Civics Unit 5

Special interest groups

These organizations are made up of people with some common interest who try to influence government decisions.

Examples of special interest groups are the National Rifle Association, National Space Society, Greenpeace, and American,

Association of Retired People

Tuition vouchers

Tuition vouchers can be used to pay for private school education through the use of public funds

Local initiative

Citizens can propose new laws by getting enough signatures on a petition.

Annexation

Excluding an area and raising taxes to build a new community (housing, and or school)

Value of town meetings, public forums, and public hearings

Town meetings are held where citizens can speak directly to governmental officials about everyday affairs.

Sometimes public forums are held where citizens may voice their opinions or concerns on a certain topic

Can take part in public hearings (open discussions) with political leaders where they express their opinions on certain issues

Rider on a bill

The Senate allows amendments that are totally unrelated to the bill to be tacked on These are called riders

Pocket veto

President's power to kill a bill, if Congress is not in session, by not signing it for 10 days

Filibuster

A lengthy speech designed to delay or kill the vote on a bill; used only in the Senate

Process of a bill becoming a law

Introduction if the bill

Bill assigned to a committee

Reported to the floor

Bill is debated and voted on in the house

Bill goes to Senate

Debated and voted on in the senate

Both houses must pass the bill

Agreement between both houses on the bill

Bill is sent to the president

The president may veto, pocket veto, or pass the bill into a law

Process of being placed on a committee

Each party assigns, by resolution, its own members to committees, and each committee distributes its members among subcommittees.

Joint Committee

Joint committees which include members from both Houses

Writ of certiorari

A party who wants the higher court to review a decision of a federal or state court must file a "petition for writ of certiorari". If the court files a writ of certiorari, the higher court requests that certain lower court decisions be referred to them for review

Civil suits

Civil cases involve disputes between people, groups of people, organizations, or governments where no criminal laws have been broken

Tort claim

These disputes are where a person may suffer an injury and claim that another party is responsible because of negligence

Plea bargaining

Making an agreement by which the accused person will plead guilty, but to a lesser charge

Indictment

A charge or accusation of a serious crime

Bail

A sum of money paid by the defendant so that he can be released from jail, usually on condition that the sum of money guarantees his appearance at trial

Probable cause

Probable cause means that they have reasonable grounds (sufficient evidence) that a crime has been committed by this person

Misdemeanor

A crime or offense that is less serious than a felony; any minor misbehavior or misconduct. Sentencing under a year

Adversarial system

The type of legal system, in which a dispute between opposing parties is heard before an independent trier of fact

Appellate jurisdiction

The job of the federal appeals courts is to review the decisions that are made in the lower district courts

The Court of International Trade

Court of International Trade which addresses cases involving international trade and customs issues, and the U.S. Court of Federal Claims which has jurisdiction over most claims for money damages against the U.S.

N.C. Court of Appeals

Intermediate appellate court

The role of the Court of Appeals is to decide if the trial court correctly applied the law, or if there was prejudicial error in the conduct of the trial.

N.C. District Court

District courts hear cases involving civil, criminal, juvenile, and magistrate matters. District courts are divided into 41 districts across the state and sit in the county seat of each county. They may also preside in certain other cities and towns specifically authorized by the General Assembly.

Consensus

A generally accepted opinion or decision among a group of people

Conflict resolution

Coming up with a solution where both parties have to give something of their personal beliefs for the greater good.