POLS 1337 Test 4

Which standard of review uses the "exceedingly persuasive justification; use of sex as a governmental category must be substantially related to important governmental objectives" test of discrimination?

Heightened

Which of the following explains why Texas moved away from property taxes in favor of sales taxes?

Property valuations declined during the 1930s, making property taxes an ineffective source of revenue.

What is the test for the lowest standard of judicial scrutiny in equal protection cases?

Rational basis to achieve a legitimate governmental objective

High rates of recidivism are evidence that the Texas corrections system is generally failing in which of the following goals?

Rehabilitation

In what way are burglary and robbery different?

Robbery is a crime committed against a person.

In 1913 the ___________ empowered the national government to collect taxes on income. Since then, the government has levied taxes on individual and corporate income and on capital gains realized by individuals and corporations from the sale of assets.

Sixteenth Amendment

Which federal program was developed as part of the New Deal and designed to provide a pension to older people?

Social Security

Which of the following best explains why local taxes in Texas are higher than in most other states?

State law requires local compliance with state standards without providing funding.

What is the most significant source of Texas revenues?

State tax revenues

In what way does Texas educational politics influence public schools nationwide?

Texas's influence on textbooks as publishers compete for a share of the state's huge market

Which of the following is NOT an example of a state adjusting its policies to compete with neighboring states?

The 2017 tax law limits deductions for state and local taxes to $10,000.

Who passed the Voting Rights Act (VRA) in August 1965, which limited literacy, interpretation, and other such tests for voting?

The Congress

What is the primary federal agency in charge of regulations governing air and water quality?

The Environmental Protection Agency

Which legislation banned slavery in the territories north of one of the southern borders in 1820, thus keeping most of the vast lands of the Louisiana Purchase free?

The Missouri Compromise

In Texas, which of the following is responsible for managing the Permanent School Fund and making decisions regarding the curriculum and selection of instructional materials?

The State Board of Education

Which of the following legally authorizes the state to spend money to provide for its various programs and services?

The appropriations process

What part of the Affordable Care Act did Texas choose to reject?

The expansion of Medicaid

Which of the following changes to the Texas Social Studies curriculum is evidence that the actions of the State Board of Education are heavily influenced by politics?

The inclusion of conservative leaders like Phyllis Schlafly and Newt Gingrich The downplaying of slavery as a major cause of the Civil War The emphasis on the benefits of free enterprise throughout the curriculum The description of the United States as a "constitutional republic," not a "democratic society" All of these are correct.

How does the comptroller of the public accounts annual report limit the Texas legislature?

The legislature can appropriate no more than the amount of revenue the comptroller predicts for the following year.

What is the likely reason for the persistence of so many myths about the use of public welfare programs like TANF and SNAP?

The programs seem to provide benefits to individuals who have not earned them, whereas others who are working struggle financially and do not receive benefits.

What doctrine allowed the Supreme Court to prohibit limited types of private discrimination?

The state-action doctrine

What does the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment prohibit?

The states from denying any person the equal protection of the law

Despite the statement on equality in ________, the Constitution does NOT include the government's role with regard to ensuring equality.

the Declaration of Independence

The U.S. monetary policy is controlled by _____________.

the Federal Reserve Board

Before a regulation can go into effect, it must be reviewed by __________.

the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)

The independence of the Federal Reserve Board is enhanced by __________.

the fact that members cannot be fired once they are appointed

Neither the Declaration of Independence nor the Constitution made any provision for ________ rights.

women's

________ is/are based on the expectation of equality under the law.

Civil rights

A system of taxation whereby the rich pay proportionately higher taxes than the poor is known as ____________.

progressive taxation

Which of the following best explains the reason Texas acted to limit the government's power of eminent domain?

A political culture that strongly supports property rights

Which of the following best describes a progressive tax?

A tax structured like the federal income tax A tax that taxes marginally higher levels of income at higher rates A tax that asks those with little income to pay little in taxes A tax designed to emphasize one's ability to pay rather than a tax based on benefits received All of these are correct.

Which one of the following was a main issue of the Reconstruction era?

Allowing blacks to vote

Which Article of the U.S. Constitution gives the states responsibility for setting the time, place, and manner of elections, while also reserving for Congress the power to intervene where it deems necessary?

Article 1

Most state and local ___________taxes are equally regressive as income tax.

sales

In which year did Congress first allow non-whites to become naturalized citizens, extending naturalization to "persons of African descent"?

1870

Which of the following instances would find the accused in federal court?

A crime that involves smuggling across state lines

Which of the following is the strongest argument against the use of state funds to develop a mass transit system in Texas?

Barring an oil shortage, ridership on mass transit lines in Texas will likely be low

Why is sales tax considered regressive?

Because the poor pay more in taxes as a percentage of their income

The ________ movement grew out of a series of incidents typically between young male African Americans and the police officers charged with protecting them.

Black Lives Matter

Which of the following is a white-collar crime?

Bribery

Which case held that separate schools were inherently unequal, even if the facilities were essentially similar?

Brown v. Board of Education

Why have business interests generally been so much more successful in Texas politics than consumer and worker interests have been?

Business interests are highly motivated and well financed to protect their profitability, whereas consumers and workers individually see less reason to organize for protections they may or may not need.

Congress established the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) as part of the ________.

Civil Rights Act of 1964

Which of the following is an example of the contrast between civil law and criminal law?

Civil law might deal with concerns about whether individuals have lived up to their contractual obligations, whereas criminal law deals with those accused of breaking laws.

Which of the following law enforcement practices helps to ensure that prosecutors can use statements made by the accused?

Delivering the Miranda warning at the time of arrest

Why are crimes like drug possession and gambling prosecuted differently than drug trafficking or theft?

Drug possession and gambling primarily hurt the person who committed the crime.

Which of the following makes up the largest portion of Texas state expenditures?

Education

What is the final step of the policy-making process?

Evaluation

Which of the following statements is NOT true about how regulations that have gone into effect can be revised or terminated?

Existing regulations cannot be terminated until a new administration enacts new regulations.

Congress does NOT have the authority to enforce the equal protection clause.

False

In the past decade, the meaning of "all men are created equal" has been expanded to include women and all people subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.

False

Public policies of the United States affect all states equally.

False

The federal debt is the difference between the amount of the federal government's income and its expenses.

False

Overly aggressive police officers extracting confessions from an individual without informing the accused of his or her rights is a violation of which constitutional amendments?

Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments

Which U.S. constitutional amendment prohibits "unreasonable" searches?

Fourth Amendment

Which of the following best exemplifies a difference between civil rights and civil liberties?

Government is the only authority that can suppress civil liberties—for example, by suppressing freedom of speech—but both government and private entities, such as individuals or businesses, have the capacity to violate civil rights by treating people unequally.

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) is a policy primarily focused on which area?

Healthcare

Why can't the state be assured that raising the tax rates will increase tax revenues?

Higher taxes may discourage the use of taxed goods.

The Hernandez v. Texas decision held that ________ were a class of individuals entitled to the same due process guarantees as African Americans and other racial groups.

Hispanics

What was the subject of the 1948 Supreme Court case that held that that private discrimination can be prohibited if it involves significant state action?

Housing

Which of the following statements is true of the money supply?

Increasing the money supply is a way of warding off an economic downturn.

Which of the following is a criticism of the public school curriculum taught in Texas schools?

It is geared mainly toward preparation for college and does not provide graduates with usable job skills.

Which laws enforced segregation of whites and blacks in all public places?

Jim Crow laws

What is the term that describes the trading of votes among legislators, especially to fund local projects to benefit their constituents?

Logrolling

Which of the following best explains why the Children's Health Insurance Program was implemented despite the existence of Medicaid?

Medicaid benefits are restricted to the very poor, leaving many families with too much income to qualify for benefits but not enough income to provide health care coverage for their children.

The federal government provides health care to the elderly and disabled through what program?

Medicare

Which policy was a major component of President Johnson's Great Society program?

Medicare

Why do businesses or individuals who violate regulatory laws (like professional licensing requirements) find themselves in civil courts, not criminal courts?

Most business regulations are civil rather than criminal.

Which of the following details most strongly supports the argument that Texas should strengthen its gun-safety regulations?

People living in homes with guns are 2.7 times more likely to die from homicide than those in homes without guns.

What term is used for the individual who files suit in a civil case?

Plaintiff

The purpose of the World Trade Organization (WTO) is to _____________.

settle trade disputes between member countries

Which of the following education policies reflects the desire of some legislators to introduce market forces into the public education system?

The use of standardized measures of performance to rank schools competitively The introduction of merit pay for teachers and administrators who improve student test outcomes The growth of charter schools as a state-funded option from which families choose Efforts to create a state-funded voucher program for private and parochial school tuition All of these are correct.

Which of the following generalizations is most accurate of states with capital punishment such as Texas?

Their murder rate has been consistently higher than that of states without the death penalty.

Which of the following may explain the higher rates of reported criminal behavior among members of racial or ethnic minority groups?

These groups are more likely to face exclusion or limited opportunities in the general society.

Why do many patient advocacy groups oppose tort reform?

They believe that tort suits are the best way to hold doctors accountable in malpractice situations.

What did many of the country's founders do that was contradictory to the Declaration of Independence's statement on equality?

They owned slaves .

Why are search warrants sometimes not required?

To allow law enforcement to protect their own safety

Which of the following explains the purpose of regulatory taxes?

To discourage particular choices by raising the costs of purchases the state deems undesirable

What is the purpose of the DREAM Act?

To provide a path to citizenship for noncitizens who entered the United States illegally as children

The Supreme Court, through the power of judicial review, retains the authority to do what?

To strike state laws that violate equal protection

Which of the following arguments most directly supports efforts to achieve tort reform?

Too many people abuse the civil courts as a mechanism to win damages, which raises the costs of doing business.

Gross public debt is the net public debt that includes all interagency borrowings within the government.

True

In 1848, leaders of the women's suffrage movement met in Seneca Falls, New York, to organize for the right to vote.

True

In March 1965, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., organized a voting rights march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama. With national news media on hand, Alabama police, under the authority of Governor George Wallace, beat the marchers with whips, nightsticks, and cattle prods.

True

Medicaid is a joint state and federal program that provides health coverage to the needy.

True

The Constitution was not explicit on birthright citizenship, but the clause requiring that presidents be natural-born citizens seemingly implies that people born in the United States are citizens.

True

The Kennedy administration's President's Commission on the Status of Women, charged with making recommendations for overcoming sex discrimination, urged passage of the Equal Pay Act that prohibits employers from paying different wages for the same job based upon gender.

True

The federal income tax is a progressive tax.

True

The exclusionary rule prevents which of the following?

Use of illegally obtained evidence against the accused

What is the test for the strictest standard of judicial scrutiny in equal protection cases?

Use of race as a governmental category precisely tailored to meet a compelling governmental interest

The Supreme Court ruled in ________ that the Voting Rights Act (VRA) prohibited electoral plans that may effectively dilute the voting strength of minorities, in this case Latinos.

White v. Regester

In 1920, who won the right to vote?

Women

Since the twentieth century, the main source of federal government income has been ________.

all income taxes

Promoting ___________ through government action comes about only at the expense of economic freedom.

economic equality

In the policy-making process, the step immediately following policy formulation is policy ____________.

enactment

According to economists, a(n) ________ is when the government makes an imbursement to individuals through Social Security, unemployment insurance, food stamps, and other programs.

entitlement payment

Although the Declaration of Independence declared that "All men are created equal," the Constitution originally had little to say about ________.

equality

A foreign trade policy that encourages trade with partners who provide workers with livable wages, reasonable working hours, and a clean and safe environment is called a ____________ policy.

fair trade

A(n) __________ law was passed in 1894, declared unconstitutional in 1895, introduced again in 1909, and ratified in 1913 as the Sixteenth Amendment.

income tax

A method that involves adding new funds onto the amount previously stated is known as ____________.

incremental budgeting