Thursday, June 11 th 2015

 One of the first questions to ask: Where should power exist?  Most states would argue at the centre, within the national government  Others have split powers between the centre and sub-national governments (like states and provinces)  A few have experimented with limiting the power at the centre, allowing sub-national governments to dominate.

 Limited central government  Primary powers lay with member ‘states’, member states dictate powers to central government  In Practice? ◦ European Union ◦ The United States (in 1781) ◦ The Confederacy

 One central government has complete sovereignty within the state  Other levels of government may exist, but their power is delegated from the center ◦ Britain, France, Japan  Some states may look like there are multiple levels of government, but it’s illusory ◦ Scotland, Wales and Mayors in the UK ◦ Devolution

 In democratizing states, a way to centralize power in the face of opposition  Efficiency and effectiveness

 Less democratic? ◦ Fewer elected representatives ◦ On the other hand, France and Britain are generally considered fairly democratic.  Less responsive to Regional interests?  Less Responsive to Minorities?

 A formal division of powers between distinct levels of government, with no government subordinate to the other ◦ States/Provinces/Cantons  Power is divided (relatively) clearly in a constitution  Useful to divide geographical distances and/or large populations

 Central government usually controls issues of national and international concern  Sub-national units (ie provinces) have control over local issues  Often grew out of shared interest in military protection and growing economic power  Examples: ◦ Canada, US, India, Brazil, Mexico, Switzerland, Russia, Germany

 Greater opportunity to understand needs of citizens ◦ This is not universally true (Russia and Mexico are examples of strong central governments in federations)  Greater opportunity to hold government to account  Perhaps better able to deal with changing issues over time

 Service provision across regions can be inconsistent  Disparate wealth creation  Built-in acknowledgement of difference  Combined, can lead to state breakdown

 Powers must be stated within a constitution  Each level of government has ENUMERATED powers that don’t overlap (in theory). ◦ Health care, cities, military  Constitutions aren’t perfect, result in RESIDUAL powers (non-assigned powers).  Sometimes CONCURRENT powers are granted, giving both levels law-making ability, constitution will outline which law is supreme ◦ Environment, Pensions

 The power of Reservation ◦ Move provincial legislation to the federal government  The Power of Dissalowance ◦ Overrule laws made in provinces  The Declaratory Power ◦ National take-over of projects in national interest

 Enumeration, in theory, defines powers, but what if they overlap? ◦ Education vs Employment Insurance  When disputes arise regarding division of powers (or extent of powers, or interpretation of powers), federations require judicial review  Sometimes this is outlined in constitution (Constitutional Courts), sometimes not.

 How do justices interpret constitution? ◦ US vs Canada  Political cleavage and the role of federal government ◦ Canada vs the US  Canada becomes one of the most decentralized federations in the world and the US, the opposite

 Co-operative federalism ◦ Working together for the common good  Executive Federalism ◦ Lower levels try to gain more power (relationships dominated by the executive of each government) ◦ First Ministers Meetings  Fiscal Federalism ◦ Conditional and unconditional grants

 Interstate federalism: between different levels of government  Intrastate federalism: between the same level of government  Senates (the US and Canada) - codified  Regional representation in the executive or judiciary - uncodified

 The separatist movement ◦ The rise of the PQ, FLQ and the 1980 referendum  The patriation of the Canadian constitution ◦ The night of the Long Knives  Era of Constitutional Debates ◦ Meech Lake, the Charlottetown Accord and the 1995 referendum  Culture and identity in a decentralized federation