Deck 3: State Constitutions

Question 1

The state constitutions of the original thirteen states were mainly rooted in

A)the U.S.Constitution.
B)their colonial charters.
C)the Magna Carta.
D)the Articles of Confederation.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

The major reason for the rebirth of state activism in protecting civil liberties and rights

A)has been the conservatism of the U.S.Supreme Court.
B)is the desire by the states' to mirror the rights delineated in the first eight amendments to the U.S.Constitution.
C)is based solely on the public outcry for guarantees of individual rights.
D)has been in response to the federal mandates issued by the national government to the states.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

The "higher-law tradition" guides efforts to revitalize state constitutions by

A)advocating that they put forth basic principles and processes of government and avoid policy choices that are better left to be handled by legislatures.
B)advocating adoption of a single-model constitution suitable to all states.
C)locking the legislature into policies that favor the strongest political and economic interests in the state.
D)spelling out the need for longer, more detailed constitutions tailored to the particular state's political culture.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

In recent years, revisions to state constitutions have sought to

A)weaken the power of the governor's office.
B)make state government more responsive to shifting social and economic forces.
C)increase the power of legislatures substantially.
D)make the documents more uniform in nature and less flexible.

Question 5

All state constitutions currently provide for bicameral legislatures except for the state of

A)Wyoming.
B)Pennsylvania.
C)South Carolina.
D)Nebraska.

Question 6

Lengthy state constitutions create problems for states, which include

A)the fear of challenges brought about by the U.S.Supreme Court.
B)the need for state courts to rule on conflicting provisions.
C)the burden of increased legal costs that are passed on to business interests.
D)the high costs of revision.

Question 7

The first state constitutions reflected their framers' fears and distrust of

A)executive authority.
B)legislative supremacy.
C)bureaucratic supremacy.
D)judicial supremacy.

Question 8

The influential 1955 U.S.Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations was

A)disbanded before it could complete its deliberations.
B)successful in producing the Model State Constitution, which would be used by most states to revise their constitutions.
C)charged with actually rewriting several state constitutions.
D)in favor of the states reviewing their constitutions to ensure they provided for responsible government.

Question 9

State constitutions represent the fundamental law of the state.As a result,

A)they must mirror the federal Constitution in their design and purpose.
B)when an issue arises between the state and the national government, the state constitution prevails.
C)they are supreme in only those matters specifically delegated to the state in the U.S.Constitution.
D)only the federal Constitution and statutes have priority over the state's constitution.

Question 10

The "Jacksonian-era" reform intended to expand opportunities for public participation in state government has resulted in the current

A)fragmentation of the executive branch.
B)decline of popular control in government.
C)legislative restrictions placed on local governments.
D)discrimination of racial minorities and women.

Question 11

The Model State Constitution was developed by

A)the U.S.Supreme Court in 1921.
B)the National League of Cities in 1960.
C)the Council of State Governments in 1968.
D)the National Municipal League in 1921.

Question 12

The expansion of state constitutions into lengthy documents resulted from

A)a requirement to spell out designated local government authority for each major city.
B)U)S.Supreme Court decisions regarding minimum items to be covered.
C)efforts to protect the state from encroachment by federal agencies.
D)a perceived need to be specific about what state and local governments could and could not do.

Question 13

Recently, Nebraska voters decided to change their state's constitution by

A)banning segregation in all public facilities.
B)banning common law marriages.
C)limiting affirmative action as a criterion for filling public jobs and slots at public universities.
D)allowing the use of marijuana for medical reasons.

Question 14

The Massachusetts constitution, although it has been amended 120 times, is the only one of the original thirteen that still exists, because

A)its drafter, Thomas Jefferson, extensively researched various governments before finalizing it.
B)of the complicated procedures required before it can be replaced.
C)it was rooted in the composite wisdom of the great political philosophers of the eighteenth century.
D)there is unwillingness on the part of the state to allow it to be replaced.

Question 15

All the original states' constitutions granted the most powers of government to

A)a governor, selected by popular vote.
B)the courts.
C)a governor, selected by the legislature.
D)the legislature.

Question 16

By 1950, most state constitutions were

A)filled with needed details as to the power and authority of local government.
B)properly rooted in the tradition of the U.S.Constitution to minimize verbiage.
C)long, inflexible, and overly detailed, thus tying the hands of state government in its efforts to meet the challenges of the era.
D)modernized by adding much needed details, thus equipping the states to adapt to the era.

Question 17

Thomas Jefferson believed that each generation should have the right to choose for itself its own form of government, and that it would be appropriate for a new constitution to be considered every

A)five to ten years.
B)nineteen to twenty years.
C)twenty to thirty years.
D)thirty to forty years.

Question 18

The Model State Constitution

A)has twelve basic articles that are embodied, to some extent, in the various state constitutions of today.
B)has six basic articles that are also found in the U.S.Constitution.
C)endorses the widespread use of legal phrasing in revised constitutions.
D)advocates the use of a single constitution suitable to all fifty states.

Question 19

Between 1860 and 1870, considerable constitutional revision occurred when

A)Jacksonian notions of popular government swept the nation.
B)Populist and Progressive reform movements swept the nation.
C)western states sought to update their constitutions after the Civil War.
D)the former Confederate states wrote their constitutions to incorporate certain conditions of readmission to the United States.

Question 20

In the U.S.system of dual constitutionalism,

A)the various state constitutions and the national Constitution stand equal in questions of law.
B)the state constitutions are supreme.
C)the national government has supremacy within those spheres of authority delegated to it in the U.S.Constitution.
D)the U.S.Constitution is not limited in matters pertaining to the states.

Question 21

Since the beginning of modern constitutional reform efforts in the 1960s,

A)little real progress has been made.
B)about one-half of the states have modernized their constitutions.
C)about forty states have adopted new constitutions or substantially modernized their older constitutions.
D)every state has adopted a new constitution.

Question 22

According to legend, a patriot hid the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut in a hollow tree (nicknamed Charter Oak), to keep the British from seizing the document.

Question 23

Delegates selected for constitutional conventions should be

A)composed of an equal number of liberals and conservatives.
B)selected along partisan lines.
C)an ethnically and socially diverse group.
D)dominated by white, middle-aged, well-educated males.

Question 24

Once the required signatures have been obtained for a constitutional change to be placed on the ballot, in states with provisions for the initiative, experience has shown that

A)a majority of the electorate will support the change.
B)there is widespread apathy even among those who signed the initiative.
C)opposing interests become mobilized and passage is by no means certain.
D)the provisions of the initiative will have been changed by the legislature.

Question 25

Following the War of Independence, the former colonies drafted their first constitutions in special revolutionary conventions or in legislative assemblies.With the exception of Massachusetts, the new states put their constitutions into effect immediately, without popular ratification.

Question 26

Direct initiatives are distinguished by the fact that

A)the legislature votes directly on citizens' proposals.
B)the courts must decide that the proposals are consistent with federal law before they are adopted.
C)the Secretary of State must certify that sufficient signatures exist to permit immediate adoption.
D)the proposals are placed directly on the general election ballot by citizens.

Question 27

In recent years the executive branch of state governments has been

A)further fragmented.
B)organized to permit the populace to vote for six to eight different executive officers.
C)organized to permit the governor and lieutenant governor to be elected separately.
D)centralized so that most power resides in the office of the governor.

Question 28

Only federal law and federal statutes take priority over state constitutions and state laws.

Question 29

The Model State Constitution is more closely followed by

A)Mississippi and Texas.
B)Georgia and Louisiana.
C)the Northeastern states.
D)Alaska and Hawaii.

Question 30

All of the formal procedures for constitutional change in the states involve two basic steps, that of

A)legislative and executive proposals.
B)constitutional convention or commissions.
C)direct and indirect initiatives.
D)initiation and ratification.

Question 31

During the colonial era, a constitution of the Five Nations of the Iroquois called the Great Binding Law existed, but it was oral and not particularly relevant to the people in the colonies.Thus, the thirteen colonial charters provided the foundation for the new state constitutions.

Question 32

Legislative supremacy remains the norm in most states.

Question 33

Following the War of Independence, all states rewrote their constitutions and put them into effect immediately without popular ratification.

Question 34

The most common manner of making formal changes to state constitutions is permitted in all fifty states and accounts for 90 percent of all revisions.It is known as

A)the legislative proposal.
B)a direct initiative.
C)a constitutional convention.
D)a constitutional commission.

Question 35

The Commonwealth of Virginia has the oldest state constitution in use, although it has been amended more than one hundred times.

Question 36

The informal method of amending state constitutions rests upon

A)the introduction of legislative proposals.
B)the use of a direct initiative.
C)the interpretation of constitutional meaning by the various branches of government.
D)the reliance on challenges in the federal courts.

Question 37

In more recent years, constitutional revisions have had the effect of making state government less efficient, effective, and responsive to shifting social and economic forces.

Question 38

State constitutions are often neglected in secondary school and college courses in history and political science.Astonishingly, one national survey discovered that 51 percent of Americans were not aware that their state had its own constitution.

Question 39

State constitutions are generally shorter in length than the U.S.Constitution.

Question 40

The most active period for revising state constitutions occurred just prior to the Civil War.

Question 41

Changing the contents of state constitutions typically requires a simple majority vote by the legislature.

Question 42

From the first constitutions, which averaged 5,000 words, state constitutions expanded into enormous documents that averaged 27,000 words by 1967.

Question 43

The higher-law tradition for state constitutions is based on detailed provisions and procedures.

Question 44

The constitution of Oregon has been amended nearly 200 times, which is more than any other state.

Question 45

The U.S.Constitution contains about 8,700 words, while the typical state constitution is much longer in length.

Question 46

Most states allow constitutional amendments to be made using direct citizen initiatives.

Question 47

One of the problems with lengthy state constitutions is that they tend to be plagued by contradictions and meaningless clauses, which often result in litigation.

Question 48

The Jacksonian principle of using popular elections to fill most government offices resulted in a fragmented executive branch.

Question 49

The positive-law tradition is based on detailed provisions and procedures.

Question 50

State constitutions are political documents and have been used to protect the rights of special interests, such as public utilities, farmers, timber companies, and religious groups.

Question 51

Before ratifying its new constitution in 1983, Georgia's state constitution contained more than 583,000 words.

Question 52

California has the shortest state constitution, with roughly 220,000 words.

Question 53

The long ballot refers to having fewer elected officials and more appointed officials under the control of the governor.

Question 54

The most uncommon way that state constitutions are revised is through judicial interpretation.

Question 55

The Kestnbaum Commission devised the Model State Constitution that many states would follow in revising their own constitutions.

Question 56

In general, state constitutions today conform more closely to the higher-law tradition and the Model State Constitution than did those of the past.

Question 57

The initiative is used more often than legislative proposal in amending state constitutions.

Question 58

All states have substantially revised not only their courts' organization and procedures but also the election of judges.

Question 59

The concept of judicial review refers to the judiciary's power to declare the actions of the legislative and executive branches or the actions of lower courts unconstitutional.

Question 60

The United States Constitution has been amended twenty-seven times.

Question 61

Trace the history of the evolution of state constitutions from colonial times through the current era.Discuss the American tradition of written constitutions and how state constitutions were originally shaped by the colonial experience.

Question 62

One drawback to the use of initiatives is that in crisis situations, it can result in ill-conceived, radical changes to the constitution.

Question 63

Constitutional conventions are the oldest method for constitutional change in the states and are used frequently today.

Question 64

Discuss the concept of fundamental law and how national and state constitutions are related to this principle.

Question 65

A constitutional commission is often referred to as a study commission.

Question 66

Discuss the informal and formal methods for making constitutional changes in the states.

Question 67

Discuss how states have responded to the inadequacies of their state constitutions.That is, what reforms have been implemented to make constitutions more workable documents?

Question 68

Describe the Model State Constitution.What impact has it had on current state constitutions?

Question 69

Since the mid-1960s, most states have adopted new constitutions or substantially amended their existing ones.