GOVT 2306

Which statement is correct regarding term limitations of legislators in the Texas state constitution?

a. Legislators are limited to one term.

b. Legislators are limited to two consecutive terms.

c. Legislators are limited to serve two nonconsecutive terms.

d. Term limits do not exist in the constitution.

d. Term limits do not exist in the constitution.

which is a correct statement about the 10th amendment?

a. The federal courts have frequently used this amendment to invalidate national government actions.

b. In spite of this amendment, the U.S. Supreme Court in McCulloch v. Maryland permitted federal action through implied powers.

c. The federal courts used this amendment to allow the national government to commandeer state agencies to the service of the federal government.

d. The Tenth Amendment states that all powers not explicitly delegated to the national government are reserved to the states exclusively.

b. In spite of this amendment, the U.S. Supreme Court in McCulloch v. Maryland permitted federal action through implied powers.

Which U.S. constitutional amendment has been used by the U.S. Supreme Court to extend most of the provisions in the Bill of Rights to state governments?

a. Sixteenth Amendment

b. Fifteenth Amendment

c. Fourteenth Amendment

d. Thirteenth Amendment

c. Fourteenth Amendment

A categorical grant has which of the following characteristics?

a. It is designated for specific purposes.

b. It may require matching funds.

c. The grant use has restrictive conditions.

d. All of the above.

d. All of the above.

During the era of transition from dual to cooperative federalism which policy area garnered the most opposition from southern states?

a. Agricultural policy

b. Marriage law

c. Public health

d. Civil rights

d. Civil rights

The obligations that the federal government imposes on state governments with little or no funding to help support the program define

a. unfunded mandates.

b. categorical grants.

c. block grants.

d. earmarked grants.

unfunded mandates.

One example of a concurrent power would be the ability to _________________.

a. charter banks

b. raise an army

c. make treaties

d. coin money

a. charter banks

Which is not a characteristic of dual federalism?

a. The national government is one of enumerated powers.

b. The purposes that the national government may constitutionally promote are few.

c. Within their respective spheres, the two centers of government are not "sovereign" and hence not "equal."

d. The relation of the two centers with each other is one of tension rather than collaboration.

c. Within their respective spheres, the two centers of government are not "sovereign" and hence not "equal."

Which court case involved the University of Texas at Austin encouraging African-American students to go out of state to attend law school?

a. Sweatt v. Painter

b. Plessy v. Ferguson

c. Brown v. Board of Education

d. McCulloch v. Maryland

a. Sweatt v. Painter

Southern states viewed Brown v. Board of Education, the Twenty-Fourth Amendment, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and Voting Rights Act of 1965 as

a. separate but equal.

b. an encroachment of their states' rights.

c. coded language for states' rights.

d. an example of devolution.

b. an encroachment of their states' rights.

Which of the following is not a provision of the federal Patient Protection and Affordability Care Act (Health Care Reform)?

a. An individual mandate that requires uninsured individuals to buy health insurance or pay a fine

b. Provides for state exchanges through which individuals and small businesses may purchase insurance

c. Those without employer-based health insurance may be eligible for federal subsidies.

d. The Medicaid program will be reduced due to a reduced need.

d. The Medicaid program will be reduced due to a reduced need.

Constitutions are expected to do all of the following except

a. assign constitutional power.

b. identify political leaders.

c. place limitations on the government.

d. establish major governing institutions.

b. identify political leaders.

The constitutions of the Texas Republic and first state constitutions are products of

a. plantation culture.

b. Anglo protestant slaveholders.

c. some provisions of Spanish-Mexican law.

d. all of the above.

d. all of the above.

The constitution of the Republic of Texas adopted some provisions from Spanish-Mexican law, including

a. homestead protections.

b. protection for a wife's property rights.

c. concept of community property.

d. all of the above.

d. all of the above.

Common law refers to

a. superior law that establishes governing institutions and organizes their formal power relationship.

b. laws that deal with the basic principles of government.

c. customs upheld by courts and derived from British tradition.

d. law passed by legislatures and written into code books.

c. customs upheld by courts and derived from British tradition.

Which of the following concerning the Texas Constitution of 1836 is not correct?

a. It called for a careful separation of church and state.

b. It legalized slavery in Texas.

c. It prohibited the president from serving consecutive terms.

d. It established a federal system of government for the Republic.

d. It established a federal system of government for the Republic.

What issue delayed Texas annexation to the United States in 1836?

a. The slavery controversy in the United States

b. The dense population of Texas

c. The heavy Catholic population in Texas

d. A Republic constitution did not exist

a. The slavery controversy in the United States

Which of the following is not correct about the Texas Constitution of 1869?

a. It centralized state power in the hands of the governor.

b. It provided for annual legislative sessions.

c. It decentralized the Texas public school system.

d. It allowed the governor to appoint all major state offices.

c. It decentralized the Texas public school system.

Which of the following is not true of the Reconstruction Act of 1867?

a. It made the 1866 Constitution void.

b. It required Confederate states to adopt constitutions that met with the approval of the U.S. Congress.

c. It deposed civilian elected officials and restored military rule.

d. It was passed by the Radical Democrats in Congress.

d. It was passed by the Radical Democrats in Congress.

The Constitution of 1875 was opposed by all of the following groups except

a. Blacks.

b. Republicans.

c. Democrats.

d. railroad interests.

c. Democrats.

The U.S. Supreme Court has interpreted the ________ Amendment to extend many national constitutional guarantees to the states.

a. Tenth

b. Seventeenth

c. Fifteenth

d. Fourteenth

d. Fourteenth

Law passed by legislatures and written into code books is

a. writ of habeas corpus.

b. amendments.

c. statutory law.

d. separation of powers.

c. statutory law

Which of the following is not true of the Texas legislature?

a. It is bicameral.

b. Senators serve six-year terms and representatives serve four-year terms.

c. The Texas Constitution sets legislative salaries at $7,200 a year.

d. The legislature meets in biennial regular sessions.

b. Senators serve six-year terms and representatives serve four-year terms.

Which state agency is permitted to recommend salary increases for legislators?

a. Legislative Budget Board

b. Texas Audit Board

c. Texas Ethics Commission

d. Sunset Advisory Board

c. Texas Ethics Commission

State constitutional provisions voided by a conflicting U.S. constitutional provision is

a. deadwood.

b. statutory law.

c. writ of habeas corpus.

d. checks and balances.

a. deadwood.

6. The Texas Constitution makes the governor a relatively weak executive; however, he maximizes influences with

a. his tenure in office.

b. his appointive powers.

c. his veto power.

d. all of the above.

d. all of the above.

7. Which of the following is not a power granted to the Texas governor?

a. Limited removal power

b. Indirect appointive powers

c. Item veto

d. Reduction veto

d. Reduction veto

8. Which of the following is not a proposal to reform the process of selecting judges in Texas?

a. Merit plan

b. Life terms

c. Nonpartisan elections

d. Term limits

d. Term limits

9. The constitution stipulates that state judges are to be selected by which method?

a. Partisan election by the voters

b. Election by the legislators

c. Appointment by the governor

d. Nonpartisan election by the voters

a. Partisan election by the voters

10. Which election method allows citizens to place proposals on the ballot for voter approval? If the measure passes, it becomes law.

a. Referendum

b. Initiative

c. Popular recall

d. Electoral vote

b. Initiative

2. An individual must be registered at least __________ days prior to the election to be eligible to vote in Texas.

a. 30

b. 180

c. 60

d. 3

a. 30

Which individuals are legally disqualified from voting?

a. Individuals who have been legally declared mentally incompetent

b. A convicted felon who has received a pardon

c. Individuals who have been incarcerated

d. Individuals who have lost their voter registration card

a. Individuals who have been legally declared mentally incompetent

Which of the following is not a demographic variable that affects turnout at the polls?

a. Education

b. Income

c. Age

d. Residency

Residency

Which list(s) is (are) used to purge the names of voters from the voter registration rolls?

a. Corner's reports

b. List of felony convictions

c. List of adjudications of mental incompetence

d. All of the above

d. All of the above

Which of the following is not an argument put forward by those opposed to the voter ID law?

a. Voter ID is a solution to a problem that does not exist.

b. There is no real evidence of people impersonating other voters in Texas.

c. It would have a big impact on legitimate voters who do not have a driver's license.

d. It would only an advantage to minorities.

d. It would only an advantage to minorities.

Turnout in American general elections is __________ in comparison to other industrialized democracies of the world.

a. slightly higher

b. significantly lower

c. about the same

d. significantly higher

b. significantly lower

Smith v. Allwright banned

a. Asians from voting.

b. Native Americans from voting.

c. the use of white primaries.

d. women from voting.

c. the use of white primaries.

In the case Carrington v. Rash, the courts decided that

a. property ownership was unnecessary for revenue bond elections.

b. members of the military could enjoy the full rights of suffrage in Texas.

c. efforts to deny African Americans access to the primaries would be overturned.

d. annual registration was prohibited.

b. members of the military could enjoy the full rights of suffrage in Texas.

Which of the following is a deterrent to higher voter turnout in Texas?

a. Large number of elections

b. Long length of the ballot

c. Lower income and education levels in Texas

d. All of the above

d. All of the above

A method of selecting the nominees from a political party where party members elect the candidates who represent them in the general election is known as

a. precinct convention.

b. party caucus.

c. party convention.

d. direct primary.

d. direct primary.

For Texas primaries, the state party chair and the state executive committee of each party

a. conduct a drawing to determine the order of the names on the ballot.

b. certify the ballot to the county-level officials.

c. canvass the election returns after the primary.

d. All of the above are correct.

d. All of the above are correct.

A __________ is held when one of the two top contenders of a second primary did not receive a majority of the votes.

a. direct primary

b. primary

c. runoff primary

d. second primary

c. runoff primary

A closed primary allows only those individuals who ____________ to participate.

a. are registered voters

b. possess a voter registration card

c. are first-time voters

d. are party members

d. are party members

What is it technically called when a person who identifies with one political party opts to vote in the other party's primary to influence its outcome?

a. Preventative voting

b. Crossover voting

c. Party busting voting

d. This cannot be legally done in Texas.

b. Crossover voting

Texas does not have term limits for which office?

a. Governor

b. State House of Representative

c. State senator

d. All of the above

d. All of the above

To win the general election, a candidate must win with __________ of the votes.

a. an absolute majority

b. two-thirds

c. a plurality

d. a simple majority

c. a plurality

The chief election officer of the state is the

a. registrar of voters.

b. comptroller of public accounts.

c. speaker of the house.

d. secretary of state.

d. secretary of state.

For a name to be placed on the general election ballot, a candidate must be either a party nominee or an independent and

a. have a party platform.

b. hold a party convention.

c. win 10 percent of any statewide office.

d. win 5 percent of any statewide office.

win 5 percent of any statewide office.

A number of Texas counties introduced electronic voting in the 2002 midterm election because

a. too many Republicans were winning statewide offices.

b. a number of lawsuits were filed by Democrats.

c. of the possibility of similar problems that occurred in Florida during the 2000 election.

d. too many candidates were requesting recounts.

c. of the possibility of similar problems that occurred in Florida during the 2000 election.

In state elections, what two factors predominate?

a. Party identification and incumbency

b. Fundraising and incumbency

c. Qualifications and party identification

d. Name recognition and incumbency

a. Party identification and incumbency

reserved powers

powers that belong to the states. it comes from the 10th amendement

categorical grants

federal aid to state and local government for specific purposes under restrictive

block grants

federal aid to state and local government for more general purposes and with fewer restrictions

Beare vs. Smith

Not required to register by January 31

Annual registration abolished