State & Federal Governments Similarities and Differences
Our government has not always been as successful as it is today. America’s government began with the Articles of Confederation and separate state constitutions. This was difficult. The country was not united. Each state took care of everything on their own and the national government could not do anything. Our country had no national money or militia. Traveling was almost impossible. There were very few positive concepts with the Articles of Confederation. Our present government is a federalism. This means there is equal power between the government and the people. Our government is divided into three branches: legislative, executive, and judicial. We can find information on these federal branches in the United States Constitution. We find information on the state level of these branches in our Minnesota Constitution. Our government at the state and federal levels have many similarities along with differences.
The legislative branch in both levels are government are not as similar as they may seem. The requirements are the same, but for a different number of years. To be a member of the House of Representatives or a Senator in the state, one must be 21 years old. At the federal level, one must be 30 years to become a senator and 25 years to a House member. At both levels, a member must be a resident of the state they represent. At both levels, the function of the legislative branch is to create laws. Both levels have a bicameral legislature made up of a House of Representatives and a Senate. Both levels have committees: standing and conference. These committees are two steps in the process it takes for a bill to become a law. The structure of the legislative branch is the same ideas in both levels of government, but is not the same. In the federal Congress, the number of representatives is determined by population in each state, totaling 435 representatives in the House. In Minnesota’s state government, there is one representative for each House district,
The legislative branch in both levels are government are not as similar as they may seem. The requirements are the same, but for a different number of years. To be a member of the House of Representatives or a Senator in the state, one must be 21 years old. At the federal level, one must be 30 years to become a senator and 25 years to a House member. At both levels, a member must be a resident of the state they represent. At both levels, the function of the legislative branch is to create laws. Both levels have a bicameral legislature made up of a House of Representatives and a Senate. Both levels have committees: standing and conference. These committees are two steps in the process it takes for a bill to become a law. The structure of the legislative branch is the same ideas in both levels of government, but is not the same. In the federal Congress, the number of representatives is determined by population in each state, totaling 435 representatives in the House. In Minnesota’s state government, there is one representative for each House district,