chapter 13
...................................................................................................................................................AMERICAN
FEDERALISM AND
INTERGOVERNMENTAL
RELATIONS
...................................................................................................................................................alberta m. sbragia
Although scholars have deWned federalism in multiple ways, federalism as currently
understood in American political and scholarly debate has to do with the role of
subnational governments as both independent decision-makers and as implemen-
tors of federal legislation. 1 The use of federalism as a term typically signals a
concern with the independence and political autonomy of subnational govern-
ments in policy-making or with the complex relationships which exist among
levels of government as they carry out policy adopted in Washington.
To what degree should subnational governments be able to act independently?
To what degree are they able to do so? How much power should Washington be
able to exercise? These questions have framed the federalism discussion in the USA
for many decades. Much of the literature argues that the nationalization of the
1 The study of federalism has been multifaceted as it has incorporated works on intergovernmental
relations. Key works in the post-Second World War period include Grodzins 1960 ; Riker 1964 , 1975 ;
Elazar 1962 , 1966 ; Beer 1973 , 1978 ; Wright 1988 ; Derthick 1970 ; Peterson, Rabe, and Wong 1986 ; Conlan
1998 ; Weingast 1995 ; Lowry 1992.