Transcript Federalism and Politics - Effingham County Schools

Federalism and Politics
Unit 5 Part 3
Federalism and Public Policy
A public policy is a stated course of action.
Announcing a policy means that a person or an
organization has decided upon a conscious,
deliberate way of handling similar issues.
Federalism affects public policy making in
two ways.
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1. It affects how and where new policies are made
in the United States.
2. It introduces limits on government policy making
New Ideas develop! (how?)
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Federalism permits states and special locations to
serve as a place where new polices can be developed
and tested.
In 1976, Colorado pioneered the use of the sunset
laws.
Sunset laws require periodic checks of government
agencies to see if they are still needed.
Policies can also originate at the national level.
Sometimes when the national government imposes
new policies on states local people and groups resist
the changes
Federalism and Political Parties
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Rival political parties are key elements of a
democratic government. Each political party
has a chance to win an election.
Federalism helps maintain an equal possibility
for any political party to win an election by
lessening the risk of one political party from
gaining a monopoly on political powers.
Political Participation
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Federalism increases opportunities for citizens
of the United States to participate in politics at
the national, state, and local levels.
Federalism also increases the possibility that a
person’s participation will have some practical
effect on the government.
Many Opportunities
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Because federalism provides for several levels of
government, people have easier access to a political
office. The road to a national office can begin at the
local or state level. Federalism preserves political
organization from the bottom up.
American federalism opens access to the government
and increases every day citizen’s opportunities for
influencing public policy. American citizens have the
opportunity to vote on local issues and to elect
representatives to the U.S. local and state government.
Increasing Chances of Success
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Federalism creates the opportunity for every
day citizens to have an effect on the
government. People are more likely to become
involved in political activities if they feel that
they are making a difference.
Federalism’s Professional
Politicians
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The large increase in federal programs in the
mid- 1930’s called for an increase in
bureaucracy to carry out the newly formed
legislation. A bureaucracy is a fancy way of
saying an organization of government
administrators. The increase in federal
programs changed the political relationship of
the state and federal officials.
Federalism’s Professional
Politicians
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Mayors, state officials, and others took
advantage of the new federal programs and
began to work more closely with the federal
officials. Example: Organizations like the
United States Conference of Mayors
established headquarters in Washington, D.C.,
to keep up with events and to stay in touch with
lawmakers.
Differences Among the States
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Federalism allows for real economic and political
difference among the states because it permits
each state freedom in arranging its own internal
affairs. As a result, some states do more than
others to regulate business and industry, while
some provide more health and welfare services.
Among the individual states, some have stricter
criminal law and some have higher taxes.
Differences Among the States
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Because states can create different economic
and political environments, Americans have a
wide range of choices regarding the conditions
under which they want to live, depending upon
which state they live in. This also means that
when people cross a state boundary, they
become members of a different political
system.
The Direction of Federalism
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From the beginning of our country there has
been a debate on how the country should
divide governmental powers {between the
national government and state government}.
In recent decades, Democrats have generally
supported and favored the nationalist position.
Republicans have favored states’ rights and
prefer relying on the judgment of the states and
local authorities rather than the national.