POLS 207 (Pt.2)
What is constitutionalism?
A government of laws, not people, operating on the principle that governmental power must be limited, that government officials should be restrained in their exercise of power over individuals.
Know what is usually contained in state constitutions
All state constitutions reflect the American political tradition of separation of powers with, separate legislative, executive, and judicial articles. In this, the powers of state government are explained. The following shows a general outline of a state constitution: Preamble, protection of rights, suffrage and elections, organs of government (explaining jobs of secretary of state, attorney general, etc.), local government, taxation and debt, powers of government, and instructions on revising/amending the document.
Know the different types of elections (at-large, single member district, etc.)
At-Large elections are elections in which the entire community votes, and the highest vote getter wins. Single Member District elections are elections in which candidates are chosen by voters in separate geographically defined districts. There is a form of election known as Mixed Electoral System in which some officials are elected at large and others are elected from single-member districts. Cumulative voting is a variation of at-large voting. Voters have as many votes as there are seats. Voters cast their votes for individual candidates and the winners are the ones with the most votes. Voters may also "cumulate" or combine their votes on one or more candidates.
What do counties do?
Counties are legal subdivisions of a state. Counties generally have 1 governing body, variously called county commissioners, board of supervisors, or judges. This governing body can have anywhere form 2-50 members and they can be elected for certain districts or countywide. You would also have a sheriff, county attorney, auditor, recorder, coroner, assessor, judge, and treasurer. A large number of special boards or commissions that have authority over various functions, is also a part of the governmental setup. These members can be elected or appointed. Lastly, the county government has an appointed bureaucracy in planning, transportation, health, welfare, libraries, and parks. Larger, more urban areas may also have an elected chief executive and/or an appointed county administrator or manager. Historically, states created counties as their administrative arms.
How do states amend their constitution?
Each American state has its own rules and procedures that govern how its constitution can be amended. The ways a state constitution can be amended or revised are: ¥ Via a legislatively referred constitutional amendment. ¥ Via an initiated constitutional amendment. Eighteen states allow this method of amendment although the requirements in several of these states are so prohibitively difficult that the process has rarely if ever been used (Illinois, Mississippi). ¥ Via a commission-referred amendment process, which takes place only in Florida. ¥ Via a constitutional convention. In some states, automatic ballot referrals allow voters to decide at regular intervals whether to hold a convention. ¥ Through direct action of the state legislature with no vote of the people. (This happens only in Delaware). State constitutions can also be changed through judicial action. This can happen when a federal court declares that part of a state's constitution is unconstitutional under the U.S. Constitution and must be removed or treated as null. It can also happen when a state court declares that an amendment to the state's constitution is unacceptable.
What is the political culture of Texas?
In Texas, our political culture can be best described as traditionalistic and individualistic. Traditionalistic refers to the belief that there is an elite class governing for the masses, "government for the few". Individualistic refers to the thought that basically, the government should stay out of social issues and should only be involved in our lives when we ask them to be.
What are preemptions?
In federal-state relations, the federal government's assumption of regulatory powers in a particular field to the partial or full exclusion of state powers.
From where do local governments derive their power?
Local governments derive their power form their state constitutions and state legislature.
What do special districts do?
Special districts are local governmental units usually charged with performing a single function; often overlap municipal and county boundaries. Basically, these units are special-purpose governments and are put in charge of administering a particular function or service on a metro-wide or a city-wide level. These things could include a park, sewer system, water, parking, airport, planning or authority. The nations largest special districts, NY's Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Boston's Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, and Washington's Metro Area Transit Authority. (My ex: San Antonio River Authority).
Why are state constitutions long?
State constitutions are generally longer than our US constitution. This is the result of a few different things. For one, state constitutions are easier to amend. Because of this, state constitutions are amended and added on to fairly often. Lastly, the US constitution is more of a framework of basic ideas, and it does not get into specifics. The specifics come into play in the case of state constitutions which explains why they are generally so much longer.
Know the historical development of the Texas Constitution
Texas has had 5 state constitutions as well as 2 before it became a state. First came the Constitution of Coahuila y Tejas in 1827; then the Republic of Texas in 1836; then the Texas State Constitution of 1845 when we joined the Union; then the Confederate Constitution of 1861; then the Constitution of 1861; then the Reconstruction Constitution of 1869; then the Constitution of 1876 which remains in place to this day. Our constitution today is long and detailed, having been amended 483 times.
Know the climate of the Constitutional Convention of 1875.
The Constitutional Convention of 1875 was the result of of the determination of the democrats of Texas to eliminate the Constitution of 1869. Ninety delegates were elected from all over the state. Members were conservative and reflected the retrenchment and reform philosophy of the Grange (organization of farmers). This conservatism included a strong emphasis on the constitutional purpose of limiting government and a tolerance for racial segregation. They were determined to keep government from oppressing them as they believed was so, under Reconstruction.
What were the conditions of the annexation agreement for Texas to join the United States in 1845?
The conditions of the annexation agreement for Texas to join the US in 1845 stated that Texas could retain control over their public lands, thus giving us the ability to extinguish our debt. In addition, Brown's bill provided that Texas could be divided into several states as needed to deal with future "balance" between slave states and free states, and that no slavery would be allowed north of the old Missouri Compromise line.
What is the philosophy behind the current Texas Constitution?
The philosophy behind the current Texas constitution is that it is easy to amend, but VERY difficult to overhaul. Basically saying, easy to tack on laws but very hard to scrap the entire thing and start over.
What are the differences between the Bill of Rights in the Texas and U.S constitutions?
There are several differences between the Bill of Rights in the Texas an US Constitutions. For example, in the US constitution the Bill of Rights is included as an addendum in the first 10 amendments; However, in the Texas Constitution the Bill of Rights is at the beginning in Article 1. The Texas Bill of Rights appears to be MUCH more thorough. However, upon closer examination there is a lot of overlapping with the US Bill of Rights, the overlapping is just reordered. For example, in the Texas Bill of Rights Freedom of Religion is protected in different ways in sections 4-7. Also, the tone of the Texas Bill of Rights is much more declaratory. This basically means it took a strong stance on some issues of the day, including: Government favoritism, Threat of National Government, and Threat of State Government. Overall, the documents are very similar and contain a lot of the same ideas, just overlapping and mentioned in multiple places.
