The Forum Of Federations Handbook Of Fiscal Federalism

This open access handbook compares fiscal federalism arrangements in eleven federal/ decentralized countries. Each chapter examines an individual country, laying out its constitutional design as relates to fiscal powers and the division of those powers between levels of government. Specifically, the analyses consider powers of taxation, spending, regulation, and more. Focusing on Australia, Brazil, Canada, Ethiopia, Germany, India, Italy, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, and the United States, the contributors provide a fascinating account of how federal countries are confronting the traditional challenges of conflicts over division of fiscal powers while also coping with the ongoing challenges of globalization and citizen empowerment that arise from the information revolution. As a companion to the Forum of Federations Handbook of Federal Countries 2020, this volume considers how relationships and roles in different orders of government are being reshaped, and shows how local solutions inspired by global principles help strengthen government accountability and improve citizens’ quality of life. This is an open access book.

Federal models of government have shaped history and demonstrated how diverse people can live together and govern together in relative harmony. The Forum of Federations Handbook of Federal Countries 2020 builds on the previous 2005 edition and offers a much-needed update to this signature resource in comparative federalism. Outlining every federal country in the world, each chapter provides a brief yet comprehensive overview of the history of federalism in its specific country, the constitutional nature of federalism, and recent historical dynamics. As new countries have joined the Federal ranks, this handbook brings readers up to speed offering an authoritative look at both the older federal countries as well as new federal countries like Nepal. The Forum of Federations Handbook of Federal Countries 2020 is an essential resource for academics, researchers, university students, libraries, history and governance teachers, politicians and civil servants, and casual observers of federalism.

For more than two centuries federalism has provided an example of how people can live together even as they maintain their diversity. While the implosion of the former Yugoslavia illustrates that federalism is not, and cannot be, a panacea, its abiding success in other countries shows that it is a system worth examining. The Handbook of Federal Countries, 2002, a project of the Forum of Federations – an international network that seeks to strengthen democratic governance by promoting dialogue on and understanding of the values, practices, principles, and possibilities of federalism – does exactly this, incorporating available information about existing federations in one place for easy, convenient reference.The Handbook of Federal Countries, 2002 includes articles on the twenty-one countries that classify themselves as federations as well as four whose systems incorporate sufficient elements of federalism that it is useful to include them. These articles – written by authors around the world – examine the development, institutions, constitutions, and dynamics of federalism and include tables containing current political/geographic and economic/social information. The Handbook also includes four comparative papers, each of which examines a theme of concern to federal countries: foreign policy in an era of globalization that increasingly encroaches on the jurisdiction of constituent units and demands their active participation; use of federalism to accommodate minorities; distribution of resources and power (fiscal federalism); and issues relating to regional autonomy and federalism in a European context.

This book comprehensively examines the principles and practices of fiscal federalism based on the accepted theoretical framework and best practices.

This booklet offers a snapshot of fiscal federalism in 12 federal democracies. It includes a glossary of country-specific terminology, serving as an entry point to a forthcoming book on the same theme. The booklet series is the fourth in a series created to provide accessible and comparative information on federal systems.

Fiscal Federalism: A Comparative Introduction is a concise introduction to the ways in which the world's federations manage their finances. Topics covered include the distribution of taxation powers among different levels of government; regional equalization schemes; authority over natural resource revenues; and the impact of federal systems of government on pension, welfare, and income assistance programs. The book targets second-, third-, and fourth-year courses in Federalism and Comparative Politics at the university level, and will also be useful for practitioners and civil servants.