click below
click below
Normal Size Small Size show me how
GOVT - Ch 3
Federalism
Term | Definition |
---|---|
federalism | A system of shared sovereignty between two levels of government - one national and one subnational - occupying the same geographic location. |
unitary system | A centralized governmental system in which local or subdivisional governments exercise only those powers given to them by the central government. |
confederal system | A league of independent sovereign states, joined together by a central government that has only limited powers over them. |
division of powers | A basic principle of federalism established by the US Constitution by which powers are divided between the federal and state governments. |
expressed powers | Constitutional or statutory powers that are expressly provided for by the US Constitution. |
implied powers | The powers of the federal government that are implied by the expressed powers in the Constitution (Article 1, Section 8). |
necessary and proper clause | Article 1, Section 8, Clause 18 of the Constitution, which gives Congress the power to make all laws "necessary and proper" for the federal government to carry out its responsibilities (elastic clause). |
inherent powers | The powers of the national government that, although no always expressly granted by the Constitution, are necessary to ensure the nation's integrity and survival as a political unit. |
police powers | The powers of a government body that enable it to create laws for the protection of the health, morals, safety, and welfare of the people in the US (most reserved to states). |
concurrent powers | Powers held by both the federal and the state governments in a federal system. |
supremacy clause | Article6, Clause 2 of the Constitution, which makes the Constitution and federal laws superior to all conflicting state and local laws. |
secession | The act of formally withdrawing fro membership in an alliance. |
dual federalism | A system of government in which the federal and the state governments maintain diverse but sovereign powers. |
cooperative federalism | The theory that the states and the federal government should cooperate in solving problems. |
New Deal | The policies ushered in by the Roosevelt administration in 1933 in an attempt to bring the US out of the Great Depression/ |
picket-fence federalism | A model of federalism in which specific policies and programs are administered by all levels of government - national, state, local. |
preemption | A doctrine rooted in the supremacy clause of the Constitution that provides that national laws or regulations governing a certain area take precedence over conflicting state laws or regulations governing that same area. |
new federalism | A plan to limit the federal government's role in regulating state governments and to give the states increased power to decide how they should spend government revenues. |
devolution | The surrender or transfer of powers to local authorities by a central government. |
federal mandate | A requirement in federal legislation that forces states and municipalities to comply with certain rules. |
unfunded mandate | A mandate that the federal government does not provide compliance funds for. |
fiscal federalism | The allocation of taxes collected by one level of government (typically national) to another level (typically state/local). |
categorical grant | A federal grant targeted for a specific purpose as defined by federal law. |
block grant | A federal grant given to a state for a broad area. |
competitive federalism | A model of federalism devised by Thomas R. Dye in which state and local governments compete for businesses and citizens, who effect "vote with their feet" by moving to jurisdictions that offer a competitive advantage. |