Governance in the Americas

Victoria E. Rodriguez, Peter K. Spink, Peter M. Ward, Robert H. Wilson

Description

Governance in the Americas, a multidisciplinary volume, offers important new insights about decentralization, federalism, and democratic change in the three largest federal nations in the Americas: Brazil, Mexico, and the United States. Originating in a major research project conducted by teams in each of the three countries, this study contributes significantly to our understanding of how representative and participatory democracy is being constructed at state and local levels in the recently emerged democracies of Brazil and Mexico, and is being recast and sustained in the United States. The contributors evaluate the performance of subnational governments, as these societies become more genuinely decentralized, and as new actors and managerial routines create and implement public policy. The authors challenge the criticism of “exceptionalism” in the United States, seeking instead to understand the points of convergence and divergence among the three countries as each seeks to improve the effectiveness and public accountability of its policy-making processes.

Collaborators include Marta Ferreira Santos Farah, Lawrence S. Graham, Pedro Jacobi, and Allison M. Rowland.

Sujets

• Political Ideologies
• Comparative Politics
• Political Science
• México
• Latin American studies
• Latin America
• World
• Brazil
• United States
• Mexico
• Democracy
• History

Informations

• Publié par: University of Notre Dame Press
• Date de parution: 01 mars 2008
• Nombre de lectures: 1
• EAN13: 9780268096588
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

Wilson, Ward,
GOVERNANCE in the AMERICAS
Spink & Rodríguez
From the Helen Kellogg Institute for International Studies
Decentralization, Democracy, and Subnational Government
in Brazil, Mexico, and the USA GOVERNANCE
Robert H. Wilson, Peter M. Ward, Peter K. Spink, and Victoria E. Rodríguez
with Marta Ferreira Santos Farah, Lawrence S. Graham, Pedro Jacobi, in the AMERICASand Allison M. Rowland
“Throughout the world, subnational levels of government are actively absorbing new
responsibilities and resources; they are simultaneously under pressure to be more
responsive and democratic. But where have these changes come from? How are they
affecting the governance of political systems? Will citizens be better off as subnational
governments assume a greater role in making decisions and managing public policies and
services? This important volume, exploring decentralization and democratization at the
subnational level in Mexico, Brazil, and the United States, provides deeply informative
responses to these questions. It is a well-crafted ‘must’ for students of decentralization
and governance.” —Merilee S. Grindle, Director, David Rockefeller Center for Latin
American Studies, Harvard University
“This book is ambitious in scope, synthesizing political patterns in three of the
hemisphere’s largest countries and most complex economies, discussing a multitude
of subnational actors and institutions in each of these countries, and covering broad
stretches of time in each country.” —Kent Eaton, University of California, Santa Cruz
“The twenty-frst century has brought a new interest in studying the relationship between
structures of government and democracy. This book, focusing on three countries in
the Americas, is a thorough and important example of the substantive consequences
of recent decisions related to centralization and decentralization. It should be on the
bookshelves of students of federalism and intergovernmental relations around the
globe.” —Beryl A. Radin, American University
Robert H. Wilson is Mike Hogg Professor of Urban Policy and associate dean and
professor at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas
at Austin.
Peter M. Ward is the C. B. Smith Sr. Centennial Chair in U.S.-Mexico Relations and
professor at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas
at Austin.
Peter K. Spink is professor of public administration and government in the School of
Business Administration, Getulio Vargas Foundation, São Paulo.
Victoria E. Rodríguez is vice provost and dean of graduate studies at the University of
Texas at Austin and is the Ashbel Smith Professor of Public Affairs. She is a professor at
the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs.
Collaborators are Marta Ferreira Santos Farah, Lawrence S. Graham, Pedro Jacobi, and
Allison M. Rowland.
ISBN-13:978-0-268-04411-4
University of Notre Dame Press ISBN-10:0-268-04411-2 with Marta Ferreira Santos Farah, Lawrence S. Graham,
Notre Dame, IN 46556 90000
www.undpress.nd.edu Pedro Jacobi, and Allison M. Rowland
Cover art: Art Explosion Clipart CD
Cover design: Hope Hoover 9780268 044114
Governance.indd 1 2/12/08 1:13:11 PMGovernance in the Americas recent titles from the helen kellogg institute for
international studies
Scott Mainwaring, general editor
The University of Notre Dame Press gratefully thanks the Helen Kellogg Institute for
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For a complete list of titles from the Helen Kellogg Institute for International Studies,
see http://www.undpress.nd.edu
GOVERNANCE
in the AMERICAS
Decentralization, Democracy,
and Subnational Government in
Brazil, Mexico, and the USA
by
Robert H. Wilson, Peter M. Ward,
Peter K. Spink, and Victoria E. Rodríguez
In collaboration with
Marta Ferreira Santos Farah, Lawrence S. Graham,
Pedro Jacobi, and Allison M. Rowland
University of Notre Dame Press Notre Dame, Indiana Copyright © 2008 by University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, Indiana 46556
www.undpress.nd.edu
All Rights Reserved
Manufactured in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Governance in the Americas : decentralization, democracy, and subnational
government in Brazil, Mexico, and the USA / Robert R. Wilson . . . [et al.] ;
in collaboration with Marta Ferreira Santos Farah . . . [et al.].
p. cm. — (From the Helen Kellogg Institute for International Studies)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-0-268-04411-4 (pbk. : alk. paper)
ISBN-10: 0-268-04411-2 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Decentralization in government—Brazil. 2. Federal government—Brazil.
3. Decentralization in government—Mexico. 4. Federal government—Mexico.
5. Decentralization in government—United States. 6. Federal government—
United States. I. Wilson, Robert Hines. II. Farah, Marta Ferreira Santos.
JL2420.S8G68 2008
320.8098—dc22
2008000408 Contents
List of Tables and Figures vii
Acknowledgments ix
List of Abbreviations xi
ONE Decentralization and the Subnational State 1
Peter K. Spink, Victoria E. Rodríguez, Peter M. Ward,
and Robert H. Wilson
TWO Two Centuries of Federalism in Brazil, Mexico,
and the USA 38
Lawrence S. Graham and Allison M. Rowland
THREE The Changing Institutional Capacity of Subnational
Government: Toward Effective Co-governance 88
Victoria E. Rodríguez, Peter K. Spink, and Peter M. Ward
FOUR Intergovernmental Relations and the Subnational State:
The Decentralization of Public Policy Making 145
Marta Ferreira Santos Farah, Pedro Jacobi, Victoria E. Rodríguez,
Peter M. Ward, and Robert H. Wilson vi Contents
FIVE Government and Citizens: The Changing Nature
of Civil Society 200
Peter K. Spink, Victoria E. Rodríguez, Peter M. Ward,
and Robert H. Wilson
SIX The Past, Present, and Future of Subnational Governments
and Federalism 248
Peter K. Spink, Peter M. Ward, and Robert H. Wilson
Notes 281
Bibliography 287
About the Authors and Collaborators 324
Index 329 Tables and Figures
Tables
1.1 Demographic, Social, and Economic Indicators in Brazil,
Mexico, and the USA 15
3.1 Federal and Subnational Arenas in Brazil, Mexico,
and the USA 92
3.2 Women’s Representation in Different Levels and Branches of
Government in the Three Countries 124
4.1 General Trends in Subnational Fiscal Systems, 1980–2005 155
5.1 Membership in Organizations, USA and Mexico 214
5.2 Participation in Civic Political Activism by Region, Mexico
and the USA Compared 229
5.3 Perceptions of Democracy and Its Tasks among Mexican and
U.S. Populations 239
5.4 Civil Society across the Three Countries 243

Figures
3.1 Relative Powers of Governmental Branches and Directionality
of Change: Federal Level (1990s–Present) 102
viiviii Tables and Figures
3.2 Relative Powers of Governmental Branches and Directionality
of Change: State Level (1990s–Present) 103
3.3
of Change: Local Level (1990s–Present) 104Acknowledgments
This book is the result of an international collaboration of a network of
scholars at the University of Texas at Austin (Lyndon B. Johnson School
of Public Affairs and the Teresa Lozano Long Institute of Latin American
Studies [LLILAS]), the Escola de Administração de Empresas (EAESP) of
the Fundação Getulio Vargas in São Paulo (FGVSP), and the Centro de
Investigación y Docencia Económicas (CIDE) in Mexico City. In
addition,