Suppose Congress passes a law that increases the federal minimum wage to $20 per hour. Several states believe that enforcing this law will hurt businesses and their economies, so they pass state laws that enforce a $10 minimum wage instead. Which action might Congress take in response to this clear violation of federal law under a system of cooperative federalism?

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Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Under a system of cooperative federalism, states and the federal government work together to enforce laws and regulations. However, states still retain some level of autonomy and can choose to pass laws that differ from federal law as long as they do not violate the Constitution. In this case, the state laws enforcing a $10 minimum wage would likely be seen as a violation of federal law, but Congress may choose to leave the states to act on their own rather than taking more drastic actions such as revising their law, removing the states from the Union, or repealing all existing minimum wage laws at the federal level.

Suppose Congress Passes a Law That Increases the Federal Minimum