State government

A state government is the

autonomy, or be subject to the direct control of the federal government. This relationship may be defined by a constitution

.

The reference to "state" denotes country subdivisions that are officially or widely known as "states", and should not be confused with a "sovereign state". Most federations designate their federal units "state" or the equivalent term in the local language; however, in some federations, other designations are used such as Oblast or Republic. Some federations are asymmetric, designating greater powers to some federal units than others.

Provinces are usually divisions of unitary states but occasionally the designation is also given to the federal units such as the Provinces of Argentina or Canada. Their governments, which are also provincial governments, are not the subject of this article. Many people confuse the state with city governments, and while a small ticket or small crime will be overlooked by the federal government and handled by the state or city government, that are not the same.

Australia

The

corporations.^[1] Since the original ratification of the constitution, the High Court of Australia has settled a number of disputes concerning the extent of the Commonwealth's legislative powers, some of which have been controversial and extensively criticised; these included a dispute in 1982 over whether the Commonwealth was entitled to designate land for national heritage purposes under United Nations agreements,^[2] as well as numerous disputes over the extent of the Commonwealth's power over trade union and industrial relations legislation.^[3]

One difference between the Australian and United States models of federalism is that, in Australia, the Commonwealth Parliament has explicit constitutional power over marriage legislation; this has been a focal point for recent controversies over same-sex marriage.^[4]

Government structure

Each state of Australia has a

Premier

, is drawn from the state parliament.

Austria

In Austria, a Landtag (state parliament) elects a Landeshauptmann, who is not only the chairman of a state government but also the representative of the federal government and responsible for the enforcement of federal legislation.

Germany

has sixteen states with their own governments.

India

In

legislative council.^[8] The judicial setup consists of the state's high court and the district courts subordinate to it.^[9]^[10]

Mexico

Mexico also has states.

Nigeria

In

federal government under the Constitution of Nigeria

.

Pakistan

In

Provinces of Pakistan

are the federal units. There are currently four.

The Provincial Governments are each headed formally by a

Chief Minister, in a parliamentary system

South Africa

South Africa is usually considered a unitary state but its government system possesses a strong similarity to a federal one. The Constitution of South Africa does not describe the state as federal or unitary.

South Africa is divided into nine provinces which have their own elected governments. Chapter Six of the Constitution of South Africa describes the division of power between the national government and the provincial governments, listing those "functional areas" of government that are exclusively reserved to the provincial governments and those where both levels of government have concurrent powers; the remaining areas not listed are reserved to the national government. In areas where both levels have concurrent powers there is a complex set of rules in the event of a conflict between national and provincial legislation. Generally in such a case the provincial legislation prevails, but national legislation may prescribe standards and frameworks for provinces to follow, and may prevent provinces from adversely affecting national interests or the interests of other provinces. The functional areas in which the provincial governments have powers include agriculture, arts and culture, primary and secondary education, the environment and tourism, health, housing, roads and transport, and social welfare.

The provincial governments are structured according to a

departments

of the provincial administration.

United States

The United States is divided into 50

U.S. Constitution, all governmental powers not granted to the Federal government of the United States nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, making the United States a decentralised federation. However, State law is trumped by Federal law when the two may come into contact. U.S. states all share a similar system of government to the national level with a directly elected and usually quite powerful executive styled Governor and a state legislature exercising legislative authority. In 49 states out of 50 as well as three of the inhabited Territories of the United States (Puerto Rico, Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa), the legislature is bicameral with the houses commonly, though not exclusively being styled House of Representatives and Senate although the name of the legislative body as a whole varies between the states (the most common are General Assembly (Itself sometimes a term for the lower house of a state legislature) such as in North Carolina or simply Legislature as in Texas). In Nebraska, United States Virgin Islands and Guam (the latter two being federal territories rather than states) the legislature is unicameral

.

The states are semi-sovereign republics in their own right and maintain much control over their internal affairs with issues such as

Medicaid expansion

.

There are also several territories, the most notable of which is

retaining limited reliance upon the United States or full independence with no special relationship

)

References

^ Section 51 of the Australian Constitution Archived 2011-10-14 at the Wayback Machine at the American parliament website
^ Barwick, Sir Garfield, A View of the External Affairs Power Archived 2013-04-24 at the Wayback Machine, Samuel Griffith Society
^ Creighton, Breen (2000). "One Hundred Years of the Conciliation and Arbitration Power: A Province Lost?". Melbourne University Law Review. (2000) 24(3) Melbourne University Law Review 839.
^ The High Court and the Meaning of 'Marriage' in Section 51(xxi) of the Constitution, Australian Parliamentary Library
^ [1], Queensland Parliament website
^ Article 153 of the Constitution of India (1950)
^ Article 163 of the Constitution of India (1950)
^ Article 168 of the Constitution of India (1950)
^ Article 214 of the Constitution of India (1950)
^ The Code of Criminal Procedure (PDF). Parliament of India. 25 January 1974. p. 25.

[1] Section 51 of the Australian Constitution Archived 2011-10-14 at the Wayback Machine at the American parliament website

[2] Barwick, Sir Garfield, A View of the External Affairs Power Archived 2013-04-24 at the Wayback Machine, Samuel Griffith Society

[3] Creighton, Breen (2000). "One Hundred Years of the Conciliation and Arbitration Power: A Province Lost?". Melbourne University Law Review. (2000) 24(3) Melbourne University Law Review 839.

[4] The High Court and the Meaning of 'Marriage' in Section 51(xxi) of the Constitution, Australian Parliamentary Library

[5] [1], Queensland Parliament website

[6] Article 153 of the Constitution of India (1950)

[7] Article 163 of the Constitution of India (1950)

[8] Article 168 of the Constitution of India (1950)

[9] Article 214 of the Constitution of India (1950)

[10] The Code of Criminal Procedure (PDF). Parliament of India. 25 January 1974. p. 25.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[8]

[9]

[10]