National - State - Local

[jean]

[Hoosier Hillbilly]

1
Explaining
Federal,
State
and
Local
Government
Responsibilities

Federalism
We
all
benefit
from
the
services
of
government
every
day.
Each
layer
of
government
–
federal,
state
and
local
–
provides
a
portion
of
the
fabric
of
our
services
and
safety
nets
for
the
public.
Each
of
these
layers
forms
part
of
the
system
of
government
in
the
United
States
known
as
“federalism”
which
is
a
system
of
shared,
distributed
power
between
federal,
state
and
local
government.
Every
form
of
government
in
the
United
States
has
its
own
separation
of
powers
and
checks
and
balances
to
minimize
corruption,
waste,
fraud
and
abuse.
Local
government
is
the
form
of
government
which
is
closest
to
the
people
and
with
which
people
come
into
contact
most
frequently.
While
the
federalist
system
provides
that
each
of
the
50
states
has
its
own
constitution,
all
provisions
of
state
constitutions
must
comply
with
the
U.S.
Constitution.
As
of
2012,
there
are
more
than
30,000
municipal
governments
and
3,000
counties
in
the
United
States.
In
addition,
there
are
nearly
50,000
school
and
special
districts
in
the
U.S.
These
districts
also
provide
functions
in
local
government
outside
county
or
municipal
boundaries.

[jean]

Hey Hillbilly....hate to tell you but those "checks and balances" are broken....they do not work anymore.