Devolution Essay ⋆ Political Science Essay Examples ⋆ EssayEmpire

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Devolution refers to the transfer of power from a central government to subnational units of government. The term, which is derived from the Latin word devolutio, is often used interchangeably with decentralization in political science literature. The concept of devolution originated in the modern era and drew increased interest during the late twentieth century.

Historically, devolution followed a long period of centralization that began with the political development of nation-states during the Renaissance (1300s to the 1600s) throughout Europe and continued through the era of colonialism (1400s to the 1800s), with its transformation of national economies. The development of complex economic, societal, and governmental organizations increased, sustained, and institutionalized the highly centralized power that defined the modern nation-state. Ultimately, the centralized nation-state governments faced increased complexity and interdependence that obscured accountability and introduced inefficiencies, which in turn led to demands for decentralization, or devolution.

Devolution In The United States And The “Devolution Revolution”

An essential precursor to devolution in the United States was the centralization of power. As the U.S. national government developed greater administrative capacity and established greater policy authority, the centralization of power increased. The balance of federalism ultimately became weighted, with ever greater permanency, toward the supremacy of national authority. There exists broad consensus that nationalization of policy authority and achievement of national administrative capacity were realized in the early twentieth century, though the effects, causes, constitutionality, and beneficence are extensively disputed. On the one hand, government scholars such as Theodore Lowi assess the significance of the change as the “death” of the original constitutional system, which left in its place a much more nationalist “second republic” with greater centralized powers. On the other hand, scholars such as Samuel Beer argue that the increased national authority is part of the constitutional plan of the country’s founders and represents the realization of the national ideal. Regardless of the divide over the interpretation of the nationalization, it was a crucial development for the political system and a necessary precursor for modern devolution.

Public administration scholar John Gaus was among the first to consider the value of devolution for American federalism. He saw federal bureaucratic organization as limited, because “it creates new problems of control which the central organization must solve if the devolution is to be successful.” The latest phase in the evolution of American federalism has been called the “devolution revolution” by Richard Nathan, and the idea behind it is simple: reduce the size and influence of government by cutting taxes and spending and by sending federal responsibilities to the states.

The election of Ronald Reagan marked the beginning of the devolutionary era in the United States. Reagan launched his 1980 presidential campaign with a promise to return power and responsibility to state and local governments. The promise partially came to pass in 1996, when the devolution revolution achieved the reform of public assistance.

Devolution And The International Community

The centralization of states across the globe increased in the postcolonial era, and, with the proliferation of nation-states, regulation and complexity also grew at an exponential rate. Although states were eroding in their traditional sovereignty, the increased complexity of their intergovernmental systems paralleled the growth of their administrative capacities. In Comparative Federalism in the Devolution Era (2002), Neil Coleman McCabe summarized the recent period of devolution by noting that

developments included the collapse of the Soviet Union and the creation of the new Russian Federation, the breakup of Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia, devolution in the United States and the United Kingdom, decentralization in Mexico, separatism in Canada, the reunification of Germany, and the establishment of new constitutions for South Africa and the former Soviet satellite nations. Many of these developments were characterized by a shift of power from larger to smaller units of government and called into discussion theories of federalism and devolution.

The effects of globalism and interdependence have brought increased salience for devolution and decentralized systems of governance across the international system.

The Future Of Devolution

Some have viewed devolution as a natural occurrence in the evolution of governments and believe that as the state dissipates, subnational governments will be the choice for popular governance because of their enhanced responsiveness. The twenty-first century has witnessed an increase in threats to nation-states from a broad array of networks of organizations. These threats and the reactions to them across the international system encourage the implementation of centralization policies even though they are countervailing the inertia of the devolutionary era. For example, after the attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001, law enforcement, security, and military resources were brought under the umbrella of federal oversight as part of a concentrated attempt to ensure the continued protection of American citizens. Also, the global economic recession beginning in 2008 saw many subnational governments requesting federal assistance and a synchronized international effort to combat its effects. The future of devolution will be determined by multiple forces of complexity and interdependence, though the controlling factor will likely be security issues for nation-states and the potential for global conflict.

Bibliography:

Elazar, Daniel J. “The State System + Globalism = Federalism.” In Comparative Federalism in the Devolution Era, edited by Neil Coleman McCabe. Lanham, Md.: Lexington Books, 2002.
Gaus, John M., Leonard D.White, and Marshall E. Dimock. The Frontiers of Public Administration. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1936.
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