Fiscal Federalism In Unitary States

Decentralism of political power to regions and local government occurs worldwide in response to demands from the periphery. Such devolution of power raises a number of problems - political, financial, and legal. By gathering together important papers from a series of workshops sponsored by the SNS Constitutional Project and the Center for European Integration Studies, this volume presents a number of these problems from a truly interdisciplinary perspective. The authors believe that fiscal federalism, while originating in formally federal states, is relevant also to the analysis of state-local relationships in unitary states with some degree of regional or local authority. Among the topics they cover are the division of responsibilities and powers of taxation, bailouts, systems of equalization, and state grants, as well as problems related to democracy and citizens' rights. While the book's primary focus is Nordic, its international perspective is enhanced by contributions from Europe, Canada, and the U.S.

Decentralism of political power to regions and local government occurs worldwide in response to demands from the periphery. Such devolution of power raises a number of problems - political, financial, and legal. By gathering together important papers from a series of workshops sponsored by the SNS Constitutional Project and the Center for European Integration Studies, this volume presents a number of these problems from a truly interdisciplinary perspective. The authors believe that fiscal federalism, while originating in formally federal states, is relevant also to the analysis of state-local relationships in unitary states with some degree of regional or local authority. Among the topics they cover are the division of responsibilities and powers of taxation, bailouts, systems of equalization, and state grants, as well as problems related to democracy and citizens' rights. While the book's primary focus is Nordic, its international perspective is enhanced by contributions from Europe, Canada, and the U.S.

This book provides a comprehensive account of the principles and practices of fiscal federalism based on the currently accepted theoretical framework and best practices. The traditional topics of assignment of responsibilities, intergovernmental fiscal arrangements, fiscal competition, and grants are covered in a unified framework with reference to actual practices followed in federations around the world. Special issues such as local government and the implications of natural resource issues are considered along with emerging issues such as governance, corruption, and the effect of globalization and the information revolution on the nation state. The treatment is non-technical and suitable for a wide variety of audiences, including scholars, instructors, students, policy advisors, and practitioners.

Over the past few decades, a clear trend has emerged worldwide toward the devolution of spending and, to a lesser extent, revenue-raising responsibilities to state and local levels of government. One view is that the decentralization of spending responsibilities can entail substantial gains in terms of distributed equity and macroeconomic management. The papers in this volume, edited by Teresa Ter-Minassian, examine the validity of these views in light of theoretical considerations, as well as the experience of a number of countries.

This book explores new avenues of international research in comparative federal studies. It re-examines the conceptual tools and methodologies for understanding federal systems, and the role of comparative federalism in the dissemination and implementation of federal concepts. It highlights the influence of comparative federalism on constitution-making as well as constitutional reforms. The volume provides innovative and pragmatic perspectives from both the Global North and the Global South, with case studies drawn from established federations such as India, Canada, Australia, and Austria, and emerging federal systems such as Italy and South Africa. Advocating a combined approach that integrates modern and traditional theoretical routes with practical insights and contemporary analyses, it discusses the issues of multilevel elections and federal governance; coalition governments and multiparty democracy in parliamentary federal systems, such as India; minority empowerment; gender budgeting; self-governance; multinational federalism; unitary states; the nation-state; and degenerating federalism. It also breaks new ground by looking at federalism from a gender perspective and deals with tools for measuring fiscal responsibility, and a social and cultural index. A tribute to the intellectual legacy of Ronald L. Watts, this volume will be useful to scholars and researchers of political science, federalism, comparative federal studies, political studies, comparative politics, governance, public administration and law, development studies, South Asian studies, and Global South and North studies as well policymakers, international government bodies, research institutes, development experts, and other organisations working in the area.

The book improves our knowledge on the impact of federalism on policy performance from a comparative point of view. Case studies of six countries - federal and unitary states - establishes the relationship between state structure (federal or unitary) and policy performance.

This volume provides comprehensive coverage of fiscal federalism by some of the leading scholars in the field. . . This Handbook is an excellent addition to the present discourse on the role of the state in fiscal matters. This reviewer would recommend this book as a required text for a graduate or senior class on public finance or economic development. Researchers in economic development, public finance, and fiscal policy likewise would find this volume useful. Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduate through professional collections. J. Raman, Choice This major Handbook addresses fiscal relations between different levels of government under the general rubric of fiscal federalism , providing a review of the latest literature as well as an invaluable guide for practitioners and policy makers seeking informed policy options. The contributors include leading lights in the field, many of whom have themselves made seminal contributions to the literature. Comprehensive and wide in coverage, the issues covered range from federal systems to other forms of intergovernmental relations, such as supra-national constructs namely, the European Union unitary states, regional systems, and more decentralized operations, including community level organizations. The political economy approach emphasizes the importance of institutional arrangements, including the legal, political and administrative aspects, and information flows to ensure that there are appropriate incentives and sanctions to generate good governance. This Handbook also devotes attention to emerging issues, such as environmental protection, the sharing of natural resources among levels of government, corruption and the impact of federalism and decentralization on national unity. It will be a vital reference tool for the area for many years to come.

In this forward-thinking book, fifteen leading scholars set forth cutting-edge agendas for research on significant facets of federalism, including basic theory, comparative studies, national and subnational constitutionalism, courts, self-rule and shared rule, centralization and decentralization, nationalism and diversity, conflict resolution, gender equity, and federalism challenges in Africa, Asia, and the European Union. More than 40 percent of the world’s population lives under federal arrangements, making federalism not only a major research subject but also a vital political issue worldwide.