CHAPTER THREE • FEdERAlISM 59
Categorical Grant
A federal grant to a state
or local government for
a specific program or
project.California from implementing its own tough new laws to regulate air pollution. Upon
taking office, the Obama administration reversed the Bush policies and allowed California
to proceed.Conservatives look Again to the States. Beginning in 2009, conservatives began
to rediscover states’ rights. One reason may be that from January 2009 through January
2011, the Democrats were in control of the presidency, the U.S. House, and the U.S.
Senate. Republicans were shut out at the national level, and many conservatives hoped
that the states would be a counterweight to the newly active national government.Methods of Implementing Cooperative Federalism
One means of implementing cooperative federalism is through grants. Even before the
Constitution was adopted, the national government gave grants to the states in the form
of land to finance education. The national government also provided land grants for
canals, railroads, and roads. In the twentieth century, federal grants increased significantly,
especially during the Great Depression and again in the 1960s, when the dollar amount of
these grants quadrupled. These funds were used for improvements in education, pollution
control, recreation, and highways. With this increase in grants, however, came a bewilder
ing number of restrictions and regulations.Categorical grants. By the 1980s, categorical grants were spread out across four
hundred separate programs, but the largest five accounted for more than 50 percent
of the revenues spent. These five programs were Medicaid (health care for the poor),A teacher high-fives an elementary school student in Miami. This teacher is funded by
Teach for America, a non-profit organization that places recent high-achieving college graduates in low-
income community schools. The program receives federal grants. (AP Photo/J. Pat Carter)Copyright 2014 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
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