AP Gov Test Study Guide PDF

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What to study: 10th Amendment, block and categorical grants, mandates, US v. Lopez, McCulloch v. Maryland Know each definition and how the item applies to federalism. 10th amendment: ● reserves powers not delegated to the national government to the states and the people; basis of federalism ● Application to federalism: stops the federal governmenft from taking full power and reserving some for the states Categorical grants: ● federal grants that are given for specific purposes ● Application to federalism: the national government gives a state federal money in exchange for compliance with laws (strings attached) Block Grants: ● federal grants are given for less-specific purposes (ex. money given to a hospital that can be used for anything- medicine, renovations, appliances, etc.) ● Application to federalism: gives states more spending freedom and the ability to use federal money Mandates: a. policies set by the national government that states must comply with whether or not they are funded i. Examples of federal mandates: 1. Americans with disabilities act (unfunded), 2. no child left behind (funded) b. Application to federalism: take away power from states in order to comply with the national government US v. Lopez: ★ Facts/ Background ○ A Texas high school student brought an unloaded gun to school and was charged with violating the federal Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990. ★ Constitutional Question ○ Does Congress have the power to regulate guns at school? ○ Is Congress infringing upon state rights? ★ Holding ○ The federal Gun-Free School Zones Act was unconstitutional because the possession of guns in a school zone does not substantially affect interstate commerce.

★ Reasoning ○ Previously, the Supreme Court allowed Congress to do anything as long as Congress said that it was affecting interstate commerce. The Court decided that the Gun-Free School Zones Act was not at all affecting interstate commerce. ○ The Supreme Court decided that the 10th amendment protects the rights of the state in a federal system. ○ The commerce clause should not give Congress unlimited power. ○ The Supreme Court is basically saying that if Congress was allowed to make this law, there would be no limit to Congress’s power. ★ Application to federalism: gave states more control over some of their laws, and stopped the federal government from abusing the commerce clause McCulloch V. Maryland ★ Facts/ Background ○ In 1816, Congress chartered The Second National Bank of the United States. In 1818, the state of Maryland passed legislation to impose taxes on the bank. James W. McCulloch, a cashier at the Baltimore branch of the bank, refused to pay the tax. The case was then brought to the Supreme Court ★ Constitutional Question ○ Did Congress have the power to establish a national bank? ○ Did the Maryland law unconstitutionally interfere with congressional powers? ★ Holding ○ The Supreme Court decided that Congress did have the power to establish a national bank. ○ Maryland’s law did interfere with congressional power. ★ Reasoning ○ The elastic clause lets congress create laws to carry out its powers ○ Creating a national bank was an implied power ○ States cannot tax the federal government because of the supremacy clause ★ Application to federalism: Reinforced the idea of national supremacy which altered the relationship between federal and state government.

Questions 1-3 refer to the passage below. “If the States may tax one instrument, employed by the government in the execution of its powers, they may tax any and every other instrument. They may tax the mail; they may tax the mint; they may tax patent rights; they may tax the papers of the custom-house; they may tax judicial process; they may tax all the means employed by the government, to an excess which would defeat all the ends of government. This was not intended by the American people. . . . The Court has bestowed on this subject its most deliberate consideration. The result is a conviction that the States have no power, by taxation or otherwise, to retard, impede, burden, or in any manner control, the operations of the constitutional laws enacted by Congress to carry into execution the powers vested in the general government. This is, we think, the unavoidable consequence of that supremacy which the constitution has declared.” —Chief Justice John Marshall, McCulloch v. Maryland, 1819 1.

Which clause of the U.S. Constitution did the Supreme Court interpret as preventing Maryland from taxing the national bank in McCulloch v. Maryland? a. commerce c. due process b. supremacy d. equal protection

2.

Which clause of the U.S. Constitution did the Supreme Court interpret inMcCulloch v. Maryland as allowing Congress to create a national bank? a. commerce c. due process b. necessary and proper d. equal protection

3.

Why was McCulloch v. Maryland a landmark federalism case? a. It gave the federal government power over the nation’s financial institutions. b. It ruled that taxation was an enumerated, rather than a concurrent power. c. It reinforced the idea of national supremacy, altering the relationship between federal and state governments. d. It made Congress the most powerful political entity in the nation.

Questions 4 and 5 refer to the following map. State and local spending on public education.

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, United States Census Bureau, Public Education Finances: 2013. The data are for 2013. 4.

Based on the map, which region of the U.S. spends the most on public education? a. the West c. the Northeast b. the Rockies d. the South

5.

Which of the following statements about federalism does the map illustrate? a. Diversity in policy creates stark differences between states and regions of the U.S. b. Under federalism people in different states have equal access to services. c. States take advantage of the power to make decisions independently. d. The federal government ensures that people in every state are treated equally.

6.

What are the two types of federal powers derived from Article I, section 8 of the U.S. Constitution? a. enumerated; implied b. enumerated; suggested c. disguised; explicit d. suggested; explicit

7. What is a mandate? a. an order from the federal government requiring the states to take a certain action b. an order from a state government requiring a federal action c. an order from the federal government prohibiting the states to take a certain action d. an order from a state government prohibiting a federal action 8.

Which grant is given to a state by the federal government with only general spending guidelines? a. block c. commerce b. business d. credit...