The Slow Decay of Household Registration Reform

From the highest echelons of the central government, calls for a major overhaul of the household registration system have been summoned. But local governments – buckling under the pressure of financing gaps for municipal services – have dissolved all hope that major changes will soon be underway.

At the end of February, the State Council, China's cabinet, issued an internal document. The document aims to regulate timetables for household registration reform by local governments. President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao both stated that household registration reform would be supported by the central government at this year's legislative meetings, the largest annual congress sessions.