POLS 207 Dyer Exam 3

state legislatures

bicameral legislatures in all states but NE

inherent conflict between...

representative function and lawmaking role

functions of state legislatures

lawmaking and representative institutions

lawmaking institution

"wholesale" politics
enactment of statutory laws
(state) constitutional amendments, appointments
budgetary powers
oversight authority

representative institution

"retail politics"
represent interests of constituents
bring $$$ to district
constituent services

differences between representatives and "regular folks"

upper middle class
75% hold college degrees
overrepresented occupations are business, law, and real estate
ambitious, successful w/ flexibility, contacts, and high paying jobs

2 types of representation

descriptive representation and substantive representation

substantive representation

representing interests of groups
representative doesn't have to belong to group

descriptive representation

mirroring politically relevant characteristics
ex. age, sex, race, education, etc
is a no-go

demographics of representation in the states

women, African Americans, hispanics, asians, and native Americans all have less representation

in substantive representation

legislators are linked to constituents by parties, elections, & interest groups
it is based on communication

what are the 3 roles that a state representative might fill when making decisions as a member of the legislature?

delegate, trustee, and politico

delegate

mirror preferences of constitutents

trustee

use own judgement to make policy choices

politico

balance both trustee and delegate roles

institutionalization of state legislatures

development of rules, patterns of behavior, and organizational structures

how might the legislative process become more institutionalized?

stability of membership
increase in staff, salaries; extended internal operations
increased complexity of rules and procedures

level of professionalism

lay (citizen), professional, or hybrid

professional

full-time; full salary
longer sessions
can serve many terms
more staff, legislative, & constituent services

lay

(citizen)
volunteers; little salary
shorter sessions
serve 1-2 terms

what is incumbency?

run when they are expected to win and retire when they are expected to lose

what is meant by legislative institutionalization?

development of rules, patterns of behavior, and organizational structures

how professionalized is the Texas state legislature?

hybrid

which institutions draw the lines for legislative districts for both state legislatures and for the U.S. House of Representatives?

traditionally state legislatures draw both state legislative districts and U.S. congressional districts

what have some states adopted for drawing lines as a less partisan alternative

redistricting commissions are a way some states have tried to avoid gerrymandering. seen in more states with a popular initiative

what institution draws up state and congressional districts in Texas?

state legislature

what is legislative apportionment?

federal census every 10 years; congressional districts, state level districts

what is legislative malapportionment?

common before 1960s
rural domination of state legislatures & US house
redistricting seen as a "political question"
changes with Baker v. Carr (1962)
established principle of "one person, one vote"

what legal principle guides legislative apportionment?

"one person, one vote"
each district has a similar number of people in it so as to prevent a small portion of the population from controlling who gets elected to the house and senate seats

formal legal rules of drawing the lines

1. equality of population
2. contiguity
3. protected groups
4. district shape

2. contiguity

all portions of district must touch

3. protected groups

Voting Rights Act protections of minority representation
can't dilute minority votes

4. district shape

can be "odd" but not "bizarre"

traditional redistricting principles for state level districts

1. compactness
2. contiguity
3. maintaining "communities of interest"
4. respect for political boundaries

3. maintaining "communities of interest"

common political, social, or economic interests

4. respect for political boundaries

i.e. minimize splitting of counties, towns, precincts, etc

what is gerrymandering?

when the party draws districts in its favor

what are some ways in which gerrymandering can be accomplished?

via packing & cracking/splintering

defenses against gerrymandering

4 formal legal rules
legal arguments-redistricting only once following census, invalidation via "excessive partisanship"
voting rights act-preclearance for covered states

Shelby v Holder

(texas 2013)
texas is no longer a covered state under VRA

what kinds of consequences has gerrymandering had for the competitiveness of legislative elections?

fewer competitive seats
unopposed incumbents for legislative contest
less than 2/3s of Texas legislative districts are competitive

2003 Texas Redistricting controversy

1. excessive partisanship
2. mid-decade redistricting
3. dilution of hispanic votes

partisan gerrymandering cases

Gill v. Whitford (Wisconsin)
Benisek v. Lamone (Maryland)

racial gerrymandering case

Abbott v. Perez (texas)

institutional memory

observations and insights of previous legislatures about how issues were handled in the past

standing committee

division of labor, divide into subject areas
ex. oil

pigeonholing

a bill that is ignored or never considered

logjam

end of the session lawmaking is disorganized
crowding

subject-matter expertise

the authority of a court to hear cases of a particular type

party (or party-line) voting

one party supermajority can shut out minority party

how often does the Texas state legislature meet & how long is its regular session

once every 2 years for 140 days

a bill needs support of

both the Speaker of the House and Lt. Governor of the Senate

according to state legislators themselves, what is the most important job of the legislature?

advantage to the status quo
designed for delay and killing bad bills
legislature as an arbitrator of public policy

why bills are bad

1. harmful to constituents
2. waste resources
3. ideologically wrong

in the Texas legislative process, what are some ways that bills can die?

legislators must sponsor & introduce bill
all bills are assigned to a committee, but not all pass due to pigeonhole
bills out of committee assigned to a calendar based on content and priority; many never debated on the floor and never receive the vote
not get enough votes
pass one chamber nut not the next
bills passed by both chambers must be exactly alike

at which point do most bills die?

when bills are assigned to a committee

how do committees help organize lawmaking in state legislatures

division of labor
specialization of labor
legislators specialize and develop policy expertise

what is the title/office of the presiding officers of the TX house of representatives and of the TX senate

Speaker of the House & Lieutenant Governor

how might legislative leaders help a bill pass the legislature?

give it a special low number to signal priority
assign bill to an easy committee
assign bill to a prime calendar spot

how might legislative leaders assist in killing a bill they dislike?

if governor doesn't support bill it will be killed
assign bill to impossible committee
do nothing spot on calendar
procedural technique to limit floor debate

describe the growing partisanship in legislative politics in the US

party divisions dominate lawmaking. even division=risk of gridlock and nothing will get passed, but also one party can shut out minority party

according to the textbook, what are some effects of legislative term limits on the lawmaking process? does tx have legislative term limits?

longer time in legislative have more knowledge?
tx has no term limits

what kind of background and experience are common for U.S. governors?

traditionally: sons of state 'power families' (example: Roosevelts, Rockefellers, Bushes)
TV & candidates-centered politics now require other prereqs
legal background is common (law & business)
hold other office before becoming governor

gubernatorial elections competitiveness

almost always competitive

are gubernatorial elections contested?

always partisan & contested

gubernatorial elections cost

expensive state-wide race

what is executive recall?

removal from office through a direct vote
tool of direct democracy
explicitly political, not about legal issues

is there executive recall in Texas?

no

what is impeachment?

removal from office as a legal procedure
49 states (not OR)

veto

not passing the whole bill

line-item veto

only certain parts of bill is vetoed

what degree of veto power does the Texas governor have?

above average power

formal/institutional power of governors

power given by state constitution & statutes
e.g. appointment, tenure potential, managerial

informal power of governors

power of individual peoples, getting things done or their personal gain

major components of a governor's formal power

appointment power
tunure
managerial
fiscal
legislative

appointment power of governors

power to choose other statewide executive officials
very weak in TX

tenure potential/power of governors

ability to remain in office, including length of term and re-election restrictions
TX: no term limits or restrictions

managerial powers of governors

oversight of administration, coordination of departments, executive orders
TX: executive orders are infrequent & quite limited

fiscal powers of governors

supervises preparation of state budget
tx: weakest fiscal influence of any state

legislative powers of governors

veto power
tx: above average

In terms of institutional power, how does the office of governor in Texas compare to that of other states? What about in terms of personal power?

institutional power is relatively weak compared to others, but personal power is strong in Texas.

unitary executive

when one person possesses all the power or control of the entire executive
POTUS

plural executive

a group of officers or major officials that function together
TEXAS

how does having a plural executive affect the strength of governorship? how does it affect the ability of lobbyists to influence the executive branch?

when it is fragmented the lobbyists have more power like interest groups
makes governor weaker

which members of the Texas executive are elected from the same very constituency as the governor?

elective office:
lieutenant gov
comptroller
land, railroad, and agriculture commissioner
attorney general

what are some main features of bureaucracies and how do they operate?

hierarchical structure
task specialization/division of labor
clear line of responsibility
rule driven operation
mission driven with specific organizational goals

implementation

creating concrete operational rules and procedures to carry out public policy

regulation

creating the rules that set the parameters for firms and individuals

adjudication

deciding whether individual or organization has complied with laws, rules, and regs

what does it mean that bureaucracies implement public policy?

creating new agencies
assigning new responsibilities to existing agencies

regulation

the development of formal rules for implementing legislation

adjudication

decision making by bureaucracies on whether an individual or organization has complied with or violated government laws and/or regulations

what is the most common type of state level bureaucrats?

teachers

how was hiring and promotion for government jobs commonly done in the past?

hiring was based on patronage, or party/personal loyalty

what kinds of hiring practices are more common now?

based on merit system, you get the job based on your performance

what is policy incrementalism

new policies mean new rules & regulations every year
new programs contribute to growth but old ones seldom get reviewed

what is bureaucratic culture?

support within an agency for its own function and for its clients and the pay, perks, and security of its employees

why is the budget the most important law passed in any legislative session

nothing happens without establishing funding, anything dies when funding is taken away, spending of public funds authorized by law via appropriation bill
prepared by executive
TX: LBB

what are some common sources of state revenues

taxes, federal grants, fees and licenses, interest on investments, direct sales, borrowing, gambling/lottery

What are some ways in which bureaucrats and their agencies have the advantage in the policy process and in resisting top-down change, including change brought by elected or appointed bosses?

information
time and tenure
procedures
clientele
constitutional or statutory foundation