Economic Globalization and the Shifting Boundaries of German Federalism

As in many other nations, economic globalization underminedthe economic policymaking autonomy of the German federal government.At the same time, it prompted decentralization of other kindsof economic policymaking authority within the federal system.Thus, the Länder have assumed increased responsibilityfor regional economic adjustment through the expansion of regionaleconomic policy networks. The economic impacts of globalizationand the decentralization of economic policymaking, however,combine to promote greater disparities among the Lander. Thesedisparities exacerbate growing competition among the Länderfor investment and publicresources. This, in turn, creates deeperconflict among constituent governments that threatens to weakenfurther the problem-solving capacity of cooperative federalism.     

American Federalism as American Exceptionalism

Americans paradoxically claim uniqueness for their politicalsystem, yet promote it as a model for others. This is especiallytrue of federalism, the clearest example of American exceptionalism.At its inception, American federalism was produced in an environmentclosely approximating what scholars have since distilled asoptimal conditions for fostering such a system. In other contexts,federalism has not flourished, because those preconditions areseldom approximated. Remarkably, American federalism has adjustedto meet drastically changed social, geographic, and politicalconditions, and the case for its continued adaptiveness andappropriateness remains strong. Although enclaved state differencesin economics and religion are no longer a reality, these andother differences are widespread especially on a regional basis.Even on a statewide basis, cultural mixes keep the country heterogeneous.The U.S. Constitution has been reinterpreted to permit rathermore nationalized control in accordance with this process ofeliminating differences. Indeed, this is to the point wherefederalism could become legally problematic, explaining theRehnquist court's recent decisions.     

Schools with a Difference: Policy Discourses and Education Reform in Britain and Germany

Throughout the 1990s, corruption cases, policy failure and scandals tarnished Belgium's international reputation. In this article, we analyse the effect of federalism and political culture on corruption and policy failures and their impact on the likelihood of such occurrences becoming scandals. Survey material suggests that there are few differences between French- and Dutch-speakers in the perception and tolerance of corruption. We then list a number of variables that can explain corruption in Belgium and argue that the independent effect of federalism is very limited. Next we demonstrate that federalism has played a much more significant role in lowering the risk of policy failure, while at the same time creating a few new vulnerabilities. Finally, we argue that the regional political elites do not often engage in policy learning and frequently put forward federalism as the main solution to the avoidance of policy failure and scandal. In this sense, regional political elites do not seize the opportunity for policy experimentation and transfer that is generally seen as one of the main virtues of a federal system of government.     

Theoretical Developments in Public Administration: Implications for the Study of Federalism

The perspective of public administration potentially carries great relevance for the development of theory concerning federal systems. However, the impact of each specialty on the other has often been uneven. Reasons for this state of affairs are explored. Some recent and current research on public administration is highlighted for its implications regarding the study of federalism.     

Policy diffusion in subnational governments: State–local relationships in the Brazilian education policy

Intergovernmental relations play a key role in policy diffusion among constituent units. Federal governments have adopted different mechanisms to guarantee minimum standards across the countries, but historical trajectories and widely shared policy ideas are also mentioned as relevant in diffusion processes. This paper focuses on the influence of federalism in policy diffusion at the subnational level in Brazil. The 1988 Constitution consolidated decentralization of the Brazilian education policy but required cooperation between states and municipalities. The lack of a national definition resulted in a great variety of cooperative programmes and coordination arrangements, allowing the identification of similarities and differences among their diffusion processes. This article shows that state governments are the main policy-makers regarding cooperation, which highlights that the role of the federal government does not entirely explain these processes. Nevertheless, policy trajectories and the movement of ideas and people municipalities were keys for policy diffusion.     

Rethinking Federalism: Changing Power Relations Between the Center and the States

India's federalism during the last 50 years had two phases:three decades of centralized federalism followed by cooperativeand competitive federalism. Unitary features of India's Constitutionand planned development led to strong central dominance in thefirst phase, with the states in a subordinate position. Themomentum of impressive initial growth did not last. The late1970s saw a weakened Congress party, the emergence of coalitionpolitics, and a shift in the Center-states power balance. Growthfollowed liberalization and moves toward decentralization, butthis was accompanied by an accentuation of regional disparitiesand fiscal imbalances. A major factor in the negative resultshas been weaknesses in the intergovernmental transfer system.Desirable reforms, which maintain moves toward decentralizationand greater states' autonomy, are explored here.     

Refederalizing Russia: Debates on the Idea of Federalism in Russia

Russia has been struggling to come to terms with the ethno-federalstructure it inherited from the USSR. Central and regional politicalactors have sought to restructure federal relations in a waythat marks a break from the pseudo-federalism of the past, andboth the 1992 Federation Treaty and the 1993 Constitution ofthe Russian Federation declared the establishment of a "federaldemocracy" This article investigates the process of refederalizationby examining debates over the idea of federalism in Russia.Despite an initial wide-ranging discussion, federalism is increasinglyseen in strategic terms by political elites. The federal systemis asymmetrical and bureaucratic, and it is based on a seriesof treaties between the center and constituent units, ratherthan on an effective constitution that binds the center andregions together.     

Changing Forms of Federalism and Party Electoral Strategies: Belgium and the European Union

The introduction of federalism to a political system changesthe locus of power and offers new incentives to political parties.However, the way in which the new system is introduced influencesthe strategies of parties under the new federal arrangements.When federalism emerges through decentralization, the processencourages a greater focus on regional interests and regionalstrategies by parties. When federalism emerges through centralizationof authority, parties are encouraged to use a federal strategy,emphasizing common interests and common bonds across regions.Using Belgium and the European Union as examples, this articletraces changing party strategies in the wake of institutionalchange.     

Intergovernmental Relations in Canada: The Emergence of Collaborative Federalism

"Executive federalism" or "federal-provincial diplomacy" haslong been considered the defining characteristic of Canadianfederalism, which combines federalism and Westminster-stylecabinet government. However, these processes have come underincreasing stress in recent years from a number of forces thathave affected the nature and conduct of federalism and intergovernmentalrelations in Canada. Executive federalism has not been displaced,but has been increasingly informed by a set of practices thatwe call "collaborative federalism," characterized more by theprinciple of co-determination of broad national policies ratherthan by the more traditional pattern of federal-leadership.     

The economic effects of federalism and?decentralization—a cross-country assessment

This paper explores the idea that institutional details matter and that attempts to estimate the economic effects of federalism by employing a simple dummy variable neglect potentially important institutional details. Based on a principal component analysis, seven aspects of both federalism and decentralization are used as variables for explaining differences in (1) fiscal policy, (2) government effectiveness, (3) economic productivity, and (4) happiness. The results show that institutional details do, indeed, matter. Different aspects of federalism impact on the outcome variables to different degrees. This study adds to our knowledge on the transmission mechanisms of federalism and decentralization.     

Federalism in Africa: Origins,Operation and (In)Significance

Abstract

Recent years have seen major advances in the comparative study of federalism and a growing literature on decentralization in Africa, but there has been surprisingly little systematic comparison of African federalism. This article explains several commonalities in the origins and operation of Africa's three main federal states: Ethiopia, Nigeria and South Africa. Each country used ‘holding-together’ federalism in order to accommodate ethnic pluralism. Each country—especially Ethiopia and South Africa—also experienced several key centripetal forces: dominant governing parties, top-down state administration and high degrees of fiscal centralism. Federalism mattered in offering accommodative decentralization, but in its operation subnational governments have limited autonomy because of these interlocking centralizing features. This African variant of federalism can have certain salutary features, even as it precludes the possibility of many of the theorized advantages of federalism that are predicated on real subnational autonomy.     

Intergovernmental Relations in the 1980s

Intergovernmental relations in West German cooperative federalismhave often been criticized as inefficient and inflexible. Theabolition of joint policymaking and the promotion of decentralizationhave been recommended in order to reduce interdependencies betweengovernments and to avoid overloading central policymaking. Suchproposals have usually been put forward without consideringthe governmental complexity that impedes large-scale reforms.However, a detailed analysis of federalism, focusing on processesrather than structures and on different policies rather thanaggregations, reveals that intergovernmental relations in the1980s are not the same as those in the 1960s or early 1970s.The inherent dynamics of intergovernmental relations have producedmany changes. These changes have contributed to the overallstability of West German federalism because they have reflectedflexible adaptations of relations among federal, Land, and localgovernments to new socioeconomic, sociocultural, and ecologicalchallenges. Hence, events of the 1980s provide an occasion forreassessing cooperative federalism.     

The Fusion of Powers and the Crisis of Canadian Federalism

The crisis in Canadian federalism has not emerged suddenly,but has been building for many years. It is our contention thatCanada's political and constitutional problems can only be alleviatedby reform of the parliamentary system. The fusion of executiveand legislative powers inherent in the parliamentary systemrequires strict party discipline to sustain a government, arequirement intensifying the difficulties posed by Canada'sparticular combination of enormous geographic size and ethnicand regional differentiation. The fusion of powers is not onlya major obstacle to the formation of a national consensus andconciliatory parties. It contributes also to the absence oftrust and the lack of a common national desire to form adequatebargaining mechanisms to resolve differences. The particularCanadian intergovernmental relationships and several of theconditions responsible for them are shown to be idiosyncratic,only partly related to the federal structure, and of great importanceto an understanding of the country's current situation.     

Potential impacts of Indonesia's fiscal decentralisation reform on urban and regional development: Towards a new pattern of spatial disparity

Indonesia has now entered a new phase of decentralisation. Two basic elements in the new policy are wider regional autonomy and fiscal decentralisation. The latter is essentially expenditure-based in character, rather than revenue-based, within which a different approach to intergovernmental transfers between local and central government is emerging. The new general allocation fund and revenue-sharing system may have reduced vertical fiscal disparities, but it has tended to increase intercity and interregional disparities.     

Guess What Happened on the Way to Revolution? Precursors to the Supreme Court's Federalism Revolution

In recent years, the Rehnquist Court has been accused of usheringin a "federalism revolution." The Court's decisions have beencontentious and often viewed as assertions of the Court's anti-majoritarianpower. However, these assessments misunderstand the role ofthe Court in the American political system. Not only are theCourt's recent decisions relatively modest departures from existingconstitutional doctrine, but its rediscovery of federalism follows,rather than leads, developments in the elected branches. Effortsto rehabilitate federalism as a political value began in theelected branches as early as the 1960s. By 1980, federalismhad become an important cleavage issue between the parties;Republicans advocated a form of "fixed federalism" while Democratsadvocated a form of "flexible federalism." Despite the desireof the Reagan and Bush administrations to use the judiciaryto advance the GOP's view of federalism, confirmation hearingsfor members of the Rehnquist Court demonstrate that Democratsin Congress paid little attention to federalism. Attitudes aboutfederalism thus made their way onto the Court without noticeand without challenge, and the sharp disagreements that emergedon the Court during the late-1990s mirror the same party cleavagesthat developed much earlier in the elected branches.     

A New Start Toward a More Decentralized Federalism in Brazil?

Brazil's political history can be read as a cyclical alternationbetween centralization and decentralization—a contestbetween the center and the periphery. Centralizing tendenciesreached one height under the "Estado Novo" of GetúlioVargas (1937–1945) and peaked again under a series ofmilitary governments from 1964 to 1985. Forces favoring regionalismand more state and local autonomy have been given impetus duringthe 1980s by trends of regional differentiation, popular mobilization,return to civilian government in 1985, several key elections,and state and local financial crises. The constitution promulgatedin October 1988 features decentralizing fiscal provisions thatgive reason to believe that federalism may be revitalized inthe next several years in response to grassroots demands fromstate and local governments. However, these federalism reformsmay be threatened by the national government's attempts to thwartthe constitution's decentralization provisions and by nationaleconomic and political instability.     

Women,Federalism and Women Friendly Policies

Australian women activists have never been enthusiastic about federalism because of its reputation as a system that restricts the scope of government and obstructs the path of progressive social change. Like their sisters in other countries, women's groups have sought collectivist solutions to economic and social problems. In the last couple of decades, however, orthodox ideas about the restrictive impact of federalism have been questioned. A revisionist view has emerged, which holds that the system sometimes facilitates the adoption of innovative policies and may lead to an expansion of the role of government. The revisionist perspective raises the question of whether women's groups have been wise to oppose federalism. This article examines relevant Canadian and Australian studies in order to test the validity of orthodox and revisionist perspectives and to draw conclusions about appropriate feminist approaches to federalism. The evidence is mixed. The main argument of this article is that, to the extent that we can distinguish its independent effect, federalism sometimes obstructs policy development and sometimes facilitates it. There are serious methodological problems involved in trying to isolate the impact of the federal variable from the many factors that influence policy, making generalisations precarious. Experience, therefore, offers little guidance to women's groups seeking to decide whether to support centralised or decentralised decision‐making structures. However, this study concludes that in the context of present Australian federal arrangements, women are more likely to achieve their aims when the Commonwealth government takes action, either alone or in cooperation with sub‐national jurisdictions.     

Madison's View of Federalism in The Federalist

Interpreters of James Madison's treatment of federalism in TheFederalist are divided into two general camps: those who considerhim to have defended federalism with cogency and convictionand those who consider his defense, on account of his concealedantipathy to federalism, to be half-hearted. Although Madisonhad reservations about the Constitution's new structure, threecharges of disingenuousness that have been leveled against himare mistaken. The evidence mainly suggests that he viewed theConstitution as establishing a divided system of government,that he was not particularly confident that future state-federalconflicts would be resolved peacefully, and that, despite hisreservations about the new system, he wanted to see it in operationbefore thinking about how it might be reformed.     

Changing your political mind: The impact of a metaphor on citizens’ representations and preferences for federalism

Federalism is often presented through metaphors, but little is known about the impact of such metaphors. Two experiments were conducted in Belgium presenting federalism as Tetris – with control and treatment groups – in order to grasp the influence of this metaphor. The first experiment reveals that being exposed to text with the Tetris metaphor influences respondents’ representations of federalism towards a more institutional representation and towards more regional autonomy. The second experiment confirms the importance of the text, and more specifically of the metaphor, if political knowledge is taken into account. Respondents with a lower level of political knowledge are those who are influenced by the metaphor, whereas respondents with a higher level are not. Therefore, framing the future of Belgian federalism using the metaphor of Tetris does matter: it affects both individuals’ representations of the federalization process and, consequently, their preferences vis-à-vis the institutional future of the country.     

Federalism and regional interest intermediation in Brazilian public policies

Brazil became a highly decentralized country following democratization and the 1988 Constitution. The consequences of decentralization at the federal level are quite clear: the federal government is facing financial constraints and difficulties in building governing coalitions, allowing the Presidents to govern and to implement public policies, especially those concerning fiscal control. At the level of the states, however, the results of decentralization are quite heterogeneous given the country's high degree of regional inequality. The article identifies the cleavages and tensions surrounding federal–state relations, as well as the mutual dependency of the states and the federal government. It argues that the Brazilian experience of political and financial decentralization has contributed to the prospects of democratic consolidation and has forced the federal government to negotiate and compromise with subnational governments the implementation of national policies. On the other hand, the Brazilian experience highlights the constraints of decentralization in countries with deep‐rooted regional disparities. Furthermore, the financial weakness of the federal government which has been brought about by decentralization and by fiscal control brings new tensions to the federal arrangements and to public policies. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.