September 17: Constitution Day

In honor of Constitution Day, commemorating the day the Constitution of the United States was adopted by the constitutional convention and sent to the states for ratification, a few items relevant to the functioning of the US economy are noted below.

COMMERCE CLAUSE
Article I, Section 8 states that Congress shall have the power "To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;..."

COINAGE CLAUSES
Article I, Section 8 states that Congress shall have the power "To coin Money, regulate the value thereof, ..." and "To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current Coin of the United States;..." Article I, Section 10 gives Congress this power exclusively by stating that "No State shall...coin Money;..."

COPYRIGHT CLAUSES
Article I, Section 8 states that Congress shall have the power "To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writing and Discoveries;..."

CONTRACT CLAUSES
Article I, Section 9 states that "No Bill of Attainder or ex post facto Law shall be passed..." by Congress. Article I, Section 10 states that "No state shall...pass any Bill of Attainder, ex post facto Law, or Law impairing the Obligations of Contracts,..."

EXPORT CLAUSES
Article I, Section 9 states that "No Tax or Duty shall be laid on Articles exported from any State...", and Article I, Section 10 states that " No State shall without the Consent of the Congress, lay any Imposts or Duties on Imports or Exports,..."

SEARCHES AND SEIZURES
Amendment IV states that "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated,..."

DUE PROCESS
Amendment V states that "No person shall...be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of the law;..." and Amendment XIV, Section 1 states "nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law;..."

RESERVED RIGHTS AND POWERS
Amendment IX states that "The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people." And Amendment X states "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

© National Council on Economic Education, New York, NY