State Legal Advisor, Mock Memorandum

Task: “You are the legal adviser for a newly elected state governor.   She ran on an ambitious policy agenda that included the following:

1. Legalization of marijuana

2. Stricter regulation of transportation vehicle emissions (cars, buses, planes, etc.)

3. Resistance to federal funding for education that comes with strings attached (annual end of grade testing based on national standards)

4. Election reform, including expanding options for vote by mail and joining the National Popular Vote compact among states (which allocates the state’s electoral votes to the national popular vote winner in presidential elections).

5. Immigration reform that includes support for sanctuary cities and refusal to cooperate with ICE in immigration round-ups

6. A statewide mask mandate and prohibition against gatherings of more than twenty people due to rising COVID-19 cases.

Relying on the case law and historical trends we have studied in the second half of the semester, please advise the governor on what kind of constitutional issues might arise with these programs, particularly in terms of the state’s relationship with the national government.  How much space does she have to operate independent of the national government?  Where is she likely to run into trouble?  Where is she most likely to prevail?”