State-Local Relations: An Examination of Local Discretion
研究了为什么有些州给予地方政府更多自由裁量权，利用Zimmerman的测量指标分析其相互关系及影响因素，填补了该领域的研究空白。
State-local relations, traditionally a neglected area of research, have become of increasing interest recently in part because of demands for more local control (see, for example, Walker, 1984). Critical to understanding of state-local relations is why some states give more discretionary authority to their local governments than do others. Measurements of local discretionary authority are found in the work of Joseph F. Zimmerman (Zimmerman, 1983; ACIR, 1982). Yet, despite the potential importance of these measurements, little effort has been made thus far to examine the nature and significance of their interrelationships or to examine their utility in understanding what factors condition the extent to which state governments delegate authority to local governments. The following is intended to fill these voids in the literature.