Get to Know US Federal, State, and Local Governments

Learning Objectives

After completing this unit, you’ll be able to:

Define civic engagement.
Explain the three branches of the US government and how they operate at local, state, and federal levels.
Follow how a bill becomes a law.

Introduction

From big national issues, such as immigration reform and health care, to pesky potholes in your neighborhood, government is everywhere. And it’s important to know how to navigate it if you want to be an active member of your community.

Civic engagement—that is, when citizens participate in government and politics—is the foundation of a democratic society. It is made up of a wide spectrum of activity, from attending development planning meetings in your town to running for office, and everything in between. In this module, we cover how to start your civic engagement journey, how to find the information you need, and how to engage as an individual citizen.

In order to understand how you can engage with your government in your personal capacity, let’s start with some basic information, which may be a refresher. In this unit, we cover the three branches of the US government and how they operate federally, statewide, and locally. We also cover the ins and outs of a democratic system and offer some suggestions when it comes to best practices.

While we hope this information is useful, it is not legal advice. If you’re considering being civically involved, consult your employer’s legal counsel and internal resources for guidance on how political laws (including lobbying compliance, campaign finance, and ethics) may apply to activities you undertake in your personal capacity or on behalf of your employer.

Three Branches: Checks and Balances

The nation’s founders divided the US government into three branches—executive, legislative, and judicial—via the United States Constitution in 1789.

The big idea was to create a system that checks and balances itself, so that one branch doesn’t have too much power over the others. It is important for each of the institutions of government to be robust and resilient.

In addition to checks and balances, the framers of the Constitution also put a heavy emphasis on federalism: the idea that the US is a nation of states, each of which has its own government that is closer to the people than the lawmakers in Washington, DC. Within states, there are county and city governments that answer to even smaller constituencies.

Policies and laws can be set at the federal, state, or local level. Bear in mind that more than one level of government can play a part in addressing various issues. Moreover, there can even be disagreements among the levels of government over who has jurisdiction over the issue.

Here’s how the different levels operate, from the top down.

Three photos representing the levels of government: the US Capitol building for federal, the California State Capitol in Sacramento, and City Hall in San Francisco.

Federal Government

The executive branch of the federal government is headed by the president, who is elected every 4 years and limited to two terms—with an exception for those who become president through the death or resignation of the previous office-holder and serve fewer than 2 years. The president has the authority to sign bills passed by Congress into law, or to veto them.

They also have the power to issue executive orders—a signed, written, and published directive from the president that manages operations of the federal government. Executive orders are not legislation; they require no approval from Congress, and Congress cannot simply overturn them. Congress may pass legislation that might make it difficult, or even impossible, to carry out the order, such as removing funding. Only a sitting US president can overturn an existing executive order by issuing another executive order to that effect.

The president also oversees the entire executive branch—the agencies that run and regulate many of the programs Americans use on a daily basis. The president is advised by a Cabinet made up of the vice president, the heads of 15 executive departments, and other select leaders in the administration and White House.

The legislative branch is the US Congress, an elected body made up of two chambers: the US House of Representatives and the US Senate.

There are 435 Members of the House, determined by state population (more people equals more members). The District of Columbia and the US territories of American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the US Virgin Islands are represented in the House by non-voting delegates. And Puerto Rico elects a resident commissioner who plays a similar role. Each state has two senators for a total of 100. Both the House and Senate must approve a bill with a simple majority before it can go to the president. If the president vetoes a bill, Congress can still make it a law with two-thirds approval in each chamber.

Finally, the judicial branch checks whether laws passed and signed by the legislative and executive branches are constitutional. The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS), which is the federal judicial body, consists of nine judges called justices. Justices are appointed by the president, confirmed by the US Senate, and serve lifetime appointments. Cases before the SCOTUS usually come up through the district and appellate courts before being heard. The justices typically consider fewer than 100 of the 7,000 to 8,000 cases filed for review each term, which begins in October and ends in the early summer.

Salesforce in Action at the Federal Level

US Congress

Federal Privacy Bill

Salesforce recognizes privacy as a fundamental human right and business imperative. However, without a national law in place, people in the US are not easily able to control their privacy journeys. And businesses are contending with a patchwork of sectoral laws and new state privacy laws that differ by state. Salesforce supports federal legislation that includes clear corporate obligations, rights for individuals, meaningful transparency and control, and effective enforcement. Salesforce has been advocating for bipartisan legislation that would establish a national consumer data privacy standard.

REPLANT Act

Salesforce endorsed S. 866, The REPLANT Act, in March 2021. The bipartisan bill, which was authored by US Senators Stabenow (D-MI) and Boozman (R-AR), will fund the planting of an additional 1 billion trees in national forests while creating nearly 50,000 new jobs over the next 10 years. This legislation was ultimately included in The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and is in the process of being implemented.

Save Our Sequoias Act

Salesforce supported H.R. 8168, the bipartisan Save Our Sequoias (SOS) Act. If passed, this bill would establish a comprehensive approach to protect the Sequoia trees against wildfires. It would also improve interagency coordination and expedite forest restoration projects by codifying and streamlining existing emergency procedures and providing substantial new tools and resources to land managers.

State Government

Most state governments mirror the federal government framework, though some have stronger executive or legislative branches, depending on how they were set up.

The executive at the state level is the governor, and they are all elected for 4-year terms, except in Vermont and New Hampshire, where they serve 2-year terms. Some have limits on the number of terms they can serve; others can continue serving for as long as they continue winning elections.

State legislative branches fulfill much the same function as Congress. And they all consist of two bodies—House and Senate—except in Nebraska, which has a single legislative chamber. The majority of state legislatures generally meet for a few months out of the year.

Judicial branches can vary from state to state, but typically they are led by a state Supreme Court that hears appeals from lower-level state courts. Depending on the state, judges can be elected by the people or appointed by the governor or the state legislature.

Salesforce in Action at the State Level

Georgia, Hate Crime Bill

Salesforce joined more than two dozen companies to advocate that the Georgia state legislature pass a hate crime bill (HB 426) that would better protect all Georgians regardless of how they identify. We joined a coalition letter, spoke out on social media, and voiced our position via phone calls and emails to key legislators. This bill was signed into law on June 26, 2020.

Indiana, Elimination of SaaS Tax

In 2018, Salesforce joined leading tech companies and the Indiana Chamber of Commerce to advocate for the elimination of the Software as a Service (SaaS) tax from Indiana’s 7% sales tax. At the time of passage, this made Indiana one of only four states to explicitly exempt Saas from taxation by statute. This tax elimination set Indiana apart from many other states. It encourages tech companies to relocate and grow in the state. And it allows their customers, who paid the tax, to invest more in their digital transformations, which have become such an important part of business resilience during COVID-19.

Georgia, Voting Legislation

Guided by our four pillars, and nonpartisan policy principles outlined by our Racial Equality and Justice Task Force (REJTF), we were the first major company to stand in opposition to Georgia’s SB 202 voting law, which looked to shorten absentee ballot requests and deadlines for the issuance of absentee ballots, and create stricter voting ID requirements for absentee ballots. We have continued to oppose bills that would restrict access to voting.

Indiana, Police Reform

As part of our REJTF, Salesforce launched a policy pillar focusing on advocating for meaningful police reform. In Indiana, Salesforce joined a coalition of businesses and racial justice advocacy groups to support provisions in HB 1006, including: mandatory training in de-escalation as part of the use-of-force curriculum; a decertification process; and creating penalties for law enforcement officers who turn off body-worn cameras with the intent to conceal a criminal act. The bill also prohibits the use of a chokehold under most circumstances; however, Salesforce advocated for an outright ban of chokeholds. The bill, signed by Governor Holcomb, went into effect July 1, 2021.

City and Local Government

Local government can be complicated depending on where you live, but the three branches of government generally remain the same. Cities and towns are led by mayors or executives who approve the laws or ordinances passed by legislative councils. In some states, there are also boards and commissions—such as school boards or zoning commissions—that control other critical aspects of local government.

The local judicial branch covers everything from traffic courts that process tickets to criminal courts that tackle major offenses like homicide and robbery.

Salesforce in Action at the Local Level

San Francisco, Supported Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI)

In our home city of San Francisco, California, Salesforce supported the Transbay Joint Powers Authority’s Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) program. This aims to significantly advance progress toward completing the Downtown Rail Extension (DTX) underground rail connection. This is part of our commitment to public transportation.

Seattle, Supported Expanding Affordable Housing

Salesforce worked closely with nonprofit and community advocates to enable denser housing options near transit hubs in Seattle, Washington. The legislation was similar to measures passed in Oregon, California, and Minneapolis in recent years. Had it passed, missing-middle housing in the form of duplexes and stacked flats would be possible. Unfortunately, the legislation failed in 2022, but that does not deter us! Salesforce will continue to work with our coalition partners to make more housing available, building off the groundwork we created in our previous advocacy efforts.

I Understand How the Government Is Structured. Now What?

You’ve got the basics down: three distinct branches of government operating at the federal, state, and local levels and the issues they focus on. Read on to the next unit to find out how to put your knowledge to work.