The Federal System:

National and State Powers

The Division of Powers•The Constitution divided

government authority by giving the national government specified powers, reserving all other powers to the states or the people.

•The national and state governments share some powers.

•The Constitution specifically denied some powers to each level of government.

National Powers•The Constitution grants 3 types

of powers to the national government: expressed, implied, and inherent powers.

•Collectively, these powers are known as the delegated powers.

Expressed powers• Powers that are directly expressed or

stated in the Constitution.• Most are found in the first 3 articles.• Examples: power to coin money,

declare war, collect taxes, and regulate commerce.

• Expressed powers are also known as enumerated powers.

Implied Powers• Powers that the national government

requires to carry out the powers that are expressly defined in the Constitution.

• Example: the power to draft people to the army is an implied power from the power to raise an army.

• The basis of implied powers comes from the elastic clause, which allows Congress to “stretch” its powers.

Inherent Powers• Powers that the national government

exercises just because it is a government.

• Example: National government must control immigration and establish diplomatic relations with other countries, even though these powers are not spelled out in the Constitution.

The States and the Nation• The Constitution reserves certain powers

to the states, known as reserved powers.• Even though it does not list the reserved

powers, in the 10th Amendment it states those powers “not delegated to the US by the Constitution, nor prohibited by the states.”

• Examples: education, establish local government, administer elections, hunting and fishing laws, protect the public’s health and welfare, and intrastate commerce.

Supremacy Clause•Article VI, Section 2 of the

Constitution makes acts and treaties of the US supreme law.

•No state law or state constitution may conflict with any form of national law.

Concurrent Powers• Powers that both the national and

state governments have.• Each level exercises these powers

independently.• Examples: power to tax, borrow

money, maintain courts and define crimes, and appropriate private property for public use.

Denied Powers• Article I, section 9 of the

Constitution enumerates powers the national government cannot do. –Example: Cannot tax exports

• Section 10 presents a long list of powers denied to the states.–Example: No state can make alliances or treaties with foreign nations.

Guarantees to the States• Outlined in Article IV, Sections 3 and 4

• Guarantees each state a republican form of government.

• The only extensive use of this guarantee was after the Civil War when southern states would not ratify the Civil War amendments that granted citizenship rights to African Americans. They were refused seats in the House and the Senate until they changed their laws to recognize these rights.

Protection• The national government must

protect states from invasion and domestic violence. An attack by a foreign power on one state is considered an attack on the US.

• Congress has given the president authority to send federal troops to put down domestic disorders.

• Examples: rioting in the 1960s or the blocking of integration of schools. It also has been extended to national disasters such as floods and hurricanes.

Territorial Integrity•The national government has the

duty to respect the territorial integrity of each state.

•They cannot use territory from an existing state to create a new state unless the national government has the permission from the legislature of the state involved.

Admission of New States• 37 states have joined the union since

the original 13 formed the nation.• Congress has the power to admit new

states.• There are 2 restrictions on this power.

1. No state can be formed by taking territory from another state without its consent.

2. Acts of submission are subject to presidential veto.

• The procedure for admission begins when Congress passes an enabling act. When the president signs this act, it enables the people of the territory to prepare a constitution. After the constitution has been drafted and approved by popular vote in the area, it is submitted to Congress.

• If Congress is still agreeable, it passes an act admitting the territory as a state.

• West Virginia was said to be a violation of the Constitution because 40 counties from Virginia had broke away and the state legislature did not consent.

Equality of the States•Once admitted to the Union, each state is equal to all other states and has rights to control its internal affairs.

Obligations of States• States perform 2 functions for the

national government.• State and local governments conduct

and pay for elections of all national government officials.

• The state also plays a key role in the amending process. For an amendment to be ratified, ¾ of the states must agree to it.

The Supreme Court as an Umpire• Since powers are divided between the

levels of government, conflicts frequently arise. Disputes are settled in federal courts, especially in the Supreme Court.

• The landmark case of McCulloch v. Maryland was an issue dealing with conflict between the state and national government. The decision of the court established that the national government is supreme.