Texas Legislature

Bicameral legislature

A legislature with two houses or chambers.

Texas Senate

The upper house of the Texas Legislature, consisting of 31 members.

Texas House of Representatives

The lower house of the Texas Legislature, consisting of 150 members.

Direct election of senators

The process established by the 17th Amendment that allows voters to elect their senators directly.

Special Session

A period when the legislature convenes outside its regular session, called by the governor to address specific issues.

Citizen legislature

A part-time legislature where legislators maintain full-time professions outside of their legislative duties.

Professional legislature

A full-time legislature whose members have limited outside professional commitments due to time demands.

Hybrid legislature

A type of legislature, like Texas', that meets only 140 days every two years.

Staggered elections

Elections arranged so that only a portion of the body is elected at one time, ensuring continuity.

Single-Member District

An electoral district that sends one representative to a legislature.

Macrocosm Theory

The idea that legislatures should reflect the demographics of the populations they represent.

Lieutenant Governor

The presiding officer of the Texas Senate with significant powers including assigning bills to committees.

Speaker of the House

The presiding officer of the Texas House of Representatives, elected by its members.

Standing Committees

Permanent committees in the legislature that focus on specific subject areas.

Filibuster

A tactic used to delay or block legislative action, often through prolonged debate.

Deferred Action

A policy that allows certain undocumented immigrants to remain in the U.S. temporarily, without risk of removal.

Whole Women’s Health vs. Hellerstedt

A Supreme Court case that addressed the legality of Texas regulations on abortion clinics.