Abstract: Examines the vertical management reform initiated by the State Council since 1980,analyzes the main types,scope,and necessary conditions for this reform,we can draw two conclusions.First,vertical management is not only highly selective but also mainly concentrated in areas directly or indirectly related to state security.It has not been implemented in the national public service sectors closely related to people’s livelihoods.Second,the central government’s considerations regarding centralization and decentralization in pubilic affair governance are initially driven by the need to centralize power to ensure state security,and subsequently by the need to decentralize power to disperse control over social risks and to coordinate local economic development and local governance.Therefore,the logic behind selective centralization can be summarized as a careful evaluation,compromise,and choice made by the central government,balancing the imperative of centralization for state security with the necessity of decentralization to manage social risks and facilitate local governance.