Have U.S Senators always been elected by the people? Explain.
No, before 1913, Senators were determined by the legislature
Who are the leadership positions of the U.S. House & Senate and how are they chosen?
The House has a Speaker of the House, elected by the House representatives. The Vice President resides over over the Senate, elected by the whole nation in the Presidential election.
How many members are there in the U.S. House of Reps and U.S. Senate?
435 members in the U.S. House, and 100 in the U.S. Senate
Who defines or determines each state's Congressional (U.S. House) districts and the Texas Legislature (House & Senate districts)? Why?
The Texas Legislature determines the districts for the Congressional and Texas Legislature because of the Texas constitution. It's also because they need to make sure it's as equal as possible according to the census taken every 10 years.
Who are the leadership officers of the Texas House & Texas Senate and how are they chosen?
Speaker of the House- Elected by House members during organizational period.
Lt. Governor- presiding officer of Senate. Elected state-wide.
What are the powers of the leadership officers in the Texas House & Senate?
They name committees, appoint the heads of committees, and recognize committee members.
What are the qualifications of a member of the Texas House/Senate?
House:
21 years old
Resident of state for 2 years
Senate:
26 years old
Resident in state for 5 years
How many members are in the Texas House/Senate
House- 150
Senate- 31
Total: 181
What are and describe the legislative process, the stages of a bill in legislative process?
If it begins in the House, there's the intro where the first reading of the bill is and then the committees meet. When the committees meet, they decide they either like it or don't like it. If they like it, it goes to the Calendar Committee which decides
Identify ways in which a bill may not survive the Texas Legislative process (at least 4).
It could be pigeon-holed in committees or the calendar's committee.
It could be voted against on the Floor
Time could run out on it getting introduced and presented, so it never sees the light of day for that session.
It could stay on the Senate calendar
How many times must a bill be read in each legislative body?
3 times
Texas Legislature makes law for the state. The Constitution gives the legislature certain special duties, what are they?
1) Balanced Budget
2) Redistricting (every 10 years)
When does the Texas Legislature meet and how long?
They meet every odd year, starting on the 2nd Tuesday in January. They meet for 140 days.
In the U.S. and Texas Senate, use is made of the Filibuster. What is this?
A tactical tool: the senator may hold the floor for an unlimited amount of time and thus can try to kill a bill by refusing to allow a vote on it. This is the talking to death of a bill and stopping everything on both sides.
Identify actions of the Governor that could be taken by him/her in reference to a bill receive from the Texas Legislature.
1) Veto it
2) Sign it
3) He can do the "line item veto"
4) If he doesn't do anything within 10 days while they're still in session, it automatically passes
5) Pocket Veto- if session is adjourned, he can kill the bill
(you probably don't need to know pock
What is the term of office for a State Senator, State Representative, U.S. Senator, and U.S. House member?
State Sen: 4 years but re-elections held every 2 years
State Reps: 2 years
U.S. Sen: 6 years (approx. 1/3 elected very 2 years)
U.S. House Rep: 2 years
What is the salary of both members of the Texas Legislature (House & Senate)?
$600 a month ($7,200 a year) and then $175 per day (per diem) when in session.
Identify calendars used by Texas House.
General State Calendar
Resolutions and Memorials
Consent
What is the only calendar used by the Texas Senate?
Calendar of Intent (Senate Calendar of Business)
Identify some powers used by the presiding officers.
They name committees, appoint the heads of committees, and recognize committee members.
Line Item Veto
for bills that appropriate money, it allows the governor to select one or more lines of appropriations, and veto them while signing the rest of the bill into law.
Bicameral
A legislature consisting of two parts, or houses
Special Session
Governor is the only one who can call a special session if there's something that needs to be done in between the time of the sessions. It can only last up to 30 days.
Quorum
minimum of 2/3 of the members present.
Redistricting
The redrawing of congressional and other legislative district lines following the census, to accommodate population shifts and keep districts as equal as possible in population.
engrossed bill
A bill that has been given final approval on third reading in the chamber of the legislature it originated in and is then sent to the other side
How many committees in the State House and Senate?
House: 42
Senate: 16
interim
time in between the ending of the session and the beginning of the next