Local Government Autonomy in India, the United States of America and Australia: A Comparative Study

This research paper provides a comparative study of the autonomy of local governments in the UnitedStates, Australia, and India. These three countries are federal, but with historical development, theirlocal governments have varied based on constitutional and legal basis, political autonomy,administrative autonomy, and financial autonomy. The Constitutions of the United States andAustralia do not mention local governments. Two forms of local government exist in the United States:Dillon Law states and Home Rule states. In Home Rule states, local governments have considerablepolitical, administrative, and financial autonomy. They also have the power to enact local laws. TheUnited States is quite good in terms of administrative autonomy. Local governments have completecontrol over local personnel and administration. Financial position is also quite good. In six US statescombined, local governments derive approximately 80% of their revenue from their own sources. InAustralia, local government powers exist, but they are controlled by the state government. In Australia,local governments have substantial executive powers. They have complete control over personneladministration. In Australia, local governments generate approximately 80% of their revenue from theirown sources. In India, although local governments are mentioned in the Constitution, their political,administrative, and financial autonomy is not good. They neither have the power to make laws nor thepower to appoint their own employees. Their financial situation is also not good. Local selfgovernmentsin India still have a lot of work to do in the field of autonomy. Compared to the US, theirautonomy is very limited, and even when compared to Australia, their autonomy appears to be less.