In United States constitutional law, the police power is the capacity of the states and the federal government to regulate behavior and enforce order within their territory for the betterment of the health, safety, morals, and general welfare of their inhabitants. [1]

Police power, in U.S. constitutional law, the permissible scope of federal or state legislation so far as it may affect the rights of an individual when those rights conflict with the promotion and maintenance of the health, safety, morals, and general welfare of the public.

Police powers are the fundamental ability of a government to enact laws to coerce its citizenry for the public good, although the term eludes an exact definition. The term does not directly relate to the common connotation of police as officers charged with maintaining public order, but rather to broad governmental regulatory power.

Aug 15, 2024 · Police power is representative of the way in which individual states may regulate citizen and non-citizen behavior and conduct. It proceeds with the express purpose of ensuring that the public’s welfare is maintained, as well as its general health and safety.

Jan 22, 2025 · Explore the concept of police power in government, its constitutional roots, and its role in safeguarding public interests through regulation. Police power is a fundamental concept in governmental authority, essential for maintaining order and ensuring public welfare.

Police power describes the basic right of governments to make laws and regulations for the benefit of their communities. Under the system of government in the United States, only states have the right to make laws based on their police power.

“Police power” refers to the inherent and general authority of a state government to enact laws to protect the health, safety, and welfare of its citizens. It is among the powers reserved to the states by the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution.

Police power is defined as the power of a governmental body to impose laws and regulations which are reasonably related to the protection or promotion of a public good such as health, safety or welfare [i].

The meaning of POLICE POWER is the inherent power of a government to exercise reasonable control over persons and property within its jurisdiction in the interest of the general security, health, safety, morals, and welfare except where legally prohibited.

Feb 4, 2025 · The police power allowed the state to limit one person’s rights to stop her from injuring others. It was essentially an anti-nuisance tool—one designed to leave everyone safer and better off. But that view of the police power didn’t last forever.