ABSTRACT
In Garcia v. San Antonio Metropolitan Transit Authority, the US Supreme Court upheld the regulation of state employees under 1974 amendments to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 as a valid exercise of the power granted to Congress under the Commerce Clause of the US Constitution. Court decisions involving the extent of power the Commerce Clause grants have shifted with changing times, but they usually have had in common a debate between advocates of broad congressional power and supporters of states' rights. The Constitution divides the task of governance between the states and the federal government. The Supreme Court is called on to serve as the umpire of disputes between governments over the scope of their powers. During the New Deal presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Supreme Court found many of the administration's efforts to regulate the national economy unconstitutional on federalism grounds.
