Federalism

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Federalism
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Essential Question

• How does power flow through our federal system of
  government?
• Federalism Activity

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Defining Federalism

• What is Federalism?
• A way of organizing a nation so that two or more
  levels of government have formal authority over
  the land and people.
• Division and sharing of power between levels of
  government
• Intergovernmental Relations
• The workings of the federal system- the entire
  set of interactions among national, state and
  local governments.

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Defining Federalism
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Types of POWERS

• Expressed (enumerated)
• Implied (necessary and proper)
• Inherent assumed (acquisition of territory,
  foreign affair)
• Reserved (States only)
• Concurrent (shared)

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Why is Federalism So Important?

• Decentralizes our politics
• More opportunities to participate
• Electoral system
• Decentralizes our policies
• Which government should take care of which
  problem?
• States can solve the same problem in different
  ways.

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The Constitutional Basis of Federalism

• The Division of Power
• Supremacy Clause (VI)
• The U.S. Constitution
• Laws of Congress
• Treaties
• State Constitutions
• State Laws

What gives the federal government more power!
10th Amendment States Rights
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The Constitutional Basis of Federalism
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The Constitutional Basis of Federalism

• Establishing National Supremacy
• Implied Powers
• Commerce Powers
• The Civil War
• The Struggle for Racial Equality

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The Constitutional Basis of Federalism

• States Obligations to Each Other
• Full Faith and Credit Clause
• Defense of Marriage Act 1996 (not included)
• Extradition
• Privileges and Immunities

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Federalism Group Activity

• Get in groups of 3
• Task Your group will examine three case studies
  in which either the national government or a
  state government faced conflict in exercising its
  powers.
• After examining the facts and arguments, your
  group will determine whether, according to the
  U.S. federal system, a legitimate use of power
  exists.

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Case Study 1 Federalism and Gun Control Laws

• What interesting details do you see?
• What federalism issue do you think this
  photograph represents?
• Do you think the national government or the state
  governments should have the power to control guns
  near schools?

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Case Study 1 Federalism and Gun Control Laws

• Read the Case Study.
• Discuss within your groups and answer the
  questions at the bottom.
• Do you think the national government has the
  power to prohibit the possession of firearms near
  schools? Why or why not?

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Case Study 1 Federalism and Gun Control Laws
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Case Study 2 Federalism and Tobacco
Advertising Laws

• What interesting details do you see?
• What federalism issue do you think this
  photograph represents?
• Do you think the national government or the state
  governments should have the power to regulate
  cigarette advertising?

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Case Study 2 Federalism and Tobacco
Advertising Laws

• Read about federalism and tobacco advertising
  laws on Student Handout B.
• Do you think Massachusetts has the power to
  regulate tobacco advertising within its borders?

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Case Study 2 Federalism and Tobacco
Advertising Laws
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Case Study 3 Federalism and Air Pollution Laws

• What interesting details do you see?
• What federalism issue do you think this
  photograph represents?
• Do you think the national government or the state
  governments should have the power to limit air
  pollution?

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Case Study 3 Federalism and Air Pollution Laws

• Read article and discuss questions with group!

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Case Study 3 Federalism and Air Pollution Laws

• Outcome of Alaska Department of Environmental
  Conservation v. EPA
• On January 21, 2004, the Supreme Court decided
  that the Environmental Protection Agency had the
  power to regulate air pollution in Alaska. In a
  5-4 decision, the Court stated,
• the Clean Air Act gave the EPA the authority to
  override a states decision.
• the EPA had enough evidence to reject Alaskas
  claim that the state had required the best
  control technology available.

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Post-Activity Discussion
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Intergovernmental Relations Today

• Dual Federalism
• A system of government in which both the states
  and the national government remain supreme within
  their own spheres, each responsible for some
  policies.
• Like a layer cake
• Ended in the 1930s

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Intergovernmental Relations Today

• Cooperative Federalism
• A system of government in which powers and policy
  assignments are shared between states and the
  national government.
• Shared costs
• Shared administration
• States follow federal guidelines

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Intergovernmental Relations Today
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Intergovernmental Relations Today

• Fiscal Federalism
• The pattern of spending, taxing, and providing
  grants in the federal system it is the
  cornerstone of the national governments
  relations with state and local governments.
• 600 Billion

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Intergovernmental Relations Today

• Federal Grants to State and Local Governments
  (Figure 3.1)

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Intergovernmental Relations Today

• The Grant System
• Categorical Grants grants used for specific
  purposes with strings attached.
• Types of Categorical Grants
• Project Grants based on merit , competition
  (most common)
• Formula Grants amount varies based on formulas
• Block Grants Federal grants given more or less
  automatically to support broad programs.
• Grants are given to states local governments

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Intergovernmental Relations Today

• Fiscal Federalism continued
• The Scramble for Federal Dollars
• 400 billion in grants every year
• Universalism - a little something for everybody
• The Mandate Blues
• Mandates direct states or local governments to
  comply with federal rules under threat of
  penalties or as a condition of receipt of a
  federal grant.
• Unfunded mandates are requirements on state
  local governments - but no money

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Understanding Federalism

• Advantages
• Increasing access to government
• Local problems can be solved locally
• Hard for political parties / interest groups to
  dominate ALL politics

• Disadvantages
• States have different levels of service
• Local interest can counteract national interests
• Too many levels of government - too much money

What are the benefits and drawbacks of a federal
system?
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Understanding Federalism

• State Welfare Benefits (Figure 3.3)

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Understanding Federalism

• Spending on Public Education (Figure 3.4)

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Understanding Federalism
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Understanding Federalism

• Federalism and the Scope of Government
• Which level of government is best able to solve
  the problem?
• Which level of government is best able to fund
  solutions to the problem?