Achieving cross-sectoral policy integration in multilevel structures—Loosely coupled coordination of “energy transition” in the German “Bundesrat”

Abstract

The big policy challenges of our times are complex problems cutting across policy sectors and levels of government. To answer the question how cross-sectoral policy coordination in multilevel structures can be achieved, we argue in line with policy integration and multilevel governance scholarship that “loosely coupled” institutions create the interdependency necessary to secure complex coordination. This argument is substantiated empirically by investigating coordination of energy transition in the German Bundesrat. Expectations are derived on how loosely coupled institutions promote coordination. They are tested using a mix of empirical data. It can be shown that loosely coupled institutions indeed enable coordination by linking powers across multiple dimensions, creating incentives for cross-sectoral communication, using personal ties in negotiations to bridge different institutional backgrounds, and sequencing the decision process to allow strategic shifts between coordination dimensions. Those mechanisms may not guarantee the best possible result, but they provide a satisfactory solution at least.