Abstract: The fiscal responsibility mechanism of local government is composed of fiscal responsibilities and fiscal activities of local government, the fiscal stakeholders and the fiscal accountability; it is a generalization of the influencing factors and their process of local government fiscal responsibility behaviors. The fiscal responsibility mechanism and its changes are decided by the economical, political and administrative systems. Whether in the system combination of “planned economy + weakened politics + centralized power of the central government” or in the system combination of “market economy + weakened politics + decentralized power of the central government”, the fiscal responsibility mechanism of local government in China is still to be improved. The feasible measures to be taken are to propel the decentralization reform at the political, administrational and fiscal levels, at the same time, supporting measures should be provided.

Key words: local government; fiscal responsibility mechanism; role in governance; fiscal civilities; fiscal responsibility accountability