Deck 7: Legislatures: the Art of Herding Cats

Question 1

Which of the following is the way legislatures help ensure that governors and the executive branch agencies are functioning properly?

A) lawmaking
B) oversight
C) coalition building
D) logrolling

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Most bills introduced in state legislatures ______.

A) receive a vote on the floor of the House and Senate
B) die in committee
C) are signed into law by the governor
D) are filibustered

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Which of the following states has the largest proportion of women serving in its state legislature?

A) New Hampshire
B) Oregon
C) Washington
D) Massachusetts

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Retired persons account for what percentage of state legislators in the United States?

A) 0 percent
B) 8 percent
C) 22 percent
D) 40 percent

Question 5

Which of the following best describes the American public's perception of legislators?

A) work hard and have little free time
B) curry favors for special interests, spend most of their day arguing, and get little accomplished
C) are driven to serve the public good
D) are highly knowledgeable individuals solely interested in enacting sound legislation

Question 6

There are ______ states where control of the two legislative chambers is split between the parties.

A) many
B) only a few
C) no
D) a great deal of

Question 7

Who is responsible for the phrase laboratories of democracy as it relates to state politics?

A) Thomas Jefferson
B) Jerry Brown
C) Louis Brandeis
D) Bill Clinton

Question 8

Which of the following states has a part-time legislature?

A) Montana
B) California
C) Pennsylvania
D) Illinois

Question 9

______ tend to have the largest effect on whether legislators introduce a bill.

A) Governors
B) Constituents
C) Lobbyists
D) Ethics

Question 10

Which of the following was revealed by the National Conference on State Legislatures' term limits poll?

A) Support for term limits is high.
B) Term limits have made legislatures more efficient.
C) Term limits have made legislative committees more effective.
D) Term limits have made legislative staff more influential.

Question 11

States where voters are closely divided in their party loyalties are known as ______ states.

A) green
B) divided
C) split
D) purple

Question 12

The process of drawing districts with the intent of pressing partisan advantage at the expense of other considerations is known as ______.

A) apportionment
B) redistricting
C) gerrymandering
D) malapportionment

Question 13

Which state has the most state legislators?

A) California
B) New York
C) Texas
D) New Hampshire

Question 14

The assembly of an alliance of groups that is formed to pursue a common goal or interest is known as ______.

A) interest groups
B) coalition building
C) partisan divisions
D) political action committees

Question 15

______ is work done by legislators to help residents in their voting districts.

A) Lawmaking
B) Oversight
C) Representation
D) Constituent service

Question 16

______ is the process in which the decision of a numerical majority is made binding on a group.

A) Consensus
B) Majority rule
C) Compromise
D) Oppression

Question 17

Which of the following is false about majority-minority districts?

A) They increase the state budget.
B) They increase the number of minority representatives likely to represent such districts.
C) They decrease the number of minority representatives likely to represent surrounding districts.
D) They have been invalidated by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Question 18

Bills ______ according to predictable partisan majorities.

A) always pass
B) never pass
C) do not always pass
D) almost never pass

Question 19

It is more difficult for new legislators to ______ than for incumbents to.

A) do research
B) perform oversight duties
C) do constituent casework
D) represent their constituents

Question 20

The largest battles in a state legislature tend to be over ______.

A) budgets
B) executive oversight
C) judicial appointments
D) ethics

Question 21

______ is when individual legislators act as the voice of their constituency in the legislature.

A) Lobbying
B) Representation
C) Lawmaking
D) Oversight

Question 22

Which of the following is one of the major arguments against term limits for state legislators?

A) It takes time for lawmakers to understand complex policy issues.
B) Increased time in office leads to corruption.
C) Newer legislators bring in fresh ideas for policy changes.
D) It is far more expensive to bring in new lawmakers than it is to keep the existing ones.

Question 23

______ is the result when there is no consensus, but a group finds a central point on which the majority agrees.

A) Majority rule
B) A filibuster
C) Compromise
D) Capitulation

Question 24

Legislators who do not hold leadership positions or senior posts are known as ______ members.

A) junior
B) regular
C) mediocre
D) rank and file

Question 25

SELECT ALL THAT APPLY. Which of the following are indicative of a "professional" legislature?

A) They meet full-time.
B) They employ larger staffs.
C) They pay members a higher salary.
D) They are more democratic.

Question 26

One way to block final action on a bill that is under consideration is to ______.

A) logroll
B) gerrymander
C) redistrict
D) filibuster

Question 27

Legislatures tend to be ______ institutions.

A) proactive
B) active
C) reactive
D) de-active

Question 28

SELECT ALL THAT APPLY. The likelihood that a legislature will address an issue is generally influenced by which of the following?

A) interest group activity
B) level of professionalization
C) constituent pressure
D) changes in the legislature's composition

Question 29

Conducting budget reviews is part of the ______ function of legislatures.

A) lawmaking
B) representative
C) oversight
D) constituent service

Question 30

Providing a means for groups to have a voice in government is part of the ______ function of legislatures.

A) lawmaking
B) representative
C) oversight
D) constituent

Question 31

______ is another word for constituent service.

A) Logrolling
B) Representation
C) Casework
D) Coalition

Question 32

Most states' legislatures have two houses. This is known as ______.

A) split government
B) unicameralism
C) bicameralism
D) democracy

Question 33

All of the members of a party within a legislative chamber are a ______.

A) PAC
B) committee
C) coalition
D) caucus

Question 34

Most legislative power is derived from the ability to ______.

A) pardon criminals
B) strike down unconstitutional laws
C) create new legislative districts
D) set tax rates and other fiscal policies

Question 35

SELECT ALL THAT APPLY. Which of the following describes state legislatures today?

A) They are more transparent than at any previous time in history.
B) They are more representative of gender and racial diversity than at any previous time in history.
C) They are more efficient and effective than at any previous time in history.
D) They are more popular with voters than at any previous time in history.

Question 36

______ is when a lawmaker votes on a particular bill in return for another lawmaker's vote on a different bill.

A) Logrolling
B) Trading
C) Coalition building
D) Filibustering

Question 37

SELECT ALL THAT APPLY. Who of the following have an impact on the introduction of legislation?

A) governors
B) constituents
C) lobbyists
D) attorney generals

Question 38

The geographical area represented by a member of a legislature is known as ______.

A) an elector
B) a neighborhood
C) a district
D) a rider

Question 39

A(n) ______ is a group of legislators who have the formal task of considering and writing bills in a particular issue area.

A) electorate
B) committee
C) compromise
D) PAC

Question 40

A person who is currently holding an office is known as the ______.

A) legislator
B) representative
C) constituent
D) incumbent

Question 41

How has the concept of the typical state legislator changed?

Question 42

What are some tactics used by legislators to achieve policy ends?

Question 43

The public tends to have a skewed view of professionalized legislatures.

Question 44

Nebraska is the only state with a unicameral legislature.

Question 45

Describe the apportionment and redistricting processes.

Question 46

In most state legislatures, the major goal of redistricting after the 2000 census seemed to be opening up seats to a variety of candidates.

Question 47

Discuss the four functions of state legislatures examined in the text.

Question 48

According to Map 7.2 in the text, Democrats control more state legislatures than do Republicans.

Question 49

Describe the shift from "citizen" legislatures to "professional" legislatures.

Question 50

Rank-and-file members rely more on party leaders these days than they ever did in the past.

Question 51

What is the effect of term limits on the ability of state legislatures to govern effectively?

Question 52

What is the difference between a trustee and a delegate?

Question 53

Amendments to a bill that are not central to its intent are known as riders.

Question 54

Discuss the connection between legislators' relationships with their constituencies and reelection.

Question 55

The responsibility of keeping tabs on the executive branch is a high priority for most legislators.

Question 56

Oversight of the executive branch is NOT one of the basic functions of state legislatures.

Question 57

The assembling of an alliance of groups to pursue a common goal or interest is known as logrolling.

Question 58

Interpreting the Constitution is one of the primary purposes of the legislature.

Question 59

What is the relationship between professionalized legislatures and public opinion?