GOVT-2306 Chapter 10,11,12 Exam 4 Review

The basic governing body of a county is known as

a county commissioners' court.

The county commissioner's court sets the county's budget and tax rate. It consists of the county judge and commissioners, all of whom are elected by the citizens of the county.

To whom are most county officials in Texas most responsible, and how?

the voters, through the electoral process

County officials are made accountable to the public through elections. Generally, every four years the voters get a chance to review county officials and make a judgment about their competence, efficiency, ability, and fitness to continue holding office.

What is the main difference between Texas's home-rule cities and general-law cities?

A general-law city is chartered for localities with a population of fewer than 5,000 persons.

Article XI, Section 4 of the 1876 Constitution provided for the incorporation of "general law" cities under 10,000 people, which was lowered to 5,000 in 1909.

What happens when a city council uses single-member districts?

Each member of the city council represents a specific "district" of the city and is elected by residents of that geographical area.

A single-member district is an electorate that elects only one representative for each district.

Why is flood control managed through special-purpose districts rather than cities or counties?

Flooding is seldom confined to a single city or county in Texas.

Flood control is managed through special purpose districts because flooding can impact large geographical areas encompassing several counties and municipalities.

Which of the following statements about the problems associated with special purpose districts is correct?

Special purpose districts are often referred to as hidden governments because while most people live in them, few are aware that they exist.

Most people pay taxes that actively contribute to special purpose districts, yet few people are aware they exist, thus their reputation as hidden governments.

How can school districts acquire the finances needed to achieve rapid expansion?

through the use of capital appreciation bonds (CABs)

CABs offer a way for local governments to get money now for a promise to pay back much more money in one lump sum far into the future.

Employee pensions can impose huge financial liabilities on local government. Which of the following was recently implemented in an effort to lessen this burden?

increased retirement age

El Paso recently increased retirement age requirements and reduced financial strain as a result.

Which functions do local governments serve in Texas?

- maintaining roads and bridges

- enforcing laws

- providing K-12 education

A (1) charter is a set of rules created by a city with greater than (2) people that defines how the government will operate.

(1) home-rule

(2) 5,000

A special district is a unit of (1) government performing a (2) in a limited geographic area.

(1) local

(2) single service

The most costly act of preemption for cities by the state legislature involved which of the following policy areas?

property taxes

Match each power to whether it's a power of the mayor in a strong mayor-council variant, weak mayor-council variant, both, or neither.

Both - preside over council meetings

Strong Mayor - removal power

Weak Power - appointment power shared with council

Neither - passing local laws

As you prepare to apply for a U.S. passport, you note that the application requires a copy of your birth certificate. If you were born in Texas, to which office should you go to obtain a copy of this important document so that you can complete your passport application?

county clerk

While a few elected officials who break the law could face criminal charges, which of the following is the most common method for keeping county officials accountable?

regular elections

Which of the following statements about representation on city councils in Texas are accurate?

White residents are over-represented on most city councils.

Which statement best explains the relationship between all the independently elected county officials and the county commissioners' court?

The departments and offices of all county officials are dependent on the commissioners' court for funding.

Why do individuals running for mayor or city council positions in major Texas cities such as Houston, Dallas, and Austin campaign for office using party labels when these positions are filled through nonpartisan elections in Texas?

Party identification helps inform voters about which candidates for mayor or city council may believe about policy issues.

Which of the following best describes the intention of public employee pension plans?

Pension plans incentivize individuals to be long-term employees of local governments.

Which of the following options describes the relationship between taxpayers and a community college district?

Taxpayers subsidize some higher education costs for students in their communities through their property taxes.

Which of the following is the only other form of local government outside of county governments in which every inch of the state must be a part?

school district

Use the graphic to determine which statement correctly characterizes the number of local governments in Texas.

Some Texans call California a "big government" state, but Texans live under more total governments per capita than do Californians.

Which city reform has made city government more politically representative of its residents?

single-member district elections of council members

Match each public service to the type of local government that most often provides that service.

1. city government

2. special district

3. county government

1.

-enforce zoning ordinances

-annex adjacent lands

2.

-public schools

-flood control

3.

-sheriff's law enforcement

-issue marriage licenses

If you are a resident of Houston, Texas, you are simultaneously governed by which of the following forms of government?

-the Texas state government

-a school district

-a county government

-the federal government

-a city government

-a nonschool special district

Which of the following is a unique feature of special purpose districts that differentiates them from other types of government?

Each kind of special purpose district serves only one function.

Which option captures the way that a capital appreciation bond (CAB) works?

Relatively quick borrowed money with a large one-time payment at the end of the contract.

Suppose you are looking for professional employment after college. Why might working for a city that offers a pension benefit be more attractive to you than working for a private corporation?

Guaranteed income after retirement.

The Texas Constitution requires a balanced budget.

True

The General Revenue Fund consists of which two parts?

General Revenue-Dedicated account

nondedicated General Revenue account

What are the primary revenue sources for local governments in Texas?

sales taxes

property taxes

The Economic Stabilization Fund, created by the state legislature in 1988 as a sort of state savings account, is often also referred to as what?

Rainy Day Fund

What is the best way to categorize the tax structure depicted in the table below?

progressive tax structure

What is the primary moral argument of critics of a regressive tax system?

Large income inequalities are bad for a democratic society.

Which statement describes the most recent trends in the way the state spends money?

Overall spending continues to increase, but spending per capita has fallen.

Federal restrictions on how the state can spend federal funds are one major constraint on the state's budgeting process. Which of the following is the other major constraint?

time

How much each branch of the state government and each state agency is given to spend over the next two years is most heavily influenced by which of the following?

Legislative Budget Board

Even if the state legislature hit its maximum limit, how much of the state's budget could be spent on help for impoverished children and those who care for them?

1 percent

At which points does the state of Texas collect revenue from oil produced in the state?

when it comes out of the ground

when it goes into a vehicle

Though the state lottery was approved by Texas voters over 30 years ago as a way to create revenue for the state, it is often criticized for what reason?

It is seen as a "tax" on those who can least afford it.

Texas has a reputation for being a "low service, high tax" state.

False

The average income for the top 1 percent of Texans is more than (1) the average income of the bottom 20 percent of Texans. The bottom 20 percent of Texans pay about (2) the portion of their overall income in taxes compared to the top 1 percent of Texans.

(1) 100 times

(2) 4 times

The state of Texas has one of the highest sales tax rates in the nation at 6.25 percent. This (1) tax can have another (2) added to it to help fund county and local governments.

(1) regressive

(2) 2 percent

Under the budget-execution authority granted in a 1985 constitutional amendment, in which ways can appropriations be changed between legislative sessions?

Either the governor or the Legislative Budget Board can propose to direct an agency to stop spending money appropriated to it in the budget.

Either the governor or the Legislative Budget Board can propose that the purpose of an appropriation to an agency be changed.

The governor or the Legislative Budget Board can propose to transfer money from one agency to another.

If an economic crisis were to occur that caused a significant decline in the projected tax revenue for the biennium, the state legislature would likely deal with the shortfall by taking which steps?

cuts in spending

use the Rainy Day Fund

delay payments

The final stage of the budgetary cycle is with state agencies.

Both chambers of the legislature process the budget at the same time.

True

The Texas Constitution mandates that money spent on debt service cannot exceed more than what percentage of state revenue?

5 percent

Study the map that shows state and local tax burdens along with the results of the 2020 presidential election to determine which of the following statements are accurate.

States in the South tend to have lower tax burdens, and most of these states supported Trump.

The state with the highest tax burden went for Biden.

Which constitutional factors affect the way the budget is made in Texas?

pay-as-you-go limit

time limits imposed by the biennial legislature

restrictions on dedicated funds

According to the information in the table, which state has the most equitable taxing structure between its lowest and highest earners?

Delaware

Why must the Texas legislature maintain a balanced budget?

It is required by the Texas Constitution.

The Texas Constitution mandates that the legislature operate within a "balanced budget."

Which of the following gives an overall picture of revenue for the state of Texas?

All Funds

All Funds represents the aggregate of all these ways of financing government; refers to revenue that goes through agencies, including federal and state programs.

Overall, the tax system in Texas is generally considered to be regressive, which means that

the tax burden consumes a greater percentage of the income received by lower-income individuals.

A regressive tax is a type of tax wherein the tax burden falls more heavily on lower-income individuals.

What are matching funds?

monies going to a state based on the state's spending for a program

Matching funds are federal monies coming to a state based on the state's spending for a program.

Texas's Rainy Day Fund is officially known as

the Economic Stabilization Fund (ESF).

Commonly known as the Rainy Day Fund, the ESF was established by constitutional amendment in 1988 to provide funds for the state during times of financial stress.

Which universities are eligible to receive monies from the Permanent University Fund (PUF)?

universities that are part of the University of Texas and Texas A&M systems

The Permanent University Fund (PUF) is a fund established in 1876 and funded from the proceeds from land owned by the state; monies go to various universities in the University of Texas and Texas A&M systems.

Which of the following components of the Texas budget process is one of its biggest constraints?

the constitutional mandate that Texas legislators write a budget every two years

This is probably the biggest constraint on the Texas Budget process, as the restricted time frame forces government agencies to project their budgetary needs well in advance of any clear understanding of the problems they may face during that 2-year period.

What process allows the Texas legislature to authorize a government agency or body to spend up to a particular amount of money?

appropriations

Appropriations is authorization by the legislature to a government agency or body to spend up to a particular amount of money.

The Texas Legislative Budget Board is chaired by

the lieutenant governor.

The Texas Legislative Budget Board is chaired by the lieutenant governor.

How is Texas's dual-budget system supposed to work, in theory?

Budget authority is shared by the governor and the legislature.

The "dual-budget" system was intended to share budget authority between the governor through the Governor's Office of Budget, Planning, and Policy (GOBPP) and the legislature through the LBB; however, in practice, the budget is primarily the responsibility of the legislature.

Which of the following is the best definition of public policy?

the expressed goals of a government body that are backed by sanctions or incentives

In broadest terms, public policy refers to the outputs of governmental institutions. More narrowly, public policy can be defined as the expressed goals of a governmental body backed by incentives or sanctions.

What happens during the policy-making process?

Governmental goals are identified, formulated, articulated into law, and evaluated.

The policy-making process is the political and administrative process through which governmental goals are identified, formulated, articulated into law, and evaluated.

The majority of public education funding in Texas comes from which two sources?

property taxes and General Revenue Funds from the state

Property taxes and general revenue funding from the state are the 2 main sources of public education funding in Texas, contributing roughly $61 billion and $47 billion to public education from 2022-2023, respectively.

Texas's per capita spending on education

ranks near the lowest in the country.

Texas ranks near the bottom at 44th in per capita student expenditure in 2020-21.

Which of the following statements about poverty in Texas is accurate?

The poverty rate in Texas is higher than the national average.

Poverty rates in Texas are quite high by national standards.

The federal government introduced Supplemental Security Income (SSI) to provide aid for which group(s)?

elderly people, blind people, and permanently disabled people

SSI is a national welfare program passed in 1972 that provides assistance to low-income elderly or disabled individuals.

National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius (2012) decided that

states could not be forced to expand their Medicaid programs.

The decision prevented the federal government from forcing states to expand Medicaid programs.

In 1965, Congress created the Medicaid program, a state-federal program, to

provide health care for citizens living in poverty.

Medicaid is a federal and state program financing medical services to low-income people.

Place the steps of the policy-making process in order.

1. Problem Identification

2. Policy Formulation

3. Implmentation

4. Evaluation

Based on the information in the figure, which of the following statements are correct?

Among uninsured Texans, most are Latino.

Among uninsured Texans, most are adults.

Poverty in Texas is highest in the border counties.

True

When school districts are funded by local taxes only, the likelihood of disparities in funding goes up.

True

Political scientists identify four main stages in the development of public policy: problem identification, policy formulation, implementation, and evaluation. Match each stage of the public policy process to its best definition.

1. implementation

2. evaluation

3. problem identification

4. policy formation

1. putting into practice the policies designed to address an issue

2. determining whether or not a policy addressing an issue has been successful or effective

3. developing an understanding of how to think about and address an issue

4. developing rules, regulations, and legislation to address an issue

In terms of Texas constitutional provisions on education, the Democratic state supreme court of the 1980s focused on (1), while the Republican court of 2016 focused on (2).

(1) fairness and efficiency

(2) general diffusion of knowledge

What is the purpose of the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program?

to guarantee income for individuals at the greatest risk of living in poverty

Higher dropout rates and increased risks for failing to make progress in high school are increased by which factors?

limited English proficiency

poverty

Individuals who are critical of creating more charter schools or introducing voucher legislation into Texas most often cite which of the following realities to bolster their argument?

local schools and districts already have been facing funding issues

What was the Texas government's response in the years immediately following the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka by the Supreme Court in 1954?

make policies to encourage schools to disobey the school desegregation ruling.

This table compares state tax burdens and the percent of the state population that is uninsured. Study the information presented here to determine which statements are accurate.

Texas has the highest uninsured rank.

Massachusetts has the lowest uninsured rank.

States with lower tax burdens tend to have higher rates of uninsured residents.

Not only did the COVID-19 pandemic create a challenge for parents, students, and schools who had to teach and learn online, but the ability to engage digitally was further complicated by which factor?

poverty

After the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) during President Obama's first term, Texas successfully fought which aspect of the new law?

Medicaid coverage expansion

Most Americans and Texans think of laws passed by the legislature when they think of "public policy," but public policy also includes things like which of the following?

automotive emission standards set by environmental agencies

fines for violations of workplace safety standards

minimum graduation requirements set by the State Board of Education

In theory, a rational actor would choose to create a policy that addressed a problem in a way that is clear, measurable, and efficient and takes all potential outcomes into consideration. In practice, political actors make decisions that reflect rationality that is limited by which of the following?

ability to fully conceptualize the issue and possible solutions

timing considerations

costs of getting relevant information

Which of the following statements about poverty in Texas are accurate?

The highest poverty rates in Texas are found in border counties.

Poverty rates among non-White Texans are higher than among White Texans.

Texas uses the federal poverty guidelines for determining eligibility for state programs.

Supporters of the Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act make the point that which of the following groups will benefit from the expansion?

People of Color

rural hospitals

Incorrect Answer(s)

suburban families

budget watchdogs

Tax burdens in the South, including Texas, tend to be (1) tax burdens in the Midwest and Northeast. The rates of uninsured residents in the South, including Texas, tend to be (2) uninsured rates in the Midwest and Northeast.

(1) lower than

(2) higher than

Major reforms to the way Texas monitored the performance of its public schools began as a result of which of these events?

the publication of a national report showing that the United States was beginning to lag behind other nations

Which group is most likely to face poverty in Texas?

children

Which of the following groups has the highest rate of poverty in Texas?

Latinos