American Government

1
American Government

• Issues in Federalism

2
Introduction

• What is federalism?
• What are the effects of federalism, generally and
  specifically?
• What are the constitutional foundations of
  federalism?
• How has federalism changed over time?

3
Defining Federalism

• Federalism
• A way of organizing a nation so that two or more
  levels of government have formal authority over
  land and people
• Unitary governments a way of organizing a nation
  so that all power resides in the central
  government
• Confederation The United Nations is a modern
  example.

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Systems of Government
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Federalism

• What federalism does to politics and policies
• Decentralizes our politics
• More opportunities to participate
• Decentralizes our policies
• Federal and state governments handle different
  problems.
• States regulate drinking ages, marriage, and
  speed limits.
• States can solve the same problem in different
  ways and tend to be policy innovators.

6
Federalism in the Constitution
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Federalism and the Constitution

• The Division of power between states and national
  government
• The Federal government reigns supreme
• The Supremacy Clause Article VI
• Congressional statutes
• Treaties
• Concurrent powers
• Authority possessed by both state and federal
  governments
• It may be exercised concurrently, so long as it
  does not conflict with national supremacy
• Reserve powers
• Authority granted to the states alone through the
  10th Amendment

8
Expansion of National Supremacy

• National government is supreme, but
• Constitution is brief
• Only a handful of powers enumerated in the US
  Constitution
• Enumerated powers
• Specific powers granted to Congress in Article I,
  Section 8 of the US Constitution
• Remember
• States entered into this agreement, seeking a
  balance between federal and state power

9
Expansion of National Supremacy

• Necessary and Proper clause
• Implied Powers those powers not enumerated, but
  given to Congress nonetheless
• McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
• Commerce Clause
• Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)
• Civil rights movement
• US v. Lopez (1995)

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Pendulum of National Supremacy

• The Civil War to Civil Rights
• National dominance
• State resurgence
• National resurgence
• 16th and 17th Amendments
• National dominance
• Civil Rights Acts and the Great Society
• The New Federalism
• State resurgence

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Federalism and the Constitution

• States Obligations to Each Other
• Full Faith and Credit each state must recognize
  official documents and judgments of all other
  states (Article IV, sec 1)
• Privileges and Immunities citizens of each state
  receive all privileges of any other state
  (Article IV, sec 2).
• Extradition States must return a person charged
  with a crime in another state to that state for
  punishment

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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
• Narrowly interpreted powers of federal government
• Ended in the 1930s

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Cooperative Federalism

• A system of government in which powers and policy
  assignments are shared between states and the
  national government
• Begins with the New Deal
• Shared costs and administration
• States follow federal guidelines
• Like a marble cake

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Fiscal Federalism

• Definition
• 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

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Fiscal Federalism
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Fiscal Federalism Grants

• Federal grants are given to states local
  governments to influence their behavior
• 460 billion in grants every year
• 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.
• Cross-over sanctions
• Unfunded mandates

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Types of Grants

• Categorical Grants Federal grants that can be
  used for specific purposes. They have strings
  attached
• Project Grants- based on merit
• Formula Grants amount varies based on formulas
• Block Grants Federal grants given more or less
  automatically to support broad programs.

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Federalism Pros and Cons

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

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

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State Welfare Benefits
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Spending on Public Education
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Number of Governments
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Summary

• Federalism is a system of shared powers between
  units of government.
• A 3-tiered hierarchy works to solves policy
  problems Federal, State, and Local
• Federalism is constitutionally based.
• Different theories of federalism bound by time
  and policy problem.