Federalism

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Chapter 3

• Federalism

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Three Systems of Government

• Unitary System centralized government in which
  local governments exercise only those powers
  given to them by the central government
• Confederal System consists of a league of
  independent states, each having essentially
  sovereign power
• Federal System power is divided by a written
  constitution between a central government and
  regional governments

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Figure 3-1 The Flow of Power in Three Systems of
Government
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Why Federalism?

• A Practical Solution to the dispute between
  advocates of a strong central government and
  states rights advocates
• Geography and population make it impractical to
  locate all political authority in one place
• Brings government closer to the people
• State governments train future national leaders
• State governments can be testing grounds for
  policy initiatives
• Federalism allows for many political subcultures

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Constitutional Basis of Powers of the National
Government

• Enumerated Powers First 17 clauses of Article
  I, Section 8, examples include coining money,
  setting standards of weights and measures,
  declaring war
• Elastic Clause the clause in Article I, Section
  8, that grants Congress the power to do whatever
  is necessary to execute its specifically
  delegated power
• Inherent Powers powers derive from the fact
  that the United States is a sovereign power among
  nations

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The American Federal System The Division of
Powers between the National Government and the
State Governments
Selected Constitutional Powers Selected Constitutional Powers Selected Constitutional Powers
National Government National and State Governments State Governments
EXPRESSED To coin money To conduct foreign relations To regulate interstate commerce To levy and collect taxes To declare war To raise and support the military To establish post offices To establish courts inferior to the Supreme Court To admit new states IMPLIED To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof. (Article 1, Section 8, Clause 18) CONCURRENT To levy and collect taxes To borrow money To make and enforce laws To establish courts To provide for the general welfare To charter banks and corporations RESERVED TO THE STATES To regulate intrastate commerce To conduct elections To provide for public health, safety, and morals To establish local governments To ratify amendments to the federal constitution To establish a state militia
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The American Federal System The Division of
Powers between the National Government and the
State Governments
Selected Powers Denied by the Constitution Selected Powers Denied by the Constitution Selected Powers Denied by the Constitution
National Government National and State Governments State Governments
To tax articles exported from any state To violate the Bill of Rights To change state boundaries To suspend the right of habeas corpus To make ex post facto laws To subject officeholders to a religious test To grant titles of nobility To permit slavery To deny citizens the right to vote because of race, color, or previous servitude To deny citizens the right to vote because of gender To tax imports or exports To coin money To enter into treaties To impair obligations of contracts To abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens or deny due process and equal protection of the laws
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The Growth of the National Government

• McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)- established the
  implied powers of the national government and the
  idea of national supremacy
• (from the necessary and proper clause)
• (from the supremacy clause)
• Gibbons v. Ogden (1824) established that the
  power to regulate interstate commerce was an
  exclusive national power
• (from the commerce clause)

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The Shift Back to States Rights in the
Jacksonian Era

• Nullification the idea that states could
  declare a national law null and void
• Secession the withdrawal of a state from a
  union

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War and the Growth of the National Government

• The defeat of the South ended the idea that
  states could secede from the Union.
• The defeat of the South also resulted in an
  expansion of the powers of the national
  government (the opposite of what te South was
  fighting for)
•    New governments employees were hired to
  conduct the war effort, and Reconstruction
•    A billion dollar budget was passed
•    A temporary income tax was imposed on
  citizens
•    Civil liberties were curtailed because of the
  war effort and the nationals governments role
  expanded to include providing pensions to
  veterans and widows

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The Continuing Dispute over the Division of Power

• Dual Federalism the national and state
  governments as equal sovereign powers
• Cooperative Federalism the idea that states and
  the national government should cooperate to solve
  problems

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Federal Preemption from 1900 to the Present
Source U.S. Advisory Commission on
Intergovernmental Relations, plus authors update.
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Federalism, the Supreme Court and the Commerce
Clause

• United States v. Lopez court rules Congress
  exceeded its authority under the commerce clause
  in passing the Gun Free School Zone Act of 1990
• United States v. Morrison - court rules Congress
  exceeded its authority under the commerce clause
  in passing the Violence Against Women Act of 1994

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Federalism,the Supreme Court and the Eleventh
Amendment

• Decisions bolstered the authority of state
  governments
• Alden v. Maine (1999) state employees cant sue
  state for violating federal overtime pay law
• Kimel v. Florida Board of Regents (2000) state
  university employees cant sue state for
  violating federal age discrimination law
• However, in Nevada v. Holmes (2003) the court
  ruled that state employers must abide by the
  federal Family Medical Leave Act, which seeks to
  outlaw gender bias

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Hot Links to Selected Internet Resources

• Books Companion Site http//politicalscience.wad
  sworth.com/schmidtbrief2004
• Wadsworths Political Science Site
  http//politicalscience.wadsworth.com
• Emory Universitys Federal Law Site
• http//www.law.emory.edu/FEDERAL
• Unity and Federalism http//www.constitution.org/
  cs_feder.htm
• Project Vote Smart http//www.vote-smart.org/issu
  es/FEDERALISM_STATES_RIGHTS