Fiscal Policies in Federal States

Dietmar Braun is Professor of Political Science at the Institut d’Etudes Politiques et Internationales, Université de Lausanne

• Contents: Federal Fiscal Constitution and Intergovernmental Relationships: Introduction; Federal fiscal constitutions; Intergovernmental relationships. Fiscal Policy-Making: Fiscal policy-making in Canada; Fiscal policy-making in Germany; Contrasted cases: Canada and Germany; Fiscal policy-making in Belgium; Fiscal policy-making in Switzerland. Conclusions: How constraining is federalism in fiscal policy-making? Appendix: Fiscal policies from the 1970s to the 1990s; Notes; Bibliography; Index.

'This well-written book is an important contribution to comparative research on federalism. The sound empirical study on the impact of federal structures on fiscal policy-making conducted by Dietmar Braun and his collaborators provides new insights as to how federalism works. Focusing on four different types of federal government the study explains the effects of institutions but also reveals different strategies and modes of coordination in the interplay between central and regional governments. The book should be essential reading for all interested in comparative government and public policy. People working in the relevant practical fields can gain helpful information needed in the ongoing debates on federalism.' Dr Arthur Benz, FernUniversität Hagen, Germany 'This book on federal states and their policy-making capabilities is a fine example of up-to-date comparative research of complex political systems. It demonstrates how to combine 'new institiutionalism' with concrete empirical research of public policy-making. In addition, by applying this type of theory to federal states is not only innovative but also unique in its systematic treatment of variations of federalism. Finally, the book offers rich empirical based information on the actual opportunities and constraints of public action in different federal states: Belgium, Canada, Germany and Switzerland. I can therefore recommend this well-structured study to both specialists in the field and to students of comparative government and policy analysis.' Dr Hans Keman, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Co-Editor of the European Journal of Political Research '...a good example of how a qualitative institutional approach can be applied to the study of comparative public policy.' Political ReviewNet