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
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