gov 2 -exam 1
in even-numbered years, tx reps. receive a salary of ______ per year, not including per diem
$7,200
in the Texas legislative, the house has _____ members and the senate has ___ members
150, 31
how long is U.S. representative term
2 years
tx senators serve ____ terms and house members serve ____ terms
4 year, 2 year
how long is a U.S. Senators term
6 years
impeachment is ______ and is an example of _______
a formal charge by the house of reps. that leads to a trial in the senate that could result in the removal of an official from office; the tx legislature's judicial power
in congress the term whip refers to
a party member in the house or senate responsible for coordinating the party's legislative strategy, building support for key issues, and counting votes
if the tx legislative grants a particular corporation an exception from a state law, it's called
a special bill
while bills must be introduced by a member of the tx legislative, _________ can write a bill
anyone
the process of allocating congressional seats among the 50 states is called
apportionment
most programs and agencies are subject to some oversight every year during the course of hearings on
appropriations
under the original constitution senators
be appointed by state legislators
congress is a _________ legislative with ______ voting members
bicameral, 535
a proposed law that has been sponsored by a member of congress is called a
bill
in order to save time in the compressed legislative session -
bills are often introduced at the same time in both tx house and the tx senate, simultaneous consideration
how can congress override a presidents veto
by getting a 2/3rds vote in BOTH chambers
a bills supporters in the house of reps. generally prefer _______ while opponents prefer ______
closed rule, open rule
suppose that a major piece of climate change legislation is being considered by congress. The house and the senate have passed mostly similar versions of the bill, but important differences remain. what committee would be used to reconcile the differences?
conference committee
congressional democrats have described a proposal to cancel a portion of student loan debt. Before putting the bill before congress for a vote, party leadership has requested an estimate of the cost from ....
congressional budget office
suppose that a member of congress wished to debate a bill for increased privacy transparency at hospitals and seeks information on state legislation addressing surprise medical billing. Which agency, caucus or committee would provide the members with such info
congressional research services
the house rules committee is important because it ...
decides the order bills come up for vote on house floor, determines length of debate and opportunity for amendments
the power of recognition allows the tx speaker of the house to
determine who will get to speak and how long a legislative debate will last
oversight can best be described as the
efforts by congress to supervise the manner in which its laws are implemented by the executive branch
how is the lt. governor selected?
elected by voters in a statewide election - serves a 4 year term
according the tx constitution, regular sessions of tx legislature are held
for 140 days, biennially, occurring in odd-numbered years
what is the most important bill that applies to all people and property throughout tx
general bill
the agenda for special sessions in the tx legislature is set by
governor
the role that the U.S. house of reps plays in impeachments can best be compared with that of a
grand jury
formal charge by the house of reps that a government official has committed "treason, bribery, and other high crimes or misdemeanors"
impeachment
the first 4 steps in the process for a bill to become a law in the tx legislative are
introduction, referral, consideration by standing committee, floor action
as in the U.S. congress, the purpose of a conference committee in the tx legislature is to do what?
it is a committee designed to make differing house and senate versions of the same bill identical
a bill in the tx legislature that would allow a country to establish a new community college would be classified as a
local bill
in the senate the most powerful senior leadership role is _______
majority leader
the senate's constitutional power of advice and consent extends to the presidents power to
make treaties with foreign nations
a filibuster allows members of the senate to
prevent a vote on a bill by speaking continuously on the floor
why does the tx legislative use resolutions?
resolutions are an an expression of an opinion or an issue that is of interest to the legislative
______ must begin in the tx house of representatives
revenue bills
the tx legislature has "directive and supervisory powers" that include the ability to
review each state agency every 12 years
the U.S. house of representatives committee that held hearings to investigate the Jan. 6th, 2021 attack on the U.S. capitol is an example of
select committee
which of the following is true about bicameralism in the tx legislative
since bills must passed by both chambers, the process requires compromise, but also allows individual members of the legislature the ability to block passage of bills
which types of districts are used in the Texas house and senate
single-member districts
in the house the most powerful senior leadership role is _______
speaker
a ________ committee remains in existence from one session of congress to the next, and has the power to unite legislation that corners a particular subject, in most cases, paralleling a major department or agency of that executive branch
standing
which type of committee in the tx legislature is a permanent committee that covers one particular subject area
standing
how does the media play a role in the legislative process?
stories and issues that are covered in the media tend to rank higher in legislative agenda
the 4 joint committees in congress are
taxation, library, economic, printing
in the tx legislature, when a committee chair "pigeonholes" a bill, what happens?
the bill is set aside before it is ever discussed in committee
the framers gave the power to introduce appropriations (money bills) to the house of reps. but not the senate because they believed that
the chamber closest to the people should exercise greater authority over taxing and spending
why is the comptroller of public accounts so important to the tx legislature
the comptroller informs the legislature how much money it has to spend on the budget
how is the speaker of the house determined
the elected leader of the majority party in the house is the speaker
who has the most real power in the senate
the majority and minority leaders
what is cloture
the process by which 3/5ths of the senate can end a filibuster
which of the following rules applies to the filibuster in the tx seante
the senator who has control of the floor must always speak in an audible voice, so that he or she can be heard or understood
who has responsibility for redistricting the legislative districts in tx
the tx legislative tries first, but if it unable to do so at the first regular session after the census, the job goes to the legislative redistricting board
one of the powers of both the speaker of the house and the lt. governor is the appointment power, who can they appoint?
they can assign members to standing committees and appoint the chairs to those committees
why are the senate and the house appropriations committees important
they decide how much funding various programs will receive and how the money will be spent
which of the following statements about simple resolutions of the tx legislature is correct
they do not require the signature of the governor
the speaker of the house and the lt. governor are viewed as among the most powerful actors in the tx gov. because
they have enough institutional power to be able to influence which legislation passes and which is killed
the role that the U.S. senate plays in impeachments can best be compared with that of a
trial jury
what is true about impeachments
when all legislators have a common understanding of the definition of "high crimes and misdemeanors"
