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Besides reserved powers, the states also retained concurrent powers, or responsibilities shared with the national government. As part of this package of powers, the state and federal governments each have the right to collect income tax from their citizens and corporate tax from businesses. They also share responsibility for building and maintaining the network of interstates and highways and for making and enforcing laws ( [link] ). For instance, many state governments have laws regulating motorcycle and bicycle helmet use, banning texting and driving, and prohibiting driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
Throughout U.S. history, the national and state governments have battled for dominance over the implementation of public policy and the funding of important political programs. Upon taking office in 1933 during the Great Depression (1929–1939), President Franklin D.
Roosevelt initiated a series of legislative proposals to boost the economy and put people back to work. The enacted programs allowed the federal government to play a broader role in revitalizing the economy while greatly expanding its power. However, this result was not without its critics. Initially, the Supreme Court overturned several key legislative proposals passed under Roosevelt, reasoning that they represented an overreach of presidential authority and were unconstitutional, such as
Schechter Poultry Corp. v. United States .
A. L. A. Schechter Poultry Corp. v. United States , 295 U.S. 495 (1935). Eventually, however, the Supreme Court shifted direction to reflect public opinion, which was decisively behind the president and the need for government intervention in a time of economic turmoil.
William E. Leuchtenburg, “When Franklin Roosevelt Clashed with the Supreme Court—and Lost,”
Smithsonian Magazine , May 2005. http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/when-franklin-roosevelt-clashed-with-the-supreme-court-and-lost-78497994/.
Just three decades later, during the 1964 presidential election campaign, incumbent President Lyndon B.
Johnson declared a “
War on Poverty ,” instituting a package of
Great Society programs designed to improve circumstances for lower-income Americans across the nation. The new programs included
Medicare and
Medicaid , which are health insurance programs for seniors and low-income citizens respectively, and the food stamp program, which provides food assistance to low-income families. These initiatives greatly expanded the role of the federal government in providing a social safety net.
Karen Tumulty, “‘Great Society’ Agenda Led to Great—and Lasting—Philosophical Divide,”
Washington Post , 8 January 2014. http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/great-society-agenda-led-to-great--and-lasting--philosophical-divide/2014/01/08/b082e5d0-786d-11e3-b1c5-739e63e9c9a7_story.html. State and local governments became partners in their implementation and also came to rely on the financial support they received from the federal government in the form of program grants.
Michael Schuyler. 19 February 2014. “A Short History of Government Taxing and Spending in the United States,” http://taxfoundation.org/article/short-history-government-taxing-and-spending-united-states.
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