A theory of local autonomy

For all its rhetorical appeal, the meaning of local autonomy remains opaque. Local autonomy is desired by the left and the right, yet is compromised by many laws administered by higher tiers of the state. In this paper I propose a theory of autonomy, premised upon two principles of power derived fro...

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Main Author: Clark, G
Other Authors: Association of American Geographers
Format: Journal article
Language:English
Published: Routledge 1984
Subjects:
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author Clark, G
author2 Association of American Geographers
author_facet Association of American Geographers
Clark, G
author_sort Clark, G
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description For all its rhetorical appeal, the meaning of local autonomy remains opaque. Local autonomy is desired by the left and the right, yet is compromised by many laws administered by higher tiers of the state. In this paper I propose a theory of autonomy, premised upon two principles of power derived from Bentham: immunity and initiative. The former refers here to the power of localities to function free from the oversight authority of higher tiers of the state. The latter principle refers to the power of localities to legislate and regulate the behavior of residents. I describe a fourfold taxonomy of autonomy and draw implications regarding the assumptions of current theories of local government power. Finally, an example from Illinois illustrates the theory.
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spelling oxford-uuid:2589d039-48c2-4a82-b220-96de8f36f7b82022-03-26T11:56:11ZA theory of local autonomyJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:2589d039-48c2-4a82-b220-96de8f36f7b8GeographyEnglishOxford University Research Archive - ValetRoutledge1984Clark, GAssociation of American GeographersFor all its rhetorical appeal, the meaning of local autonomy remains opaque. Local autonomy is desired by the left and the right, yet is compromised by many laws administered by higher tiers of the state. In this paper I propose a theory of autonomy, premised upon two principles of power derived from Bentham: immunity and initiative. The former refers here to the power of localities to function free from the oversight authority of higher tiers of the state. The latter principle refers to the power of localities to legislate and regulate the behavior of residents. I describe a fourfold taxonomy of autonomy and draw implications regarding the assumptions of current theories of local government power. Finally, an example from Illinois illustrates the theory.
spellingShingle Geography
Clark, G
A theory of local autonomy
title A theory of local autonomy
title_full A theory of local autonomy
title_fullStr A theory of local autonomy
title_full_unstemmed A theory of local autonomy
title_short A theory of local autonomy
title_sort theory of local autonomy
topic Geography
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