“Dieselgate:” How Different Approaches to Decentralization,the Role of NGOs,Tort Law and the Regulatory Process Affected Comparative U.S. and European Union Outcomes in the Biggest Scandal in Automotive History

ABSTRACT

The VW diesel emissions scandal (“dieselgate”) recounts how Volkswagen became ensnared in a self-inflicted and staggeringly costly cheating scandal that started in the U.S. and then spread to the European Union. This case study shows how fundamental differences in comparative public administration (CPA) between the U.S. and the European Union (EU) led to different consequences for one of the world’s largest and most highly-regarded European auto manufacturers with respect to four institutional variables: (a) approaches to decentralization, (b) the role of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), (c) civil (tort) law, and (d) regulatory environment.     

分权化背景下的印尼海外移民治理研究

印尼是东南亚主要的移民输出国之一,2012年其海外劳工总人数约为600万人。2001年以来,印尼采取"大爆炸"(Big Bang)的方式来进行改革,实行权力下放,授予地方广泛的自主权,这对其海外移民治理产生了深刻影响。在分权化背景下,印尼中央政府和各地方政府出台了一系列移民治理法规,但由于改革自身的缺陷所在,印尼的海外移民治理也存在诸多问题,且这些问题无法在短期内解决。     

Analyzing decentralized resource regimes from a polycentric perspective

This article seeks to shed new light on the study of decentralized natural resource governance by applying institutional theories of polycentricity—the relationships among multiple authorities with overlapping jurisdictions. The emphasis on multi-level dynamics has not penetrated empirical studies of environmental policy reforms in non-industrial countries. On the contrary, many of today’s decentralization proponents seem to be infatuated with the local sphere, expecting that local actors are always able and willing to govern their natural resources effectively. Existing studies in this area often focus exclusively on characteristics and performance of local institutions. While we certainly do not deny the importance of local institutions, we argue that institutional arrangements operating at other governance scales—such as national government agencies, international organizations, NGOs at multiple scales, and private associations—also often have critical roles to play in natural resource governance regimes, including self-organized regimes.

中央与地方权力集分一般均衡的经济学模型分析

中央与地方的关系具体表现在集权与分权的关系上,如何实现中央与地方分权的均衡是一个世界性、历史性的难题,本文通过引入边际、成本、收益等经济学的概念和分析方法,试图构建中央与地方集权与分权的一般均衡模型,以期对同界学仁有所启发.     

政治集权与经济分权配置制度的绩效与问题

授权是调整政府间权力配置的一种手段.改革开放以来,授权体制在政府间纵向关系上逐渐形成了较为稳定的政治集权和经济分权这样一种制度配置.这种配置使得地方政府受到很强的增长激励,为地方政府创新和竞争提供了广阔空间,同时也使得政府间纵向关系保持着足够的弹性,能够根据形势需要作出适应性调整.但它也造成了显著的负面后果:地方政府的...     

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.     

When Decentralization Leads to Recentralization: Subnational State Transformation in Uganda

Abstract

Among other shortcomings of decentralization reforms undertaken by developing countries since the 1980s, recent research finds that the reforms' primary aim—devolution of authority to localities—has often not been achieved in practice. This article builds on that insight, examining an understudied pathway through which states that have undertaken decentralization can ultimately recentralize power: administrative unit proliferation. Rapid creation of numerous new subnational administrative units is an increasingly common occurrence in developing countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. This phenomenon, I argue, allows for recentralization by reducing the intergovernmental bargaining power and administrative capacity of each subnational unit, as well as by substantially expanding both the reach of the national executive's patronage network and its ability to monitor emergent security threats on its periphery. The article illustrates these mechanisms with evidence from Uganda.     

Comments on Hasenfeld and Gidron: “Understanding multi-purpose hybrid voluntary organizations”

The article develops a theoretical framework to analyse the social construction of citizenship at the local level in Bolivia through the Ley de Participación Popular (LPP). It explains how decentralization at the municipal level and the introduction of participatory mechanisms affect the development of civil society in Bolivia. I argue that decentralization at the city level can provide new formal spaces for the development of civil society in relation with the state, which can in turn foster the social construction of a more inclusive citizenship regime. Many factors, however, determine if such potential is exploited. Drawing from the Bolivian experience, the article elaborates on the socio-political conditions necessary for local governance to have a positive impact on citizenship. It shows that the institutional shortcomings of the LPP, an elite-driven reform adopted in a country with a legacy of weak institutions and civil society, posed fundamental limits for social participation at the municipal level to lead to the social construction of an inclusive citizenship regime.     

Fiscal Federalism and International Capital: The Effects of Fiscal Federalism on Foreign Direct Investment and Sovereign Dept Ratings

Although the study of federalism has become one of the most intensely studied areas in economics and political science, no consensus has emerged on the impact of fiscal federalism on macroeconomic performance. I focus on one specific element of the debate‐ the role of fiscally federal institutions in allowing a country access to international capital markets. In an empirical analysis of 60 countries from 1975‐1995 I find fiscal federalism has no clear impact on inflows of foreign direct investment. In an examination of the impact of federalism on sovereign debt ratings for 40 countries from 1980‐1998, I find that fiscal federalism is associated with lower levels of sovereign debt risk.     

Wohnsitzwahl und lokale Einkommensbesteuerung

Städtische Agglomerationen der Schweiz bestehen aus einer Vielzahl von Gemeinden mit grossen Differenzen in der Steuerbelastung, in den Wohnpreisen und im durchschnittlichen Einkommen der Bewohner. Gemeinden mit einem hohen Anteil an reichen Einwohnern weisen dabei systematisch tiefere Einkommenssteuern, höhere Wohnpreise und ein leicht grösseres Angebot an öffentlichen Gütern auf als arme Gemeinden. Der vorliegende Beitrag zeigt an zwei theoretischen Modellen, wie eine solche Situation als Gleichgewicht entstehen kann, wenn Haushalte ihren Wohnsitz frei wählen und Gemeinden die lokalen öffentlichen Güter durch die Besteuerung des Einkommens ihrer Einwohner finanzieren. Die Simulationen der kalibrierten Modelle können die beobachteten Steuer‐ und Einkommensunterschiede in der Metropolregion Zürich gut erklären. Die Untersuchung der Wohnsitzwahl von Haushalten in der Metropolregion Basel zeigt, dass die tiefen Steuern in den reichen Gemeinden nicht nur eine Folge des guten Steuersubstrats sind, sondern auch eine Ursache dieser räumlichen Einkommensunterschiede.