Typological Differentiation and Industrial Fit in Local Enterprise-Related Enforcement Reform: A Comparative Study of Three Guangdong Cities and Implications for Shantou

Optimizing the business environment is a pivotal aspect of China’s governance modernization. Despite a unified top-level legal framework, local enterprise-related administrative enforcement exhibits significant typological divergence. Based on the theory of Responsive Regulation, this study constructs a three-dimensional analytical framework of “Deterrence—Flexibility—Efficiency” and examines enforcement practices in Jiangmen, Yunfu, and Shantou. Through structured coding of policy texts, the study identifies Jiangmen as deterrence-oriented (characterized by precise discretion), Yunfu as flexibility-oriented (relying on exemption lists), and Shantou as efficiency-oriented (focusing on cross-departmental coordination). The findings suggest that there is no universally optimal enforcement type; rather, each configuration is a conditional response to specific industrial risks and carries intrinsic tensions, such as compliance crowding-out and formalized coordination. Furthermore, targeting Shantou’s “Three New, Two Special, One Major” (3N2S1M) industries, this paper proposes a differentiated tool-combination scheme, arguing that local enforcement reform should shift from searching for “best practices” to diagnosing industrial risk structures, thus providing targeted institutional support for local high-quality development.