Federal, state, and local governments each have a role to play in protecting health. President Obama recognized that “state and local governments have frequently protected health, safety, and the environment more aggressively than has the national Government.”1 Yet, the federal government can hinder state and local activity through preemption, which is “when a higher level of government restricts, or even eliminates, a lower level of government’s ability to regulate an issue.”2 State governments can similarly preempt local law.
