Democratizing France : the political and administrative history of decentralization

The focus of this book is on the decentralization reforms legislated by the Socialist government in France from 1982 to 1986. These reforms redefined the role of the central state in the periphery and gave extensive new powers to territorial governments. In order to more fully assess the causes and effects of this recent decentralization, Vivien Schmidt examines these reforms and their impact in comparative historical perspective. The first part of the book traces the history of decentralization from the French Revolution to the present, highlighting the significant reforms at the beginning of the Third Republic in the 1870s. The second part of the book analyzes the actual impact of the reforms of both the 1870s and the 1980s on local government institutions and processes. Professor Schmidt uses an innovative mix of methods borrowed from political sociology and cultural anthropology, combined with historical analysis and extensive interviews of national and local politicians and civil servants. Her analysis allows her to explain how in a governmental system as formally centralized as that of France, local officials nevertheless managed to develop informal rules that gave them more power than the laws allowed. The Socialists in the Fifth Republic, she explains, formalized this previously established informal system. The book provides important new theoretical insights into the changing nature of the French state in addition to revealing significant historical patterns, particularly in the parallel between the role of decentralization in the Third and Fifth Republics. Cover......Page 1 Frontmatter......Page 2 Contents......Page 6 Preface......Page 10 PART I - THE POLITICAL HISTORY OF DECENTRALIZATION FROM THE FRENCH REVOLUTION TO THE PRESENT......Page 14 Introduction: When political interest leads to disinterested politics......Page 16 1 - The legislative history of recurring centralization from the French Revolution to the Third Republic......Page 23 The triumph of decentralization from before 1789 to 1815......Page 25 The continuing history of centralization between 1815 and 1871......Page 38 2 - The triumph of decentralization during the Third Republic......Page 54 The legislative debates on decentralization......Page 56 Continuing decentralization in the Third Republic and recentralization under the Vichy regime......Page 73 3 - The unsuccessful push for decentralization from the Fourth Republic through the conservative Fifth Republic......Page 83 The Fourth Republic's return to the status quo ante......Page 85 The consistent failure of reform efforts in de Gaulle's Fifth Republic......Page 90 The slowdown of reform initiatives in the conservative Fifth Republic after de Gaulle......Page 104 4 - Legislating decentralization in the administration of local government: The reforms of the Socialist Fifth Republic......Page 118 The passage of the framework law of March 1982......Page 120 The transfer of executive powers and the end of the tutelie......Page 128 The transfer of administrative functions and civil service reform......Page 133 The transfer of financial resources......Page 145 5 - Legislating decentralization in the politics of local government......Page 151 The new legislation focused on local politics......Page 153 Toward a new electoral balance?......Page 165 PART II - THE IMPACT OF DECENTRALIZATION ON LOCAL POLITICS AND ADMINISTRATION......Page 192 Introduction: When informal rules become formal roles......Page 194 6 - When informal rules counter formal roles: Local government before the Socialist reforms of the Fifth Republic......Page 200 The institutions and processes of local government from the Third Republic to the Fifth Republic......Page 201 The local politico-administrative system......Page 220 7 - Rhetoric versus reality in local government: Local politics and administration before the Socialist Fifth Republic......Page 235 The rhetoric of centralization......Page 236 The rhetoric of nonpartisanship......Page 260 8 - When informal rules become formal roles: The new pluralism in the institutions and processes of local government......Page 277 The new politics in the periphery......Page 280 The new decentralized dirigisme in local economic development......Page 302 9 - Unblocking society by decree: The transformation of the politico-administrative system......Page 323 Changing the politico-administrative system......Page 325 Changing the roles, rules, and relationships......Page 329 10 - A new rhetoric and a new reality in local government: Local politics and administration in the Socialist Fifth Republic and beyond......Page 355 The new rhetoric of the limits of decentralization......Page 357 The new rhetoric of good management and the politicization of the periphery......Page 384 Conclusion......Page 402 Bibliography......Page 406 Index......Page 412 The focus of this book is on the decentralization reforms legislated by the Socialist government in France from 1982 to 1986. These reforms redefined the role of the central state in the periphery and gave extensive new powers to territorial governments. In order to assess more fully the causes and effects of this recent decentralization, Vivien Schmidt examines these reforms and their impact in comparative historical perspective. Tracing the history of decentralization from the French Revolution to the present, the book highlights the significant reforms at the beginning of the Third Republic in the 1870s. It then analyses the actual impact of the reforms of both the 1870s and the 1980s on local government institutions and processes. Professor Schmidt uses an innovative mix of methods borrowed from political sociology and cultural anthropology, combined with historical analysis and extensive interviews with national and local politicians and civil servants.She provides important theoretical insights into the changing nature of the French state in addition to revealing significant historical patterns, particularly in the parallel between the role of decentralization in the Third and Fifth Republics The focus of this 1991 book is on the decentralization reforms legislated by the Socialist government in France from 1982 to 1986. These reforms redefined the role of the central state in the periphery and gave extensive new powers to territorial governments. Vivien Schmidt examines these reforms and their impact in comparative historical perspective. Tracing the history of decentralization from the French Revolution to the present, the book highlights the significant reforms at the beginning of the Third Republic in the 1870s. It then analyses the actual impact of the reforms of both the 1870s and the 1980s on local government institutions and processes. Professor Schmidt uses an innovative mix of methods borrowed from political sociology and cultural anthropology, combined with historical analysis and extensive interviews with national and local politicians and civil servants. She provides important theoretical insights into the changing nature of the French state in addition to revealing significant historical patterns. When the Socialists passed decentralizing legislation from 1982 to 1986 that redefined the role of the state in the periphery and gave extensive new powers to territorial units of government, they fulfilled one of the last imperatives of the French Revolution. The focus of this text is on the decentralisation reforms legislated by the Socialist government in France from 1982 to 1986. These reforms redefined the role of the central state in the periphery and gave extensive powers to teritorial governments

this Book Focuses On The Decentralization Reforms Legislated By The Socialist Government In France From 1982 To
1986.