BW Texas Gov't Topic 7.1 and 7.2

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Topic7LegislativeTexasGovernment2306Online.pdf

TEXAS GOVERNMENT 2306

Dr. Maria Luisa Picard-Ami [email protected]

1

UNIT 3. THE INSTITUTIONS OF STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

WHAT ARE THE AGENCIES OF GOVERNMENT?

1. The Legislative Branch –

2. The Executive Branches –

3. The Judicial Branch –

4. Unit 3 Essay –

THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

Making Policy

Agenda – How Texas Legislature is organized and how it operates – Who Represents us in the Legislative Branch?

• Demographic of our Representatives

– Expertise?

– Finances

– Longevity

• Who is Represented?

– What Do Legislators Do?

• Inside the legislature

• Outside the legislature

– The Legislative Policymaking Process

How the Legislative Branch is Organized and How it Operates

1. Texas’s bicameral legislature has two chambers – The Texas House of Representatives: 150 House members – The Texas Senate: 31 senators – House and Senate are organized by Standing Committees

2. Two people hold leadership positions: – The Speaker of the House,

• elected and empowered by House members at the beginning of the regular session. • The Speaker appoints half of all committee seats and designates the chair

– The Lieutenant Governor • elected statewide to a four-year term. not a member of the Senate. • He or she may only vote to break a tie on a particular vote. • Powers granted include the power to decide all questions of order; recognize members on the floor;

refer bills to committees; and appoint members to standing committees, subcommittees, special committees, and conference committees.

• The lieutenant governor appoints 80 percent of all committee seats and designates the chair

Sessions of the Legislature

• Regular sessions

– The Texas Constitution specifies that regular sessions of the legislature be

• 140 days

• biennially

• in odd-numbered years

• Thousands of bills and resolutions are introduced during a regular session

• Special sessions – The governor may call a special session of no more

than 30 days to deal with a specific issue.

The Texas Legislature in Context Strong and

Weak Legislatures

• Political scientists classify legislatures as “strong” or “weak” – “Strong” legislatures:

• full-time, • professional, • well-paid legislators, • year-round or annual sessions, • plentiful legislative staff, and • competitive elections.

– Texas has a “weak” legislature—due to the

• length of its sessions, • salary, • staff, and boards that facilitate the legislative process • All Texas legislators receive a salary of only $7,200 a

year, plus per diem pay

Who Represents Us in the Legislative Branch?

A Texas Senator

– Elected for a four-year term – A U.S. citizen – At least 26 years of age, – A qualified voter – A resident of Texas for at least 5

years – A resident of the district for at least

1 year

• US Senator: – 30 years old – Citizen for 9 years – Resident of the state represented

A Texas Member of the House of Representatives

– Elected for two-year terms – A U.S. citizen of – At least 21 years of age – A qualified voter – A resident of the state for at least 2 years – A resident of the district for at least 1

year

• US Member of the House of Representatives

– 25 years old – Citizen for 7 years – Resident of the State represented

What Do Legislators Do? Legislators have both Legislative and Non-legislative Powers

• Legislative Powers • Legislators have the power to propose:  Bills, proposed legislation under consideration by a legislature

(1) local bills, (2) special bills,

(3) general bills

A bill does not become law until it is passed by the legislature and, in most cases, approved by the executive. Once a bill has been enacted into law, it is called an act of the legislature, or a statute.

 Resolutions are expressions of opinion on an issue

(1) concurrent resolutions,

(2) joint resolutions, and

(3) simple resolutions

Nonlegislative Powers Legislators have Other non-legislative powers:

– To serve their constituents • in activities such as writing a letter of recommendation

– Electoral power:

• the legislature’s mandated role in counting returns in the elections for governor and lieutenant governor.

– Investigative power:

• the power to investigate problems facing the state. – Directive and supervisory power:

• the legislature’s power over the executive branch. – Judicial power:

• the power of the House to impeach and of the Senate to convict members of the executive and judicial branches of state government

How Do Proposals

Become Laws?

Bills are proposed laws introduced in the House and Senate at the same time

– Introduction by a member of the House or the Senate

– Referral to a Standing Committee for Consideration where it is heard, amended or killed by the Chair (x 2)

– Referral to the Floor for debate (x 2) – Referral to the Conference committee to work

out a compromise between House and Senate versions of the legislation

– Vote by each Chamber to approve final version of the legislation

– Governor signs or vetoes legislation

How a Bill Becomes a

Law in Texas

Additional Players in the Legislative Process • The Comptroller of Public Accounts

– Texas’s operating budgets must balance

– Revenue estimates provided by the comptroller set limits on state spending

– The comptroller of public accounts can use revenue estimates to push bills the comptroller wants.

• The media help choose and frame the issues • The media can influence the legislative agenda through the stories that they cover.

Accordingly, legislators try to attract media attention that will support their positions. Here, Speaker Joe Straus speaks at a press conference.

– The scrutiny of federal and state courts influences the legislative agenda

• Lobbyists and the Public also influence legislators • The public can serve as lobbyists by sending letters, emails, and telephone calls

urging representatives or senators to vote a certain way.

Key Terms • Filibuster: a tactic used by members of the Senate to prevent action on legislation by continuously holding

the floor and speaking until the majority backs down. It requires a vote of three-fifths of the Senate to end a filibuster.

• Veto: according to the Texas Constitution, the governor’s power to turn down legislation • Line-item veto: the power of the executive to veto specific provisions (lines) of an appropriations bill passed

by the legislature • Standing committee: a permanent committee with the power to propose and write legislation that covers a

particular subject, such as finance or agriculture. • Pigeonholing: a step in the legislative process in which a bill is killed by the chair of the standing committee

to which it was referred, as a result of him or her setting the bill aside and not bringing it before the committee.

• Constituent: a person living in the district from which an official is elected. • Impeachment: according to the Texas Constitution, the formal charge by the House of Representatives that

leads to a trial in the Senate and possibly to the removal of a state official. • Incumbent: an individual who currently holds a public office • Turnover: when incumbents lose their seats or leave their seats and new members (freshmen) are voted into

office • Institutional memory: a collective understanding of the way an organization works held by those who run it

  • Texas Government 2306
  • Unit 3. The Institutions of �State and Local Government��What are the agencies of government?
  • The Legislative Branch
  • Agenda
  • How the Legislative Branch is Organized and How it Operates
  • Sessions of the Legislature
  • Strong �and �Weak Legislatures �
  • Who Represents Us in the Legislative Branch?
  • What Do Legislators Do? �Legislators have both Legislative and Non-legislative Powers
  • Nonlegislative Powers
  • How Do Proposals Become Laws?
  • How a Bill Becomes a Law �in Texas
  • Additional Players in the Legislative Process
  • Key Terms