can be valuable for designing policy reforms, government budgets, and investment projects. They examine whether government expenditures are effectively matched to environmental priorities, and identify areas of inconsistency. If done well, they frequently result in highlighting the mismatch between (new) environmental policy and plans and (historical) low levels of spending in those areas of government that are now linked to environmental priorities. In many cases, they have helped to redistribute spending towards institutions responsible for environmental priorities, towards longer-term goals rather than short-term, and in some cases have helped to considerably increase environmental budgets.