Resiliency in Indigenous Peoples' Governance in Canada, the U.S. and Mexico
Paper Session
Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025 8:00 AM - 10:00 AM (PST)
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Chairs:
Valentina Dimitrova-Grajzl, Virginia Military Institute - Randall Akee, University of California-Los Angeles
Indigenous Governance and Economic Wellbeing: Evidence from Mexico
Abstract
This project studies the economic consequences of adopting indigenous forms of governments in Mexican municipalities. Focusing on the adoption of “Usos y Costumbres” governments in Oaxaca after 1995, it explores how increased political representation and administrative autonomy relate to household income, economic growth, and inequality. While municipalities adopted institutions with varying degrees of divergence from traditional democracy, I find that those with larger deviations experienced a greater reduction in household poverty, albeit accompanied by a higher degree of income inequality. Relatedly, I find no effect on the local provision of public goods and services. Studying the different components of the reform, I find that removing voting secrecy and reverting to the traditional communal service system (i.e., “Sistema de Cargos”) seem to be the key factors driving these effects, suggesting tighter socialnorms and enhanced community checks and balances. Furthermore, examining pre-reform ethnic diversity reveals that municipalities with diverse ethnic groups tended to fare better in terms of household income and inequality. Overall, the findings indicate that municipalities where the community was able to exert stricter control over interest groups, either through institutions or by preventing the monopolization of power, benefited the most out of the increase in political autonomy.
The Resurgence of American Indian Nations under Self-Government
Abstract
From the era of westward expansion and military conquest in the 19th century until about 1975, United States federal policy toward the Indian nations primarily swung between outright annihilation and paternalistic control, producing persistent reservation poverty. Today, the tribal nations are in the midst of a sustained resurgence. The engine of this resurgence has proven to be the adoption since the 1970s of policies of tribal self-determination through local tribal self-governance. These policies have enabled tribes to regulate their own affairs with powers that are akin to those of the fifty states. Like the U.S. states, tribes now routinely operate their own legislatures, courts, law enforcement, tax and regulatory systems, government-owned enterprises (incl. gambling and other businesses), law enforcement, and social service provision. Federal recognition of tribes’ sovereign powers in these dimensions has tightened the links between principals (tribal citizens) and their agents (local tribal officials). Albeit uneven across the federally-recognized tribes, the aggregate results are now several decades of remarkable economic growth and community development.Cleaning Up the Legacy of Oil and Gas on First Nations’ Lands
Abstract
The final cleanup of an oil or gas well is an expensive endeavor, resulting in many yet-to-be-remediated wells scattered across North America. Recent initiatives have devoted billions of dollars in federal subsidies for the cleanup of these wells. In this paper, we evaluate the impact of a program in Alberta, Canada, that earmarked federal funding for cleanup to contracting Indigenous-owned oil field service companies as well as targeted wells in First Nations communities. The grant would cover up to 50% of the cost to clean up nominated inactive wells, but in certain periods, would cover 100% of the cost if an Indigenous-owned company were contracted to do the cleanup. We show that during the periods of the added incentives, almost half of the fund allocations went to Indigenous-owned companies. We show that the incentives led to the creation of new Indigenous-owned companies and increased well cleanup on FirstNations reserves. Upon removal of the added incentives, we see a reduction in the hiring of Indigenous-owned companies. Our results shed light on industrial policies aiming to mitigate environmental risks and promote inclusive economic growth.
Discussant(s)
Donn Feir
,
University of Victoria
Marco Gonzalez-Navarro
,
University of California-Berkeley
Edward Miguel
,
University of California-Berkeley
Mark Agerton
,
University of California-Davis
JEL Classifications
- O0 - General
- P4 - Other Economic Systems