Chapter 3: Federalism Flashcards
A system of government in which power is divided, by a constitution, between a central government and regional governments
Federalism
A centralized government system in which lower levels of government have a little power independent of the national government
Unitary system
Specific powers granted by the Constitution to Congress (Article l, Section 8) and the president (Article ll)
Expressed powers
Powers derived from the necessary and proper clause of article 1, section 8, of the Constitution;
such powers are not specifically expressed but implied through the expansive interpretation of delegated powers
Implied powers
Article 1, section 8, of the Constitution which provides Congress with authority to make laws necessary and proper to carry out its expressed powers
Necessary and proper clause
Powers, derived from the 10th amendment to the constitution, that are not specifically delegated to the national government or denied to the states
Reserved powers
Power reserved to the state government to regulate the health, safety, and morals of its citizens
Police power
Authority possessed by both state and national governments, such as the power to levy taxes
Concurrent powers
Article IV, Section 1, of the Constitution requiring that the states normally honor the public acts and judicial decisions that take place in another state
Full faith and credit clause
Article IV, section 2, of the Constitution that a state cannot discriminate against someone from another state or give its own resident special privileges
Privileges and immunities clause
Power delegated by the state to a local unit of government to manage its own affairs
Home rule
The system of government that prevailed in the United States from 1789 to 1937 in which most fundamental governmental powers are shared between the federal and state governments
Dual Federalism
Article 1, section 8, of the Constitution, which delegates to Congress the power “to regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states and with Indian tribes”;
This clause was interpreted by the Supreme Court in favor of national power over the economy
Commerce clause
The principle that states should oppose the increasing authority of the national government; this principle was most popular in the period before the Civil War
State’s rights
Programs through which Congress provides money to state and local government’s on the condition that funds be employed for purposes defined by the federal government
Grants-in-aid
Congressional grants given to states and localities on the condition that expenditures be limited to a problem or group specified by law
Categorical grants
Grant programs in which state and local governments submit proposals to federal agencies and for which funding is provided on a competitive basis
Project grants
Grants-in-aid in which a formula is used to determine the amount of federal funds a state or local government will receive
Formula grants
A type of federalism existing since the New Deal era in which grants-in-aid have been used strategically to encourage states and localities (without commanding them) to pursue nationally defined goals
Cooperative federalism
also known as intergovernmental corporation
Cooperative federalism
A form of federalism in which Congress imposes legislation on state and localities, requiring them to meet national standards
Regulated federalism
The principle that allows the national government to override state or local actions and certain policy areas;
in foreign policy, willingness to strike first in order to prevent an enemy attack
Preemption
Regulations or conditions for receiving grants that impose costs on state and local governments for which they are not reimbursed by the federal government
Unfunded mandates
A policy to remove a program from one level of government by delegating it or passing it down to a lower level of government, such as from the national government to the state and local governments
Devolution
