In a federal system, like the United States, citizens are governed by both national and state governments, each with its own authority and responsibilities but still under federal laws. In a confederation, the central government the power lies mostly with the states, so citizens are more directly connected to their state governments. In a unitary system, power is centralized in the national government, and local governments only carry out duties given to them. The division of power in a federal system is split by responsibilities that are shared between different levels of government, such as education, healthcare, and law enforcement. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government supported New York State and local governments through funding, public health guidelines, and emergency declarations. For example, it provided financial aid to hospitals, schools, and small businesses, and issued national vaccine distribution plans that state and local agencies had to follow.

Citizens participate in government at various levels in federal systems, in their case, national, state, and local governments, electing representatives and following laws and regulations at all levels of government, with powers separated constitutionally. In confederation systems, citizens typically participate in their sovereign member states, with limited ability for the central authority to act on behalf of the member states. In unitary systems, power is enacted at the national level, and sub-national entities derive their powers from the national government, ultimately empowering citizens to only engage with the governments at the national level. In a power divided or separation of powers system, like the US federal government, powers are divided between the legislator, executive, and judiciary to limit power and ensure checks and balances.

The COVID-19 pandemic has illustrated how the federal government can leverage significant influence on local and state governments. The federal government funneled considerable financial assistance to New York State and local governments through various statutes. For example, the CARES ACT provided COVID-19 relief funding for hospitals, unemployment assistance, small business support, and later vaccines and testing, often with stipulations outlining how to use the funds. While early on in the pandemic there was considerable angst regarding the federal role regarding supply chain management of necessary medical equipment, the federal government did weigh in, with federal agencies such as the CDC making persuasive recommendations regarding public health measures such as mask mandates and quarantine recommendations that shaped New York’s policy. To boot, the federal coordination regarding vaccine allocation, distribution, and ultimately supply ultimately contributed to the state and local governments being located in the periphery .

The federal government issued guidelines and mandates that affected state and local actions. For example, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provided recommendations on mask-wearing and social distancing, which states like New York implemented through executive orders. Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the “New York State on PAUSE” executive order, mandating non-essential businesses to close and enforcing social distancing measures .

Moreover, disputes arose when the federal government attempted to rescind allocated funds. In May 2025, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction blocking the Trump administration from canceling over $1.1 billion in unspent COVID-19 relief aid earmarked for U.S. elementary and secondary schools. This ruling allowed the funds to remain available during legal proceedings, highlighting the judiciary’s role in resolving conflicts between federal and state interests .

In a federal system, such as that of the United States, citizens engage with multiple levels of government—local, state, and federal. This structure allows for a distribution of power, enabling citizens to participate in governance at various tiers, fostering a more direct influence on policies that affect their daily lives.

In a confederation, power is predominantly held by individual states or regions, with a central authority having limited authority. Citizens in such systems often have more influence over their local governments but less direct impact on national policies, as the central government has limited power to enact laws that affect the entire country.

In a unitary system, central government holds the primary authority, and any administrative divisions (like states or provinces) derive their powers from the central government. Citizens typically engage with local governments that implement policies set by the central authority, often resulting in less direct influence over national policy decisions.

To me the division of power refers to how authority and responsibilities are distributed among different levels of government. In a federal system, this division is constitutionally defined, with certain powers reserved for the national government, others for state governments, and some shared between the two. This structure aims to balance the benefits of a strong central government with the advantages of local governance, allowing for a system of checks and balances that can address diverse needs and prevent the concentration of power. For example, During the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government significantly influenced state and local governments, including those in New York, through funding and policy directives.

1. In the federal system, the citizens vote at both national and state levels and are also subject to laws at both national and state levels. Citizens in the Confederation System primarily deal with state officials rather than national government. In a Unitary System, one central government holds most if not all the power. Citizens mainly interact with one central government, and have less influence over local decisions. 
2. The system of division of power means that the government is split into parts, preventing one branch from attaining more power.

Separation of powers: Government is split into 3 branches, legislative which creates laws, executive which enforces laws, and the judicial branch which judges laws

Federalism: The federal and state governments which share authority.

3. The federal government had a significant impact on city and state governments largely through emergency authority, financing, and guidelines.

Funding: The federal government provided New York with funding with initiatives such as the CARES Act and the American Rescue Plan to provide vaccines, testing, unemployment, hospitals, and small businesses. The state had to follow federal regulations on how to use the money, which impacted priorities.

Health Guidelines: Health guidelines on masks, vaccinations, and reopening procedures were released by federal organizations such as the CDC and FDA.

Emergency Declarations & Coordination: FEMA and other federal agencies were able to help provide New York with supplies, testing locations, medical services when the federal government declared a national emergency. 

1. When government power is concentrated in different variations, the role of citizens in government differs with each variation. In a unitary system, a large majority of power is concentrated in the central government. Because of this, citizens engagement with the government is through voting for the all-powerful government officials with broad scope over policies. In a confederate system, central government power is weak and most power lies with the states and localities of a country. Because decision making is left to local powers, citizens engage mostly only engage with the state or local government. A federalist system is a combination of both systems, as citizens engage with both their central, state, and local governments. This is due to power being divided in a manner amount the different levels of government that makes it the citizens best interest to engage with those levels.
2. To my understanding, the division of power is what allows our government structure to have the checks and balances that we do. Not only are responsibilities divided between congress, the judicial, and executive branches, but they are also divided between the federal, state, and local levels of those branches. Control is not as concentrated as it would be in a unitary system, yet each level has significant power to make changes within their scope of authority.
3. The federal government can shape the acts of state and local governments through funding. During the pandemic, states and local governments needed extra support to fund unemployment programs, social services, and sanitation services. In 2021, Congress passed the American Rescue Plan, which sent out 1.9 trillion dollars from the Treasury Department to states to assist with funding. New York State initially received 12.75 billion dollars in 2021 for housing assistance, support for small businesses, and other pandemic recovery efforts. The public schools in New York also received 9 billion dollars to assist in reopening safely. This funding came from the federal level, and helped states run per usual while dealing with the economic uncertainty that the pandemic brought.

Describe the primary differences in the role of citizens in government, among the federal, confederation, and unitary systems.

= In the federal system citizens are governed by multiple levels of government as the national which is the federal, state and local where citizens can participate in those categories like in elections of representatives of each level. The confederation one is when the states for example come together to form a central government so it looses power and become weak since to make decision it needs consent from the members state so citizens engage with their respective state government as the central authority (the state itself) has limited interaction with the citizens so in this way is different from the federal government that has multiple levels of government. In the unitary system all governmental powers are centered in a central authority that means citizens interact with this central authority because it has the decision making power, it is more like an only branch of power able to do anything

Briefly explain how you understand the system of division of power.

=I understand it as a balance needed to avoid excess of power from any branch of power and is needed so people like the president for example can not pass laws with no regulations or else that could harm a nation that follows a constitution

How does the federal government shape the actions of state and local governments? Write your answer based on doing a bit of research on how the federal government has influenced the actions of NY state and local governments, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

= Federal government can be considered as a support in this case, during the pandemic the federal government had a role of provider it gave funding and resources as financial assistance to the state for public health initiatives, also issued guidelines and recommendations on mask mandates, social distancing and vaccination control and the federal government also facilitated coordination among states. As to NY participated in the Eastern States Multi state council it was a interstate compact formed to coordinate the rollback of economic restrictions and share best practices during the pandemic

1. Describe the primary differences in the role of citizens in government, among the federal, confederation, and unitary systems.
2. Briefly explain how you understand the system of division of power.
3. How does the federal government shape the actions of state and local governments? Write your answer based on doing a bit of research on how the federal government has influenced the actions of NY state and local governments, during the COVID-19 pandemic.