Question 11
1 pts
Congress is often paralyzed. Most years, it breaks the previous year's record for being the do-
nothing-est.
Comparably, state legislatures pass tons of bills.
Why?
Why are state legislatures usually so productive in comparison to Congress?
The Constitution spells out specific issues that only states may handle. These are usually things people
care more about, so the public has higher expectations for outcomes from state legislatures.
After Congress passes a law (federal government), each state gets to decide which parts of that law they.
want to honor. Often, state legislatures pass about four or five new laws for every one law passed by
Congress because they are circumventing or undoing what is done in Washington, DC.
The Tenth Amendment of the Constitution makes it clear that powers not reserved for the federal
government are reserved for the states. Since the Constitution gives Congress so few powers, most
things you expect from government are handled by state legislatures.
Party and ideology are less important and state legislatures receive far less media scrutiny.
A majority of property and sales taxes are paid at the state level. Therefore, the federal government
passes few laws in comparison because it doesn't have the money to fund those laws. Because states
receive the most tax dollars, they pass more laws.
