Enumerated powers are more common in federal constitutions, because the component states did not wish to trust the federal government with a broad grant of power. Also if too broad a grant is given, then it may not be a federal government any longer. However, enumerated powers are found in the constitutions of a number of the States of the United States, most notably Alabama, where the constitution was written because the people did not wish to trust the state government with a broad grant of power.
Enumerated powers are thus a mark of distrust in the power of republican institutions to safeguard the freedoms of those who are represented in them.
The Alabama Constitution of 1901, because of its distrust of what both State and local governments might do, has managed to require close to 800 Amendments in less than 11 decades.
My favorite amendment of the Alabama Constitution is:
It is also true that successful federal states need not have enumerated powers. Germany is perhaps the best example, as it is highly federal and yet allows the federal government to legislate on more or less everything.
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