Govt-2306 -102 TEST 2

According to Texas Consitution (article 3, sections 51a), Texas cannot spend more than _________ of the state budget in any two-year period help needy dependent children or their caretakers

1 percent

The latino movement known as La Raza Unida occurred during the

1960's

Based on a 2017 Gallup poll, ____________ of Texas identified as being Republican or leaning Republican, while ___________ of Texans identified as being Democratic or leaning Democratic

41 percent; 38 percent

texas ranks_______ in the nation in voter turnout

50th

in even-numbered years, texas representitives recieve a salary of only _______ per year, not including a per dim

7,200

approximately what percentage of the state's voting-age population is registered to vote ?

79 percent

in texas, the state and local governments can both levy sales taxes.These general state and local sales taxes can combine to reach a rate of ________ percent

8.25

universities that are not elibible to recieve funding from the permanent university fund (PUF), are eligible for funding from the

Higher Education Fund (HEF)

What event marked a significant change in how Texans began to vote not only in presidential elections but also in state elections

Ronald Reagan was elected as president

The________ movement was a movement during the 1950's in which conservative Democrat's in Texas supported Republican candidate Dwight Eisenhower for the presidency

Shivercrat

Federl matching funds are

monies going to a state based on a state spending for a program

which if the following tends to lower voter turnout?

most elections are for low-visibility offices

one of the advantages incumbents have when running for reelection is

name recognition and visibility

While many of the sources of revenue in Texas are dediicated to specific purposes, designated as "nonedicated," or come from federal government, there are some funds that are not included in the specific budget categories. Where do we classify these funds?

other funds

The fundamental principles and positions supported by a political party are explained in the

party platform

The process of _______ is what introduces individuals to the political cultutr and helps people develop thier own political beliefs and valuses

political socialization

At the most basic and fundamental level, parties are organized into ___________

precincts

The ____________ requirement was included in the voting rights act to ensure that states that had previously restricted the political participation of minorities could not use redistricting for partisian gain against the interest of minority groups

preclearance

The State's Right Party, also known as the Dixiecrats, split with the national Democratic party over which issue?

racial integration

the process of _________ involves recalculating how many congressional districts each state will receive based on the state's population

redistricting

__________ must begin in the house of represntatives

revenue bills

What is one of the key functions of the county executive committee

running the county's primary elections

what kind of electoral districts are used in Texas?

sigle-member districts

which of the following is true about bicameralism in the texas legislature

since bulls must be passed by both chambers, the process requires compromise, but also allows individual members of the legislture the ability to block pasage of bills

When you pay your motor vehicle registration fees, the money goes inro which fund?

state highway fund

Which offshoot Democratic party preselected candidates for the Democratic primary and prohibited African Americans from participating?

the Jaybird party

in the texas legislature, when a committee chair "ougenholes" a bill, what happens

the bill is set aside before it is ever discussed in commmittee

Why is the comptroller of public accounts so important to the legislature?

the comptroller informs the legislture how much money is has to spend on the budget

while the Texas consitution does require that the state maintains a balanced budget, the state is allowed to carry debt as long as

the debt payments are not more than 5 percent of the states revenue

EMILY's List is a national PAC that is funded by women and focuses on raising money for women candidates at which part of the campaign cycle

the early part of the campaign cycle

in theory, texas has a sual-budget system, meaning that budget authority is shared by the governor anf the legislature; howeever, in practive,m the primary players in the budget are?

the legislature

Authorized by voters in 1991, the Texas state lottery generates a sizeable sum for the state budget. Which of the following statements regarding the Texas lottery is true?

the lottery is played by a large number of people from all social classes

which of the following rules applies to the filibuster in the texas senate

the senator who has control of the floor must alwasy speak in an sudible voice, so that he or she can be heard and understood

who is responsible for developing independent audits for state agencies to ensure that they are complying with the state budget

the state auditor's office

who has responsibily for redistricting the legislative districts in texas

the texas legislature tries first, but if it is unable to do so at the first regualr sesssion after the census, the job goes to the legislative redistricting boad

why would it be beneficial for an interest group to open an office in Austin?

they develop long-term relationships with lawemakers and continually present the views of the organixation

ultimately, what do interest groups want from policymakers?

they want policy that is beneficial for their groups

the governor often uses the state of the state adress to do which of the following

to describe his or her legislative priorities and agenda

Money from the State Highway fund can be used to acquire rights of way for railroads

true

Most third-party candidates in Texas are unsuccessful in their electoral bids.

true

by focusing on some things and not others, the media can shape the legislative agenda and what become public policy in Texas

true

civil rights groups have had success using the court system to further their members' interest

true

elected members of the legislature are paid a per diem for days they are doing offical buisness in austin when the legislature is not in session

true

if the comptroller certifies the budget, then it is considered to be "balanced,"

true

in Texas, teachers make up an important public employee interest group

true

interest groups must make sure that they maintain their credibility with plolicy makers

true

intrest groups typically have more time, money and expertise to offer politicians than do average citizens

true

one important way of gaining access to those in government is to employ former officals as lobbyists

true

since the lietenant governor is elceted in a statewide election, he or she represents the interest of the whole state rather than a smaller geographic consitiency

true

some lobbyists work for multiple clients at the same time

true

the influence on political systems that business leaders gain through lobbying fundraising can be viewed as a part of the traditionlistic-individualistic political culture that is dominant in thexas

true

with a progressive income tax, people with lowerr income pay a lower tax rate than people with a higher income

trure

which of the following was the largest PAC in Texas in 2018 election cycle

The Texas association of Realtors

why are faction within parties important?

These groups have their own priorities, and the party mist be able to manage the factions to be able to prevent any of the groups from leaving. the party

The national Research University (NRUF) was established through a constitutional amendment to provide a source of funding for

universities seeking to achieve national prominec as research institutions

Parties use social media for which of the following

voter mobilization

Texas used a system of early registration until 1971 that required which of the following

voters had to register to vote more than nine months before the general election and were required register to vote every year

What is the most basic and fundamental duty citizens have in democracy

voting

which of the following laws was written specifically to deal with expanding and protecting voting rights

voting Rights Act of 1965

which universities are eliigible to receive monies from the permanet university fund (PUF)?

Universities that are apart of the Unoversity of Texas and Texas A&M system

constituent service can play an important role in

creating a personal relationship between the legislator and the individual constituent, which will give the legislator an advantage when running for reelection.

the ____________ begins with primary elections and concludes with general elections

electoral cycle

A lobbyist is an individual employed by a political action committee who tries to influence governmental decisions on behalf of that group.

false

All colleges and universities in Texas access to monies through the higher education dund

false

Dates for special elections are specified by the Texas secretary of state who oversees and administer all elections in texas

false

It is relatively easy for independent candidate to get on the Texas ballot

false

Texas Republicans have held all major statewide elected offices since 1980

false

Texas requires people to designate party affiliation when registering to vote

false

The incumbency disadvantage leads interest groups to work more with challengers, seeing them as better investment of limited resources

false

compared to other states, Texas has some of the strictest laws dealing with lobbying from former government officials

false

general bills apply only to a specific loction like one city or one county

false

most texans are actively engaged in what goes on in their neighborhoods and communities

false

only the federal government can set requirements for getting on the ballot

false

the legislature can overturn a post-adjournment veto

false

the rainy day fund is more properly known as the national research univeristy fund

false

over time, early voting has favored the democratic party

fasle

when the federal government reimburses texas for monies spent in program such as medicaid or the childrens health insurance program, these reimbursements go into which fund?

federal funds

in a bicameral legislature, a bill only has to be passed by either the house or senate before it is sent to the governor to be signed into law

flase

according to the texas constitution, regular sessions of the texas legilature are held

for 140 days biennially, occurring id odd-numbered years

interest groups often employ__________ as lobbyists in order to gain access to those in texas government

former legislators and government offiicals

The ___________ budget is comprised of funds for dedicated revernues that target money for specific purposess

general revenue-dedicated funds

By focusing on influencing the Republican primary elections, the Tea Party in Texas is trying to

get Tea party-supported candidates on the ballot, but under the Republican party label

suppose you wanted to create a method of redistricting that would make races for the Texas legislature more competitive. Which plan would you recommend be enacted to do so?

give the redistricting process to a non-partisan commission

Which of the following are the most important factors that influence whether or not someone votes?

income level and education

most interest groups tend to give campaign contributions to __________

incumbents

Although the Democratic Party dominated state politics for much of the twentieth century, by the 1950s it faced internal divisions between ________ and ________ Democrats.

liberal; conservative

which of the following are employed to express the values of interest groups?

lobbyists

the voting rights act has been renewed several times since 1965, and a new provisions have been added since then. For example

bilingual ballots are now required in certain areas where more than 5 percent of voters speak another language

which us supreme case in 2009 created the opportunity for those opposed to powerful incumbents to create organization without having to disclose their donors

citizens united v. Federal election commission

the Tea Party movement is strong in Texas

True

The poll tax was made illegal in federal elections with the passage of the

Twenty-fourth amendment

In 1978, the Texas Constitution was amended (Article 8, Section 22), so that if the economy of the state shrinks,

appropriations have to shrink as well

A closed primary allows only those individuals who ________ to participate

are a registered member of their political party

Why are Texas Republicans considered to be in a "divided moment"?

Because there is tension between pro-buisness Republicans, whi have traditionally dominated Texas politics, and the Tea Party movement that is becoming more influential within Texas politics and government

what is the importance of the supreme court's decisions in the Reynolds v. Sims and Baker v. Carr

They declared the consitutional principal of "one person, one vote"

"First past the post" single-member district electoral systems tend to favor two-party systems

True

impeachement is _________ and is an example of the texas legislature's _______ power

a formal charge by the house of representative that leads to trail in the senate that coudl result in the removal of an offical from office; judicial

if the legislature grants a particular corportaion an exception from a state law it is called

a special bill

if an interest group "gets on the late train," the it means

an interest group gives contributions after the election to a winning candidate the group had earlier opposed

while bills must be introduced by a member of the legislature ________ can write a bill

anyone