C M I
20
interplay between structures (the provisions in the federal constitution),
processes (the actual fiscal policies that are implemented), and society (the
economic realities of the federation).
According to Watts (1994:129) the allocations of fiscal resources to each
level of government within the federation is important for two reasons. Firstly,
these resources enable or constrain the governments in exercising their
constitutionally assigned legal and executive responsibilities. Secondly, taxing
power and expenditures are in themselves important instruments for regulating
the economy. In most federations, the constitution defines the expenditure
responsibilities and revenue sources of each level of government, but it has
become apparent that it is difficult to create a federal constitution where the
allocation of autonomous revenue resources match precisely the expenditure
responsibilities. Imbalances are therefore created, and there is a need to rely on
financial transfers to correct these. Some imbalances are vertical, between the
higher and lower levels of government, while others are horizontal between the
various constituent units. In most federations, vertical imbalances are corrected
by sharing of specific tax earnings and conditional or unconditional grants to
improve the capacity of the lower units, while the horizontal imbalances are
corrected by general equalising transfers and grants in aid to even out the
regional disparities. When taxes are shared between the central and the
regional levels of government, some proportion of the amount collected in the
jurisdiction of the regional government is returned to that regional government.
This amount could be used directly in the region, and the fiscal planning of the
regional government is improved with certainty. This finally enhances the
constituent units’ economic independence and autonomy from the centre (Bahl
and Linn1994: 8). The disadvantage of this kind of policy is that poorer
regions with a meagre local tax base will loose and the horizontal imbalances
will increase. This again will lead to what Tarlton warns of, increased
asymmetry in the federal system. The policy of minimising horizontal
imbalances through equalising grants from the centre, however, might
undermine the incentives for regional revenue mobilisation and thereby
increase the regional governments’ reliance on central transfers. This might, in
the end, undermine the constituent units’ autonomy. But if we follow Tarlton’s
theory, correction of horizontal imbalances through equalisation will lead to a
more sustainable federation in the long run, because it will lead to more
symmetry among the units. Although the correction of vertical imbalances will
increase the regional governments’ autonomy in the short run, the following
asymmetry between the constituent units will in the long run lead to more
control and coercion from the centre because the disparities between the units
make unity more fragile and hard to maintain.
Political parties
The structure of party systems and the role played by political parties are other
important determinants of the operation of federal systems. The way political
Dostları ilə paylaş: