Chapter Eight

State and Local Government

State Government

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The States

State Governmentshave been established to serve the people

• decide how many days you must attend school each year• pass laws that affect the people living in your state• help pay for public education• help pay for state parks• provide hospitals• build and maintain state roadways

after independence• original 13 states acted like small, separate nations

• each state regulated trade crossing its borders• often treated neighboring states as if they were foreign countries

the first few years of the republic• seemed like the U.S. would break up into

13 small, weak countries

Constitution• established the rules of the new country• states gave up some powers to the new national government• states kept other powers for themselves• created a federal system with a strong national government

• powers are divided between the 50 states and the federal government

• gave the federal government powers that affected all U.S. citizens• states have power to govern the people who live within their borders

• are closer to the people and can better provide them with many needed services

A New Government

federal government has powers that affect all U.S. citizens• conducting foreign policy• printing money• maintaining a post office• defending the country• maintain an army and a navy• regulate trade between the states

Delegated Federal Powers

tenth amendment• reserves certain powers to state governments

• those not granted to the federal government or prohibited to the states

states are responsible for• conducting local, state, and national elections

• the federal system depends on the states to ensure that Americans are given the opportunity to elect their representatives

• deciding most of the qualifications for voting• those not otherwise specified in the U.S. Constitution

• establishing and maintaining schools• state school regulations cannot conflict with the U.S. Constitution

or with Supreme Court rulings • controlling all local governments within their boundaries

• districts, cities, towns, townships, and counties• local governments receive their powers from the states

state laws• deal with health, safety, welfare

• marriage and divorce, traffic regulations • regulate business within state borders

Reserved State Powers

states share many powers with the federal government• even if certain powers are granted to the federal government

in the Constitution, state governments may also have these powers

• unless a power is forbidden to the states by the U.S. Constitution, state governments may exercise that power

shared powers• taxation

• federal, state, and local governments have the power to tax their citizens• must collect various kinds of taxes to carry on their activities

• state governments may raise money by taxing items such as gasoline, liquor, and cigarettes, or through income and property taxes

• money from state taxes pays for education, highways, health and safety programs, and other state services

• establishing court systems• borrowing and spending money• making and enforcing laws

Concurrent Shared Powers

State Constitutionseach of the 50 states has its own constitution

• contains the rules that direct how the state governmentwill be organized and carry out its work

• most state constitutions contain the following:1. a preamble

• states the basic ideas and ideals on which the state government is founded2. a bill of rights

• lists the rights and freedoms guaranteed to all citizens who live in the state3. an outline of the organization of the state's government

• the duties of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches spelled out4. provisions for elections

• qualifications for voting that must be met by the citizens of the state• rules for conducting elections

5. provisions for managing state affairs• education, keeping law and order, building highways, regulating business,

and raising money by means of taxes6. methods of amending or changing the state constitution

• a list of the amendments passed

States Working TogetherConstitution

• created a federal system with a strong national government• powers are divided between the 50 states and the federal

government• when they joined the Union, states agreed to work together in

harmony• full faith and credit clause

• Article IV, Section 1, of the U.S. Constitution• "Full faith and credit [acceptance] shall be given in each State to the

public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other State.“• ensures that each state will accept the decisions of civil courts in

other states• ensures that each state will accept the official records of other states

• marriage certificates, birth certificates, wills, contracts, deeds• state cooperation

• extradition• method of returning fugitives to state where crime was committed

• projects• bridges and roads• reducing water and air pollution

The States and Federal Governmentcooperation between the federal government and 50 states

• domestic violence• Constitution states that the federal government must help any state

put down domestic violence within its borders• such as rioting in a town

• governor may call on the National Guard of the state• governor may ask the federal government for assistance

• furnishing services• building highways• assisting the unemployed• helping people with low incomes• conserving natural resources• providing low-cost lunches for schoolchildren• offering job training to people with disabilities

• times of crisis• natural disasters

• hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, wildfires• security

• terrorism