Question 59: Name one power that is only for the states.
Official answers (any one counts)
USCIS accepts any of these answers. If the question asks for more than one, give as many as it asks.
- Provide schooling and education
- Provide protection (police)
- Provide safety (fire departments)
- Give a driver's license
- Approve zoning and land use
Grandpa explains
Your state gives you your driver's license, not Washington, kiddo. Schools, police, and firefighters are state jobs too.
Careful: these are NOT the answer
These are the common mix-ups. The app uses them as traps so you practice.
- Print paper money
- Declare war
- Make treaties with other countries
On the 2008 test this is question 42
If you filed your N-400 before October 20, 2025, you take the 2008 version. Which one is mine?
Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the states. What is one power of the states?
- provide schooling and education
- provide protection (police)
- provide safety (fire departments)
- give a driver's license
- approve zoning and land use
Video lesson on this topic: The Courts and the States
More questions on this topic
- 60What is the purpose of the 10th Amendment?
- 61Who is the governor of your state now? ★
- 62What is the capital of your state?
- 16Name the three branches of government.
- 17The President of the United States is in charge of which branch of government?
- 18What part of the federal government writes laws?
Official sources:
- USCIS · 128 Civics Questions and Answers (2025 version), M-1778 (09/25) ↗ · checked October 6, 2026
The plain explanation is ours; the official answers are USCIS's, word for word.