States technically have the right according to most of their own constitutions, but that doesn't mean its a good idea. There's a reason why this is seeming to be an issue while state run housing, food distribution, cars, etc are not. There's a reason why government involvement with education and healthcare keep costs rising. Too much for me to post here. "How an Economy Grows & Crashes" is a good book by Peter Schiff. He predicted the housing and tuition bubble, amongst other things.