Although the Cabinet's request to overturn the amendments to the Law Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures (財政收支劃分法) has been passed, the budget allocation issue has created a confrontation between ruling and opposition parties in both central and local governments. This not only hinders the establishment of mechanisms for negotiation and contacts between the central and local governments, it could politicize intergovernmental issues, which certainly wouldn't benefit the public.
The public is hoping that the confrontation between the ruling and opposition parties will end and mechanisms for cross-party, intergovernment and cross-departmental discussion will be created. Otherwise, issues such as water resources, transportation and communications, public security, and disaster prevention and relief may create further disputes between authorities. I believe that to solve these never-ending problems, the central and local governments should create mechanisms for intergovernmental negotiation.
The most urgent issue is for the government to organize a cross-departmental, inter-level, inter-county and city committee of central and local government representatives. The government should also establish a negotiation, contact and support mechanism involving all levels of government. This would allow for better management of relations between the central and local governments and between different local governments. It would also avoid political influence on cross-regional and inter-level administrative issues, a move that would undoubtedly benefit the public.
The US, which is both democratic and has strong local autonomy, has such a mechanism between the federal, state and local governments known as the Advisory Council on Intergovernmental Relations. This is a permanent, independent, supra-party governmental organization. Its main goal is to improve relations between federal, state and local governments, creating an atmosphere conducive to cooperation and the handling of intergovernmental disputes. We should copy the US in establishing such an intergovernmental authority to solve Taiwan's ever-increasing intergovernmental issues.
The current political situation, in which none of the three major parties hold a legislative majority, means the central government cannot consolidate power as it did in the past. The downsizing of the provincial government, which eliminated the negotiation mechanisms that existed there, has added to the current political and administrative chaos. The creation of a mechanism for negotiation and contacts between central and local governments is therefore the only way to solve these problems.
Yang Yung-nane is director of the Administration Management Department at the Central Police University in Taipei
Translated by Perry Svensson
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