Cooperative Federalism

Federalism incorporates multiple layers of government, where final authority is divided between the layers of government. Dual federalism can be described using the metaphor of a layer cake, where the layers of government are linked, but function as distinct units. Cooperative federalism evolved from the concept of dual federalism. Cooperative federalism is often described using a marble cake metaphor, where the layers of government are less distinct and share responsibilities and policies. In this model, citizens are considered more than inhabitants of a state within a nation, they are considered citizens of both the state and the national governments. The role of the national government is more prominent in cooperative federalism than in dual federalism. With the dual federalism model, the national government and the state governments collaborate by sharing costs of programs and by sharing administrative roles, while implementing federal policies.
With the New Deal legislation that followed the stock market crash of 1929, the federal government grew in order to implement programs to boost the economy and end the Great Depression. As the federal government grew, the nation moved from the model of dual federalism to cooperative federalism. Through judicial interpretation, incorporation of the due process and equal protection clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment shifted the precedent toward national supervision of the states.