Federalism and Perverse Incentives: What is Needed for a Workable Theory or Reorganization for Cities?

Abstract

decision entailed. To a degree, except for the Southern states' subscription to recognition of the binding character of the Union and national supremacy, we liked to pretend that nothing much had really changed. Except for a few anomalies this was not hard to do in the night watchman state of liberal 19th century laissez-faire. It was even possible to see the country in the conventionally accepted orthodoxy as a layer cake federalism of separate constitutional competencies with an appropriate and largely distinct set of functions. As Joseph McLean and the late Morton Grodzins and his students have made abundantly clear the layer cake image was always inaccurate. The reality is far better conveyed by the marble cake figure. But the method by which the mixture of federal and state action has been brought about and its piecemeal and unifunctional character have been highly consequential and pose significant problems.