元代州县财政困局与基层社会治理

The Financial Predicament and the Grassroots Social Governance of the Prefectures and Counties in the Yuan Dynasty

元代国家行政建制止于州县,然州县政府却时常面临着无法取得与其事权及支出责任相匹配之财权的财政困局。元代州县政府在这一财政困境之下,为节约行政运行成本不得不下放部分事权,社会力量则顺势协理地方事务,成为州县政府治理基层社会的合作者与依托群体。元代州县财政困境造成基层治理中政府的介入能力降低,乃至引发国家基层行政缺失问题。而元代社会力量则通过参与地方公共事务建设、积极上陈弊政以及主持仲裁民间纠纷等途径,协助州县政府维持基层社会正常运转,并借机表达自身的利益诉求。此局面的形成既反映了州县政府治理基层社会的内在要求,亦体现了元代行政体制对财政需求的一种妥协。

In the Yuan Dynasty,in spite of the fact that the state administrative system was quite limited in the prefectures and counties,the prefectures and counties often faced the financial dilemma,which meant that they could not possibly wield their financial power to match their administrative power and expenditure responsibility.Therefore,the state and county governments had to delegate some affairs to save administrative operation costs.Social forces took advantage of this situation to assist in local affairs and became the collaborators and relying groups in governing the grass-roots society.The financial dificulties of the prefectures and counties in the Yuan Dynasty weakened the government's capability to intervene in grassroots governance,and even led up to the absence of national grassroots administration.The social forces in the Yuan Dynasty thereupon assisted the state and county governments in maintaining the regular operation of the grass-roots society and expressed their own interests through participating in the construction of local public causes while exposing corrupt governance and taking the charge of arbitrating civil disputes.This situation reflected not only the inherent requirements of the state and county governments to govern the grass-roots society,but also the compromise of the administrative system of the Yuan Dynasty in consideration of its financial needs.