INSTITUTIONALIZING CHINESE LEGISLATURES - TRADE-OFFS BETWEEN AUTONOMYAND CAPACITY

Some leaders of Chinese local people's congresses emphasize autonomy i n order to promote decentralization and enhance representation. Other legislative insiders favor sacrificing autonomy in order to strengthen capacity and improve oversight. Tight coupling between congresses app eals to local legislators because it offers opportunities to mobilize supporters, obtain resources, and expand jurisdiction, while represent atives of higher congresses often oppose closer ties in order to prese rve local initiative, safeguard elections, and reduce conflict with Pa rty committees. In a reforming communist state, single legislatures ma y not be the right unit of analysis for assessing autonomy. Establishe d boundaries, in the early stages of institutionalization, may apply t o the legislative system as a whole rather than to its parts. And soft ening boundaries between congresses at different levels can harden bou ndaries against other bureaucracies.