According to a survey conducted for Griffith University's Federalism Project, 29 per cent of Queenslanders said local government performed "effectively", compared with 19.4 per cent in NSW and 15.8 per cent in Victoria.

In contrast, residents of the ACT have the least faith in local government, with an "effective" rating of just 4.4 per cent.

Queenslanders were most likely to cite "on-the-ground policy outcomes" as the reason for their satisfaction with their local council, according to project leader Dr A J Brown.

"This may be a result of the outcome of state and federal governments' collaboration on projects, which is to set up new regional entities. When we think, 'Who is going to make this happen?', we think local," he said.

Queenslanders shared the view of other states that state governments were out of touch, with nearly 50 per cent rating the state's performance as "poor".

Most Australians - up to 66 per cent - believed state governments should be scrapped or replaced by 2030.

The feeling was strongest in NSW, where only 9 per cent saw the state as the most effective level of government.

Nearly 80 per cent of Australians said the Federal Government should step in to resolve important issues that state governments failed to address in areas including health, public transport and education.

Although one-third of Australians would abolish state governments, Dr Brown said research showed people did not want all power placed in the lap of the Federal Government.

"These results confirm a need for longer term solutions - ones that address the fact that even when collaborating, the states are often too large or centralised to get the job done under current arrangements," he said.

"Contrary to many myths, although most Australians want a different system (of government), a majority also want to keep a system with three or even four tiers of government."

Thirty-two per cent of Australians would create a system of regional governments - 12 per cent of whom would place those regional bodies as a fourth tier in addition to state governments.

But Premier Anna Bligh has vehemently rejected any suggestion that state governments be abolished.

"I think it's important for us to hang onto the great parts of our Federation and in the process of trying tomprove service delivery, not throw out the baby with the bathwater," Ms Bligh said.

The phenomenon of federalism - its advantages and difficulties and law and practices - will be scrutinised this weekend at The Future of Federalism conference hosted by the University of Queensland's Law School.