David Broder's words on the relationship between federal, state, and local authority are very much worth reading. The shift in power is real, and if you want to know why almost every state has a huge budget deficit, this is part of the reason. Not the whole reason, but part of the reason. Unlike the federal government, most states have balanced budget amendments, so when new requirements are placed on them by the federal government and not paid for, they have to cut other programs to pay for them, pure and simple. It's an interesting piece.