A.P Gov McCulloch V Maryland

AP Gov 2025: McCulloch vs. Maryland

Facts: 

several states, including Maryland, passed laws to tax the bank of the United States

McCulloch was the manager of the Baltimore branch of the bank of the United States

Issue: 

Did congress have the power to establish a national bank?

Can states tax the federal government

Holding:

congress can establish a national bank

States cannot tax the federal government

Reasoning:

 As a result of the necessary and proper clause, congress has implied powers and is not limited to its expressed powers

Necessary and proper clause: congress can make any laws “necessary and proper” for carrying out their expressed powers

The supremacy clause asserts that the federal government is superior to state governments when the two conflict

Big Picture:

Federalism case where federal government got big win