Relations among the States
Unit 5 Part 2
Did you know?
The last two states to join the Union were
admitted in the same year – 1959. Hawaii
and Alaska were the two states admitted.
These two states also have something
else in common that distinguishes them
from all other states! They do not have a
common border with any other state.
Interstate Relations
Article IV of the constitution requires the
states to do the following:
Give “full faith and credit” to laws, records, and
court decisions of other states.
Give one another’s citizens all the “privileges and
immunities” of their own citizens
Criminals fleeing to other states may be returned to
their home state by extradition – the legal process
through which one state government surrenders an
accused criminal to another state government.
“Full Faith and Credit”
 The constitution states that “full faith and
credit” shall be given in each state to the public
acts, records and judicial proceedings of every
other state – translation ~ each state must
recognize the laws and legal proceedings in other
states.
 This clause applies to civil laws.
 Civil Laws are laws relating to disputes between
individuals, groups, or with a state.
 *One state cannot enforce another state’s
criminal laws.
Types of Coverage of “Full Faith and
Credit”
Public Acts ~ public acts refers to civil
laws passed by sate legislatures.
Records ~ records cover various types of
documents such as mortgages, deeds,
leases, wills, marriage licenses, car
registrations, and birth certificates.
Judicial Proceedings ~ the phrase
judicial proceedings refers to various court
actions such as judgments to pay a debt.
Privileges and Immunities
Each state must treat citizens of other
states equally with its own citizens and not
discriminate against them, though
nonresidents may not enjoy all the rights
of state citizens.
Interstate Compacts ~
States must settle their differences with one
another without the use of force using
interstate compacts.
These compacts are written agreements
between two or more states; the national
government or foreign countries may also be
part of an interstate compact.
Interstate Compacts ~
Congress must approve interstate
compacts for them to be legal.
Today nearly 200 compacts are enforced
dealing with issues such as pollution, pest
control, toll bridges, disposal of hazardous
waste, and transportation.
Lawsuits between States ~
When states can’t solve their problems
using interstate compacts they may use
other methods such as interstate lawsuits.
Since 1789, 220 disputes between states
have wound up in courts.
Lawsuits brought by a state against
another state (suits involving 2 or more
states) are tried in the Supreme Court.