Federalism

Federalism is a political system comprised of several local units of government and one national government that can both make decisions with respect to at least some governmental activities and whose existence is specially protected. Sovereignty is shared so that on some matters the national government is supreme, and on some matters the state governments are supreme. But in the last twenty-five years, the increase of federal mandates on state and local governments has shifted the balance of power between national and state governments. The national government is beginning to have more control over the states' actions.

Federal mandates are rules imposed by the federal government on the states as conditions for obtaining federal grants or requirements that the states pay the costs of certain nationally defined programs. Unfunded federal mandates usually concern civil rights or the envi

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But the mandate itself does not specify how much it will cost to implement this mandate or how it is to be administered. As they have continued to become more powerful, more mandates have been enacted. It ensures that the handicapped will have the same opportunities and conveniences, especially as far as employment and transportation are concerned, that the rest of the citizens of this country enjoy. And even though Congress has begun to try to reduce these unfunded mandates, they are still causing an imbalance of power in the United States. This takes its toll on federalism in the United States. As more mandates are created by Congress, the national government gains more control over the state governments. Taking away this protection would allow for the discrimination and further alienation of the disabled people of the United States. Therefore, the national government is becoming more powerful and the state and local governments are becoming more dependent on and in some ways, subservient to it. It requires businesses and state and local governments to provide the disabled with equal access to services, employment, buildings, and transportation. The Americans with Disabilities Act protects people that society could otherwise let fall by the wayside. This demonstrates how the federal government can exercise its influence over the state governments. The states follow the conditions laid out in the mandates so that they will be eligible to receive money in the form of federal grants.

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