Does local control reduce corruption and waste?

It seems to me that when control is as local as possible then government waste and corruption are minimized. How much money is wasted by passing it up to Washington and back down to schools? If the federal government only controlled what only it can control (military, foreign policy, etc) then that would immediately reduce the lobbying at the federal level. At the local level lobbying is harder to do (because there are many controlling groups) and the citizens have better access to those in control (the local school board members all live within a few miles). Corruption can still occur at the local level but should be easier to address.
The WI Republican Party wants the state to limit the property tax amounts that the local governments can access but I would rather go to my local school board to ask for tax relief than the state legislature.

Do you think moving control to the local level would be beneficial?