Ch. 4 Lesson 1 & 2 Summary

Lesson 1: Dividing and Sharing Power

Why Federalism

Why does the Constitution divide power between the national and state governments?

The Framers meeting in Philadelphia in 1787 established federalism.

• In federalism, two or more governments exercise power over the same people and the same territory.

In our federal system the central, or national, government has some special powers over all citizens, the states have certain powers reserved for them, and the two share some powers.

• Before the Constitution, many state leaders were apprehensive about sharing power with a new national government.

• Supporters of federalism like John Jay and Alexander Hamilton had to convince state leaders that the Constitution set up a power-sharing arrangement that was reasonable.

The Constitution was ratified and our government was established based on a federal model for dividing and sharing power among different levels of government.

In The Federalist No. 9, Hamilton assured doubters that the Constitution would respect the power of state governments:

Even today, however, many people, political parties, and officials at all levels of government still disagree about the right formula for dividing and sharing power.

Speculating Why do you think people disagree about how different levels of government should divide power?

Federalism in the Constitution

How does the Constitution divide power between national and state governments?

The Constitution divides government authority by giving the national government certain specified powers, making the national and state governments share some powers, denying some powers to each level of government, and reserving all other powers to the states or to the people.

National Powers

The Constitution grants both expressed powers and implied powers to the national government. Collectively, these powers are known as delegated powers, powers the Constitution grants or delegates to the national government.

The expressed powers, also called enumerated powers, are powers directly expressed or stated in the Constitution by the Founders.

• This constitutional authority includes the power to levy and collect taxes, to coin money, to make war, to raise an army and navy, and to regulate commerce among the states.

Some of the national government’s powers are not stated specifically in the Constitution and are implied powers.

• Even though the Constitution does not say anything about space exploration or nuclear weapons, it does state that the national government has the power to regulate interstate commerce and to defend the country.

• These programs were created to carry out those expressed powers. The basis for the implied powers is in the Constitution.

State and Local Powers

The states may exercise any power not reserved by the Constitution for the national government, called reserved power; however, state actions must not conflict with any national laws.

The Constitution does not list these powers specifically. Instead, it says:

• reserved powers include states’ powers to conduct elections, establish and support local schools, and regulate businesses and trade within the state.

Concurrent Powers

The federal government and the states have certain powers that they share, called concurrent powers, and each level of government exercises these powers independently.

• The power to tax, to maintain courts and define crimes, and to take private property for public use.

Denied Powers

The Constitution specifically denies some powers to all levels of government:

• Pass retroactive laws (that punish actions that occurred before the law passed)

• Tax exports

• Hold or sentence a person to jail without a fair trial

• Pass any law that violates the Constitution

• Grant titles of nobility

States cannot make treaties or alliances with foreign governments or coin money or make any laws that interfere with contracts. Unless they have permission from the Congress, states cannot collect duties on exports or imports, or make agreements—called compacts—with other states.

The Constitution also provides limitations in Article I, the Bill of Rights, and other Amendments.

The Supremacy Clause

Article VI makes the acts and treaties of the United States supreme and is called the supremacy clause since state law or state constitution may not conflict with any form of national law.

• Local governments, cities and counties also cannot pass laws that contradict their own state constitution or the U.S. Constitution.

• The Twenty-sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution makes 18-year-olds eligible to vote in all national, state, and local elections. A state cannot pass a law requiring voters to be 21 years of age, but it could pass a law allowing 16-year-olds to vote. The first law conflicts with the national law; the second does not.

Specifying Which powers are shared by the federal and state governments?

Lesson 2: Relations Between the National and State Governments

Guarantees to and Obligations of the States

What does the national government guarantee to the state governments? What obligations do the state governments have to the national government?

Republican Form of Government and Protection

Federal protections for the states are guaranteed in Article IV, Section 4 and states that the national government must:

1. guarantee each state a republican form of government, where the voters hold sovereign power.

2. protect states from invasion and unrest within the United States; an attack by a foreign power on one state is considered an attack on the entire country.

3. Congress has given the president authority to send federal troops to a state where there is civil unrest and the governor or state legislature has requested help. When national laws are violated, federal property is threatened, or federal responsibilities are interfered with, the president may send troops to a state without the request of local authorities—or even over local objections. In 1894, for example, President Grover Cleveland sent federal troops to Chicago to restore order during a strike of railroad workers even though the governor of Illinois objected. During the strike, rioters had threatened federal property and interfered with mail delivery.

During the 1950s and 1960s, presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy used this power to stop state officials from blocking the integration of Southern schools and universities. Eisenhower sent troops to Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1957 when local officials failed to integrate public schools. Kennedy used troops at the University of Mississippi in 1962 and the University of Alabama in 1963.

The national government also intervenes in states in the aftermath of natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, and tornadoes. When one of these disasters strikes, the president may order federal troops to aid disaster victims. The government also provides low-cost loans to help people repair damages.

Territorial Integrity and Admission of New States

Article IV, Section 3 says that the national government has the duty to respect the territorial integrity of each state.

The Constitution gives Congress the power to pass laws that allow new states to join the nation, although Congress cannot make a state out of territory belonging to a state without its consent. Like all other laws, the admission of new states is subject to presidential veto.

Before a territory can become a state, Congress must pass an enabling act, which allows the people of the territory interested in becoming a state to prepare a constitution. If voters in those areas approve the constitution by popular vote, Congress can choose to take a vote on whether to accept the proposed state constitution and whether to admit the territory as a state.

Obligations of the States

The states perform two important functions for the national government. First, state and local governments conduct and pay for elections of all national government officials—senators, representatives, and presidential electors. The Constitution gives state legislatures the power to fix the “times, places, and manner” of election of senators and representatives, though Congress can alter state election laws, too.

In addition, the states play a key role in the process of amending the Constitution. According to the Constitution, no amendment can be added to it unless three-fourths of the states approve it.

Defining What is a republican form of government?

Federal Aid and Mandates

How does the federal government influence state and local governments?

As the national government has grown and enlarged its powers, Congress has developed two major ways to influence the policies of state and local governments. It provides federal grants of money to states and passes mandates that require state and local governments to follow certain policies.

Federal Aid

The national government has always provided different types of aid to the states. In 1862, for instance, Congress passed a law giving nearly 6 million acres of public land to the states for support of colleges. Since the 1950s, federal aid to state and local governments has increased tremendously.

The main way the national government provides money to the states is through federal grants—sums of money given to state or local governments for specific purposes. For example, federal money might go to a city to help improve airport runways or to a state to build new roads.

Federal grants redistribute income among the states. Taxes are collected by the federal government from citizens in all 50 states. This money is then allocated through grants to people in many states. Much of the federal money to states comes in block grants that are based on the population of the state.

Funds come at a price, however, as state and local governments have learned that along with aid comes federal control and red tape—federal money is granted only if the state and localities are willing to meet certain conditions.

Mandates and Preemption

Since the mid-1960s, Congress has taken over some functions that used to be controlled by state governments by passing mandates. A mandate is a law that requires states to take on an activity or provide a service that meets minimum national standards. For example, states—not the federal government—issue driver’s licenses. States have always set their own rules for the identification an applicant needs to obtain a driver’s license, what is shown on the license, and what facts about the license holder are kept in its database. In 2005, however, Congress passed the Real ID Act, which requires the states to meet federal standards for issuing driver’s licenses and sharing their databases. New requirements include proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate, and proof of residence, such as a utility or mortgage bill.

Nationally, congressional mandates have dealt with many issues. They have protected the civil rights of women and African Americans, set environmental standards, and required the nation’s schools to meet testing standards in math and reading.

Congress may also pass a restraint, which is an act that limits a state’s ability to regulate an area. When Congress passed the 1990 Nutritional Labeling and Education Act, states were no longer allowed to set their own food labeling standards, even if they were higher than the new national standards.               

The power of Congress to pass laws that allow the national government to assume responsibility for a state government function is called preemption. Some people argue that it is important for the entire country to have national standards for education, environmental laws, or safe food. Advocates of states’ rights, however, dislike preemption because it takes away state and local authority to make their own laws and policies. In the process, preemption can interfere with the ability of local and state governments to set priorities for their own budgets. From this perspective, the worst kind of preemption law is one that provides no federal funds to carry out a policy—Congress is not required to pay for new mandates and can pass the burden of paying for them to the states. These are sometimes called “unfunded mandates” and are very unpopular with state leaders.

Summarizing What are some areas where the federal government has used mandates to influence policy?

Conflicts

What role has the Supreme Court played in settling disputes between the federal and state governments?

Because federalism divides the powers of government, conflicts often arise between national and state governments. By settling such disputes, the federal court system, particularly the Supreme Court, plays a key role of umpire for our federal system.

The question of national versus state power arose early in our history. In 1819, in the landmark case of McCulloch v. Maryland, the Supreme Court ruled on a conflict between a state government and the national government, concluding that when the national government and a state government come into conflict, the national government is supreme.

Since McCulloch, the Supreme Court has ruled many times on the constitutional issue of how powers should be divided between state and national governments. Through the years, the Court’s view has shifted—sometimes giving more power to the national government, and other times giving more power to state governments.

Stating What did the Supreme Court rule in McCulloch v. Maryland?