Institute of Intergovernmental Relations (IIGR) Fellow & Associate Publications
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This collection contains works authored by IIGR Fellows, Researchers and Associates of other universities and institutions.
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Item Measuring Fiscal Federalism and Decentralization in Latin American: Argentina and Brazil in Comparative Perspective(Queen's University Institute of Intergovernmental Relations, 2020) Altavilla, CristianArgentina and Brazil are two traditional federations in Latin America. Both countries have a formal institutional setting established by a written constitution that provides the main features of a classical federal framework. The main feature is the constitutional guarantee of subnational autonomy. In this context, federalism, decentralisation and autonomy are three interrelated terms. How do we know whether those subnational units are (or not) indeed autonomous? Autonomy is a construct that can be measured through indicators that relate to different aspects of decentralization. As a process, rather than a static structure, decentralization can transform the federal setting and widen or restrict subnational autonomy. The question that arises, then, is how decentralized are these two traditional federations from Latin America? This paper seeks to measure and compare different (formal and informal) aspects of decentralization and fiscal federalism in Argentina and Brazil in order to determine the degree of fiscal decentralization to better understand subnational autonomy and its role within the federation. In doing so, this paper will use a number of variables to help measure the degree of decentralization.Item The Meaning of Provincial Equality in Canadian Federalism(Queen's University Institute of Intergovernmental Relations, 1998) Smith, JenniferThe principle of the equality of the provinces has become ubiquitous, an increasingly important feature of the ongoing efforts to resolve Canada's national unity crisis. To some, the principle is an essential part of any solution to the crisis. To others, it is a dark cloud that stands in the way of a solution. Obviously, then, the principle is controver-sial. What, precisely, does it mean?Item Considerations on the Design of Federations: The South African Constitution in Comparative Context(Queen's University Institute of Intergovernmental Relations, 1998) Simeon, RichardThe purpose of this paper is to explore some of the issues which arise when thinking about how to design federal institutions in a comparative context. This requires that we think carefully about what values or purposes one is trying to achieve by opting for a federal sys-tem, and about the alternative institutional arrangements or instruments which might strengthen or undermine these goals. We also have to think about how federal arrangements will interact with other elements in the political system, such as the design of the executive and legislatures and the party system, and with the underlying political, social and economic environment.Item Canadian Federalism and International Environmental Policy Making: The Case of Climate Change(Queen's University Institute of Intergovernmental Relations, 1998) Smith, Heather A."Bold environmental internationalism"' has been used to describe Canada's international environmental diplomacy. This label may apply to early Canadian initiatives in the area of climate change in the late 1980s but one would be hard pressed to assign that label to the apparent fumbling surrounding more recent Canadian diplomacy on climate change. The early boldness was more rhetorical than substantive. Canadian climate change policy has been both difficult to develop and to implement. While it will be seen that a host of factors affect the development and implementation of Canadian climate change policy and that the domestic and international are intertwined, the primary focus here will be on intergovernmental relations. The central question posed is: what affect have intergov-emmental relations had on Canadian climate change policy from 1988 to the present?Item The Federal Spending Power in Canada: Nation-Building or Nation-Destroying?(Queen's University Institute of Intergovernmental Relations, 1999) Telford, HamishThis paper will argue that the federal spending power has helped to build the modern Canadian state, but it will also be suggested that the spending power has precipitated a process of nation-destroying. The spending power has undoubtedly contributed to the rise of the modern welfare state in Canada. Furthermore, many of the social programs established by the spending power, especially medicare, have become part of the 'national' identity of Canadians, at least outside Québec. In this sense, the spending power has been an instrument of nation-building in Canada. The federal spending power, however, has been the object of considerable resentment in Québec. Successive governments of Québec have objected strenuously to the use of the federal spending power and the concomitant encroachment into areas of provincial jurisdiction. Indeed, the federal spending power may have contributed to the rise of a strong separatist party in Québec. In this sense, the federal spending power might be viewed as a weapon of nation-destroying.