Rethinking Overlap and Duplication: Federalism and Environmental Assessment in Australia

摘要: Critics of federalism have long pointed to overlap and duplication as evidence a system under pressure. This article challenges their critique through an examination Australia’s environmental assessment approval regime. It finds that, in quest eliminate overlap, policy makers imposed artificial divisions on complex domain. By limiting the opportunities for political engagement, they also surrendered some strengths federal government removed important failsafe mechanisms which provide valuable insurance against failure. While empirical argument is based Australian experience, analysis has more general implications federations characterized by concurrency.