In this article, we explore changes in state--local relations. Our interest is the degree to which states have devolved power and authority to their localities … or not. From our empirical tests, we conclude that although centralization was the dominant trend from the mid-1950s until the...

Superfund-the federal government's program to clean up toxic waste sites-was designed to promote cooperative interaction between levels of government and w ith the private sector. Implementation of the program has, produced a web of tensions instead. The tensions have been intergovernmental and...

In this article, we examine the cumulative impact of state environmental protection policies and environmental quality on the health of state residents in the United States. Using a series of path analytic models, we simultaneously analyze the effect of state environmental policies on...

This article examines the attributes of local economic development policy instruments and asks whether these attributes can predict (1) project success as defined in archival data and in interviews of city officials, and (2) revenue generation as defined in conventional return on investment...

This study looks at how the characteristics of states' interest group environments affect state participation in interstate compacts. Drawing on prominent theories of interest system characteristics, we hypothesize that interest group density and concentration will influence a state's propensity...

We extend research on the nexus of federalism, policy delegation, and American politics by asserting that partisan politics at both the national and subnational levels of government matter when explaining variations in U.S. federal intergovernmental policymaking. Specifically, we maintain that...

The American federal system took some unpredictable twists and turns during the twentieth century. As a new century—indeed, a new millennium—begins, which trends are likely to continue, which are likely to dissipate? What issues pose the greatest challenges for the intergovernmental system?...