California Attorney General Opinion 24-405

BACKGROUND

The property clause of the United States Constitution gives Congress the power “to dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States.” 1 This means, among other things, that Congress has plenary authority to regulate the use of federal land. 2 But the property clause does not by itself prevent States from regulating individuals who choose to live, work, or recreate on federal land. Rather, the United States Supreme Court has held that individuals who are on federal land remain subject to and protected by state laws, so long as those laws do not impair the federal government’s effective use of the land.

In contrast, the enclave clause of the United States Constitution establishes certain places, described below, where Congress has the power to exercise “exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever.” 4 If a property qualifies as a “federal enclave,” then “federal jurisdiction is exclusive of all state authority” within that property. 5 As such, the Constitution generally bars the State “from exercising any legislative authority including its taxing and police powers in relation to the…