Federalism
Government Units
29,481 Special Districts
50 States
3,042 Counties
19,205 Municipalities
16,691 Towns
14,741 School Districts
Federalism
Definition: a system of government in which a
written constitution divides the powers of
government on a territorial basis, between a
central government and several regional
governments usually called states or provinces.
Checks the growth of tyranny.
Allows unity without uniformity.
Encourages experimentation.
Keeps government closer to the people.
FEDERALIST No. 28
Alexander Hamilton believed that people
could shift their support between state
and federal levels of government as
needed to keep the two in balance.
“If their rights are invaded by either,
they can make use of the other as the
instrument of redress.”
Formal Constitutional Framework
• The national government has only those powers
delegated to it by the Constitution.
• The national government is supreme.
• The state governments have residual powers;
meaning those neither assigned to the national
government nor denied to the states.
• Some powers are specifically denied to both the
national government and the state governments.
Delegated Powers
• Those powers specifically assigned to
the Federal Government. The founding
fathers feared a national government
that would overstep its bounds, so they
took care to only allow the national
government very specific powers.
These are also referred to as
enumerated powers.
Implied Powers
• These are powers that are NOT specifically
delegated in the Constitution, but are
understood to be necessary or allowed. The
elastic clause or necessary and proper
clause allows these by stating that Congress
has the power "to make all laws which shall
be necessary and proper for carrying into
execution the foregoing powers" (art. I, sec.
8).
Inherent Powers
• Are those powers that belong to the
National Government because it is the
national government of a sovereign
state in the world community.
Denied Powers
• These are powers that are specifically
NOT allowed to either the federal or
state governments. Again, this listing
of denied powers was a specific way in
which the founding fathers attempted
to create a limited government.
Powers Denied to the States
• Making treaties with foreign governments.
• Authorizing private persons to prey on the
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shipping and commerce of other nations.
Coining money, issuing bills of credit, or making
anything but gold and silver coin legal tender in
payment of debts.
Taxing imports or exports.
Taxing foreign ships.
Keeping troops or ships in time of peace.
Engaging in war.
Powers Denied to the Federal
Government
• Levy duties on exports.
• Take private property for public use without the
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payment of just compensation.
Prohibit freedom of religion, speech, press, or
assembly.
Conduct illegal search or seizures.
Deny any person accused of a crime a speedy and
public trial or trial by jury.
Create a public school system for the nation.
Enact uniform marriage and divorce laws.
The Tenth Amendment
“The powers not delegated to the U.S. by
the Constitution…are reserved to the
states respectively, or to the people.”
Reserved Powers Clause
Reserved Powers
• To reserve is to save, in this case all
powers not specifically delegated to
the Federal Government are to be
reserved or saved for the State
Governments.
Exclusive & Concurrent Powers
• Exclusive means “available to only
one person or group”, can only be
exercised by the National Government.
• Concurrent means "at the same time",
in this case concurrent powers are
those that both the federal and state
governments have simultaneously.
Examples of Powers
Powers of the National Government
(Delegated Powers)
Powers of the States
(Reserved Powers)
Declare War
Establish and Maintain Schools
Maintain Armed Forces
Establish Local Governments
Regulate Interstate and Foreign Trade
Conduct Elections
Admit New States
Regulate Business Within the State
Establish Post Offices
Make Marriage Laws
Coin Money
Provide for Public Safety
Establish Foreign Policy
Assume Other powers not Delegated to the National Government
of Prohibited to the States
Make All Laws Necessary and Proper for Carrying out Delegated
Powers
Powers Shared by State and National Government (Concurrent Powers)
Maintain Law and Order
Provide for Public Welfare
Levy Taxes
Establish Courts
Borrow Money
Create Banks
Article Six – Sovereignty of the United States
Constitution
• In all instances where the federal (or national) law comes into
conflict with state or local laws, the laws of the United States
Constitution reign Supreme.
• The Constitution states that it is “the supreme law of the land.”
• Federal laws always take priority; therefore, if a federal law
forbids the growing, sale, or use of marijuana, IT IS ILLEGAL,
no matter what the state of Colorado or Oregon says.
• The Supreme Court is the umpire in the federal system. One
of its chief duties is to apply the Supremacy Clause to the
conflicts that the dual system of government creates.
McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
In 1819 McCulloch v. Maryland, Chief
Justice John Marshall considered whether
Congress had the power to incorporate a
Bank.
He wrote: Since the Constitution had given
Congress the power to “make all Laws
which shall be necessary and proper for
carrying into execution of the forgoing
Power, the Bank of the United States was
constitutional.”
The Supremacy Clause
The other issue: whether the state of Maryland
could tax a branch of the Bank of the United
States.
Since the Constitution and federal laws were
supreme under the Supremacy Clause of Article
VI, they took precedence over the laws of the
states.
“A state cannot tax those subjects to which its
sovereign powers do not extend..the power to
tax involves the power to destroy.”
Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)
First case to involve the Constitution’s
interstate commerce clause.
Chief Justice Marshall construed Gibbon’s
federal license to nullify Ogden’s state one.
Thus, he broadly defined the national
government’s power to regulate commerce,
consequently restricting the power of the
states.
The Civil War
One major historical event settled the
issue of national supremacy versus states’
rights.
The Civil War made it clear that the
national government is supreme—its
sovereignty derives directly from the
people and thus, states cannot secede.
The Nation’s Obligations to the
States
Republican Form of Government
• The Constitution requires the National Government to
“guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican
Form of Government.”
Invasion and Internal Disorder
• The National Government is also required to provide
defense of the States from foreign invasion, and aid in
protecting against “domestic Violence” in the States.
Respect for Territorial Integrity
• The National Government is constitutionally bound to
respect the territorial integrity of each of the States.
Admitting New States
• Only Congress has the power to admit new
States to the Union.
• Congress first passes an enabling act, an
act directing the people of the territory to
frame a proposed State constitution.
• If Congress agrees to Statehood after
reviewing the submitted State constitution,
it passes an act of admission, an act
creating the new State.
Federalism through History
DUAL FEDERALISM
1787 to late 1930’s
A 19th century concept of government
recognizing a duality of power between the
national and state governments,
each having a distinct
sphere of authority and
jurisdiction.
Federalism through History
COOPERATIVE FEDERALISM
1930’s to 1970’s
The interpretation is characterized
by a sharing of governmental
powers for the
purpose of joint
problem solving.
Emergence
of a
National Economy
Federal-state distinctions much harder now.
Insurance companies sold policies to
customers both inside and outside a given
state. There were different laws regulating
identical policies that happened to be
purchased from the same company by
persons in different states. This didn’t
make a lot of sense.
The New Deal
The New Deal set forth a program that was
dictated at the national level but carried out at
the state level.
The new legislation included massive job programs
that provided work for unemployed Americans.
Other programs, like Aid to Families with
Dependent Children (AFDC) and Social Security,
offered assistance to people who could not work.
Thus, the states and federal government became
to be seen as partners.
The Great Society
The legacy of Roosevelt’s New Deal
continued with President Lyndon
Johnson’s “War on Poverty” three
decades later.
•Food Stamps
•Medicare
•Medicaid
Nixon
President Richard Nixon also advanced
the New Deal and Great Society:
• established the Supplemental Security
Income program
• expanded the food stamp program
• created the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) in 1970 to enforce laws
such as the Clean Air Act (1963).
Federalism through History
CREATIVE FEDERALISM
1970’s & 80’s
A form of cooperative federalism
extending federal grants-in-aid beyond
general governments to special districts
and private organizations.
Federalism through History
NEW FEDERALISM
1980’s & 90’s
Proposal to return social
and economic programs
from the federal
government to the states.
DEVOLUTION
FISCAL FEDERALISM
The shared responsibility between the
national, state (and local) governments for
taxing and spending policies.
FEDERAL
LOCAL
INCOME TAX
PROPERTY TAX
STATE
SALES TAX
Unfunded Mandates
•Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas
•Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
•Motor Voter Act of 1993
•Americans with Disabilities Act required
businesses and state governments to provide the
disabled with equal access to services, buildings,
and transportation systems.
Cooperative Federalism
Even though the basis of
federalism is the division of
powers between levels of
government, there is still much
cooperation between them.
Purposes of Federal Grants
To supply state and local
governments with revenue
Purposes of Federal Grants
To supply state and local
governments with revenue
To establish minimum
national standards
Purposes of Federal Grants
To supply state and local
governments with revenue
To establish minimum
national standards
To equalize resources among the states, on
the “Robin Hood Principle” of taking,
through federal taxes, money from people
with high incomes and spending it, through
grants, in states where the poor live
Purposes of Federal Grants
To supply state and local
governments with revenue
To establish minimum
national standards
To attack national
problems yet
minimize the growth
of federal agencies
To equalize resources among the states, on
the “Robin Hood Principle” of taking,
through federal taxes, money from people
with high incomes and spending it, through
grants, in states where the poor live
Purposes of Federal Grants
To improve the operation and
levels of services of states and
local governments
Purposes of Federal Grants
To improve the operation and
levels of services of states and
local governments
To encourage the
achievement of social
objectives such as
nondiscrimination
Purposes of Federal Grants
To improve the operation and
levels of services of states and
local governments
To stimulate
experimentation and
new approaches
To encourage the
achievement of social
objectives such as
nondiscrimination
Purposes of Federal Grants
To improve the operation and
levels of services of states and
local governments
To stimulate
experimentation and
new approaches
To encourage the
achievement of social
objectives such as
To attack major problems nondiscrimination
but minimize the growth of
federal agencies
Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956 – building
highways and construction. The national
government financed 90% of the cost.
1974 Emergency Highway Energy Conservation
Act – States had to agree to limit highways
speeds to 55 mph if they wanted to receive
funding for highway repair.
A 1984 highway law withholds funds from states
that do not enact minimum drinking age of 21
and mandatory sentences for drunk drivers.
Types of Grants
Categorical Grants
Project Grants
Block Grants
Revenue Sharing
Types of Grants
Categorical Grants
Categorical grants are made for some specific,
closely defined purpose, such as school lunch
programs or the construction of airports or water
treatment plants. There are usually conditions, or
“strings,” attached to regulate the use of these
funds.
Elementary & Secondary Education Act –
Provided money for reading, special education
and support programs for public school.
Types of Grants
Project Grants
Project grants are provided to States, localities, and
sometimes private agencies that apply for them. They are
used for a variety of purposes ranging from medical
research to job training and employment programs.
Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956 – building
highways and construction. The national
government financed 90% of the cost.
Types of Grants
Since 1974 Community Development Block
Grant Program provided a flexible source of
annual grant funds for local governments
nationwide.
Block grants are
portions of money
allocated to States to
use for broader
purposes, such as
health care, social
services, or welfare.
Block grants often are
granted with fewer
strings attached.
Types of Grants
State and Local Assistance Act of
1972 initially delivered $4 billion per
year in matching funds to states and
municipalities. The program, which
distributed some $83 billion dollars
before it was killed by Ronald
Reagan in 1986, proved enormously
popular.
Revenue Sharing
Interstate Relations
• Full faith and credit
• Privileges and immunities
• Extradition
• Interstate compacts