Exam 2 Ch 7 Flashcards
Congressional system was designed to be difficult enough to…
prevent new laws that haven’t been properly thought through and debated from bothering everybody
Committee
Group of legislators who consider and write bills in particular issue area.
Veto
Governor’s rejection of legislation passed by the legislature
Override
Legislative chambers vote to challenge gubernatorial veto; requires 2/3 supermajority
Last veto overridden in Texas was 1979
Coalition building
Assembly of alliance groups to pursue common goal or interest
Logrolling
Legislator gives colleague vote on a particular bill in return for that colleague’s vote on another bill
Districts
Geographical areas represented by members of legislature
Filibuster
Debate under U.S. Senate rules can drag on indefinity, blocking final actional on the bill under consideration and preventing other bills from being debated
Riders
Amendments to bill not central to bill’s intent
At the state level, most bills are still passed with…
broad, bipartisan support
Job of Legislatures
Every election cycle, about 40-45% of legislative seats not contested at all by one of the major parties
In 2020 only the New Hampshire house an senate changed hands (least amount of turnover in legislative control in nearly a century)
Three Basic Functions of State Legislatures
Lawmaking - pass laws
Representative - provide means for various groups and individuals to be represented
Constituent Service - offer personalized service to help residents sort out problems with state government.
Oversight
Legislature’s role in making sure governor and executive branch agencies are properly implementing laws
For nearly 1/2 a century, conservative legislators have drawn ideas formulated by a group called…
ALEC/American Legislative Exchange Council
The left have been less successful at this b/c they focus on national level level of politics and Unions have lost power
Every state but __ is bicameral
Nebraska
Generally, state senators serve __ year terms whereas house members serve __ year terms
4,2
At the beginning of a session each house votes in its speaker, who is picked before by a caucus.
What is a caucus?
All members of a party, Democrat or Republican within a legislative chamber
Top leader in senate know as president, president pro tempore, president pro tem, or majority leader
Organization of legislatures
Speaker will preside over daily sessions of house or assembly, refer bills to appropriate committees, and sign legislation as it makes it way over to senate or governor’s desk
Texas Senate, leadership powers invested in office of lieutenant gov
New Hampshire is the state with the __ largest number of state legislators with __ while Nebraska has the __ with __.
largest, 244
smallest, 49
Following the 2020 elections, Republicans controlled __ states while Democrats controlled __.
23
15
Regardless of party control,
committees are where most legislative work gets done
Most prestigious committees are __ committees
budget, set tax and spending levels
Include finance or Appropriations
Legislators balance between trying to serve…
on the committees that give them the most power as well as the committees that impact their constituents the most
Rank-and-file members
Legislators who do not hold leadership positions or senior committee posts
What are the two models of legislators?
Delegates - act for the people
Trustees - act with their own judgement
Appointment
Alloting of districts according to population shifts
Gerrymandering
Districts drawn with biases
Malappointment
When principle of equal representation is violated
Majority-minority district
Minorities make up majority
State Legislators Backgrounds
Most are from business backgrounds
900,000 legislative floor and committee votes, legislators abstained from voting due to conflict of interest only 3 times
State Legislator Demographics
2019, Nevada first legislature with majority women
2020 election, New Mexico house 4th chamber to have female majority
State Legislator Demographics
2019, Nevada first legislature with majority women
2020 election, New Mexico house 4th chamber to have female majority
Black legislators at 675, tripled, but < 10%
6 states more than 20% black legislators
Hispanics 4% compared to total 18%
14 states don’t have a single hispanic legislator
Professionalized legislatures
Process of providing legislators with resources needed to make politics their main career like providing them with staff
What are the 4 states that don’t meet in regular annual sessions?
Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, Texas
it’s very cheap, 0.5% of budget, to run legislature
Legislators and Public Opinion
“Less than a third of all newspapers and less than 15 percent of local
television stations employed any state house reports, with no full-
time state-house reporters from TV stations in 18 states” (213).
* “There are 15 states with term limits, ranging from a low of 6 years
of service per legislative chamber in Michigan to 12 years of service
in states such as Nevada, Oklahoma, and Louisiana”
