Chapter 3

government

process of decision making conditioned by its politics, history & people

constitutions serve as

rationalization fr the actions of legislators

constitutions give governments

legitimacy

legitmacy

general public acceptance of government's right to govern

Republic of Texas constitution 1836 was made when

Texas became its own nation from Mexico

Texas has been governed by how many constitutions

seven

The major changes between the 1869 and 1876 constitutions involved which of the following?

limiting government power

A majority of delegates at the 1875 constitutional convention fell into which of the following categories? (Select all that apply.)

white, democrats, keen to limit the power government

Republic of Texas Constitution- 1836

Became our own nation

Which of the following explains the length of the Texas constitution?

\-It clearly defines the role of government of Texas

\-has more than 5 hundred amendments

Why is the Texas constitution revised so frequently?

\-The amendment process is relatively simple

\-legislators have to amend the constitution to make changes to clearly defined policies

The current Texas constitution was written in what year?

1876

The Texas Bill of Rights contains how many provisions?

30

The 1876 Texas constitution seeks to

limit the government power

Which best describes the relationship between the executive branch and legislative branch? (Select all that apply.)

\-The legislative branch writes legislation that the executive branch can veto.

\-The executive branch appointments are conditional pending approval from the legislature.

\-The legislative branch can impeach members of the executive.

Which of the following is an example of the checks and balances that exist in Texas government? (Select all that apply.)

The governor’s veto power

The power of impeachment

The power of judicial review

Which of the following constitutional concepts refers to the public’s acceptance of the government’s right to govern?

legitimacy

The Republic of Texas Constitution recognized owner-occupied properties and protected them from forced sale under most circumstances. What are these owner-occupied properties called?

homesteads

when the constitutional convention convened to 1st establish the 1st Texas constitution of Texas in 1836 it sought to establish which form of government

unitary

Which of the following was the only amendment to the 1845 Constitution of Texas?

the adoption of the long ballot in which Texas would be able to independently elect a large number of executive officials

how would traditional historians describe the era of government that was based on the 1869 Constitution

abusive and corrupt

which of the following rights is guaranteed by the Texas Bill of Rights but wasn’t specified in the US consitution?

prohibits discrimination based on sex

which of the following is a law developed from judicial rulings & customs overtime

common law

the concept that each branch of government is assigned power specifically limits the abuses in other branches of government is called

checks and balances

what does it mean to say that Texas legislature is both bicameral & biennial

the Texas legislature is made of 2 chambers that meet once every 2 years

which of the following statements about Texas special legislative sessions is true

governors can call as many special sessions as they want

In Texas, the state executive branch consists of several consists of several indepently elected officials. This arrangement is referred to as which official

plural executive

In Texas, constitution probits the suspension of which of the following legal writs

habeas corpus

which of the following statements about the executive branch in Texas is accurate based on the Texas constitution

Texas does not impose term limits on its chief executive

Which of the following statements describes a pocket veto

the governor decides to ignore a bill and let the legislative session end without taking any action on the bill, killing it

with the exception of Oklahoma, Texas is the only state that has which of the following

two final courts of appeal

In Texas, judges seek office through what type of elections

Parisians elections

which of the following empowers citizens to place a proposal on the ballot for voter approval, if it pass it becomes law

initiative

Texas permits voters to decide directly on only 3 matters: constitutional amendments, the state income tax, and which of the following

legislative salaries

In Texas, the proposal of a constitutional amendment must be approved by which of the following

2/3 of the total membership of each house of the Texas legislature

Which of the following statements regarding constitutional amendments in Texas is correct

over the last 50 years, every legislative sessions has proposed at least one constitutional amendment

In Texas, for a city to operate under the home rule it must achieve what threshold

a population of 5,000

The Texas constitution is best described as which of the following

restrictive

In 1972, which of the following did the connotational amendment revision commission have to do in order to revise the Texas Constitution?

amend it

The ability of the governor to issue binding orders to the state agencies is which of the following powers?

Directive

How many representatives must support a proposed amendment before it moves to public bot for ratification

100 representatives

constitutions establish

* major government institutions
* assign power
* place limits on power

constitutions promote

legitimacy

\-general public acceptance of the goevremnt right to govern

Republic of Texas Constituion 1836

Texas became its own nation after gaining independence from Mexico

The Republic of Texas Constitution 1836 contained

\-provisions from Spanish- Mexican law & southern states

\-separation of church & state

\-limited terms for president

\-community property

\-common law

\-established a unitary government

community property

property acquired during marriage that is equally owned between spouses

In the Constitution 1845 Texas ____

joined the united states

What did the Constitution of 1845 contain

* similar provisions to Republic’s
* r**estricted power of legislature meetings**
* anti-cooperation of south (needed 2/3 majority vote for any corporation establishment
* **limited state debt** to 100,000
* **established Permanant school Fund**
* **Established long ballot**

Which constitution had Texas become its own nation, establish a unitary government, have similar provisions to Mexican law (& other southern states), separate church & state, limited terms for president, homesteads, community property, & have common law?

Constitution of 1836

Which constitution was written for Texas to Join the US, restricted power of legislature, limited state debt, establish the Permanant school fund, & establish the long ballot?

Constitution of 1845

long ballot

independent election of large # of state officials

short ballot

governor had power to appoint most officals

Constitution of 1861 Texas ____

seceded from the union/ US

What did the Constitution of 1861 contain?

* **similar to 1845 constitution**
* **reflects Texas as a confederate state**
* increased debt celling
* prohibited emancipation of slaves

Which Constitution established Texas as a confederate state & similar to constitution of 1845?

Constitution of 1861

In the Constitution of 1866 Texas____

rejoined the US

What did the Constitution of 1866 contain

* **nullified secession**
* **written by white democrats & republicans**
* **abolished slavery**
* **renounced confederate war debts**
* **established civilian government (Jim Crow)**
* **The US Reconstruction Act of 1867 voided it**

Which Constitution has nullified Texas secession, abolished slavery, renounced confederate wat debts, established civilian government, & was voided by US Reconstruction Act of 1867

Constitution of 1866

White Texans saw the Constitution 1869 as

**abusive & instrument for an oppressive government**

\-led to Texans refusing to pay taxes and state in debt

Constitution of 1869 was made during

Radical Reconstruction

The Constitution of 1869 contained

* **centralized state power in governor’s hand**
* **lengthened chief executive term**
* **allowed governor to appoint officials**
* **annual legislative sessions**
* **centralized public school system**
* **EJ Davis was governor**

EJ Davis was part of the Davis Administration and supported___

activism, civil rights, enforcement of law, expansion of education

\--took control of voting registration to prevent discrimination

\--when he lost the election of 1873 he barricaded himself in

\-made policies about railroads and public education

When Davis lost the election in 1873 what did the Supreme Court do?

used a semicolon in state constitution as a pretext for invalidating election

What is the Constiution of 1875?

The current constiution set up by the constitutional convention

Who dominated the election in 1875?

Texas Grange -farmer organization

What did the Constitution of 1875 do?

* cut salaries of governing officials
* limits on property tax
* limited governor power by reducing term
* legislative sessions limited
* strengthened local government
* WAS A REACTIONARY DOCUMENT IN RESPONSE TO RECONSTRUCTION BY LIMITING STATE POWER

Which Constitution had strengthened the local government, was a reactionary document to Reconstruction, limited legislative sessions, limits property, tax, shortened governors term, & cut salaries on governing officials?

Constitution of 1875

14th amendment provided ____

everyone the right to due process by the court

* US interpreted this as states must follow most of US Bill of rights
* TX interpeted it as equal funding for public schools

The Constitution of 1875 is the ___ longest and ___ times longer than US Constitution

2nd longest among the states

12 times longer than US Constitution

Texas bill of rights contains?

* prohibits discrimination based on sex
* guarantees victim’s rights
* forbids imprisonment for debt
* forbids committing the mentally ill without jury
* prohibits monopolies
* forbids suspension of writ of habeous corpus

Article 16 protects what?

homesteads & prohibits garnishment of wages except for child support

Article 12

limits government by separation of power

Statuary law

law passed by legislatures & written in code book

Writ of habeas corpus

order to present a person with legal cause of confinement

separation of powers

power given to the 3 branches of government

\-judicial

\-executive

\-legislative

\

What is the function of legislative branch

makes laws, defines crimes, charge tax, government programs

Function of the executive branch

carry out the law, arrest criminals, collect tax, public service

Function of judicial branch

interpret law & apply it to people and institutions

Separation of power in Texas includes:

* system of checks & balances (each branch assigned power to limit others)

What are examples of Separation of Power

* Veto power-governor
* Impeachment & Conviction - legislative
* Confirm appointments -legislative approval (appointments by governor)

The legislative branch has

* **bicameral**
* **biennial regular sessions** (limit of 140 days)
* 31 senate
* 150 house of representitives
* election for 4 yrs under single district
* may serve as many times as elected
* **special sessions (limit to 30 days)**
* LEGISLATURE IS THE MOST RESTRICTED IN TX

Legislature in Texas is the most ___

restrictive

biennial regular sessions

session held 1 every 2 years

who is the head of the executive branch

chief executive- the governor

What is the TX executive branch like:

* plural executive
* weak chief executive
* Texas lack a formal cabinet

Plural executive

limits power of the governor by dividing power among 7 independent elected officials

What power does the Governor have?

* Indirect appointive power
* limited removal power
* directive power
* budgetary power
* veto power (Line-item veto)

indirect appointive power

appoint supervisory boards but not operational directors

directive power

binding orders to state agencies

budgetary power

recommend legislature how much to give executive agencies

What power does the governor lack

* reduction veto
* pocket veto

reduction veto

power to reduce amounts on appropration bill without striking them all out

pocket veto

power to kill legislation by ignoring ir after end od legislative session, killing it

What is the TX Judicial branch like:

* f**ragmented court system**
* **2 final courts of appeal**
* **highest court on civil matters= TX Supreme Court**
* **Texas Court of Criminal Appeals = criminals stuff**
* courts of appeal
* district, county, justice of peace courts
* **partisian elections for judges**

partisan elections

general elections which the candidates are nominated by political parties & their party is on the ballot

Article 6 of TX constitution has

suffrage requirements & induvial not allowed to vote

Induvials not allowed to vote

* under 18
* convicted felons
* mentally incompetent

What does the TX Constitution deny:

* statewide initiatives
* statewide referendums
* no popular recall

referendum

elections permit voter to determine if statue goes into effect

Initiative, referendums, & popular recalls are not allowed at the ___ level

state