The Value of federalism

Title

Creator

Hayek, F. A.

Language

English

Year

1968

Subject

Federal government.

United States -- Politics and government.

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

■ A Federal System Restrains & Governmental Power. THE VALUE OF FEDERALISM When the Federal Conven tion of the United States, charged “to render the con stitution of the federal gov ernment more adequate to the exisgencies of the Union,” met at Philadelphia in May, 1787, the leaders of the fede ralist movement found them selves confronted by two problems. While everybody agreed that the powers of the [former] Confederation were insufficient and must be strengthened, the main con cern was still to limit the powers of government as such, and not the least mo tive in seeking reform was to curb' the arrogation of powers by the state legislatures. The experience of the first de cade of independence had merely somewhat shifted the emphasis from protection against arbitrary government to the creation of one effec tive common government. But it had also provided new grounds for suspecting the use of power by the state legislatures. It was scarcely foreseen that the solution of the first problem would also provide the answer, to the second and that the transference of some essential powers to a central government, while leaving the rest to the separate states, would also set an effective limit on all government. Ap parently it was from Madi son that “came the idea that the problem of producing adequate safeguards for pri vate rights and adequate powers for national govern ment was in the end the same problem, inasmuch as a strengthened national gov ernment could be a make weight against the swollen prerogatives of state legisla tures.” Thus the great dis covery was made of which Lord Acton later said: “Of all checks on democracy, federalism has been the most efficacious and the most con genial . . . The Federal sys tem limits and restrains sove reign power by dividing it, and by assigning to Govern 10 Panorama ment only certain defined rights. It is the only method of curbing not only the ma jority but the power of the whole people, and it affords the strongest basis for a second chamber, which has been found essential security for freedom in every genuine democracy.” The reason why a division of powers between different authorities always reduces the power that anybody can exercise is not always under stood. It is not merely that the separate authorities will, through mutual zealousy, prevent one another from exceeding their authority. More important is the fact that certain kinds of coercion require the joint and co ordinated use of different powers or the employment of several means, and, if these means are in separate hands, nobody can exercise those kinds of coercion. The most familiar illustration is pro vided by many kinds of eco nomic control which can be effective only if the authority exercising them can also con trol the movement of men and goods across the frontiers of its territory. If it lacks that power, though it has the power to control internal events, it cannot pursue po licies which require the joint use of both. Federal govern ment is thus in a very definite sense limited government. The other chief feature of the Constitution relevant here is its provision guaran teeing individual rights. The reasons why it was at first decided not to include a Bill of Rights in the Constitution and the considerations which later persuaded even those who had at first opposed the decision are equally signifi cant. — F. A. Hayek in The Constitution of Liberty. July 1968 11

pages

10-11

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