Texas Government Exam 3
All of the following are true of the legislative process
1) A bill must survive three readings before being sent to the other chamber 2) A veto can be overridden by a two-thirds vote of both houses 3) The governor can veto specific lines of a spending bill 4) All tax bills must originate in the House
All of the following can be said about redistricting in Texas
1) District sizes varied dramatically before the 1960s court cases 2) in the 1960s, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered all districts to be appointed on the "one person, one vote" principle 3) Court decisions have led to a dramatic increase in the number of women and minorities in the legislature 4) Republicans have used the redistricting process to strengthen their position in the legislature
All of the following are offices a governor can appoint
1) vacant U.S. senate seats 2) Secretary of state 3) vacant Railroad Commission seats 4) vacant Texas Supreme Court Seats
How many judicial districts serve Hidalgo County in the Texas state judicial system?
11
How many court of Appeals are there
14
Who was the TX governor during the Confederacy?
1861- Edward Clark 1861-Francis Lubbock 1863- Pendleton Murrah 1865- Fletcher Stockdale 1865- Andrew Hamilton
How can the TX state Legislature impeach the Governor of TX?
2/3 vote in Senate to convict the impeached official
how many members are in the Texas Legislature?
31-member Senate and a 150-member House of Representatives.
How many District Courts are there
459
How many state district courts are there in the Texas court system?
459
How many County Level Courts are there
511
How many Justice courts are there
807 and
what number designates the current Texas Legislature?
84th Texas Legislature
What percentage of litigation is based on state or local laws and ordinances, rather than federal law?
95%
how does a bill become a law in the Texas Legislature?
A representative or senator gets an idea for a bill by listening to the people he or she represents and then working to solve their problem, then A bill is written by the legislator, often with legal assistance from the Texas Legislative Council, a legislative agency which provides bill drafting services, research assistance, computer support, and other services for legislators. Once a bill has been written, it is introduced by a member of the house or senate in the member's own chamber, However, any bill increasing taxes or raising money for use by the state must start in the house of representatives. Then, during the first reading, the presiding officer assigns the bill to a committee.
who may be impeached by the Texas Legislature and how is it accomplished?
According to article 15 of the Texas Constitution, the power of impeachment shall be vested in the House of Representatives. Impeachment of the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Commissioner of the General Land Office, Comptroller and the Judges of the Supreme Court, Court of Appeals and District Court shall be tried by the Senate with concurrence of two-thirds.
Which of the following can be said about the leadership of recent Texas Governors?
Ann Richards made a priority of appointing more women and minorities to key positions in state government
Which article of the current Texas Constitution describes the state judicial system?
Article 5
Which of the following is TRUE about minority representation in the Texas judicial system?
As of 2012, a majority of judges on the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals were women
Which of the following is TRUE of the judicial process in Texas?
At least four justices must agree to hear a case for it to get to the Texas Supreme Court
Where does the TX governor reside?
Austin
Which of the following is True about the leadership of recent Texas Governors?
Bill Clements contributed to the development of a two party system in Texas
Describe Article I of the current Texas Constitution.
Bill of Rights with 33 sections
Who is the Secratory of State?
Carlos Cascos
What are the primary functions of the Texas Governor?
Commander and Chief of TX army, navy, and air national guard, rangers, DPS, Chief legislator
Which type of court does not require its judges to be lawyers?
County Courts
Are judges sitting on Texas state courts appointed by the governor or are they elected by a vote of the people? Explain why Texans chose such a method of selecting judges for their state courts.
Elected by the people because the constitution of 1869 with E.J. Davis ruined it for everyone
Which of the following is one difference between a grand jury and a petit jury?
Grand juries issue indictments; petit juries issue verdicts
Who is the TX governor today?
Greg Abbot
The Texas Supreme Court
Has jurisdiction only in civil cases
what is impeachment?
Impeachment is a formal process in which an official is accused of unlawful activity, the outcome of which, depending on the country, may include the removal of that official from office as well as criminal or civil punishment.
What is the term for the Governor of Texas
In 1869 it was 4 years, in 1876 went to 2 years, and in the 1970s term moved back to 4 years
Which of the following describes why the governor's appointment powers are limited?
It takes years for a governor to get majorities favoring his or her policies because of staggered terms
Which of the following best describes the legislative process in Texas?
Lawmakers often take their cues from other lawmakers
what is redistricting and who does it?
Legislature
does the Texas Legislature always stay in session for the same Of time?
No
Which of the following best describes the various informal resources the governor has at his or her disposal?
Political parties have become a more important resource as Republicans have gained power in the legislature
What is the central criticism about money and the Texas Supreme Court?
Popular election of judges has increased the influence of money in the judicial system
by what title do we refer to the preceding officers of the Texas Legislature?
President of the Senate: Lieutenant Governor and Speaker of the House of Representatives and their Pro Tempore Positions
The lieutenant governor
Presides over the Texas Senate
What is the Role of the Texas Governor?
Promote Texas, Sign bills to support, Appoint Secretory of State
The transformation of the Texas executive from a strong unified institution to a divided and plural institution began with the
Reconstruction Constitution of 1869
Which of the following statements best reflects the description of Texas judges as of 2012?
Republicans control every seat on the state's two-highest courts
Who is the TX governor preceding the one we have now?
Rick Perry who was the LT. Governor for Bush
Which of the following executive branch officials does the governor have the power to appoint?
Secretary of State
how long is the term of office for Texas legislators?
Senators serve four-year terms and represent a relatively large number of constituents, whereas house members serve two-year terms and represent a smaller number of constituents.
who are the current occupants of those positions?
The Honorable Joe Straus has been Speaker of the Texas House since January 2009, with Speaker Pro Tempore: Rep. Dennis Bonnen and Lt. Govoner Dan Patrick with Juan Hinojosa (D); since January 13, 2015
what are the primary functions of a Texas Legislature?
The duties of the legislature include consideration of proposed laws and resolutions, consideration of proposed constitutional amendments for submission to the voters, and appropriation of all funds for the operation of state government. All bills for raising revenue considered by the legislature must originate in the house of representatives. The house alone can bring impeachment charges against a statewide officer, which charges must be tried by the senate.
when does the Texas Legislature meet?
The legislature meets in regular session on the second Tuesday in January of each odd-numbered year.
Which of the following best describes the place of partisanship in the Texas legislature?
The legislature still is not organized along party lines
Which of the following can be said about the various offices of the executive branch in Texas?
The railroad Commission deals mainly with oil and gas regulation
How does Congress Impeach the Governor?
They can only impeach Federal officials
what is reappointment and who does it?
Us house of Representatives
What is a court of "original jurisdiction"?
Where the crime took place
What is meant by the reference to a "court of record", and why is such a court called that?
a court of record is a trial court or appellate court in which a court clerk or a court reporter takes down a record of proceedings.
In order to qualify to run for governor, a person must be
a resident of Texas for at least five years
Plea bargains are used to
clear a crowded district court docket by negotiating guilty pleas
In the committee system
committee chairs are typically allied with the House and Senate leadership
Some argue that one of the advantages of a plural executive in Texas is that it
constrains the governor
The Texas governor has the unilateral power to
declare war on a bordering country in a time of national emergency
Most state Judges are
elected to limited terms in partisan elections
Members of the Texas Senate
have a base pay of $7,200 per year
The governor's power to call special legislative sessions
increases the power of the governor because he or she can add items to the special session agenda
The speaker of the Texas House of Representatives
is elected by the House from among its members
Redistricting for state legislative seats in Texas
is managed by the Legislative Redistricting Board if the legislature fails to carry out its responsibilities
The lieutenant governor
is seen by many as the most powerful position in state government
how is the Texas Legislature organized?
it is a bicameral institution, consisting of a lower house, the Texas House of Representatives, and the upper house, the Texas Senate.
The Texas legislature
meets biannually in 140 day sessions
The governor's veto power is strong because
most vetoes are issued after the legislature has adjourned, making an override vote impossible
Members of the Texas House
must be at least 21 years old
One of the accomplishments of modern reform efforts was to
prohibit lawmakers from accepting payment for speaking to special interest groups
One of the procedural obstacles to legislation is the
tag, which allows senators to postpone committee hearings for at least 48 hours
Members of the Texas Legislature
tend to be independently wealthy because the low annual salary prevents salaried workers from running for office
One of the governor's important influences in the lawmaking process is the power to
threaten a veto
A governor can be removed from office
through impeachment proceedings initiated in the House of Representatives