Federalism and the Shifting Nature of Fiscal Relations

General revenue sharing is the best example of shifting governmental relationships as a result of the "New Federalism" agenda advanced by former President Nixon. What is occurring, in essence, is a sorting out and re arranging of governmental functions. Using this framework, this article considers the rationale for general revenue sharing and other New Federalism programs, with the main emphasis on the decentralizing proposals of New Federalism. A concluding section considers the importance of govern mental structure to New Federalism. The emphasis has been on increasing the autonomy of local general purpose units of government and decreasing the federal government's role in administrative decisions. The Brookings' monitoring revenue sharing project will provide necessary insights into the distributional, fiscal and political impact of general revenue sharing.