Federalism and the Canadian Federal System

D. Brown / Pol Sci 221St Francis XavierNovember 2010

What is Federalism? A type of democratic government A philosophy of co-existence in diverse or

multiple societies The constitutional rule of law Self rule plus shared rule Divided and shared sovereignty Multilevel governance

Definitions and Distinctions

Federalism -- the overall theory of shared governance and social co-existence

Federation – two or more orders of government with equal status under a Constitution

Confederation – league of states with delegated central authority (( in Canada, the original act of union in 1867))

Why federalism?

Realist reasons:Governing a large territory effectively and

democraticallyCreating a larger economic spaceDefence against potential enemies

Idealist reasons:Accommodating diverse groups, nationsSharing powerCreating competing power centres

Five Features of a Federation1. Combining shared rule and self rule regional governments for regional

matters, laws applicable to residents within their boundaries

central government for general matters, laws applicable to all citizens

2. Constitutionally protected autonomy of each level of government , central and local

Five Features, continued3. A Constitution that distributes power

between the orders of government

4. A constitutional amending formula, preventing any one order of government from changing constitution unilaterally

5. Central institutions designed in part to represent the units of the federation.

Why did we (in Canada) create a federal union?

Defense of British North America and better organization of imperial interests

Creating a continental economyBritish mercantilism endingReciprocity Treaty with USA ends 1866

To Get out of the Political Stalemate and Dysfunction of the 1840 union of Upper and Lower Canada

Steps to Getting to a Deal

• Creation of the Conservative coalition in Canada: Macdonald – Cartier

• The “Great Coalition” to include “Grits” creates a bipartisan agreement to push for a federal union

• Bringing Maritimes in: Charlottetown conference, July 1864

• Reaching a settlement: Quebec City conference, October 1864

Who Did the Dealing? Elected politicians from Government and

Opposition23 at Charlottetown; 33 at Quebec

The British Government (Governors, Colonial Secretary) behind the scenes

Not at the table Quebec: Dorion and “les Rouges”First Nations, Métis, InuitBritish Columbia

The Deal at Quebec City 1 Distribution of Powers:

General vs particular and local Two long lists of exclusive jurisdictions Central government holds “reserve” of power

Hierarchy of Power-sharing: Federal appointment of Lt.- Governors Reservation and disallowance Most important fiscal powers in central hands Federally appointed judiciary

The Deal at Quebec City 2An appointed Senate (some wanted

elected)Senate representation: “sectional” equality:

Ontario (24), Quebec (24) Nova Scotia (10) New Brunswick (10)

Minority Rights: decentralized, not universal:language rights in legislature and courts: Quebec,

federal

denominational rights in education: Quebec, Ontario

The Deal at Quebec City 3

Room to Expand…Anticipating Newfoundland, PEI and British

ColumbiaExpectations re Rupert’s Land and Northwest

Territory Government of Red River settlement Treaties with Indians Federal lands and resources

Amending the Constitution: left to Imperial Parliament

Deal at Quebec City --Powers

Federal Peace, Order and

Good Government Trade and Commerce Control over Indians

and their lands, the Northwest

Transportation and communications

Provincial Property and Civil

Rights Matters of a Local and

Private Nature Ownership & regulation

of natural resources Education, health and

social services

The Evolution of Canadian Federalism, 1867-1967

1867-1896: a period of “Imperial federal government”

1880s-1914: the Rise of Provincial Rights 1896-1939: The era of classical federalism 1939-66 Centralization and the welfare state 1967-present: federal-provincial competition

and the rise of “executive federalism”

Why do we need intergovernmentalrelations ?

To compensate for inadequate or uncertain division of powers

To deal with government interdependencewelfare stateglobalization

To promote fiscal efficiency and equity To provide regional representation But….some still prefer a more “classical”

approach (e.g. Quebec, Stephen Harper)

Executive Federalism

Describes how intergovernmental relations are dominated by elected and bureaucratic executives

Executive dominance is rooted in the strong role of the Executive within the Legislature

Provincial Premiers have a bigger role due to poor degree of regional representation in central institutions

Where Executive Federalism Happens

First Ministers Meetings Federal-Provincial-Territorial Ministerial

Councils Seniors officials meetings Regional meetings of Premiers, etc. Informal interaction:

Correspondence, emails, phone calls, bilateral meetings

Issues with Executive Federalism

Low level of institutional structure: no votes, no constitutional status

Few incentives to agree: a competitive political culture

Democratic deficits:Poor accountability to legislaturesLimited nature of representation -- “white men in

suits”Secretive, bureaucratic, overly technical

Fiscal Federalism Fiscal federalism is about:

Expenditure responsibilities Taxation powers The transfer of funds from one government

to another The Constitution provides both federal and

provincial governments with major taxation powers

They share major tax bases: personal and corporate incomes, sales tax (e.g. GST), tobacco, alcohol and fuels.

Fiscal Federalism…continued

The Federal government has a “spending power” that enables it to spend (but not regulate) in areas of provincial jurisdiction.

The Federal government transfers funds to overcome imbalances between responsibilities and the funds to meet them (vertical) and to even out differences in fiscal resources (horizontal).

Intergovernmental transfers

Vertical gaps: met with cash and tax transfers (e.g. CHT)

Horizontal gaps: met by Equalization program, plus equalizing features of other transfers

Relatively few conditions on transfers compared with other federal systems

Equalization is the key to sustaining provincial autonomy over time

Côté