-Legislators receive an annual salary of $7,200, plus a $168 per diem allowance when the legislature is in session and a 51-cent per mile allowance.
-Texas has by far the lowest salary scale among the very large American states.
-Low salaries make legislators more susceptible to lobby giveaways and to abusing the reimbursement system. Causes Legislators to spend more time worrying about earning a living.
-The Ethics Commission can convene a citizen advisory board to recommend changes in legislative salary, which must then be approved by the voters, but as of 2009 no such board had been formed.
-Legislators receive an allowance to operate an office, senators up to $37,000 a month for office expenses and members of the House receive $13,250 a month.
-Legislators may participate in a generous retirement system with a minimum of 12 years of service. Based on annual salary of district judge, $140,000 in 2009
Various types of elections can be identified. Each of the following type of election will be discussed in more detail in the following notes. In short, the types of elections in Texas are:
General elections - Elections between candidates representing different parties.
Primary elections - Elections between candidates within the same party.
Local elections - Elections for mayor, city council, county sheriff, etc.
Special elections - Elections held to fill vacancies in government positions between regularly scheduled elections.
Noncandidate elections - Elections for bonds, initiatives, referendums, etc.
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Terms in this set (100)
b. the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of all even-numbered years.
On what day do Texans vote for who will represent them in the U.S. Congress?
b. every two years
how often does Texas hold general elections?
b. all the members of the Texas House and 1/2 the members of the Texas Senate
In 2014, Texas voters elected:
b. party column format
The style of ballot form in which candidates are listed by party and by office is known as the:
d. office block format
The style of ballot form in which candidates are listed by office with party affiliation listed by their name is known as the:
c. the states
Ballot eligibility requirements are set by:
a. 1
In Texas, to run as an independent for statewide office, a candidate must file a petition with a number of signatures equal to ____ percent of the votes case for governor in the past election.
d. semi-closed primary system
Texas has a:
b. semi-closed primary system
The primary system that allows voters to register or change their party registration on election day is known as a:
c. closed primary system
Advocates say the ____ encourages party identification and loyalty.
a. open primary system
Imagine you are a die-hard member of party A, but wanted the less popular candidate from the B to be party A's general election opponent. What type of primary election system would allow you to vote for the less popular candidate in party B during the primaries without changing parties?
d. when no candidate receives a majority of votes
In Texas, when is a runoff primary required?
b. no
Can a Texas voter who votes in the primary election of one party vote in the runoff primary of the other party?
d. $4,000; 45,000 signatures
If you wanted to run for statewide office in Texas you could pay a filing fee of ____ or submit a petition with ____.
c. the secretary of state
Who oversees the administration of elections to ensure that the rules are followed?
d. November
By Texas law, special elections may be held in all of the following months EXCEPT:
a. city council elections
What is the most common special election in Texas?
d. 20
Texas is required to use a bilingual ballot for all elections in counties that contain more than ____% Spanish-speaking residents.
c. absentee voting
What voting practice was developed with the U.S. armed services in mind?
a. the feel bad spot
Which of the following is NOT among the types of short political commercials?
d. focus group
A ___ is a panel of "average citizens" who are used by political consultants to test ideas and words for later use in campaigns.
b. PACs
Most of the money used in political campaigns comes from:
a. ideology
In state elections from 2002 to 2012, which sector contributed the most amount of PAC money to campaigns?
c. Texas State Ethics Commission
Today the regulation of campaign finances in Texas is limited to the requirement that all candidates and PACs file reports with the:
c. 38
The total number of congressmen and senators that represent Texas the federal level is:
a. Party ideology
____ is the basic belief system that guides the party.
a. Reconstruction
When was the first period of one-party Republican politics in Texas?
d. 1960s
One-party Democratic dominance occurred from Reconstruction until the:
c. merchants and landowners
What alliance allowed the Democratic Party to dominate state politics in Texas from the later 19th century until the mid-20th century?
d. Dwight D. Eisenhower
In the 1952 and 1956 presidential elections, many Yellow Dog Democrats broke with tradition and voted for:
a. John Tower
Who was the first Republican elected to statewide office in Texas since the 1870s?
d. Bill Clements
Whose election as governor in 1978 marked the real beginning of two-party politics in Texas?
c. Kay Bailey Hutchison
Texas Republican captured their second seat in the U.S. Senate with the election of ____ in 1992.
b. the need to present a united front to the Republican majority
Why has factional fighting inside the Texas Democratic Party diminished since 2000?
a. Wendy Davis
In 2014, the losing Democratic nominee for governor of Texas was:
c. business value conservatives and social value conservatives
Today in Texas, what are the two main factions in the Republican Party?
b. Republican Party
In Texas, the Tea Party is most closely aligned with the:
d. 69
In 1995, George W. Bush was reelected with ____% of registered voters voting for him.
d. printing election ballots
Labor-intensive politics historically included all of the following EXCEPT:
c. the Internet
The newest element of capital-intensive politics is the use of ___ to communicate directly with likely
b. competitive examination
The Pendleton Act of 1883 established a class of federal government positions that would be filled as a result of:
d. 5.0
To maintain ballot status in Texas, a third party must garner at least ____% of the vote in a statewide election.
a. Libertarian Party
Which third party emphasizes the importance of small government and personal responsibility?
c. conduct of primary elections
The Texas Election Code has its most profound impact on political party activity in what area(s)?
b. mail-in ballots from all precinct chairs
The state party chair is selected by:
b. election of permanent officers
What is the most important function of the precinct convention?
c. 2 weeks
How long after the precinct convention is the county convention held?
b. March
The Texas presidential preference primary is held in what month?
b. local organization
Compared to primary system, the caucus system requires more:
d. James Madison
Who is best known for arguing the "factions" would play an important role in American politics?
c. active on both the sate and national levels
The NRA, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, MADD, the NEA are all examples of groups that are:
b. broad-based citizen support
What is the primary difference between a membership organization and a non-membership organization?
b. Texas State Teachers Association
The largest professional group in Texas is the:
a. very weak
Organized labor in Texas is:
b. South
In which of the following regions of the country are you most likely to find a right-to-work state?
b. public interest
MADD, ACLU, the AARP, and MoveOn.org are all examples of what interest group type?
b. lobbying
Attempts to discuss topics of interest with a member of the legislature in an ambush-style meeting in the public hallways outside a legislative chamber is the original form of what;s still known as:
d. all of these answers are correct
Which of the following is one of the five types of lobbyist?
a. electioneering
Trying to influence the outcome of elections is known as:
d. $126 million
What was the total amount of PAC money spend in Texas in the 2012 election?
c. money
What is the most important tool for interest groups seeking to influence election outcomes?
c. candidate recruitment
The process of electioneering begins with:
b. public relations activities
The goal of ____ is to create a favorable public image for the group.
c. 1907
Texas required registration of interest groups for the first time in:
c. must register as a lobbyist with the TEC
According to Chapter 305 of the current Govenment Code, an individual "who crosses either a compensation or expenditure threshold" while engaged in lobbying efforts.
a. the "free-rider problems"
The situation of individuals receiving the benefits of collection action without contributing is known as:
a. will probably make the more powerful
Having a large number of interest groups representing a particular interest, rather than a small number,
a. organization
As an interest group, what is the Texas Municipal League's strength?
c. the influence of interest groups becomes greater
When the economy of a state grows more diverse.
b. competitive political parties
Which of the following can help offset the power of interest groups?
a. limited sessions
All of the following contribute to legislative professionalism EXCEPT:
d. the "Iron Triangle"
The process of which policy is created through the combined efforts of interest groups, a state agency, and a legislative committee is called:
d. 75%
On average, what percentage of state and local government revenue across the country comes form state and local services?
b. 34%
What percentage of the Texas state budget comes from the federal government?
a. health and human services
About 60% of the money that Texas receives from the federal government is spent on:
c. 100
For fiscal year 2015, the Texas state budget was about $_____ billion.
b. nonexhaustion
Which of the following is a fundamental principle governments use to justify providing services to the public?
b. education
In Texas, citizens can be excluded from all the following from non-payment, EXCEPT for:
c. taxes on citizen
What is the primary source of revenue for state governments?
d. tax capacity
Which of the following is the measure of the wealth of a state or its ability to raise revenues relative to all other states?
a. Texas
Which of the following states had the highest taxable resources per capita in 2011?
c. near the lowest
In comparison of the 15 most populous states, where did Texas rank in the amount of revenue raised per $1,000 of person income?
d. all of these answers are correct
Which of the following is a consumer tax?
d. sales
Which of the following categories of taxes contributed the most to the Texas treasury in 2011-2012?
a. among the "Terrible Ten"
Almost 3/4 of the states that do not have a personal income tax system are:
b. The tax base
____ refers to the items that are subject to taxation.
b. regressive
A sales tax, especially when food and medicine are subject to the tax, can be described as what type of tax?
a. personal income tax
Which of the following taxes CANNOT be shifted?
c. local sales tax and property tax
What are the two primary sources of revenue for local government in Texas?
c. about 1/2
Local governments collect and pay for _____ the cost of government in Texas.
d. city
Which level of government is most heavily dependent on service charges and fees to finance their services?
a. fees, fines, licenses, and penalities
The greatest source of non-tax revenue in Texas comes from:
a. higher local property tax
How are school districts funding their increased share of the cost of local education?
b. population increases
In recent years, most of the growth in state expenditures in Texas has been driven by:
c. declining price of oil
During the 1980s there were 10 special session of the Texas legislature to correct revenue shortfalls. What was the cause of these shortfalls?
a. taxes that change quickly relative to economic conditions
What is meant by income-elastic taxes?
a. the Texas economy improves and Texas state revenues increase
When the price of oil experiences a prolonged price increase:
b. 7
How many states do not have any form of personal income tax?
d. franchise feed
What is the second-largest source of revenue for Texas state government?
d. federal grants
Health and Human Services is funded primarily with:
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