Federalism≠Freedom (New at Reason)

In a column in the July issue of Reason, Veronique de Rugy writes of how the recent legislative battle in North Carolina over where trans individuals may use public bathrooms is a prime example of how “The buttinskyism” of local governments, despite the best of intentions, can often be worse than state governments “when it comes to petty tyranny.”

de Rugy acknowledges that this “reality is at odds with the widespread belief among libertarians and conservatives that local representatives are better-suited to look out for the interests of their constituents than are state and especially federal lawmakers.” She adds:

Many on the political right believe that the devolution of power to lower levels of government can help overcome problems created by centralized authority. Superficially, such federalism makes a lot of sense. Just as devolving powers to competing states feels like it should be freedom-enhancing, devolving powers to thousands of competing cities and towns should be the ultimate check on the spread of bad laws. After all, local government is as close to “we the people” as governing institutions can get.

But as an example of how local representatives make life difficult for the people they purportedly serve, de Rugy writes:

Local governments in some places have prohibited businesses from offering gender-neutral bathrooms, while in others, like Washington, D.C., they’ve prohibited single-stall bathrooms from being designated for one gender or the other. (Is it any wonder small businesses struggle to comply with the minutiae of local regulations?)

View this article.