American federalism refers to a form of self-governing by the states where there is a division of power between the states and the United States' federal government. Although federalism provides consistency between states, some laws remain questionable among states, resulting in divisions. The effects of such divisions are having citizens act legally in one state and illegally in another. The legality of marijuana among the U.S. states continues to stir divisions and forms a challenge to federalism. At least fifteen states have legalized marijuana. The rest remain resistant, which present divisions and challenges in the future. This paper discusses how the legalization of marijuana poses a challenge to federalism in the next decade and viable steps to help states respond to it.
The conflict between state marijuana legalization and the blanket federal marijuana prohibition of controlled substances Act (CSA) elicits a crisis among federal states. The line of clarity on how state officials should handle cases of marijuana when undertaking their official duties remains unclear. It is confusing whether state officials can issue arrests to citizens found with marijuana in prohibited states or not. Although state officials hold on to federalism doctrines, including the tenth amendment anti-commandeering and federal preemption of state law under the supremacy clause, the guidelines on the legalization of marijuana remain unclear. If most states continue to resist the legalization of marijuana, then state operations, along with border points and relations, will get strained. Perhaps in the next decade, the aspect of marijuana prohibition will slowly destroy public policy, create conflicts of law among federal states, and political tensions.
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States should clarify anti-commandeering laws to help state officials deal with cases of marijuana in non-legalized states. The anti-commandeering laws will help protect civil liberties among states (Butash 55) and define ways of dealing with individuals in possession of marijuana in legalized states. Additionally, in respect of federalism, an interstate collaboration where actors, including courts, academicians, and politicians among states, devise engagement and collaboration methods to safeguard federalism’s tenets of democracy and sovereignty.
Conclusively, federalism in America faces different challenges; among them is marijuana legalization. With few states legalizing marijuana, there is a rising dichotomy between state and federal laws. These aspects may strain future relations among states. States should work on a consensus of involving actors to design and harmonize collaboration methods to safeguard federalism.
Work cited
Butash, Charlotte S. "The Anti-Commandeering Doctrine in Civil Rights Litigation." Harv. CR-CLL Rev. 55.1 (2020): 681.
