GOVT 2306 Exam 3 Review Notes

Chapter 9: The Executive Branch

  • Appointive and Removal Power:
    • Appointive power: The governor's ability to appoint individuals to government offices, subject to Senate approval.
    • Recess appointments: Appointments made by the governor when the legislature is not in session, which are temporary.
    • Removal power: The ability to remove individuals from office. The Texas governor's removal power is limited for most agencies.
  • Governor’s Role in Budgetary Power:
    • The budget is created by both the governor and the legislature.
    • The governor can veto the entire budget or use a line-item veto to reject specific parts of it. This is rare when the governor and legislature are from the same party.
  • Executive Orders and Proclamations:
    • Executive orders: Policies set by the governor within the executive branch, including creating task forces, abolishing bodies, and forming councils.
    • Proclamations: Public announcements made by the governor, typically regarding disasters or special elections.
  • Bill Signing Powers:
    • Legislative power
    • Veto power
    • Pork-barrel politics
    • Post-adjournment veto
  • Special Sessions Power:
    • Special sessions are limited to 30 days.
    • The legislature can only address issues specified by the governor in the session call.
    • There is no limit to the number of special sessions the governor can call.
  • Acts of Executive Clemency:
    • Clemency: Forgiveness granted by the governor.
    • Includes parole, full and conditional pardons, death sentence reprieves, and commutation of sentences.
  • Informal Powers of the Governor:
    • Based on the governor’s popularity, not law.
    • Chief of state role.
    • Ceremonial duties: Traditions and symbols.
    • Speeches and public appearances.
    • Use of social media.
    • Involvement of family members.
  • Succession:
    • Succession: Replacement of a government official due to death, retirement, or inability to serve.
    • Line of succession: Governor, Lieutenant Governor, President Pro Tempore of the Senate, Speaker of the House, Attorney General, Chief Justices of the 14 courts of appeals.
  • Removal from Office:
    • Removal occurs through retirement, death, being voted out, or impeachment and removal.
    • Impeachment: Formal charge of grievance (accusation), followed by a Senate hearing to decide whether to remove the official.
  • Plural Executives:
    • Governor
    • Lieutenant Governor
    • Attorney General
    • Comptroller of Public Accounts
    • Commissioner of the General Land Office
    • Commissioner of Agriculture
    • Secretary of State
  • State Bureaucracy:
    • Collection of boards and agencies that handle public administration.
    • Public administration: Implementing public policy by government employees (e.g., issuing driver's licenses, maintaining roads, managing schools).
  • Major Agency Areas in the Bureaucracy:
    • Education
    • Health and Human Services (HHS)
    • Employment (Workers' Compensation and Texas Workforce Commission - TWC)
    • Economic and Environmental Agencies

Chapter 10: The Judicial Branch

  • Jurisdiction:
    • Jurisdiction: A court's ability to hear and decide cases.
    • Determines which court hears a specific case (e.g., traffic court).
  • Civil Law vs. Criminal Law:
    • Criminal law: Deals with felony and misdemeanor offenses by individuals against laws and ordinances.
    • Civil law: Deals with disputes between individuals and noncriminal matters, such as business contracts and personal injury.
  • Sources of State Law:
    • The state constitution
    • Legislative laws and statutes
    • State agency regulations
    • Judge-made common laws
    • Procedures for filing cases, conducting trials, appeals, and distinctions between civil and criminal cases
  • Local Trial Courts vs. County Trial Courts:
    • Local Courts:
      • Municipal courts (city level)
      • Justice of the Peace Courts (JOP)
      • Small claims courts
      • Courts of record (recording testimony and proceedings)
    • County Courts:
      • Constitutional county courts (for all 254 counties)
      • Courts at law (trial by statutes)
      • Probate courts (handling estates)
  • District Level Courts:
    • State trial courts
    • Courts of Appeals
    • Intermediate Appellate Courts
  • Intermediate Level Courts:
    • Mid-tier court system level.
    • Texas is divided into 14 state appeals court districts.
    • Three-judge panels make majority rulings (2 of 3 judges).
  • Highest Level Courts:
    • Two highest courts in Texas:
      • Supreme Court: Handles civil law cases.
      • Court of Criminal Appeals: Handles criminal law cases.
  • Selection Systems for Judges:
    • Electing judges through partisan elections.
    • Missouri Plan: Governor appoints a judge, and voters then decide whether to retain them for a full term.
    • Appointment retention: Governor fills a vacancy, and the judge must win a popular election to keep the seat.
  • Removal and State Commission:
    • Three methods for removal:
      • Removal by voters
      • Removal by trial by jury
      • Removal by legislative address and/or impeachment
    • State Commission on Judicial Conduct: Oversees the substance abuse program for judges and can report wrongdoing.
  • Types of Juries:
    • Grand jury: 12 persons and 4 alternates.
    • Petit (trial) jury: 6 to 12 persons.
  • Types of Damages in Civil Cases:
    • Economic damages
    • Noneconomic damages
    • Exemplary/punitive damages
  • Criminal Justice System:
    • Rules of criminal procedure are made by the legislature.
    • Texas Code of Criminal Procedure: Complies with the U.S. Supreme Court.
    • Additional rules aim to enhance fairness and efficiency in criminal cases.

Chapter 11: Finance and Fiscal Policy

  • Fiscal Policy:
    • Fiscal policy: Public policy concerning money, taxation, spending, public debt, and management of government finances.
  • Taxes and Their Types:
    • Taxes: Mandatory assessments collected by the government.
    • Two types of tax systems: regressive and progressive.
    • Sales tax: Main tax assessed on the purchase of goods.
  • Budget Policy:
    • Ideally aims for a balanced budget with no deficits.
    • Texas uses the General Revenue fund, which is unrestricted for appropriations.
    • Funds can be dedicated for specific purposes.
  • Sales Tax:
    • Collected when a sale of a non-tax-exempt good is made.
    • Texas sales tax rate: 8.25%8.25\%. Other types of taxes: sin taxes, highway tax, miscellaneous fees.
  • Texas Politics of Taxation:
    • Inheritance tax was stopped in 2015.
    • Low tax burden compared to other states.
    • Taxes are collected by the Comptroller.
    • Texas's tax burden ranks 47th out of 50 states.
    • For business taxes, Texas ranks 11th out of 50 states.
  • Public Debt:
    • Public debt: Money owed by the government to other sources.
    • Texas has a bonded indebtedness, bond review, and an economic stabilization fund.
  • State Budget:
    • Budget: Financial plan outlining income and expenditures.
    • The Texas government creates its budget through the Legislative and Executive branches for a two-year period.
  • Categories of Budget Expenditures:
    • Functional
    • Objective
  • Budget Execution:
    • The governor and Legislative Budget Board oversee and modify the implementation of the spending plan authorized by the Texas legislature.
  • Education Future Demands:
    • Financing
    • School funding
    • School equalization
    • Community college funding
    • University funding
    • Tuition deregulation
  • Infrastructure Needs and Public Assistance:
    • Infrastructure: Core necessities provided by the government, such as water, roads, bridges, and buildings.
    • Public assistance: Mainly includes transportation and utilities.

Chapter 12: Public Policy and Administration

  • Policymaking Models:
    • Institutional model
    • Group model
    • Elite model
    • Rational model
    • Incremental model
    • Participatory democratic model
  • Branch with Major Policy Effects:
    • The Executive Branch, via the bureaucracy, executes and carries out the laws.
  • Factors of Agency Success:
    • Vigor and vision of leadership
    • Agency resources (money)
    • Elite access
  • Types of K-12 Schools:
    • Public schools
    • Private (charter) schools
    • Homeschools
  • Higher Education Issues:
    • Low funding and high tuition
    • Providing access to education for a diverse population (previously through affirmative action).
  • Texas Health and Human Services:
    • Highest child poverty level in the country.
    • Privatization: Government services transferred to the private sector.
    • TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families)
    • SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program)
    • Assistance programs require a demonstrated need.
    • DSHS (Department of State Health Services) provides broad health functions.
  • Major Players in Economic Regulatory Policy:
    • The Railroad Commission (oil and gas)
    • Public Utility Commission (phone and power bills)
  • Areas of Business Promotion:
    • Highways
    • Tourism Parks and Recreation
    • Certification of Trades and Professions
  • Texas Environmental Regulation:
    • Balance between state and federal laws and directives.
    • High pollution levels.
    • Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
  • Issues of the Water Supply Debate:
    • Conflict over control of water (rule of capture).
    • Desire to build lakes and pipelines.
    • Maintenance of quality and quantity of underground water.
  • Treatment of Undocumented Immigrants:
    • In-state college tuition for individuals without lawful immigration status.
    • Influence of business and interest groups seeking immigrant labor.
    • HB11: Increased penalties for human smuggling and trafficking.

Chapter 13: The Criminal Justice System

  • Texas Criminal Justice System:
    • System for prosecuting, defending, sentencing, and punishing offenders.
  • Texas Penal Code:
    • Body of Texas law covering crimes, penalties, and correctional measures.
  • Texan “Tough on Crime” Stance:
    • Results from political culture, leading to lengthy imprisonment.
    • Expensive: Texas has one of the highest incarceration rates in the nation.
  • Texas Death Penalty:
    • Allows the death penalty via lethal injection.
    • Executed more capital felons than any other state in the past 3 decades.
    • No death penalty moratorium (pause).
    • Used to deter crimes.
  • Promotion of Positive Behavioral Changes:
    • Reformation through discipline and education.
    • Combat recidivism (prevent repeat offenses).
    • Prisoners are given jobs; some take academic classes.
  • Barriers to Reintegration:
    • Lifetime impediments to employment, housing, and student loans.
  • State Operations of Prisons and Jails:
    • Texas Department of Criminal Justice operates state prisons and jails.
    • Counties and cities operate local jails.
  • Correction and Rehabilitation:
    • Correction: Confinement in prison or jail to punish offenders and deter others.
    • Isolation from society to protect citizens.
    • Rehabilitation: Lawbreakers contemplate their actions, obey laws upon release, find employment, and contribute to society.
  • Exoneration:
    • Exoneration: State officially declares someone innocent after conviction.
    • Effects: Compensation and release under the 14th Amendment for wrongful incarceration.
  • 21st Century Issues of Reform:
    • Overcrowding
    • Mental illness
    • Electronic and scientific technology
    • Changing demographics
    • Misconduct by District Attorneys (DAs)