Topic 7 - Legislatures as Lawmaking Institutions Flashcards
3 legislative roles
Delegate: Mirror preferences of constituents
Trustee: Use own judgment to make policy choices
Politico: Balance both roles
Legislative as lawmaking institutions jobs
Making staturory laws
Budgetary power
Amending state constitutions
What is legislative culture
Development of rules, patterns of behavior & organizational structures within legislature
What enables legislative culture
Stability of membership
Increase in staff, salaries, extended internal operations
Increased complexity of rules & procedures
Can a legislature know everything?
NO, they rely on the expertise of others
example: lobbyist, other legislatures
What makes a legislature powerful?
The amount of votes they cary and the influence they carry with that
What can supermajorities bring?
They can completly cut off a party because they just win so hard
WHY IS LEGISLATURE SO GOOD AT KILLING BILLS?
- Legislator(s) must sponsor & introduce bill
- All bills are assigned to committee, but…many “pigeonholed” & never deliberated
- Bills voted out of committee are assigned to a
“calendar” based on content & priority - Bills that get votes may not pass!
- Pass one chamber? Same process; other
chamber! - Bills passed by BOTH chambers MUST be exactly alike
What makes a bad bill?
- Harmful to constituents
- Waste resources
- Ideologically “wrong”
What do legislatures as a lawmaking instituion do?
Pass laws (20% get passed)
Next best thing: Consider legislation
4 things to help a bill survive?
- Give it a low number (1-20 are emergency bills)
- Easy committee - assigned by LT gov
- Companion bill - multiple bills that mean the same thing to different chamber (house of reps and senate)
- Good calendar spot - to make sure it gets read
3 things to kill a bill?
- Assign a bill to an “impossible” committee
- Assign to a “do nothing” spot on the calendar
- Procedural techniques to limit/influence floor debate
TX house of Representatives stats:
Amount of members
Age limit/minimum
Term limit and term amount
150 Members
Min. 21 years of age
No term limits
2-year terms
extras:
* Citizen of TX 2 years prior to
election
* Resident of district for 1 year prior
to election
* Elected on even-numbered years
TX Senate:
Amount of members
Age limit/minimum
Term limit and term amount
31 Members
Min. 26 years of age
4-year terms
½ elected every 2 even-numbered years
No term limits
Extra:
* Citizen of TX 5 years prior to
election
* Resident of the district 1
year prior to election
* Exception: 1st legislature
following redistricting
What is a bill reading? How many does a bill get?
When are they?
A “reading” is a recital of the bill’s caption and it is NOT a careful consideration of bill’s content.
A bill gets 3 readings
- Bill’s committee assignment
- Copies of entire bill are placed at each desk
- Final vote
