Deck 6: The Texas Legislature

Question 1

The Texas Senate has _____ members.

A)25
B)31
C)50
D)117
E)150

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Special sessions of the Texas legislature called by the governor are limited to a maximum of _____ days.

A)10
B)30
C)50
D)60
E)90

Answer 2

B

Question 3

If both the legislature and the Legislative Redistricting Board fail to complete the reapportionment and redistricting task,the matter is resolved by the _____.

A)governor
B)state Supreme Court
C)federal courts
D)comptroller of public accounts
E)Legislative Budget Board

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Members of the Texas Senate serve _____-year staggered terms,while members of the Texas House of Representatives serve _____-year terms.

A)two; four
B)four; two
C)six; two
D)six; four
E)eight; four

Question 5

Which state is the only one to have a unicameral legislature?​

A)​Nebraska
B)​Texas
C)​Kansas
D)​Oklahoma
E)​Missouri

Question 6

When a legislator agrees to help aconstituent whois facing a problem,what type of favor is the constituent taking part in?

A)​casework
B)​oversight
C)​making law
D)​impeachment
E)logrolling

Question 7

What name is given to the unifying philosophy that holds laws together? ​

A)​policy
B)​publication
C)execution
D)​reapportionment
E)​casework

Question 8

​Regular legislative sessions in Texas,which take place every other year,last for how many days?

A)​70
B)​140
C)​210
D)​280
E)​350

Question 9

What is the most obvious function of the legislature?

A)administering government programs
B)making public policy through the passage of legislation
C)supervising judges
D)nominating candidates for national office
E)settling election disputes

Question 10

Which state has increased the salaries of its legislators at least once in the last thirty years?

A)​Texas
B)​Alabama
C)​New Hampshire
D)​Vermont
E)​all of these

Question 11

The Texas legislature has biennial sessions,which means it meets once every _____.

A)two years
B)year
C)three years
D)six months
E)four years

Question 12

When the Texas legislature passes legislation that delegates public programs to nonpublic service providers,what is the legislature doing?​

A)​privatizing
B)publicizing
C)​socializing
D)​nationalizing
E)​localizing

Question 13

The process of drawing boundaries of electoral districts in such a way that one party or faction has an advantage over another is called _____.

A)reapportionment
B)redistricting
C)filibustering
D)gerrymandering
E)logrolling

Question 14

Since 1975,legislative salaries in Texas have been _____ per year.

A)$200
B)$2,500
C)$7,200
D)$15,600
E)$35,500

Question 15

Which statement concerning party organization in the Texas legislature is notcorrect?

A)The liberalism or conservatism of a legislator is often more important than the party label.
B)Both Democrats and Republicans chair standing committees in the legislature.
C)The presiding officers of the legislature generally deemphasize partisanship.
D)Partisanship has absolutely no effect in the Texas legislature, especially in recent years.
E)Party divisions are much less important in the Texas legislature than in the U.S. Congress.

Question 16

The Texas House of Representatives has _____ members.

A)50
B)100
C)131
D)150
E)435

Question 17

The current salary for legislators in Texas was established by _____.

A)the governor
B)the legislature
C)the Texas Supreme Court
D)a constitutional amendment
E)the Legislative Budget Board

Question 18

Constituents often overlook which type of legislator responsibility?

A)​casework
B)​legislative oversight
C)making laws
D)​appropriating money
E)​both casework and legislative oversight

Question 19

The designation of geographic areas that are nearly equal in population for the purpose of electing legislators is known as _____.

A)​redistricting
B)​privatization
C)​publication
D)​casework
E)​bicameralization

Question 20

A body that is empowered to create or amend a constitution is described as having a _____ function.

A)political
B)representative
C)judicial
D)constituent
E)electoral

Question 21

​Slightly over half of all Texas legislators hold more than one college degree in which area?

A)​law or business
B)​medicine
C)​social work
D)​history
E)​the social sciences

Question 22

Which of these describes the typical Texas legislator?

A)college-educated
B)a white male
C)married
D)a member of several civic organizations
E)all of these

Question 23

Members of the Texas Senate must be at least _____ years of age,whereas members of the Texas House must be at least _____ years of age.

A)21; 18
B)23; 18
C)23; 21
D)26; 21
E)30; 21

Question 24

​Over two-thirds of Texas legislators identify themselves as _____.

A)​Protestant
B)​Roman Catholic
C)​Jewish
D)​Muslim
E)​athiest

Question 25

Appointing a committee member based on seniority refers to the practice of choosing the legislator who _____.

A)is the oldest
B)has served on the most committees
C)has served the most terms in the legislature
D)is the most distinguished
E)has the most money

Question 26

Who is the presiding officer of the Texas Senate?

A)governor
B)lieutenant governor
C)speaker
D)attorney general
E)comptroller of public accounts

Question 27

When a bill is pigeonholed by a committee,it is _____.

A)given the highest priority
B)placed on the calendar
C)given a special rule by the rules committee
D)put on the bottom of a committee's agenda, never to be seen again
E)earmarked to receive favorable consideration from the appropriations committee

Question 28

If a bill has been introduced in the Texas legislature and the Housepasses one version while the Senate passes a slightly different version,what becomes of the legislation?​

A)​The bill goes to the conference committee to be rewritten.
B)​Both versions of the bill goes to the governor, who decides which versionto sign.
C)​The bill goes to the Calendars Committee to be rewritten.
D)Both versions go to the lieutenant governor, who decides which version to send to the governor.
E)​Both versions go to the speaker of the House, who decides which version to send to the governor.

Question 29

​The media in Texas tend to endorse candidates who are oriented toward _____.

A)​business
B)​labor unions
C)​social justice
D)the environment
E)lawsuits

Question 30

​The median age of members in both chambers of the Texas legislature is between _____ and _____.

A)​50; 59
B)​40; 49
C)​30; 39
D)​20; 29
E)​60; 69

Question 31

Which body was created in 1949 to provide research and technical services to Texas legislators?

A)Legislative Budget Board
B)Legislative Budget Office
C)Legislative Audit Committee
D)Texas Legislative Council
E)Texas Education Board

Question 32

Which type of legislation may not originate in the Texas Senate?

A)education bills
B)revenue bills
C)local bills
D)welfare bills
E)constitutional amendments

Question 33

Who is the presiding officer of the Texas House of Representatives?

A)governor
B)lieutenant governor
C)speaker
D)attorney general
E)longest-serving member of the majority party in the chamber

Question 34

Which factor contributes to the high turnover that characterizes the Texas legislature?

A)running for higher office
B)retirement
C)taking a job in the private sector
D)reapportionment/redistricting
E)all of these

Question 35

Chairpersons of committees in the Texas legislature are selected by _____.

A)the governor
B)the presiding officers
C)committee members
D)the full House and Senate
E)the seniority system, with the longest-serving committee member being the chair

Question 36

Which group is underrepresented in the Texas legislature?

A)attorneys
B)farmers and ranchers
C)women
D)white males
E)businesspersons

Question 37

The procedural powers of the presiding officers of the Texas legislature include all of these except the power to _____.

A)call special sessions of the legislature
B)recognize legislators wishing to speak
C)determine the timetable for debate
D)refer bills to committees
E)appoint legislators to committees and appoint committee chairpersons

Question 38

Which of these is considered to be a "right" group that Texas legislators tend to be members of? ​

A)​civic associations
B)​business groups
C)​professional associations
D)​social clubs
E)​all of these

Question 39

Which speaker was elected by a bipartisan coalition to preside over the Texas House in 2009?

A)Pete Laney
B)Billy Clayton
C)David Dewhurst
D)Joe Straus
E)Tom Craddick

Question 40

The speaker of the Texas House of Representatives is chosen by the _____.

A)electorate
B)governor
C)attorney general
D)lieutenant governor
E)members of the House

Question 41

Why is seniority important in the Texas legislature?​

Question 42

If the Texas legislature were to have annual legislative sessions,which of these would notbe likely to occur?

A)​Legislators would have more time to familiarize themselves with legislation.
B)​The need for special sessions, particularly when a crisis arises between regular sessions, would be eliminated.
C)Legislators would have more opportunity for legislative oversight of the state bureaucracy.
D)​Legislators would be better able to engage inlong-range planning of public policy.
E)There would be less need for career politicians and more opportunity for part-time legislatorsto take office.

Question 43

Appropriations bills passed by the Texas legislature always take effect _____.

A)immediately
B)thirty days after the legislative session ends
C)ninety days after the legislative session ends
D)on January 1
E)on September 1

Question 44

​Which of these would likely be a problem if the number of legislators in the Texas Housewere reduced?

A)​Texas's physical size would require that legislators representlarger geographic areas.
B)​As the population and geographic size of districts continued to grow, citizens would increasingly lose contact with their representatives.
C)​People would protest such a change, as itwould go against years of Texas tradition.
D)​Citizens would object, as theyprefer to represented by someone from a small enough geographic and population area to understand the needs of the people of the district.
E)​All of thesewould likely be problems.

Question 45

​To properly assess the Texas legislature in action,which question should be asked?

A)​Did the legislature deal with major issues facing the state or mainly with trivial issues?
B)​Did the appropriations bill reflect genuine statewide concerns or only the interests of the large lobbies?
C)​Was the effect of current legislation on future social, economic, and physical resources considered, or did the legislature live for today?
D)​Were basic tests of democracy, representation, transparency, andfairness met?
E)​All of these questionsshould beasked.

Question 46

Historically,the Texas legislature has been dominated by which of these?​

A)​rural, conservative Democrats
B)​urban, liberal Democrats
C)​rural, conservative Republicans
D)​urban, liberal Republicans
E)​none of these; there has been no obvious dominance

Question 47

What effect does a filibuster have on a proposed bill in the Texas Senate?​

Question 48

What are per-diem allowances? How ​might suchallowances help Texas legislators overcome the low salaries they make annually?
​

Question 49

The governor's item veto applies only to _____.

A)education bills
B)revenue bills
C)appropriations bills
D)welfare bills
E)constitutional amendments

Question 50

Describe howthe presiding officers of the Texas legislature are selected.Explain why the selection of presiding officers might be more important in Texas than it is in other states.Elaborate on the powers these officers have with regard to the organization of the legislature.

Question 51

What effect didthe 1964 U.S.Supreme Court cases Baker v.Carr and Reynolds v.Sims have on the issue of legislative redistricting?

Question 52

Which of these is not an indirect power the Texas governor enjoys?

A)​The governor can appoint many of his supporters into various state boards and commissions.
B)The governor can present messages to the state legislature and give recommendations on legislation.
C)The governor can serve as a liaison between Texas and other states as well as between Texas and the federal government.
D)The governor can cast tie-breaking votes in the event of a tie in either the state House or the state Senate.
E)None of these answers are correct, as the governor enjoys all of these indirect powers.

Question 53

There has been increasing interest in changing the structure of the Texas legislature given its limitations in performing its intended functions.Write an essay that discusses the suggested reforms.How likely is it that these reforms will be enacted? Explain your answer.

Question 54

Describe the committee system in the Texas legislature.Explain the responsibilities of the various types of committees.Explain the essential role played by committees in the legislative process.

Question 55

Aproposal has been made to increase Texas's legislative salary to make it closer to the averages of states that pay their legislators the most,which is about _____ per year.

A)​$18,000
B)$​38,000
C)​$58,000
D)​$78,000
E)​$98,000

Question 56

Describe some of the characteristics typically seen in citizens elected into the Texas legislature.Howare thesedifferent from the formal qualifications necessary to become a member of the Texas legislature? How are these personal characteristics different from the Texas population as a whole?

Question 57

​Filibusters in the Texas Senate are most effective at what point during the legislative session?

A)at the end of the legislative session
B)​at the beginning of the legislative session
C)​somewhere near the middle of the legislative session
D)​after the end of the legislative session
E)​before the start of the legislative session

Question 58

Compare and contrast the concepts of reapportionment and redistricting.Describe the process by which redistricting is carried out in Texas,including the role of the Legislative Redistricting Board.Explain how the handling of redistricting by the 2001and 2003 legislative sessions illustrates the political nature of redistricting.

Question 59

The governor's veto power is almost absolute because _____.

A)the legislature often adjourns before the governor has had time to act on a bill
B)the Texas Constitution makes the governor very strong
C)the legislature has no procedure to override the governor's veto
D)checks and balances are nonexistent
E)the presiding officers of the legislature have little power

Question 60

What functions besides making laws do legislatures have in government?​

Question 61

Cross-Chapter Essay Question (Chapters 2 and 6): ​How does the Texas Constitution limit the legislative branch in Texas?

Question 62

Cross-Chapter Essay Question (Chapters 6 and 7): In what ways does the governor limit the powers of the legislature?