Question

Answer the following question in a minimum of two paragraphs and use scholarly sources to document your main response.

Article VI specifies that the U.S. Constitution is the supreme law of the land, meaning that it overrules all federal, state, and local laws that are in conflict with the Constitution. But what constitutes a conflict? Identify an area of state regulation that is not a conflict between a state and federal law on the same subject, that the federal law has not “preempted” the state law.

Answer 1

The Supremacy Clause is a clause within Article VI of the U.S. Constitution which dictates that federal law is the "supreme law of the land." This means that judges in every state must follow the Constitution, laws, and treaties of the federal government in matters which are directly or indirectly within the government's control. Under the doctrine of preemption, which is based on the Supremacy Clause, federal law preempts state law, even when the laws conflict. Thus, a federal court may require a state to stop certain behavior it believes interferes with, or is in conflict with, federal law.

But in the absence of federal law, or when a state law would provide more protections for consumers, employees, and other residents than what is available under existing federal law, state law holds. For instance, federal anti-discrimination law does not include LGBTQ individuals as a protected class. Therefore, an openly G employee in Kansas can be lawfully fired simply for being gay. But an Illinois employee may sue under state law for wrongful termination if their sexual orientation or gender identity (either actual or presumed) was a factor in the firing.