AP Government Chapter 3
Federalism
General
The Framers intended for power to be divided between the sovereign states and the national government
- Democracy - rule of the many to benefit themselves
- Federal System - government system in which national and state government share power
| Federal | Confederate | Unitary |
|---|---|---|
| People → StatePeople → National | People → StatesStates → National | National → Local/State |
Certain powers are expressly assigned to the national or state governments, some are shared, and some are denied
Congress creates interstate compacts on commerce
- Local government do not hold power - they are chartered by state governments
Slavery caused a divide between the North (the Union) and the South (the Confederacy)
- Dual federalism - separate but equally powerful levels of government - was propagated
- Brought about suggestions of the federal government being an agent to the states: states could secede if dissatisfied, had the power to ratify every law
- Nullification - states declaring a national law void
The Civil War destroyed nullification and the ideas of separating the levels of government
President Roosevelt’s New Deal expanded the role of the federal government by instituting new federal agencies and programs
- It forced the government to work together and raised the power of local governments
- At first, the Supreme Court considered the programs unconstitutional, but after Roosevelt’s failed court-packing plan, they began to change their verdicts
Brought forth cooperative federalism
- Can be advantageous but may require governments to do things they aren’t equipped to do
Progressive federalism - combined coercive and cooperative approaches
Either…
- Federal government reached a consensus on the national standard
- National policy makers looked to state policy makers to determine the best policy
Grants
National government constructed grant programs, which allocated funds to states, nonprofits, or local governments
- Categorical grants - granted for specific purposes in states - calculated with a precise formula based on population - 90% of grants
- Block grants - consolidate categorical grants into general groups for state spending
- Programmatic Requests - funds for specific state or local projects that are often exempt from tax
Timeline
| 2010s | Progressive Federalism - The modern relationship between the states and federal government is both cooperative and coercive, depending on the issue. |
|---|---|
| 1980s | Republican President Ronald Reagan and Republicans in Congress demanded that the national government return some administrative authority to state governments. |
| 1960s | One of the hallmarks of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s Great Society program was offering federal financial aid to states in the form of grants-in-aid |
| 1930s | The Great Depression and the New Deal signaled the beginning of a new era in federalism where the state and national governments worked together to address a broad array of policy issues, including job creation, health, and welfare. |
| 1860s | The Civil War and the defeat of the states’ rights South began to alter the division of power between state and national governments. |
| 1800s | Dual Federalism - The division of national and state powers envisioned by the Framers; each government had separate spheres of authority dictated by the Constitution |
Powers
| National | Concurrent | State |
|---|---|---|
| Collect duties and imports | Power to tax | Ratify amendments |
| Control foreign and interstate commerce | Spend money and allocate funds | Manner of elections and electors |
| Naturalization (citizenship) | Establish courts | Public health and safety |
| Power to coin money | Make and enforce laws | Charter local governments |
| Institute post offices | Banks and corporations | Intrastate commerce |
| Declare war | Borrow money | |
| Organize an army and navy |
- Enumerated powers - powers that are expressly granted to the federal government in the Constitution
- Coin money, form an army, declare war, etc.
- Implied powers - powers that are derived from Congress’ enumerated powers and the necessary and proper clause
- Reserved powers - powers that are not expressly granted to the federal government belong to the states
- Matters of public health and safety, state criminal laws (Ex: the death penalty), etc.
- Concurrent powers - powers that both the federal and state governments share
- Taxing, borrowing money, etc.
- Denied powers - powers that are denied to the federal government
- No bias between states, officials must not receive gifts from foreign officials, duties are not permitted, nobility cannot be granted
- Criminal law trials are required to make things illegal, no ex post facto, citizens reserve their universal rights, criminals must be returned to their trials
Agencies, Acts, Etc.
Federal Housing Agency (FHA) - provides loans and mortgages for single and multi-family houses to make purchasing housing easier
Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) - work relief program that recruits people to perform conservation work through parks and fields
Social Security Agency (SSA) - administers social security, a retirement program to provide support and disability insurance for retired wage earners
National Recovery Administration (NRA) - eliminates "cut throat competition" by bringing industry, labor, and government together to create codes of "fair practices" and set prices
National Labor Relations Act - allows workers to organize unions and strikes, protects their rights and prevents private companies from harmful practices
Fair Labor Standards Act - establishes minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and youth employment standards affecting employees in the private sector and in Federal, State, and local governments
Agricultural Adjustment Act - a farm relief bill that provided subsidies for farmers and was designed to reduce surpluses and boost prices
No Child Left Behind Act - law that holds schools account for improving learning for K-12 students
American with Disabilities Act - accommodations and regulations for people with disabilities to be able to access and use businesses and public buildings
Clauses
Necessary and Proper Clause - Congress reserves the right to make laws to assist them in carrying out their enumerated powers
Supremacy Clause - national law supersedes state law
Full Faith and Credit Clause - citizens and states must respect other states’ laws and judicial proceedings (Ex: marriage or drivers’ licenses)
Privileges and Immunities Clause - No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law
Extradition Clause - states must return criminals to states where they stand trial
Articles
| Article l | Section 8 - Enumerated Powers of CongressStates are permitted 2 senatorsStates decide their individual voting processesDenied (federal) powers |
|---|---|
| Article ll | States must have electors for the president |
| Article lll | - |
| Article lV | Guarantees a republican representation |
| Article V | - |
| Article Vl | Supremacy Clause |
| Tenth Amendment | Reserved powers |
| Seventeenth Amendment | People have the right to vote for their senators |
Vocabulary
Charter - similar to a compact
Ex Post Facto - retroactive - creating a law after a crime has been committed and punishing the original criminal is forbidden
Dual Federalism - The belief that having separate and equally powerful levels of government is the best arrangement, often referred to as layer-cake federalism
Cooperative Federalism - The intertwined relationship between national, state, and local governments that began with the New Deal; often referred to as marble-cake federalism
Nullification - the constitutional theory that individual states can invalidate federal laws or judicial decisions they deem unconstitutional
Naturalization - citizenship
Supremacy Clause - the national government’s laws retain supremacy over state laws
Necessary and Proper Clause - Congress has the right to create laws that assist them in carrying out their enumerated powers
Full Faith and Credit Clause - state laws must be respected across borders or by visitors to their states
Interstate Commerce Act - regulated the railroad industry, particularly to control its monopolization and prevent future monopolies from occurring
Sherman Antitrust Act - establishes the rule of free trade in a free market
New Deal - Government program enacted by Franklin D. Roosevelt that expanded the federal government’s role in combating disaster
New Federalism - a political philosophy of devolution, or the transfer of certain powers from the United States federal government back to the states
Block grants - A large grant given to a state by the federal government with only general spending guidelines
Categorical grants - Grants that appropriate federal funds to states for a specific purpose
Programmatic requests - federal funds designated for special projects within a state or congressional district that direct specific exemptions from taxes or mandated fees
Great Society - Reform program begun in 1964 by President Lyndon B. Johnson that was a broad attempt to combat poverty and discrimination through urban renewal, education reform, and unemployment relief
Progressive federalism - A pragmatic approach to federalism that views relations between national and state governments as both coercive and cooperative