Chapter 8 Flashcards
What two individuals are the presiding officers of the state legislature?
The lieutenant governor and the speaker of the house
What are the procedural powers of the presiding officers of the legislature?
Directly related to the legislative process
What is not a power of the presiding officers of the legislature?
Interpreting laws and giving advisory opinions
Members serving on which state board are not appointed by the presiding officers?
The Legislative Advisory Council and Local Governments
Legislative power is concentrated in the offices of which two state officials?
The lieutenant governor and the speaker of the house
What does the House Calendars Committee control?
The number of votes recorded on each legislative day
Which legislative committee strongly influences the expenditure of funds for all divisions of state government>
The Appropriations Committee
Who appoints the chairs and vice chairs of the House subcommittees?
Speaker
Which committees do much of the legislative work in both chambers of the Texas legislature?
Standing
Which is one of the most powerful committees in the Senate?
Finance
Which is one of the most powerful committees in the House of Representatives?
Appropriations
How are committee chairs in each legislative chamber selected?
The presiding officers make the appointments
What is not a reason why committees are often called “little legislatures”?
A bill can be enacted into law by a committee in case of emergency
What are standing committees also known as?
Little legislatures
When a committee refuses to release a bill, this is referred to as?
Pigeonhole
What is the legislative process for rescuing a pigeonholed bill from a committee called?
A discharge petition
When does occur?
In the Senate
What is an incorrect statement about legislative tagging?
Tagging can last up to 24 hours
Which branch of government has a “watchdog” function over state agencies?
Legislature
What is a system of officials and their employees administering government policies and programs
Bureaucracy
How many calendars does the Senate have for bills?
One
How much a vote is required for a suspension of the rule to consider a bill out of sequence on the senate calendar?
2/3 of the entire senate membership
What is a blocking bill?
A bill placed early on the Senate calendar each session
What is Senate Bill 14 address the issue of?
Voter ID
Floor action
The entire senate or house acting as a whole to debate, amend, vote on, enact, pass, or defeat proposed legislation
Quorum
A determined minority opposed to a scheduled action, have used quorum-busting tactics by deliberately absenting themselves to deny their chamber
How many senators must be present in order to conduct legislative business>
21
What is the 1979 incident that occurred in the Senate to halt actions known as?
“Killer Bee” incident
What does the final passage of a bill require?
A simple majority in both houses
How many times does the state constitution require that each bill be read?
Three times in each chamber
Floor leaders
Legislators who negotiate, bargain, and compromise because they are in the center of political communication
What is a point of order on the house floor?
Its a formal question concerning the legitimacy of a legislative process
Chubbing
The process in which members pepper bill sponsors with questions on seemingly innocuous bills in order to delay the legislative process
What was required of a state constitutional amendment passed in November 2007?
Recorded
Voice vote
Vote cast by lawmaker but that is not recorded in the official record
What does a senator need to do in order to vote “yes” on a legislative member?
Hold up a single finger
What is a incorrect statement about filibustering?
Filibustering can be done in both chambers
Which method can be used only in the Senate to delay and maybe kill a legislative measure?
Filibuster
Cloture
A parliamentary move to stop legislative debate and force a floor vote
Conference committee
An ad-hoc committee that meets to resolve differences between senate and house versions of the same legislation
What are all conference committees composed of?
Five member from each chamber
How does a bill become a law?
Introduction to the senate calendar, assigned to committee, committee action, senate calendar
What does the presiding officer of the Senate not have the authority to do?
Provide a proxy vote in order to have a quorum
What cannot occur if the Texas Senate forms itself into a committee of the whole?
All Senate rules are void
What does a subcommittee in the house or senate has legislative power to do?
Amend a bill, rewrite a bill, and pigeonhole a bill
How long can a bill on the House floor be debated by each member for?
10 min
What des not happen when a conference committee’s report foes cack to each chamber?
Amending a bill
What happens if the legislature is in session and the governor refuses to sign a bill?
It becomes a law in 10 days
The governor may strike out a line item on which type of bill?
Appropriations
How can a governor’s to be overridden if the legislature is still in session?
2/3 of both houses
Which body is responsible for proposing the legislature’s version of the proposed biennial budget?
The Legislative Budget Board
What is not a function of the Legislative Council?
Propose the legislature’s version of the proposed biennial budget
What is not a legislative commission or board?
The Railroad Commission
What is a restraint on the powers of the presiding officers?
Personality, lobbyists, and governor
