State Responsibilities vs Federal Responsibilities
Dennis AuBuchon
April 03, 2009
The rights of states was engrained into the Constitution through Amendment ten which is part of the Bill of Rights. To understand what is involved with regards to states rights it is important to read the language of the tenth amendment to the Constitution. Below is the exact wording:
"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people."
States rights are important and we as citizens of our state must understand the responsibilities of our state in conjunction with the responsibilities levied to the federal government. The responsibilities of these two entities can sometimes become unclear in our present economic environment. This article will attempt to present the responsibilities and limits of each entity as define in the U.S. Constitution. The statement above expressly identifies it is a state responsibility for any task not delegated to the Congress. The Constitution identifies the responsibilities of Congress and their limits in establishing laws for the country. It also identifies powers prohibited to the states.
Our Constitution is a great document and was laid out by our founding fathers based on their perception of the role the federal government should play with regards to the security of the country. Some of the responsibilities of Congress will be identified and discussed to some extent except where it is clear what is meant by the responsibility defined. The responsibilities of Congress are defined under Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution. Below is a link to a site which has current information on the details of the U.S. Constitution.
http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html
The first responsibility talks about the Power to lay and collect taxes, duties, to pay the debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States and that all duties (Imposts and Excises) shall be uniform throughout the United States. The key phrase in our current economic situation in this responsibility involves paying the debts. The actions being taken or have been taken is increasing the federal debt which will have to be paid in the future. It is the responsibility of Congress to make arrangements and plans for paying this new level of debt off in the future. How this will be accomplished will be the key.
The next responsibility of the federal government is to borrow money on the credit of the United States. This is currently occurring to fund the stimulus packages and other actions being processed in Congress. Other responsibilities involve regulating commerce with foreign nations and among the states and with Indian tribes. It is also the responsibility of the federal government to establish rules for naturalization of citizens who come to our country and to assure there are uniform laws on the subject of Bankruptcies. Bankruptcies are a sore topic today with our current economic environment. Several major banks and the auto industry received taxpayer funds to help them through difficult times. While many may not understand or accept these actions I believe they were necessary in some cases but the bailouts must end at some point.
Other responsibilities include to coin money, regulate the value of our currency and foreign coins and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures. This also involves providing punishment for counterfeiting the securities and coin of the United States. While there are several other responsibilities such as maintaining and supporting land and naval forces armies. The times we are in are difficult but we will get through them. The above responsibilities are only a portion of what the Constitution identifies as the federal government responsibility. There are however, limits on the powers as defined in the Constitution. The limitations on Congress are contained in Section 9 under Article one of the Constitution.
Some of the limitations of Congress include the restriction on taxing or placing duty on articles exported from any state. Others include that no title of nobility will be granted by the United States and no person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall without the consent of Congress, accept of any present, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince or foreign state. There is also a limitation with regards to giving preference by any Regulation of Commerce or Revenue to the Ports of one state over those of another. All the limitations on Congress can be found on the site link provided above under Article 1, Section 9.
The responsibilities of the states are defined under Article 4 of the Constitution. The responsibilities listed are not lengthy in any respect. The key difference appears to be is that it involves responsibilities in relation to other states not their individual responsibilities. The first principle or responsibility is that each state is to honor all others. This involves such things as faith and credit be given in each state to the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state. The citizens of each state shall be entitled to all privileges and immunities of citizens in the several states.
Another key point in this portion of the Constitution of which we often hear involves the extradition of criminals fleeing to other states. It requires that on demand of the executive authority of the state from which an individual fled that the individual be delivered up and removed to the state having jurisdiction of the crime. There have been news reports where individuals have waived their extradition but this seems to differ from the wording of this portion of the Constitution. Under section 4 of Article 4 of the Constitution the United States shall guarantee to every state in this union a republican form of government and shall protect each of them against Invasion. Below are those powers prohibited to the states. These can be found under Article 1 section 10 of the constitution.
The limitation of powers to the states relate to responsibilities identified as that of the federal government. The first thing to identify is states have no jurisdiction to enter into treaties, alliances or confederations. They also cannot issue coins. It also prevents the imposing of duties for imports except to cover cost of inspection. Other limitations are also noted in article 1, section 10 for any reader of this article to obtain more information.
The details of the U.S. Constitution are specific with regards to state and federal responsibilities. It is important with those responsibilities identified in this article to understand that the basic principle is that the powers which states retain are those not specifically delegated to the federal government. As can be seen in the Constitution there are specific limitations on both Congress and the states and where the responsibility is not delegated to the federal government it is retained by the states.
Today with the economic situation Congress must make hard decisions but those decisions must not tread on the responsibilities and authority of the states. Granted there are going to be issues which are vague where the line between federal and state responsibilities can be hard to determine. Some will involve actions by both levels of government. It is right for the federal government to address issues which affect all the states through legislation. This is necessary to establish a common approach or solution to various issues. An example is the energy crisis we currently have. It is appropriate for the federal government to establish the framework for an energy policy. The policy established should be just that.
The energy policy identified in the last paragraph must provide some research to bring the cost of various alternative energy sources down to reasonable levels. How the state uses the resources is up to them. The energy policy must also look to examples where various industries have used alternate energy sources to power their manufacturing plant that does not harm the environment. There have been advertisements on television of these examples. Congress needs to look at the private sector to find examples where ingenuity by private industry is helping to reduce our energy dependence.
While energy seems to be the focus to a large extent after the financial situation the key point to remember with regards to federal responsibilities is that it must provide for the safety and security of the country. This involves all the actions identified as the responsibility of the nation presented earlier in this article. Actions by the legislature in Washington D.C. must address these primary conditions. States must retain their responsibilities as identified in the Constitution and the federal government should not attempt to take over jurisdiction for state responsibilities. It must also be understood that while there are requirements levied by the federal government many times the states can determine the method with which they will be enforced. The key point states need to remember concerning federally mandated requirements is they must determine an efficient way to manage them.
In conclusion states and the federal government have distinct responsibilities and limitations. Both levels of government must make sure that they are not creating laws which affect state or federal requirements. States must assure they manage federal mandated programs efficiently and the federal government must also not make laws so cumbersome with details except where necessary to cause excessive expenditures at the state level. I have said in other articles that when the federal government places requirements on states that they should at least provide some if not all the funding. This is especially important in the economy we have today.
All programs at the state and federal level should be evaluated for their success and necessity for citizens of the state and the country. Creating additional regulations at either the state or federal level only adds to the cost of government. Governments at all levels must examine their resources and appropriate the necessary funds to address their individual responsibilities. It is true that there may be a need to have deficits at the federal level to address certain needs but this should be kept at the lowest level possible. Increasing the deficit of the United States only increases the burden on taxpayers now and in the foreseeable future. While statements have been made that there are plans to reduce the deficit level it has currently not been identified how this would be achieved given the present economic situation. This is not meant to say that it cannot be done but the American people deserve to know how this will be accomplished.
"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people."
States rights are important and we as citizens of our state must understand the responsibilities of our state in conjunction with the responsibilities levied to the federal government. The responsibilities of these two entities can sometimes become unclear in our present economic environment. This article will attempt to present the responsibilities and limits of each entity as define in the U.S. Constitution. The statement above expressly identifies it is a state responsibility for any task not delegated to the Congress. The Constitution identifies the responsibilities of Congress and their limits in establishing laws for the country. It also identifies powers prohibited to the states.
Our Constitution is a great document and was laid out by our founding fathers based on their perception of the role the federal government should play with regards to the security of the country. Some of the responsibilities of Congress will be identified and discussed to some extent except where it is clear what is meant by the responsibility defined. The responsibilities of Congress are defined under Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution. Below is a link to a site which has current information on the details of the U.S. Constitution.
http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html
The first responsibility talks about the Power to lay and collect taxes, duties, to pay the debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States and that all duties (Imposts and Excises) shall be uniform throughout the United States. The key phrase in our current economic situation in this responsibility involves paying the debts. The actions being taken or have been taken is increasing the federal debt which will have to be paid in the future. It is the responsibility of Congress to make arrangements and plans for paying this new level of debt off in the future. How this will be accomplished will be the key.
The next responsibility of the federal government is to borrow money on the credit of the United States. This is currently occurring to fund the stimulus packages and other actions being processed in Congress. Other responsibilities involve regulating commerce with foreign nations and among the states and with Indian tribes. It is also the responsibility of the federal government to establish rules for naturalization of citizens who come to our country and to assure there are uniform laws on the subject of Bankruptcies. Bankruptcies are a sore topic today with our current economic environment. Several major banks and the auto industry received taxpayer funds to help them through difficult times. While many may not understand or accept these actions I believe they were necessary in some cases but the bailouts must end at some point.
Other responsibilities include to coin money, regulate the value of our currency and foreign coins and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures. This also involves providing punishment for counterfeiting the securities and coin of the United States. While there are several other responsibilities such as maintaining and supporting land and naval forces armies. The times we are in are difficult but we will get through them. The above responsibilities are only a portion of what the Constitution identifies as the federal government responsibility. There are however, limits on the powers as defined in the Constitution. The limitations on Congress are contained in Section 9 under Article one of the Constitution.
Some of the limitations of Congress include the restriction on taxing or placing duty on articles exported from any state. Others include that no title of nobility will be granted by the United States and no person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall without the consent of Congress, accept of any present, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince or foreign state. There is also a limitation with regards to giving preference by any Regulation of Commerce or Revenue to the Ports of one state over those of another. All the limitations on Congress can be found on the site link provided above under Article 1, Section 9.
The responsibilities of the states are defined under Article 4 of the Constitution. The responsibilities listed are not lengthy in any respect. The key difference appears to be is that it involves responsibilities in relation to other states not their individual responsibilities. The first principle or responsibility is that each state is to honor all others. This involves such things as faith and credit be given in each state to the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state. The citizens of each state shall be entitled to all privileges and immunities of citizens in the several states.
Another key point in this portion of the Constitution of which we often hear involves the extradition of criminals fleeing to other states. It requires that on demand of the executive authority of the state from which an individual fled that the individual be delivered up and removed to the state having jurisdiction of the crime. There have been news reports where individuals have waived their extradition but this seems to differ from the wording of this portion of the Constitution. Under section 4 of Article 4 of the Constitution the United States shall guarantee to every state in this union a republican form of government and shall protect each of them against Invasion. Below are those powers prohibited to the states. These can be found under Article 1 section 10 of the constitution.
The limitation of powers to the states relate to responsibilities identified as that of the federal government. The first thing to identify is states have no jurisdiction to enter into treaties, alliances or confederations. They also cannot issue coins. It also prevents the imposing of duties for imports except to cover cost of inspection. Other limitations are also noted in article 1, section 10 for any reader of this article to obtain more information.
The details of the U.S. Constitution are specific with regards to state and federal responsibilities. It is important with those responsibilities identified in this article to understand that the basic principle is that the powers which states retain are those not specifically delegated to the federal government. As can be seen in the Constitution there are specific limitations on both Congress and the states and where the responsibility is not delegated to the federal government it is retained by the states.
Today with the economic situation Congress must make hard decisions but those decisions must not tread on the responsibilities and authority of the states. Granted there are going to be issues which are vague where the line between federal and state responsibilities can be hard to determine. Some will involve actions by both levels of government. It is right for the federal government to address issues which affect all the states through legislation. This is necessary to establish a common approach or solution to various issues. An example is the energy crisis we currently have. It is appropriate for the federal government to establish the framework for an energy policy. The policy established should be just that.
The energy policy identified in the last paragraph must provide some research to bring the cost of various alternative energy sources down to reasonable levels. How the state uses the resources is up to them. The energy policy must also look to examples where various industries have used alternate energy sources to power their manufacturing plant that does not harm the environment. There have been advertisements on television of these examples. Congress needs to look at the private sector to find examples where ingenuity by private industry is helping to reduce our energy dependence.
While energy seems to be the focus to a large extent after the financial situation the key point to remember with regards to federal responsibilities is that it must provide for the safety and security of the country. This involves all the actions identified as the responsibility of the nation presented earlier in this article. Actions by the legislature in Washington D.C. must address these primary conditions. States must retain their responsibilities as identified in the Constitution and the federal government should not attempt to take over jurisdiction for state responsibilities. It must also be understood that while there are requirements levied by the federal government many times the states can determine the method with which they will be enforced. The key point states need to remember concerning federally mandated requirements is they must determine an efficient way to manage them.
In conclusion states and the federal government have distinct responsibilities and limitations. Both levels of government must make sure that they are not creating laws which affect state or federal requirements. States must assure they manage federal mandated programs efficiently and the federal government must also not make laws so cumbersome with details except where necessary to cause excessive expenditures at the state level. I have said in other articles that when the federal government places requirements on states that they should at least provide some if not all the funding. This is especially important in the economy we have today.
All programs at the state and federal level should be evaluated for their success and necessity for citizens of the state and the country. Creating additional regulations at either the state or federal level only adds to the cost of government. Governments at all levels must examine their resources and appropriate the necessary funds to address their individual responsibilities. It is true that there may be a need to have deficits at the federal level to address certain needs but this should be kept at the lowest level possible. Increasing the deficit of the United States only increases the burden on taxpayers now and in the foreseeable future. While statements have been made that there are plans to reduce the deficit level it has currently not been identified how this would be achieved given the present economic situation. This is not meant to say that it cannot be done but the American people deserve to know how this will be accomplished.
Print
Email
