Unit 3 Flashcards
National
State
Shared
(expressed)
(reserved)
(concurrent)
Enumerated (National) Powers:
The Constitution grants expressed and implied powers to the national government
Expressed powers; are found directly in the Constitution and implied are given through the Necessary and Proper Clause.
Reserved (State) Powers:
“The state will have any powers not delegated to the National Government. (10th amendment)
Some of these powers are delegated very intentionally to the states. Ex: Licenses, public schools, hospitals, emergency services
Concurrent (Shared) Powers:
Powers that the federal and state governments share
Both collect taxes, maintain roads and bridges, provide public goods and services, maintain emergency services and provide protection.
Denied Powers:
Powers that are held by the federal government cannot be held by the states (denied)
Expressed Powers (Fed. Gov’t.)
- Make peace (treaties)
- Raise an army
- Conduct foreign affairs
- Declare war
- Interstate commerce
- Coin money
- Post Office Administration
Reserved Powers (states)
- Education Administration
- Fund Hospitals
- Establish local governments
- Law Enforcement
- Intrastate commerce
- Running elections
Concurrent Powers (shared)
- Regulate voting
- Build public works
- Borrow money
- Establish courts
- Protect the public health
- Collect taxes
Republican Form of Government
- Sometimes all levels of government work together = Marble Cake Federalism
- National government must protect states from invasion and unrest within the US
- Congress have given the President the authority to send Federal troops to a state where there is civil unrest and the Governor has requested help.
Federal mandate
- An order or requirement by the federal government that a state, or a local unit of government take some positive action.
- It doesn’t matter whether the order or requirement is a condition of the receipt of federal funding.
Three Forms of Mandates:
and what are they
- Funded – the level of government that makes the requirement, pays for it (SNAP benefits; HAVA in 2002; Cybersecurity election requirements)
- Underfunded – a mandate often comes with partial reimbursement from the state (Early intervention; preschool special education)
- Unfunded mandates – the mandate that comes with no funding support from the state or federal government, shifting the costs to local taxpayers.
Pros and Cons of Mandates
Pros:
* Mandates are usually in the interest of promoting and maintaining public welfare
* Many mandates have had positive effects on the citizens of the US
* The federal government steps in when the states have not (this could be a con, too!)
Cons
* Mandates are expensive and the costs of implementing mandates are passed to the local governments and taxpayers
* Mandates can conflict with the opinions and desires of the public
* Sometimes, mandates have negative consequences (usually unintended)
* Sometimes the government can withhold funding if a state doesn’t agree to implement the mandate
State Powes guidlines
- States can make laws about anything that is not prohibited by the Constitution or by National Law.
- States regulate and promote businesses, preserve natural resources, make and enforce criminal laws, protect individual rights, provide for public health and education.
- Education, health, and welfare account for the largest portion of state spending.
How do states interact with each other?
States must honor other states’ laws and court orders in full faith
Extradition
If you commit a crime in one state and flee, you must be returned to the state you committed the crime in to be tried.
Privileges and immunities
a state must give the same fundamental rights to people from other states as they give to their own citizens
Interstate compacts
ritten agreements between two or more states so that if disputes arise, a Supreme Court or Federal government will step in to help solve it
Policy
States course of action for addressing certain problems or issues
State and Local Policies
- Georgia = first state to allow 18 year olds to vote
- Colorado = first state to pioneer the sunset laws, a law that requires periodic checks of laws or government agencies to see if they are still needed
- Florida = first state to pass sunshine laws, a law prohibiting public officials from holding meetings not open to the public.
National Policies
- National Government can impose policies on states if they feel like rights have been violated or not protected.
- Commerce Clause – commerce is any activity connected with producing, buying, selling, and transporting goods across state lines (Civil Rights Act 1964)
Ex. U.S. vs. Lopez
US vs. Lopez
- It marked the first time in half a century that the Court held Congress had overstepped its power under the Commerce Clause.
- The case arose out of the Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990, which made it a federal offense “for any individual knowingly to possess a firearm at a place that the individual knows, or has reasonable cause to believe, is a school zone.” Alfonso Lopez Jr., a high school senior, was convicted in a federal district court for knowingly possessing a concealed handgun and bullets at his San Antonio high school.
- Decision: Gun possession is not an economic activity that has any impact on interstate commerce, whether direct or indirect, so the federal government cannot base a law prohibiting gun possession near schools on the Commerce Clause.
