How does Federalism operate today?Follow

Federalism

In addition to separating the powers of the national government into three distinct branches, the Constitution also divides powers between the national government and the state governments. The Constitution grants specific powers to the national government, such as the authority to regulate interstate commerce and to print and coin money. Other powers are reserved to the states.

In the American federal system there are multiple levels of government that perform a wide variety of functions. There are very few powers that are held and exercised exclusively by only one level of government. In almost every instance, powers are shared by overlapping levels of government.

The national government does, however, have exclusive authority over several important areas of national policy. These include the power to:

* Borrow money on the credit of the United States
* Raise and support Armies and provide an maintain a Navy and Declare War
* Regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the States
* Issue patents and copyrights
* Resolve disputes between the states

The Constitution also establishes that where state and national laws conflict, the state law or laws in question shall be invalid. In the federal system, the national government is supreme.

Shared Powers in the Federal System

There are several shared powers that the national and state governments exercise jointly. These include:

* Laying and collect taxes
* Passing, enforcing and adjudicating the laws of the land
* Protecting the environment and civil rights
* Promoting economic development

Powers Forbidden to the States

The Constitution includes several prohibitions on state behavior. Most notably, states cannot:

* Make treaties with foreign government
* Print or coin their own money
* Overrule civil judgments (such as divorce settlements) of courts in other states
* Treat nonresidents differently from residents (except for charging nonresidents more than residents for tuition to attend state colleges and universities)
* Refuse extradition requests from other states (if someone is charged with a crime in another state, a state must surrender the suspect to the state where the crime was committed)
* Wage war against other states or nations

Federalism Today

Historically, the relationship between the states and the national government has been characterized by a gradual shift in authority and power away from the states toward the national government. During the early years of the nation, "dual sovereignty," was the most widely held interpretation of federal-state relations. According to this view, there were clear divisions of authority between the national and state governments and each operated in a sphere of independence as it exercised its powers. This view gradually gave way to a view of "cooperative federalism" and even "permissive federalism," both of which suggested less state independence and autonomy than did the "dual" perspective.

During the 1990s, there has been a concerted effort, both on the part of the states and the national government, to reinvigorate the states and their role in the federal system. The National Governors' Association has aggressively fought for more independence for the states in their policy making and the Congress and President have "reformed" welfare, transferring responsibility for most low-income assistance programs to the state level. Recent Supreme Court decisions have even made reference to "dual sovereignty," generally ruling in favor of states in disputes between national and state governments.

Terms & Concepts

* cooperative federalism View that the national and state governments are partners, not competitors, in the exercise of governmental authority.
* dual federalism View that the national government and state governments have distinct realms of authority which do not overlap and into which the other should not intrude.
* federalism System of government in which powers are divided and shared between different levels, e.g. national, state and local.
* permissive federalism View that, because the national government is supreme, the states only have those powers which the national government permits them to exercise.
* shared powers Powers which are held and exercised by more than one level of government.

Think About it

* How does federalism promote the protection of individual rights and liberties?
* What are the benefits of federalism? Are there any costs?