CHAPTER 6
Multiple Choice
1. Which of the following statements is not true about the Texas Legislature?
a. It has 181 members.
b. It meets in regular session once every two years.
c. It can be called into special session by the governor.
d. Its Senate chamber has 150 members.
2. To serve in the House of Texas Legislature, a person must
a. reside in Texas one year prior to election.
b. reside in the district two years prior to election.
c. be at least twenty-six years of age.
d. be at least twenty-one years of age.
3. Which of the following statements is not true?
a. In 2009, the House of Representatives contained seventy-six Republicans and seventy-four Democrats.
b. In 2009, there was an increase of one Democrat over the previous session.
c. In 2009, the Senate numbered nineteen Republicans and twelve Democrats.
d. The Republican Party is in control of the Senate and the Democratic Party is in control of the House of Texas Legislature.
4. The eighty-first legislature that convened in January of 2009,
a. had more African Americans than Hispanics in the House.
b. had more African Americans than Hispanics in the Senate.
c. had more African Americans than Hispanics in both chambers of the legislature.
d. had six Hispanics and two African Americans in the Senate.
5. Over the past several decades, the Texas Legislature has slowly begun to more closely approximate the state’s
a. gender.
b. religion.
c. age.
d. ethnic mosaic.
6. Which court case ruled against “one senator per county” in Texas?
a. Reynolds v. Sims
b. Wesberry v. Sanders
c. Kilgarlin v. Martin
d. Baker v. Carr
7. Which statement is not true about redistricting?
a. Senate districts had always been single-member districts.
b. The House, in response to court pressures to redistrict, had created several multi-member districts in the largest urban counties.
c. Multi-member districts seemed to adhere to the letter of the “one person, one vote” pronouncement.
d. Multi-member districts began to disappear in the early 1990s.
8. Gerrymandering is the
a. drawing districts so as to either help or hurt a person’s or a party’s chances of winning an election.
b. privilege of the unlimited debate on the Senate floor.
c. process of delaying the passage of a bill in a Senate committee.
d. process of delaying the passage of a bill on the floor of the House.
9. All are members of the Legislative Redistricting Board except:
a. Attorney General
b. Governor
c. Lieutenant Governor
d. Comptroller Public Accounts
10. The most controversial issue before the Legislature in 2003 was
a. the proposed redistricting of the state’s delegation to the U.S. Congress.
b. the proposed redistricting of the state’s House districts.
c. the proposed redistricting of the state’s Senate districts.
d. the proposed redistricting of the state’s Board of Education districts.
11. The presiding officer in the Texas Senate is the
a. Speaker of the House.
b. Lieutenant Governor.
c. Majority Leader.
d. Comptroller of Public Accounts.
12. All of these are the powers of the lieutenant governor except:
a. He may recognize individual members who wish to speak from the floor of the Senate.
b. He appoints the members of all Senate committees.
c. He appoints chairs and vice-chairs of all Senate committees.
d. He appoints members of the Legislative Redistricting Board.
13. The Texas Constitution states that
a. the president pro tempore of the Senate is to perform the duties of the lieutenant governor in the latter’s absence.
b. the lieutenant governor may not resign his office upon succession to the governor’s office.
c. the Comptroller of Public Accounts will become the new lieutenant governor if the lieutenant governor’s office becomes vacant.
d. the Speaker of the House of Representatives is to perform the duties of the lieutenant governor.
14. To be the presiding officer of the House of Texas Legislature
a. one has to win election in his or her district.
b. one has to win election in his or her district and one among House members themselves.
c. one has to serve in the House for at least 10 years.
d. one must have served as chair of a substantive committee before becoming the presiding officer of the House.
15. Compare to the powers of the Lieutenant Governor in the Senate, the powers of the Speaker of the House is restricted in
a. assigning members to different committees.
b. appointing chairs of different committees.
c. appointing members of the Conference Committee.
d. appointing members of the Appropriations Committee.
16. “The Team” refers to
a. all legislators.
b. the chairs of the House and the Senate when they meet together.
c. lobbyists who are not registered with the Ethics Commission.
d. those legislators who are supporters and allies of the presiding officers.
17. What organizations in the Texas Legislature are referred to as little legislatures?
a. Committees
b. Presiding officers’ personal staffs
c. Procedural committees
d. Interim committees
18. All of the following legislators were the Speaker of the House except:
a. Gib Lewis
b. Pete Laney
c. Tom Craddick
d. David Dewhurst
19. A committee which deals primarily with specific public policy topics is
a. an interim committee.
b. a substantive committee.
c. a procedural committee.
d. a conference committee.
20. The House Calendars Committee is an example of
a. a procedural committee.
b. a substantive committee.
c. a conference committee.
d. a subcommittee.
21. The Texas Constitution stipulates that revenue bills must originate in
a. the Senate.
b. the House.
c. an interim committee.
d. a subcommittee.
22. All of these activities take place when a bill gets to a committee except:
a. the chair decides the order in which bill are considered.
b. only lobbyists may appear at committee hearing to offer testimony on pending bills.
c. after public hearing is concluded, the committee holds a “mark-up” session.
d. committee members may pigeonhole a bill.
23. Bills that require the state to spend money must be
a. certified by the Comptroller of Public Accounts.
b. approved by the Finance Committee in the House.
c. approved by the Appropriations Committee in the Senate.
d. approved by the Texas Secretary of State.
24. Which statement is not true about the House of Representatives?
a. The House more rigorously regulates debate on bills.
b. Calendar orders in the House are followed faithfully.
c. When a bill hits the House floor, it is read a second time and then debate begins.
d. House members may speak more than an hour on each bill.
25. All of these provide support service to members of the Legislature except:
a. Texas Legislative Council
b. the Legislative Reference Library
c. The Legislative Budget Board
d. Texas Judicial Council
True/False
- The Texas Legislature is the law enforcing branch of state government. \
- Members of the Texas Legislature receive a salary of $600 per month as well as a per diem.
- The Legislative Redistricting Board is charged with redrawing district lines when the legislature fails to do so.
- In 2001, the Texas Legislature succeeded to create a redistricting map for Congressional districts in its regular session.
- No one held the office of lieutenant governor of Texas longer than Bill Hobby, who presided over the senate from 1973 to 1991.
- The Speaker of the House is a member of the Legislative Budget Board and the Texas Legislative Council, on both of which he serves as chair.
- The Legislature has to create temporary committees to deal with special situations.
- The chair of each committee exerts enormous influence over the actions of that body.
- The Calendars Committee basically serves as the Senate’s gatekeeper by deciding what bills will make it to the floor.
- A senator who filibusters a bill may not be interrupted as long as he stands at his desk and as long as his remarks pertain to the bill.
Essay Questions
- What are the differences between the House and Senate of the Texas Legislature?
- What was the most controversial issue before the Texas Legislature in 2003 and how was the issue was eventually resolved?
- Compare and contrast the powers of the presiding officers of the House and Senate? ‘
- Discuss the role of outside forces in the legislative process.
- Discuss the role of the governor in the legislative process.
State & Local Govt Chapter 6 Page 1 of 5