Gov exam

Question 1

What happens to a bill at the end of the regular sessions if it has NOT been passed or denied?

Answer 1

It dies

Question 2

What are special sessions

Answer 2

Special Sessions are LEGISLATIVE sessions that the governor can call for after the regular session is over. They can call for as many as they want and the governor dictates the content of the session.

Question 3

T or F: Texas legislatures are elected in single-member districts and districts are redrawn every 10 years

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Who is given the position of president of the senate

Answer 4

The lieutenant governor is given this position by the texas constitution. the lt gov is elected via a statewide election

Question 5

T or F: The texas house has always has single member districts

Answer 5

FALSE. up until a supreme count decision in 1972, house reps were elected in multi-member districts

Question 6

T or F: the texas legislative branch is the least weak of the 3 branches

Answer 6

true

Question 7

how many senators are in the texas senate

Answer 7

31

Question 8

how many representatives are in the texas house of representatives

Answer 8

150

Question 9

Proposed two chambers for legislative branch: one with the number of representatives based on state population and the other with fixed number of senators per state.

Different for Texas legislature: senate represents larger districts and more broad concerns for state (have longer terms than house of rep reps). Representatives in the house have shorter terms and represent smaller districts. they are more in tune with the ever changing needs of the people

Answer 9

Connecticut Compromise

Question 10

How often does the texas legislature hold its regular session

Answer 10

for 140 days every other year

Question 11

how long are the terms for the legislative positions

Answer 11

• house of representatives: elections every 2 years, all seats up for grabs
• senate: elections every 2 years, only HALF of members are up for re-election (which half is actually up is rotated), each term is 4 years long = staggering

Question 12

Requirements to run for the texas house of reps

Answer 12

• must be at least 21
• legal texas resident for past 2 years
• resident of district for 1 year
• US citizen

Question 13

Requirements to run for the texas senate

Answer 13

• must be 26
• legal resident of state for past 5 years
• resident of district for 1 year
• US citizen

Question 14

Private interest group

Answer 14

groups that seek to influence public policy for the specific and often exclusive benefit of their members or people with similar interests

Question 15

public interest group

Answer 15

group that seeks to influence PUBLIC policy for the benefit of the general population

Question 16

in-house lobbyist

Answer 16

employed directly by the interest groups themselves (ex: VP of legislative affairs)

Question 17

contract lobbyist

Answer 17

independent professionals who are hired to represent an interest group for a fixed period of time - often represent multiple interest groups at the same time

Question 18

public advocacy firm lobbyist

Answer 18

hybrid of in-house and contract lobbyist- work for law firms or public advocacy firms that businesses and interest groups can hire

Question 19

political actions committee (PAC)

Answer 19

an entity other than a political party that raises and sends money to elect or defeat candidates. PACs are regulated under BOTH federal and state law

Question 20

interest group scorecards

Answer 20

interest groups create scorecards ranking how well candidates align with their interests