In multinational states, there is a state structure in which the member States have legislative competence, their constitutional legislation, legislative, executive, and judicial bodies, and their own administrative and territorial system. That is why “federation” originated from “federalism.” It already denotes the form of organization of the territorial structure of the state and its legal nature.
The terms “federation” and “federalism” do not include many articles from the US Constitution. Article IV deals with the connection between the nations and the federation. The Constitution establishes the sphere of exclusive competence of the Federation by listing issues on which only the Federation can issue laws. The Constitution prohibits the States from ” entering into treaties, unions or confederations”(Hu, 2021). Therefore, the subjects do not have state sovereignty; their legislation must comply with the constitution and the federation’s laws.
Implied powers of federal States are doctrine that clarifies the principle of vertical separation of powers and gives the federal parliament the right to issue the necessary laws to exercise the center’s powers. Reserved powers are not prohibited or directly transferred by law to any government body (Fossum, Jachtenfuchs, 2017). Traditional or parliamentary sovereignty theory implies that authorities have the right to make laws in any area that was not explicitly forbidden by a preliminary agreement, such as the constitution.
“Marble cake federalism” is a metaphor often used to represent the type of cooperative federalism. This model of federalism means that the local, state and national governments do not act in separate fields but alternatively have interrelated policy purposes and administrative duties (Obi, 2019). The fundamental concept of federalism is based on the fact that the federal government is separate from the state government. This was referred to as “dual federalism” and was similar to any government with its layer, or sovereignty, in the more extensive system symbolized by a cake.
In conclusion, in the United States, a complex system of checks and balances was woven into American federalism and the Constitution. These checks and balances are designed to prevent any person or body of the government from interfering with any authority’s constitutional freedoms or legitimate functions. They also help maintain the separation of powers by providing each branch with a revolving ability to resist the encroachments of the other department.
References
Fossum, J. E., & Jachtenfuchs, M. (2017). Federal challenges and challenges to federalism. Insights from the EU and federal states. Journal of European Public Policy, 24(4), 467-485.
Hu, Q. (2021). On the Stylistic Features of Massachusetts Constitution. In 7th International Conference on Humanities and Social Science Research (ICHSSR 2021) (pp. 239-244). Atlantis Press.
Obi, E. A. (2019). The Theory, Practice and Current Trends in Federalism. Journal of Social Service and Welfare, 1(1), 10-20.