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A nice summary of the three types of Federalism we have been discussing this year

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Federalism is a form of government in which power is divided between the national government and other, smaller governmental units. It attempts to strike a balance between a unitary government such as a monarchy, in which the central authority holds exclusive power, and a confederation, in which the smaller units, such as states, hold the most power.

Influenced by the Federalist Party, the framers of the U.S. Constitution created a strong national government to resolve the problems arising from the Articles of Confederation, which allowed the states far too much power. While the Constitution specifically lists the broad set of enumerated and implied powers of the national government, it emphasizes what the states cannot do. Powers specifically granted to the states are limited to establishing voter qualifications and setting up the mechanics of elections. This apparent imbalance of power is corrected by the Tenth Amendment, which reserves to the states all powers either not specifically granted to the national government or specifically denied to the states. Since the rather vague language of the Tenth Amendment allows for widely different interpretations, it is not surprising that different varieties of federalism have evolved over the years.

Dual Federalism

Dual federalism is a system in which the national and state governments operate separately. Power is divided between the federal and state governments in a way that maintains a balance between the two. Much as the framers of the Constitution intended, the states are allowed to exercise the limited powers granted to them with little or no interference from the federal government. Political scientists often refer to dual federalism as "layer-cake federalism" due to its clear division of powers between federal and state governments.

As America's first application of federalism, dual federalism arose from dissatisfaction with the Articles of Confederation. Ratified in 1781, the Articles created an extremely weak federal government with powers limited to declaring war, making foreign treaties, and maintaining an army. Fueled by Shays' Rebellion in 1786 and the federal government's inability to raise the money needed to pay the nation's debt from the American Revolution, the Federalists succeeded in convincing the delegates to the Constitutional Convention of 1787 to create a Constitution providing a strong central government.

The extent of the federal government's power under the early system of dual federalism was clarified by the U.S. Supreme Court in several seminal cases. In the 1819 case of McCulloch v. Maryland, for example, the Supreme Court ruled that the Constitution's Necessary and Proper Clause gave Congress the right to create national banks that could not be taxed by the states. In the 1824 case of Gibbons v. Ogden, the Court held that the Commerce Clause of the Constitution gave Congress the power to regulate interstate commerce, including the commercial use of navigable waterways. While the constitutionality of some aspects of these decisions remained vague, leaving the exact meaning of the Necessary and Proper and Commerce Clauses in question, they reaffirmed the supremacy of federal law and diminished the powers of the states.

Dual federalism remained the predominant form of government until the 1930s when it was replaced by cooperative federalism, or "marble-cake federalism," in which the federal and state governments work together in creating and administering public policy.

Cooperative Federalism

Cooperative federalism is a model of intergovernmental relations that recognizes the need for federal and state governments to share power equally to solve shared, often momentous, problems collectively. Within this approach, the lines between the two governments' powers are blurred. Instead of finding themselves at odds as was often the case under dual federalism, bureaucratic agencies at the national and state level typically carry out governmental programs cooperatively.

Though the term "cooperative federalism" was not used until the 1930s its basic concept of federal and state cooperation dates back to the administration of President Thomas Jefferson. During the 1800s, federal government land grants were used to help implement a variety of state government programs such as college education, veterans' benefits, and transportation infrastructure. Under the Swamp Lands Acts of 1849, 1850, and 1860, for example, millions of acres of federally-owned wetlands were ceded to 15 interior and coastal states. The states drained and sold the land, using the profits to fund flood control projects. Similarly, the Morrill Act of 1862 gave land grants to several states for the establishment of state colleges.

The model of cooperative federalism was expanded in the 1930s as the sweeping state-federal cooperative programs of President Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal initiative brought the nation out of the Great Depression. Cooperative federalism remained the norm throughout World War II, the Cold War, and up until the 1960s, when the Great Society initiatives of President Lyndon B. Johnson declared America's "War on Poverty."

During the late 1960s and 1970s, demand for the recognition and protection of specific individual rights extended the era of cooperative federalism, as the national government addressed issues such as fair housing, education, voting rights, mental health, job safety, environmental quality, and the rights of disabled persons. As the federal government created new policies to address these issues, it looked to the states to implement a wide array of federally enforced mandates. Since the late 1970s, federal mandates requiring state participation have become more exacting and binding. The federal government now commonly imposes deadlines for implementation and threatens to withhold federal funding from states that fail to meet them.

Several political scientists argue that the European Union (EU) is evolving into a system of cooperative federalism. Similar to the United States, the countries of the EU function like a federation of sovereign states standing on a "middle ground" between international and national law. Since its founding in 1958, the EU has experienced a decline in the constitutional and legislative exclusivity on the part of the individual member states. Today, the EU and its member states operate in an atmosphere of shared powers. Due to the decline in legislative exclusivity, legislative policies of the EU and its states increasingly complement each other to solve social problems-the key characteristic of cooperative federalism.

New Federalism

New federalism refers to the gradual return of power to the states initiated by President Ronald Reagan with his "Devolution Revolution" in the 1980s. The intent of new federalism is the restoration of some of the power and autonomy lost by the states during the late 1930s as a result of President Roosevelt's New Deal programs.

Similar to cooperative federalism, new federalism typically involves the federal government providing block grant funds to the states to resolve social issues, such as affordable housing, law enforcement, public health, and community development. While the federal government monitors the outcomes, the states are allowed far greater discretion for how the programs are implemented than they were under cooperative federalism. Advocates of this approach cite Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis who wrote in his dissent in the 1932 case of New State Ice Co. v. Liebmann, "It is one of the happy incidents of the federal system that a single courageous state may, if its citizens choose, serve as a laboratory; and try novel social and economic experiments without risk to the rest of the country."

As fiscal conservatives, President Reagan and his successor, George W. Bush, believed that the new federalism's devolution of power represented a way to cut government spending by shifting much of the responsibility-and the cost-of administering federal programs to the states. From the late 1980s through the mid-1990s, the Devolution Revolution gave states tremendous power to rewrite the rules of their social welfare programs. However, some economists and social scientists argue that the actual intent of the Devolution Revolution was the large-scale withdrawal of federal support for social welfare, no matter how well-conceived. Deprived of federal matching funds, the states were forced to reduce spending, often by depriving their dependent populations of help.

From Dual to New Federalism

Until the rise of new federalism, the powers of the states had been greatly limited by the Supreme Court's interpretations of the Commerce Clause of the Constitution. As contained in Article I, Section 8, the Commerce Clause grants the federal government to power to regulate interstate commerce, which is defined as the sale, purchase, or exchange of commodities or the transportation of people, money, or goods between different states. Congress has often used the Commerce Clause to justify laws-such as gun control laws-restricting the activities of states and their citizens. Often spurring controversy regarding the balance of power between the federal government and the states, the Commerce Clause has historically been viewed as both a grant of congressional authority and as an attack on states' rights.

From 1937 to 1995, the main period of state-restrictive dual federalism, the Supreme Court refused to overturn a single federal law for overstepping Congress's power under the Commerce Clause. Instead, the consistently ruled that any action on the part of the states or their citizens that that could conceivably have even a slight impact on commerce across state line was subject to strict federal regulation.

In 1995 and again in 2000, it was considered a slight victory for new federalism when the Supreme Court, under William Rehnquist-who had been elevated to Chief Justice by President Reagan-reined in federal regulatory power in the cases of United States v. Lopez and United States v. Morrison. In United States v. Lopez, the Court ruled 5-4 the Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990 unconstitutional, finding that the lawmaking power of Congress under the Commerce Clause was limited, and did not extend so far as to authorize the regulation of the carrying of handguns. In United States v. Morrison, the Court ruled 5-4 that a key section of the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 giving women harmed by gender-based violence the right to sue their assailants in civil court was unconstitutional because it exceeded the powers granted to the US Congress under the Commerce Clause and the Fourteenth Amendment's Equal Protection Clause.

In 2005, however, the Supreme Court took a slight turn back towards dual federalism in the case of Gonzales v. Raich, ruling that the federal government could outlaw the use of marijuana for medical purposes under the Commerce Clause even if the marijuana had never been bought or sold, and never crossed state lines.

Law, John. "How Can We Define Federalism?" Perspectives on Federalism, Vol. 5, issue 3, 2013, http://www.on-federalism.eu/attachments/169_download.pdf.

Katz, Ellis. "American Federalism, Past, Present, and Future." The U.S. Information Service's Electronic Journal, August 2015, http://peped.org/politicalinvestigations/article-1-us-federalism-past-present-future/.

Boyd, Eugene. "American Federalism, 1776 to 2000: Significant Events." Congressional Research Service, November 30, 2000, https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/RL/RL30772/2.

Conlan, Timothy. "From New Federalism to Devolution: Twenty-five Years of Intergovernmental Reform." Brookings Institution, 1988, https://www.brookings.edu/book/from-new-federalism-to-devolution/.

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Types of Federalism: Definition and Examples

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Federalism, as America's constitutionally created form of government, has been interpreted and applied in different ways over the years.

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National Archives on the Physical Constitution

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National Archives on the Physical Constitution

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Ever see National Treasure??? Here is the story of the drafting of the Constitution.

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September 17 is designated as Constitution Day to commemorate the signing of the U.S. Constitution in Philadelphia on September 17, 1787. The National Archives is the home to the original, engrosse...

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Harvard University Declaration of Independence Resources

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Harvard University Declaration of Independence Resources

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Harvard has a great resource page on our founding document. Scroll around - there is even a game!

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Housed at the West Sussex Record Office in Chichester, UK; uncovered by the Declaration Resources Project in August 2015

The only known parchment manuscript copy of the Declaration of Independence apart from the engrossed and signed parchment in the National Archives (referred to herein as the Matlack Declaration). Both words-"parchment" and "manuscript"-are important. There are other parchment copies that were printed; these are the only two parchment copies that were handwritten. There are also other handwritten copies of the Declaration, for instance, with the text written out on letter-sized paper for private circulation. The Matlack Declaration and the Sussex Declaration are the only two parchment manuscript copies of the Declaration.

Measures 24" x 30", the same size as the Matlack Declaration, but oriented horizontally

Interesting features include marginal ruling, decorative penwork around the titling, evidence of nail holes, and justified, round hand script

The list of the names of the signers is not in state order, as was typical; the names are scrambled, and several are misspelled

Material evidence dates the parchment manuscript to the late 18th century

Click here for images of the Sussex Declaration and related documents (see the "Please Read" document for image permissions and credits).
Please direct all all press inquiries to Peter Reuell, and all inquiries about the Sussex Declaration to Emily Sneff.

Materials Related to July 2018 Press Release:

Our research on the Sussex Declaration includes three components:

1. Dating the parchment manuscript using material evidence
"The Sussex Declaration: Dating the Parchment Manuscript of the Declaration of Independence Held at the West Sussex Record Office (Chichester, UK)"
The Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America, vol. 112, no. 3 (September 2018)

2. Determining who commissioned the parchment manuscript and why
"Golden Letters: James Wilson, the Declaration of Independence, and the Sussex Declaration"
Georgetown Journal of Law and Public Policy, vol. 17, no. 1 (Winter 2019)

3. Identifying when and how the parchment manuscript moved from the United States to the United Kingdom
Research currently in progress: The Sussex Declaration was possibly held by the Third Duke of Richmond (1735-1806). Known as the "Radical Duke" for his support of the Americans during the Revolution, his county seat is in Sussex in the UK. The parchment manuscript was deposited at the West Sussex Record Office with other papers from the Dukes of Richmond's law firm. The parchment is, however, American and, given its dating, is most likely to have been produced in New York or Philadelphia. While the parchment may have moved to the UK in the 1780s or 1790s, when the Third Duke could have received it, it is also possible that it moved to the UK only after 1836. An engraving was made from it, or from an identical text, in Boston in that year.

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When and How did the Colonies Find Out about the Declaration?

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Resources on the Articles of Confederation

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Resources on the Articles of Confederation

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Check out these various resources that will help you understand the Articles of Confederation - why they were written and why they were ditched!

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Research Guides: Articles of Confederation: Primary Documents in American History: Related Online Resources

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Ratified on March 1, 1781, the Articles of Confederation served as the United States’ first constitution. This guide provides access to digital materials at the Library of Congress, links to related external websites, and a selected print bibliography.

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There is a whole non-profit devoted to educating our citizens on the Constitution. Great resourse!

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Civic Holiday

Juneteenth

Juneteenth is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending slavery in the United States. Visitors can commemorate this historic event with special tours of the Center's exhibit, Civil War and Reconstruction: The Battle for Freedom and Equality or additional programs highlighting freedom fighters from the Reconstruction era like Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, and more.

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The National Constitution Center serves as America's leading platform for constitutional education and debate.

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New Hampshire Public Radio has loads of cool podcasts that speak to many of the issues we are learning about in class!

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2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 Hosted by Hannah McCarthy & Nick Capodice
Note: Episodes beyond this point were produced in a different format (interview) than today's version of Civics 101. Many of the topics have been revisited or updated in newer episodes of the podcast.

NOTE: Episodes beyond this point were hosted by Virginia Prescott. Many topics have been revisited in more recent episodes of Civics 101.
2017 Episodes hosted by Virginia Prescott. Many topics have been revisited or updated in newer episodes of Civics 101.

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Over 350 episodes on how our government works. Listen to episodes, read transcripts, and download lesson plans.