Federalism

Question 1

Federalism

Answer 1

a system of government in which power is divided, by a constitution, between a central government and regional governments

Question 2

unitary system

Answer 2

a centralized government system in which lower levels of government have little independence of the national government

Question 3

federal system

Answer 3

a system of government in which the national government shares power with lower levels of government, such as states.

Question 4

expressed powers

Answer 4

specific powers granted by the Constitution to Congress(Article I, Section 8) and to the President(Article II)

Question 5

implied powers

Answer 5

powers derived from the necessary and proper clause of Article I Section 8 of the constitution. Such power are not specifically expressed but are implied through the expansive interpretation of delegated powers

Question 6

necessary and proper clause

Answer 6

Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution, it provides Congress the authority to make all laws “necessary and proper” to carry out all expressed powers.

Question 7

reserved powers

Answer 7

powers derived from the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution, that are not specifically designated to the national government or denied to the states

Question 8

police power

Answer 8

power reserved to the state government to regulate the health, safety, and morals of its citizens

Question 9

concurrent powers

Answer 9

authority possessed by both state and national governments, such as the ability to levy taxes

Question 10

full faith and credit clause

Answer 10

provision from 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

Question 11

privileges and immunities clause

Answer 11

provision from Article IV, Section 2, of the Constitution, that a state cannot discriminate against someone from another state or give its own residents special priviliges

Question 12

home rule

Answer 12

power delegated by the state to a local unit of government to manage its own affairs

Question 13

dual federalism

Answer 13

the system of government that prevailed in the US from 1789 to 1937, in which most fundamental government powers were shared between the federal and state governments

Question 14

commerce clause

Answer 14

Article I, Section * which delegates to congress the power to regulate commerce with foreign nations and among the several states and with the Indian tribes. This clause was interpreted by the supreme court in favor of national power over the economy

Question 15

states’ rights

Answer 15

the principle that the states should oppose the increasing authority of the national government. This principle was popular in the period before the civil war

Question 16

devolution

Answer 16

a policy to remove a program from level of government by delegating it to a lower level of government, such as from the national government to the state and local governments

Question 17

grants-in-aid

Answer 17

programs through which congress provides money to the state and local governments on the condition y=that the funds be employed for the purposes defined by the federal government

Question 18

categorical grants

Answer 18

congressional grants given to state and localities on the condition that expenditures be limited to a problem or group specified by law

Question 19

project grants

Answer 19

grant programs in which state and local governments submit proposals to federal agencies and for which funding is provided on a competitive basis

Question 20

formula grants

Answer 20

grants-in-aid in which a formula is used to determine the amount of federal funds a state of local government will recieve

Question 21

cooperative federalism

Answer 21

a type of federalism existing since the New Deal era in which grants-in-aid have been used strategically to encourage states and localities to pursue nationally defined goals. Also known as “intergovernmental cooperation”

Question 22

regulated federalism

Answer 22

a form of federalism in which Congress imposes regulations on state and localities, requiring them to meet national standards

Question 23

preemption

Answer 23

the principle that allows the national government to override state or local actions in certain policy areas; in foreign policy, the willingness to strike first in order to prevent an enemy attack

Question 24

unfunded mandates

Answer 24

regulations or conditions for receiving grants that impose costs on a state and local government for which they are not reimbursed by the federal governmetn

Question 25

block grants

Answer 25

federal grants-in-aid that allow states considerable discretion in how the funds are spent

Question 26

New Federalism

Answer 26

attempts by Presidents Nixon and Regan to return power to the states through block grants

Question 27

re-distributive programs

Answer 27

economic policies designed to control the economy through taxing and spending, with the goal of benefiting the poor