Ch. 7 Quiz
What is the annual salary for those elected to legislative office in Texas?
$7,200 per year
The Texas Constitution grants the __________ veto power.
Governor
The Lieutenant Governor gets his or her powers from the __________. You Answered
Senate
Powers that are not directly related to the writing and passing of legislation are called
nonlegislative powers.
What is the purpose of the Legislative Redistricting Board (LRB)?
to create a redistricting plan if the legislature fails to do so during the first regular legislative session after a census
The governor often uses the State of the State address to do which of the following?
to describe his or her legislative priorities and agenda
For a law to pass in the Texas legislature it must be voted on by
two deliberative bodies representing different constituencies.
If the governor does not like specific provisions of an appropriations bill passed by the legislature, he or she can
use the line-item veto to remove those portions from the rest of the bill.
Which of the following legislators would be LEAST likely to propose an ALEC model bill according to the findings of the article?
"68 years old, liberal democrat, 20 years in office"
In even-numbered years, Texas representatives receive a salary of only ________ per year, not including a per diem.
$7,200
Each member of the Texas Senate represents about ___________ people, while each member of the Texas House represents about_________ people.
811,000; 168,000
What is ALEC?
American Legislative Exchange Council
What role do Republican and Democratic Party caucuses play in determining the chairs of legislative committees?
None, the presiding officers have sole power to choose the committee chairs
The legislature does not usually override a veto for what reason?
Bills are passed late in session, so the legislature is usually out of session when a bill is vetoed.
Texas House members differ from Texas Senate members because
House members represent small districts and are subject to more frequent elections.
Which chamber not only is larger but also is subjected to more frequent elections?
House of Representatives
As in the U.S. Congress, the purpose of a conference committee in the Texas legislature is to do what?
It is a committee designed to make differing House and Senate versions of the same bill identical.
What is the function of the "local and consent" calendar?
It is reserved for uncontroversial bills or bills limited to a localized problem.
A regular session in the Texas legislature starts __________ and lasts for __________ many days.
January of odd numbered years; 140 days
Which of the following most accurately describes the influential activities undertaken by ALEC in pursuit of policymaking success?
Providing model bills to state legislators with little expertise in particular policy areas
The _________ are currently the majority party in the Texas House, and the __________ are majority party in the Texas Senate.
Republicans; Republicans
What is required to convene a special session of the state legislature?
The governor must call for a special session outside a general session.
Which of the following statements about simple resolutions is correct?
They do not require the signature of the governor.
Message power gives the Governor what ability in the legislative process?
To put forth a vision for Texas and what legislation will accomplish that vision
Local bills
affect only units of local government, such as a city, county, or special district.
The lieutenant governor is
an official who is elected in a statewide election for a four-year term.
The ability of the Lieutenant Governor and the Speaker of the House to control the final outcome of legislation comes from their power to
appoint members of conference committees.
The pluralist view of interest group influence in policy making sees business interests as just one among many influences with nothing particularly special about it insofar as other interests are able to check the influence of business groups. This pluralist perspective is opposed to the ___ perspective of interest group influence in policy making.
elitist
After a bill is referred by a committee, the next step in the process is
floor action
One of the most notable effects of bicameralism in the Texas legislature is that it
permits more opportunities to kill or significantly modify a bill.
There are ____ members of the Texas House of Representatives and _____ members of the Texas Senate.
150; 31
Members of the Texas House of Representatives serve ________ terms.
2-year
How old does someone have to be to serve in the Texas House?
21 years old
In order to be eligible to serve in the Texas House, you must be ______ years old; in order to be eligible to serve in the Texas Senate, you must be ______ years old.
21; 26
Special sessions last ________, but there is no limit to the number of special sessions a governor can call.
30 days
According to ALEC's own reporting, approximately how of the 826 introduced pieces of legislation based on their proposals ended up becoming law in 2009?
0.14
The number of legislators ALEC claims among its membership is closest to which of the following percentages of all state legislators in the United States?
0.34
Redistricting usually happens every ________ years.
10
Redistricting usually happens every __________ years so that it aligns with the new __________ results.
10; census
The Texas legislature meets in regular session
140 days each odd-numbered year.
The Texas legislature meets in regular session for
140 days every odd-numbered year.
Regular legislative sessions are limited to
140 days.
The Texas legislature consists of a
150-member House of Representatives and a 31-member Senate.
In the Texas legislature, the House has ________ members and the Senate has ________ members.
150; 31
The two most powerful political figures in the Texas legislature are the
Speaker of the House and the lieutenant governor.
The two most powerful political figures in the Texas legislature are the:
Speaker of the House and the lieutenant governor.
Which of the following statements about special sessions of the Texas legislature is true?
Special sessions are common, held an average of once a year since 1876.
The one-person, one-vote principle was brought to Texas by the
Supreme Court in their rulings in Baker v. Carr and Reynolds v. Sims.
For how long does the Texas legislature meet?
The regular legislative session lasts 140 days in odd-numbered years.
What is the outcome for the vast majority of bills that are assigned to committees in the Texas legislature?
They are pigeonholed by the committee chair.
What is the outcome for the vast majority of bills that are assigned to committees in the Texas Legislature?
They die.
"Pigeonholing" is a practice in which
a committee chair sets aside a bill.
If the legislature grants a particular corporation an exception from a state law, it is called
a special bill
Conference committees
are joint committees created to work out a compromised on House and Senate versions of a piece of legislation.
In recent years, the Texas legislature has
become more partisan.
The Texas legislature is a
bicameral body consisting of the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Republicans are a majority in
both the Texas House and Senate.
Under the Senate Rules, the lieutenant governor has the power to
break a tie on any vote.
________ is a kind of talking that is used to stall legislation.
chubbing
The constitutional goal of redistricting is to
create districts with equal-sized populations.
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 power of recognition allows the Speaker of the House to
determine who will get to speak and how long a legislative debate will last.
The Speaker of the Texas House is
elected by members of the House of Representatives.
The lieutenant governor is
elected in a statewide election for a four-year term.
Members of the Texas Senate serve ________ terms.
four-year
Texas senators serve ________-year terms and House members serve ________-year terms.
four; two
Which is the most important bill that applies to all people and property throughout the state?
general bill
Special bills are used to
give an individual or corporation an exemption from state law.
The agenda for special sessions in the Texas legislature is set by the
governor
The Texas Constitution grants the __________ veto power, and it is used __________.
governor; actively
Pigeonholing happens
in a standing committee.
The Texas legislature meets
in biennial sessions, 140 days every other year.
In recent years, the level of partisanship in the Texas houses has
increased substantially.
The Speaker of the Texas House
is considered the most important elected official in state policy making.
The level of partisanship in the Texas legislature
is less than the level demonstrated in the U.S. Congress.
If a bill fails to pass the Texas House and Texas Senate in exactly the same form, the bill
is sent to a conference committee.
If a bill passes the House and the Senate, but in different forms, the bill
is sent to a conference committee.
The president of the Texas Senate is also the
lieutenant governor of Texas.
A bill in the Texas legislature that would allow a county to establish a new community college would be classified as a
local bill
Texas House members differ from Texas Senate members because House members
represent small districts and are subject to more frequent elections.
The Texas Senate has some specific rules governing the filibuster, including
requiring that remarks must be directly related to the issue under consideration.
What types of resolutions are acted on without debate and without requiring members to read the resolution?
resolutions of honor or recognition
________ must begin in the House of Representatives.
revenue bills
The legislature has "directive and supervisory powers" that include the ability to
review each state agency every twelve years.
The Texas Legislature has many powers that are not related to legislation, including which of the following?
the power to formally count returns for the governor's and lieutenant governor's elections.
