Texas Government Final Exam

In Texas, ___ create(s) special districts.

Texas voters in the areas that will be covered.

Texas counties have their origins

in municipalities

Dallas operates under which style of city government?

council-manager.

The TX. supreme court, and court of criminal appeals have Appellate Jurisdiction, which means they have the authority to do what?

Review the decisions of lower courts to determine whether legal principles and court procedures were followed correctly.

What court in TX has automatic jurisdiction over all death penalty cases?

Court of Criminal Apeals

The Texas governor is considered by most to be the most powerful person in Texas government

False

For a Texas governor, what is the benefit of a post-adjournment veto?

The legislature is prevented from overriding it

A minor criminal offense, usually punishable by a small fine or a short jail sentence, is a(n)

misdemeanor

Which of the following statements is correct?

Angle males are still a majority of the membership in both houses of the TX legislature

What makes the greatest difference between strong and weak governors of Texas?

Differences in personality

The governor of Texas dominates Texas Government

False

In the state of Texas, what is the policy for felons' rights to vote?

Felonys are allowed to vote upon full discharge of their sentences.

The ___ is the oldest state agency in Texas

General Land Office

The single most important account in TX treasury is

General Revenue Fund

What is the function of the 24 councils of government in Texas today?

They are a regional board meant to coordinate local planning and economic development.

Why is it important to not only look at formal qualifications for governor, but to also look at the informal qualifications as well?

While the formal qualifications tell us that millions of Texans can run for office, the informal ones tell us who has a chance to win

In the general election of 2004, Tx judges were chosen by

null

What are the main sources of revenue for special districts in Texas?

property taxes and user fees.

What do we call the implementation of public policy by government employees?

public administration

The mayor-council form of government is most common in

smaller general-law cities.

What are 4 requirements, to be a TX supreme court?

35yrs. old, U.S. citizen, resident of TX, practicing attorney or Judge for at least 10 yrs.

Which of the following is NOT a key difference between the mayor-council and the council-manager forms of local government?

In the council-manager system, local politics is viewed as a full-time job, unlike in the mayor-council system.

What is the primary task of the Texas Secretary of State?

To handle elections and voter registration

Which of the following groups of crimes are considered second-degree felonies?

bigamy, sexual assault, arson, and manslaughter

What type of cases do the TX supreme court hear?

civil appeals

The governor can alter a prisoner's sentence without the majority support of the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles

eirmod

What do we call a tax collected such items as cigarettes and alcoholic beverages?

sin tax

A serious criminal offense that subjects a person to state prison punishment is a(n)

felony

When referring to the governor as "Chief Executive", we are referring to

gubernatorial control over the state bureaucracy

In Texas, trial lawyers tend to support

nonumy eirmod tempor

In May 2014, the UT System Board of Regents decided on all of the following EXCEPT that

the Board allocate monies to UT Austin from the state's Permanent University Fund.

In the case Avery v. Midland County, the U.S. Supreme Court held that:

the principle of "one person, one vote" applied to county commissioners' courts.

The most important social service provided by counties is:

the provision of emergency welfare assistance.

Which of the following are NOT roles that the governor is expected to fulfill?

Chief economist

The most serious felony is

capital murder

federal judges are appointed by?

president and confirmed by senate

A crime is defined as "aggravated" involves

the use of some sort of weapon

The chief lawyer for Texas is the....

Attorney general

Which of the following cities currently has a city government with a strong mayor-council form of government?

Houston

Authority over railroads throughout Texas was given to the ________ in 2005

Texas Department of Transportation

What is the Texas governor's greatest judicial power?

The power to appoint judges to vacancies in the courts