American Federalism in the 1990s

Federalism and American Inequality

Studies of the political determinants of economic inequality have usually focused on the national government, but in federalist systems subnational governments may also be important. In recent decades, the U.S. national government has been less active in fighting inequality, but increasing devolution means that states wanting to address this problem have had a greater incentive and perhaps mean...

Intergovernmental Political Competition in American Federalism

Many policies in the United States are jointly determined by federal and state actions. In the game theoretic model offered here, politicians in both the state and national governments seek credit for providing goods desired by the public and avoid blame for the taxes necessary to provide the goods. In line with Peterson’s (1995) theory of functional federalism, the level of government that is ...

Tasking the American University: The 1990s

Contested Federalism and American Climate Policy

Climate change has routinely been framed as an issue to be addressed through an intergovernmental regime guided by a set of large nations. The evolving reality of climate change policy development, in the U.S. and abroad, relies heavily on sub-national initiative. This article reviews the American climate policy odyssey, examining distinct periods in which respective intergovernmental roles hav...

Medical marijuana, American federalism, and the Supreme Court.

federal law enforcement authorities could criminally prosecute patients for possessing marijuana prescribed by a physician in accordance with state law. 1 The Court did not overturn state medical marijuana laws but did open the door to criminal prosecution under federal drug statutes. The Court also did not foreclose future challenges to federal enforcement on other constitutional grounds (eg, ...