South Dakota v. Dole

  • If Congress desires to condition federal funding, it must do so unambiguously
  • Such conditions must be legitimately related to a federal interest/objective
  • When spending becomes commandeering:
    • When the amount of federal money on the line is so large or so impactful that a state has no real, practical choice but to accept it
    • This pushes constitutional encouragement to unconstitutional commandeering
  • A high success rate on a condition encouraging State action does not make it per se coercive—just because it's working doesn't make it unconstitutional
  • Requirements: the condition on the federal money must:
    1. be for the general welfare
    2. be unambiguously stated
    3. be related to a federal interest in statute
    4. otherwise comply with the Constitution.