Question

Congress passed a statute requiring that all full-time employees, including state and municipal employees, be paid overtime for any work over 40 hours per week, or be otherwise compensated through time off or vacation time. A small town located in a very warm climate employs only three refuse collectors and cannot afford to hire more. During the warmest times of the year, extra refuse collections are routine because of fear that rotting garbage in the hot climate could contribute to the spread of disease. During the hottest months, the three refuse collectors in the town regularly worked well beyond the 40 hours per week standard. Because of normal vacation time and the normally heavy garbage collection schedule, it would not be possible to give the refuse collectors additional time off during the cooler months without hiring additional refuse collectors. The town brings an action in federal district court, asserting that the federal statute requiring overtime pay to municipal works is unconstitutional.

The court should hold the statute:
A.Constitutional, as a reasonable application of the Necessary and Proper Clause.
B.Constitutional, because regulation of state and local employees is within the ambit of federal power over interstate commerce.
C.Unconstitutional, because regulation of state and local employees is an issue reserved to the states.
D.Unconstitutional, because the state police power to promote health and safety precludes federal action in this case.

Answer 1

Answer: B.Constitutional, because regulation of state and local employees is within the ambit of federal power over interstate commerce

Step-by-step explanation:

The Federal power controls the state and the local government activities. Despite the roles the state and the local government plays or has to play, the federal government still has roles to play, especially in the area of funding and carrying out projects that it has intended to do or sometimes meeting up projects that state and local government cannot handle.

The Federal statute requiring over time pay is constitutional because regulation of state and local employees is within the ambit of federal power over interstate commerce. The Federal controls that section