Using the "F" Word: Federalism in Indonesia's Decentralization Discourse

Indonesia cast off Dutch-imposed federalism in favor of a unitarystate. Soeharto's centralization made federalism taboo in theNew Order. In the current reform period, however, the conceptis re-emerging, but federalism has yet to be discussed in anopen, inclusive, and balanced manner. Decentralization policyis focused on the district, neglecting the political demandsof the larger province. This policy is accompanied by a confusedand misleading official discourse that is consistent with theideology of power retention and maintenance of patrimonial governance.As a result of greater democratization of the polity, federalismis slowly entering official discourse. Although its prospectsin the short term remain dim, support may grow for federal principleswithin Indonesia's unitary structure.     

"Europe of the Regions" and the Federalization of Europe

There is a close connection between regionalism, federalism,and the movement to create a united federal Europe. The recentmovement to create a "Europe of the Regions" is one expressionof these connections. However, there are many kinds of regions,and certain forms of regional policy that may not necessarilybe an expression of either regionalism or European federalism.It might be said, nevertheless, that a "Europe of the Regions"is emerging in the weaker sense that, in today s Europe, significantchanges are taking place in the nature and functions of thenation-state. These changes are providing new opportunitiesfor regions to become more important policy actors in a widerEuropean context. The nation-state, however, is unlikely todisappear.     

"Mad" About Mandates: The Issue of Who Should Pay for What Resurfaces in the 1990s

In 1990, constitutional amendment proposals were put beforethe voters in Florida and Wisconsin (nonbinding) to limit unfundedstate mandates. This brought the number of states with constitutionallybased mandate-reimbursement requirements to fifteen. Voter supportwas garnered by attributing local property-tax increasesandloss oflocalcontrol over spending priorities to unfundedstatemandates. The Florida and Wisconsin efforts came close on theheels of stale mandate studies by the U.S. General AccountingOffice, National Conference of State Legislatures, Urban Institute,and U.S. Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations.Fifty-two hypotheses are generatedfrom these studies and theFlorida and Wisconsin cases to help structure future research.As the mandate limitation movement spreads, larger data baseswill be available with which to test these propositions. Inthe states that already have limits on unfunded state mandates,research will shift to the policy consequences of these restrictions.     

"Europe with the Regions": Channels of Regional Representation in the European Union

One of the most important consequences of European integrationis the multiplication of extra-national channels for subnationalpolitical activity. Territorial relations are being transformed:national slates are losing control over important areas of decisionmaking, a variety of new channels have been created for regionalmobilization, and subnational governmentsare engaged in innovative,transnational, patterns of interaction. Regions, however, donot engage in these activities equally. There is no congruencein the political role of cities, municipalities, and regionsin the European Union. On the contrary, there are enormous differencesinthe level of organization, financial resources, politicalautonomy, and political influence of subnational governmentsacross Europe. The result is the unfolding of common threadsof change against a background of persisting variation.     

Madison on the Meaning of the "General Welfare," the "Purpose" of Enumerated Powers, and the "Definition" of Constitutional Government

According to James Madison, "the most important and fundamentalquestion" he ever addressed was the meaning of and relationbetween the general welfare clause and the enumeration of particularpowers. This question is the most "fundamental" because theanswer determines the very "idea" or "nature" of the U.S. Constitution.Commentators virtually agree on the answer Madison proposedand defended in Federalist 41, namely, that the general welfareclause is neither a statement of ends nor a substantive grantof power. It is a mere "synonym" for the enumeration of particularpowers, which are limited and wholly define its content. Fromthis answer, it follows that the primary meaning of the nationaldimension of the federal Constitution is limited government,understood as a government with a limited number of powers ormeans. The thesis of this essay, however, is that, contraryto the commentators' claims, Madison argued that the clausewas a substantive grant of power for the generally stated endand that the primary purpose of the ensuing enumeration wasto define more particularly the ends alluded to by the phrase"general welfare." Hence, the meaning of the general constitutionalgovernment in the American federal system is a government orientedto a limited number of limited ends.     

Implications of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 for the "Devolution Revolution"

From an economist's perspective, the fiscal and administrativegoals of the so-called "devolution revolution" include lessfederal intergovernmental aid, especially if fiscally equalizing;the substitution of block grants for matching grants; greateradministrative flexibility for the states; and fewer underfundedmandates. This article uses these devolulionary yardsticks toanalyze the major provisions of the federal Balanced BudgetAct of 1997. These provisions fall far short of a "devolutionrevolution." The act increases the level of federal assistance,leaves Medicaid as an open-ended entitlement, and preservesa strong role for the federal government in shaping intergovernmentalgrants. The article discusses the political forces moderatingthe act's devolutionary impact.     

"Welfare Magnets" and Benefit Decline: Symbolic Problems and Substantive Consequences

In response to concern about "welfare migration," some stateshave been freezing benefit levels and trying to institute lowerbenefits for newly arrived out-of-state applicants. There isalso evidence that rising welfare rolls lead states not to raisebenefits. Yet, interstate variation in welfare benefits hasnarrowed over the last two decades. There is also evidence thatwhile interstate competition, or comparison of benefit levels,discourages high-benefit states from raising benefits, stateslook more at themselves then they look at each other. The mostsignificant factor affecting AFDC benefit-levels appears tolie in the intergovernmental arrangements for financing publicassistance (i.e., states often allow Food Stamps and Medicaidto substitute for AFDC). In addition, the migration of poorfemale headed families is patterned after the migration of thepopulation in general; they move to where there is job growth.A major political consequence of stressing welfare migrationmay be its symbolic value in reinforcing prejudices againstwelfare recipients.     

Jefferson and Executive Power: Revisionism and the "Revolution of 1800"

Thomas Jefferson's varied and divergent statements concerningthe nature and extent of executive power seem to defy interpretation.Evidence can be gathered to support the proposition that Jeffersonwas a determined foe of Hamilton's conception of the chief executiveor that he was an active partisan of that view. The argumentof this article is that as opportunities arose, Jefferson setout to revise the public understanding of the formal powersof the president and, in so doing, moved away from his earlierposition on the extent of those powers. Jefferson's purposewas to check what he perceived to be the dangerous "monarchic"designs of the Federalists and, in turn, reinvigorate the republicanspirit of the regime. At the same time, Jefferson did not discardhis appreciation for the necessity of resorting at times toan enlarged executive authority. How Jefferson set about tobalance these elements in his revised conception of the presidencyraises in a direct fashion key questions about the role of executivepower in a popular government dedicated to the rule of law.     

Connecting Minorities to the Swiss Federal System: A Frozen Conception of Representation and the Problem of "Requisite Variety"

Heterogeneous Switzerland is often portrayed as a model of successfulnation-building. Two major institutions ensure the representationof federal units within the federal political system: the Councilof States branch of the bicameral legislature, and the "doublemajority" of popular and cantonal votes needed in constitutionalreferenda. It was expected that both mechanisms would countercentrifugal forces possibly created by the self-government ofsubnational groups. Historical analysis shows, however, thatsince these institutions were established, some important socialtransformations have occurred, with perverse effects on minorityrepresentation and on cleavage accommodation. The Council ofStates has come to amplify the influence of established politicalforces, instead of defending minority influence. The "doublemajority" now gives excessive veto power to minorities no longersocially relevant, at the expense of newer, more needy groups.National cohesion and consensus democracy, in short, risk beingeroded rather than strengthened by these core institutions ofthe Swiss federal system.     

Adjusting policy implementation frameworks for non‐pluralist conditions: A case study of Ukraine's single tax for small business

Traditional frameworks for assessing policy implementation have been developed almost exclusively in the context of market‐based, pluralist democracies. This research explores policy processes in more diverse contexts, testing the applicability of existing implementation measurement models in the socio‐political context of a post‐Soviet country. Fieldwork conducted in Ukraine examines the factors affecting implementation of the Simplified Single Tax policy and considers the impact of formal and informal institutions on policy processes and small business conditions. Results include an expanded model for assessing policy implementation in non‐pluralist conditions, an original contribution to the fields of policy, small business, and development studies. The research further contributes to the literature concerning policy transfer, policy advocacy, and tax reform in developing nations. For theoreticians, this research may inform design considerations when conducting policy research outside of a pluralist democracy. For practitioners, it may inform efforts to mitigate implementation obstacles in diverse socio‐political contexts.     

European "Federalism" and its Encroachments on National Institutions

The European Union is a supranational governance organizationthat is more federal than unitary but which, instead of a constitutionallyestablished balance of powers, exhibits a dynamic confusionof powers. This institutional structure has not only servedto subordinate member-states' institutional structures, whetherfederal or unitary, and to alter their traditional balance ofpowers, it has also served to reduce national governmental autonomyin the name of a shared supranational authority, diminish nationalcontrol over subnational units, and undermine democratic legitimacyat both the national and EU levels. It has had a differentialeffect on member states, with a greater disruptive impact onunitary states, such as France and Britain, than on federalstates, such as Germany.     

NSW Workers’ Compensation Reform: A Parody of Evidence‐based Policy Making

The characteristics and evolution of evidence‐based policy making in Australia and other mature democracies have been mapped extensively in this journal. This article advances research on the use of evidence in policy making, examining changes in the New South Wales workers’ compensation system from 2012 to 2014. This analysis of two phases of policy change, legislative implementation and statutory review, highlights the limitations of building integrated, coherent evidence‐based policy in a contentious policy area. The article finds that the collection of wide and detailed evidence will not satisfy requirements of evidence‐based policy without political will, transparency, and accountability.     

Rapid knowledge: ‘Bridging research and policy’ at the Overseas Development Institute

Numerous organizations advocate the need to ‘bridge research and policy’. Philanthropic foundations, national social science funding regimes and international organizations have sought to improve knowledge utilization. Similarly, research consumers such as NGOs and government departments complain of research irrelevance for policy purposes. The concern of this article is with ‘evidence informed policy’ within the field of international development in which the Overseas Development Institute (ODI), a London‐based think tank, forms the case study. Most think tanks are driven by the need to influence immediate political agendas but ODI has also developed organizational strategies of policy entrepreneurship that extend to longer term influence through creating human capital, building networks and engaging policy communities. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Comment on "Voter Turnout and the National Election Studies"

A recent article by Barry Burden in Political Analysis alertsus to a steadily increasing gap during presidential electionyears between self-reported turnout in the NES (National ElectionStudies) and "official turnout" figures based on the voting-agepopulation (VAP), and points to declining response rates asa culprit. Changing the baseline from the VAP to the VEP (voting-eligiblepopulation) significantly changes these conclusions, and pointto panel effects as a culprit. The rise in the gap was not linear,but it does emerge rather suddenly in 1996. Gaps between NESself-reported turnout and VEP estimates are higher in presidentialelection years than in off-years, and self-reported turnoutis higher among long-term panel participants than among cross-sectionrespondents in multielection panels.     

POLITICAL CONDITIONS MOTIVATING LEGISLATORS' USE OF POLICY INFORMATION

While "research utilization" literature has focused on the limited use of policy research by policymakers, there has been l i t t l e attention directed at legislators1 use of policy research o r the importance of the decisionmaking context in explaining policy research use.
Relying on the research utilization literature and the legislative behavior literature, this paper examines the legislative setting as it relates to policy information use, and it outlines the conditions under which policy information might be used by legislators. Specifically, two types of legislator information searches are discussed–the constituent service search and policy formulating search. While there are many obstacles to policy information use–including cognitive and organizational ones–this paper focuses only on political conditions and political obstacles relating to legis- lators' use of policy information.     

Do the Ladies Run This Mutha? The Relationship between Political Rap and Black Feminist Attitudes

Music has been thought of as an art form that expresses ideas and sentiments of the artist. This article examines the relationship between political and non-political rap and Black feminist attitudes. This study includes data from original experiments conducted at Benedict College; a historically Black college in Columbia, SC, where Black males and females were exposed to various genres of music and their support of Black feminist attitudes were measured. Blacks exposed to political rap display increased support of Black feminist attitudes compared to those exposed to non-political rap and the control group, subjects who were not exposed to any form of music. Our research finds that those exposed to non-political rap have less affinity for Black feminist attitudes than those in any other group. This research is important to political science because it furthers our knowledge about public opinion and political attitudes. Specifically, this article demonstrates that non-traditional media forms also have an impact on political attitudes. Specifically, exposure to political rap has a significantly positive impact on the agreement with Black feminist attitudes when compared to exposure to non-political rap. Therefore, not all subgenres of rap music are consistently harmful to Black feminist attitudes and attitudes toward women.     

Political Attention and Public Policy: A Study of How Agenda Setting Matters

Political science research on agenda setting has been focused on how and why political agendas change over time. This article addresses the different but equally important question about how agenda setting actually matters to the policy outputs of national policy making. Do changes in the political agenda foreshadow changes in public policies? And does the effect of changes in the political agenda depend upon the policy preferences expressed by the mass public? Integrating research on policy agendas with well‐established ideas about re‐election‐oriented representation, this article offers a new approach to the study of such agenda effects. Furthermore, it demonstrates the empirical validity of this approach using a Danish dataset of public opinion, public policy and the national political agenda spanning a quarter of a century and covering several different issues.     

Some Remarks on the "Generalized Event Count" Distribution

King (1989) presented the "Generalized Event Count" (GEC) modelas a means of dealing with event count data when the analystis unsure whether the data are "underdispersed" or "overdispersed."Here I establish several useful properties of the GEC modeland make some practical suggestions for estimation.