U1b Federalism Review

Unfunded Mandates

Congress orders states to take certain actions (obey laws) but provides no funding (Americans with Disabilities Act, Clean Air Act, Motor Voter Act, No Child Left Behind).

National Government (exclusive / delegated powers)

- Expressed/Enumerated Powers - Implied Powers (Elastic Clause - "Power to make laws which are necessary and proper")

New Federalism (Reagan 1969)

A policy that turned over powers and responsibilities of some U.S. federal programs to state and local governments and reduced the role of national government in domestic affairs.

Confederal (Confederate) Government

A political system in which a weak central government has limited authority, and the states have ultimate power.

Federalism

A system in which power is divided between the national and state governments.

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.

Cooperative Federalism

A system of government in which powers and policy assignments are shared between states and the national government.

Unitary Government

A system where political power resides in the national government, with little or no power delegated to local governments.

Amendment Process

An amendment may be proposed by a two-thirds vote of both Houses of Congress, or, if two-thirds of the States request one, by a convention called for that purpose. The amendment must then be ratified by three-fourths of the State legislatures, or three-fourths of conventions called in each State for ratification.

Federalist #51

An essay written by James Madison that explains how the structure of the new government under the Constitution will provide the necessary checks and balances to keep any part of the government from becoming too powerful.

Describe an action Congress could take in response to the ruling in Gibbons v. Ogden (1824) to prevent future lawsuits arising from competing state and federal contracts.

Congress may regulate interstate commerce.

Necessary and Proper/Elastic Clause

Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution, which allows Congress to make all laws that are "necessary and proper" to carry out the powers of the Constitution.

Supremacy Clause

Article VI of the Constitution, which makes the Constitution, national laws, and treaties supreme over state laws when the national government is acting within its constitutional limits.

In the ruling of the McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) case, what did Chief Justice John Marshall declare?

As long as the bank was constitutional then Maryland's tax would improperly damage the Bank of the United States.

What is the debate reflected in U.S. v. Lopez (1995)?

Can the Commerce Clause of the Constitution be used by the federal government to prosecute a person for possessing a firearm in a school?

What type of federal funding would be most likely to shift the balance of power from states to the national government?

Categorical grants are grants provided by the national government to states for specific purposes. The national government gains more power and influence within states as a result of these grants because of the rules that the national government imposes in conjunction with them.

Full Faith & Credit Clause

Clause in the Constitution (Article 4, Section 1) requiring each state to recognize the civil judgments rendered by the courts of the other states and to accept their public records and acts as valid.

What type of federal system is the separation of power between national and state governments most clearly established?

Dual federalism in which sovereign powers are clearly separated between the different levels of government, such as the national and state governments.

What is a constitutional provision which increased power of state governments and one that restricted state government power?

Enhanced State Power: Tenth Amendment (The Tenth Amendment reserves to the states powers that were not delegated to the national government or prohibited to the states.) Restricted State Power: Article I, Section 10 (Lists powers that are specifically denied to the states, therefore restricting the powers that may be exercised by the states.)

Tenth Amendment

Establishes that powers not delegated to the federal government are reserved to the states.

What is an accurate comparison of national and state government powers?

Exclusive to National Government: Create army. Power of Both National and State Governments: Define and punish crimes. (National: "to raise and support armies" in Article I, Section 8; States: power to "keep troops" in Article I, Section 10.)

Mandates

Federal government (Congress) orders states to take certain actions (obey laws). If states don't take those actions they don't receive funding. States must comply with federal laws and court decisions.

Grants-in-Aid

Funds given by national government (congress) to state and local governments.

Categorical Grants

Given for a specific purpose that comes with restrictions concerning how the money should be spent (strings attached). More common than block.

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

In 1816 Congress established the second National Bank of the United States. Many states, including Maryland, opposed branches of the National Bank within their borders. They believed the National Bank was an abuse of Congress' constitutional power and that it would have an unfair advantage when competing with their state banks. Thus, they imposed a tax on the bank, which James McCulloch (the bank's cashier) refused to pay.

What did the court rule in the United States v. Lopez (1995) case?

In 1995 the Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision that the Gun-Free School Zone Act was unconstitutional. In the United States v. Lopez decision the court recognized that while Congress does have broad lawmaking authority under the Commerce Clause, their authority was limited. The court found that the possession of a firearm in a school zone was not an economic activity, nor would it have a significant impact on the national economy. They went on to say that if the Gun-Free School Zones Act remained a law it would give Congress the type of policing power that is reserved for the states. This is one of several court decisions made by the Rehnquist court that is considered a devolution case, meaning that the court returned power to the states.

What was the outcome of the United States v. Lopez (1995) case?

In a 5-4 decision, the ruling of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals was upheld by the Supreme Court & the majority ruled that the language of the original Gun-Free Zones Act of 1990 didn't authorize Congress to regulate firearm possession through the Commerce Clause. Justices argued that mere possession of a firearm had no effect on commerce nor did it impact the economy in a major way.

Explain how the facts of McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) and the facts of Gibbons v. Ogden (1824) led to a similar holding in both cases.

In the case of McCulloch v. Maryland, the Supreme Court ruled that the Congress had the power to establish a national bank and that the state (Maryland) did not have the power to tax branches of the federal government. In the case of Gibbons v. Ogden, the Supreme court ruling result to the power of the federal government over interstate commerce getting more strengthened. In conclusion, the common factor between these case is that the supreme court ruled a case between state government and central government and ended up ruling in favor of the federal government

U.S. v. Lopez (1995)

In this case, Alfonso Lopez was a 12th grade student in Texas accused of bringing a concealed handgun along with cartridges into his high school. When discovered by school administrators, he was charged by authorities with violating the federal Gun-Free School Zone Act of 1990. Upon conviction, Lopez appealed the decision to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals on the grounds that the verdict rested upon an improper interpretation of congressional power as expressed through the Commerce Clause of the Constitution. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned Lopez's conviction, and in turn, the U.S. government sought clarification of the issue from the Supreme Court.

What is the U.S. v. Lopez (1995) notable for?

It was the first Supreme Court case since the New Deal which restricted the regulatory power of Congress granted by the Commerce Clause.

Extradition

Legal process whereby an alleged criminal offender is surrendered by the officials of one states to officials of the state in which the crime is alleged to have been committed.

What best supported Maryland's position in McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)?

Maryland's argument was rooted in the Tenth Amendment, which says, "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States." Maryland believed that the Constitution did not specifically grant the federal government the power to charter a bank and thus it was unconstitutional.

Formula Grants

Money distributed based on a formula of factors, ex. population, per capita income, % of rural population, etc.; non- competitive.

Block Grants

Money given for a fairly broad purpose with few strings attached.

Privileges & Immunities Clause

Part of Article IV of the Constitution guaranteeing that the citizens of each state are afforded the same rights as citizens of all other states.

Exclusive/Delegated Powers

Powers given only to the national government.

Reserved Powers

Powers given only to the state government. (10th Amendment)

Concurrent Powers

Powers shared by the national and state governments.

Devolution

Process in which states are given power and responsibility for some programs initiated by the federal government. Idea is championed most by conservatives who prefer "small" government. Begun under President Clinton and Republican-controlled Congress in 1994 - "Contract with America" (to reduce size of fed. gov).

Revenue Sharing

Surplus federal money given back to the states with no restrictions concerning how the money should be spent (no strings attached). President Reagan ended this practice because of budget deficit.

What in the Constitution describes the grant of powers to the national and state governments?

The Constitution delegates specific powers to Congress in Article I, Section 8 and to the president in Article II, Section 2. Specific state powers are not listed, however, but are "reserved" in the language of the 10th Amendment.

U.S. v. Lopez (1995) reflects what shift in American beliefs?

The Court's decision reflected the public's concern about the growth of federal power and its desire to return more authority to the states.

What supported the national government's perspective in the court case McCulloch v. Maryland?

The Necessary and Proper Clause supports the establishment of a National Bank.

What clause helped support the decision in the McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) case?

The Necessary and Proper Clause was used to further support establishing a national bank b/c it was necessary and proper for the national government to tax, borrow money and regulate commerce.

Identify the common constitutional clause used by the Supreme Court to reach its decisions in both McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) and Gibbons v. Ogden (1824).

The Supremacy Clause was the common constitutional clause used by the Supreme Court to reach its decisions in both cases.

What does the 10th amendment state?

The Tenth Amendment states that the powers reserved to the states include those that are not delegated to the national government and not prohibited to the states by the Constitution.

What was a change in the allocation/issuing of national and state power that has occurred since the ratification of the Constitution?

The ability of the national government to implement policy within the states has increased as a result of its increased taxing power based on the 16th Amendment and its use of some of these funds to provide grants to states.

What enumerated power was most relevant and helped support the decision in the McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) case?

The ability to control interstate commerce (Article I, Section 8).

Commerce Clause

The clause in the Constitution (Article I, Section 8, Clause 1) that gives Congress the power to regulate all business activities that cross state lines or affect more than one state or other nations.

The United States v. Lopez (1995) case is different than McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) because in the Lopez case

The court ruled that the Commerce Clause could not be used to expand federal powers.

In United States v. Lopez (1995), the federal government's principal argument was that

The existence of firearms in schools would jeopardize the economy by increasing insurance rates and inhibiting student learning. It claimed that the existence of guns in the schools would increase violence causing insurance rates to rise and student performance to fall.

What power is constitutionally exercised by both the national and state governments?

The national government gained the power to tax income as a result of the 16th Amendment, and state governments already had the power to raise revenue through income taxes so both levels of government may constitutionally exercise this power.

What is a power reserved to state governments by the Tenth Amendment?

The power to create local governments.

What power is exercised exclusively by the national government, thus limiting the role of state governments?

The power to enter into treaties with foreign nations is given to the president subject to approval by the Senate in Article II, Section 2. States are prohibited from entering into treaties in Article I, section 10.

In what situation would the state action violate the Constitution?

The state attempting to punish residents for something that has already occurred, making the law an unconstitutional ex post facto law which is prohibited by Article I, section 10 of the Constitution.

What did the McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) case challenge?

This case challenged the federal government's power to establish a national bank. Maryland placed a tax on the banks that were not chartered (specifically approved by the state) because they felt the national bank had an unfair competitive advantage. The Bank of the United States was the only bank in Maryland that was not chartered.

Fiscal Federalism

Where funding is appropriated by the federal government to influence and control the states with specific conditions attached.

During the McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) case, Court Chief Justice John Marshall said the "power to tax is the power to destroy". These words were directed at

a state tax on banks not chartered by the state.

Fiscal federalism is best described as

the ways in which the national government can use its powers to tax and spend to impact its relationship with state governments, especially through use of grants in aid.