 Dynamic De/Centralization in Switzerland, 1848–2010Paolo Dardanelli and Sean Mueller Publius: The Journal of Federalism, 2019, vol. 49, issue 1, 138-165 Abstract: Part of the project Why Centralization and Decentralization in Federations?, this article studies dynamic de/centralization in Switzerland since 1848 and seeks to account for the patterns observed. It shows that, overall, there has been a wide-ranging process of legislative centralization, whereas the cantons have retained considerable administrative and, especially, fiscal autonomy. The principal instrument of dynamic centralization has been constitutional change, followed by the enactment of framework legislation by the federal government. The process has unfolded primarily through frequent steps of a small magnitude and occurred throughout the 160-year life of the federation. Modernization, market integration, changing patterns of collective identification, and expectations concerning the role of government appear to have played a particularly important causal role. The multilingual and bi-confessional nature of the country has not presented a major obstacle to this centralization dynamic, particularly since World War II, with the French-speaking minority becoming increasingly pro-centralization. Date: 2019 Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:oup:publus:v:49:y:2019:i:1:p:138-165. Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from Access Statistics for this article Publius: The Journal of Federalism is currently edited by Paul Nolette and Philip Rocco More articles in Publius: The Journal of Federalism from CSF Associates Inc. Oxford University Press, Great Clarendon Street, Oxford OX2 6DP, UK. |
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