It's Called Federalism

The front page of today’s Chicago Tribune has an article about the Elder Justice Act, a proposed law "designed to combat abuse, neglect and exploitation of older Americans." According to the article, the proposal "still gathers dust in Congress. It has been doing that for five years, odd for a bill with few visible opponents."

The article talks about a woman from New Yorker whose 91-year old grandmother was raped in a nursing home last year. Congressional and other supporters of the bill are quoted as saying its lack of success is, among other things, "kind of inexcusable."

The one thing that is not explained, however, is why the federal government should be dealing with this problem. The man who attacked the New York woman’s grandmother was convicted in March. A supporter of the bill from California prosecutes 200 cases of elder abuse a year.

Elder abuse is a problem, but is it one that needs a new law out of Washington? If state laws are inadequate to deal with the problem, why shouldn’t the states pass new laws? If more enforcement is needed, let’s make sure local prosecutors and investigators have the resources they need to get the job done.

The United States is a big country. Our federal system divides things among different levels of government for a reason. By doing so, each level of government can focus on what it can do best, and no level of government will have more to do it can (hopefully).

Just as state and local governments do not need to pass resolutions on foreign policy issues, the government in Washington does not need to pass laws on elder abuse. Each level of government has its responsibilities. They need to do them, and let the other levels do theirs.