Chapter 7 The Legislature
Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. learning objectives LO 7.1 Describe the limits on the Texas legislature and evaluate the concept of the “citizen legislature.” LO 7.2 Analyze the selection of Texas legislators, their qualifications, elections, and the impact of redistricting. LO 7.3 Analyze the organization of the Texas legislature including the powers of the presiding officers and the committee structure. LO 7.4 Analyze the legislative process and how a bill becomes a law. LO 7.5 Describe the legislature’s institutional tools of leadership. LO 7.6 Apply what you have learned about the Texas legislature. Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
the limit legislature The Legislative Session Term limits Senators: 4-year terms Representatives: 2-year terms Biennial session in odd-numbered years Special session Term limits Legally mandated restrictions on the number of times that a politician can be reelected to an office or the number of years that a person may hold a particular office. Special session: A 30-day session of the legislature that can only be called by the governor, which takes place after a regular session to complete work or to consider the agenda set by the governor. What is the downside to biennial legislative sessions? Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
the limited legislature The Legislative Session (cont.) Factors leading to diminishing legislative effectiveness: Low salaries Short sessions Heavy workloads Inadequate staff and clerical assistance Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
the limited legislature Legislative Salaries and Compensation Annual salary of $7,200 and per diems Legislators must obtain their primary income from other sources Retainer fees Consulting fees Per diem The amount paid each day that a legislator is working, both in regular and special sessions, and when committees meet during the interim between sessions. Retainer Fees: Fees charged by lawyer-legislators for services to clients, including those who have business with state agencies or may have lawsuits against state agencies. Consulting Fees: Fees charged by legislators who may contract with business clients to consult on matters pending in the legislature, thereby helping clients to benefit from legislation currently active in the legislature. Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Full-Time and “Citizen” Legislature Figure 7.1 How Does Texas Compare? Limits on Legislative Terms, Salaries and Sessions Note that most large states have full-time legislatures with unlimited annual sessions and yearly salaries over $40,000. In contrast, Texas is among the states that have a “citizen” legislature with limited, biennial sessions and salaries set below $10,000. Many state legislatures have elements of both types. Source: Based on data from The Book of the States, 2013 (Lexington, KY: Council of State Governments, 2014), Tables 3.2 and 3.9. Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
the limited legislature Legislative Staff Legislature provided minimal funds and staffing Representatives: 3 to 4 staff members Senators: 7 to 14 staff members Nonpartisan information services House Research Organization Senate Research Center Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Formal Qualifications ELECTING LEGISLATORS Formal Qualifications Senator U.S. citizen Qualified voter Age 26+ Residency for 5 years; (home district for 1 yr) Representative U.S. citizen Qualified voter Age 21+ Residency for 2 years; (home district for 1 yr) Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. ELECTING LEGISLATORS Informal Qualifications Party affiliation Democrats dominant until 1990s Republicans now dominate both houses Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Partisanship in the Texas House of Representatives, 2003 to the Present Why is it important which party controls the legislature? Figure 7.2 This figure shows the percentage of Republican house members since 2003. Why is it important which party controls the legislature? Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. ELECTING LEGISLATORS Informal Qualifications Campaign funding Demographic identity Some diversity, but Anglo males are over-represented Descriptive representation Women most under-represented group Descriptive representation: The idea that elected bodies should accurately represent not only constituents’ political views but also the ethnic and social characteristics that affect their political perspectives Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. ELECTING LEGISLATORS Informal Qualifications Occupation 60+% business owners, executives or lawyers Education One of best-educated in U.S. First in percentage of lawyers Economic status Descriptive representation: The idea that elected bodies should accurately represent not only constituents’ political views but also the ethnic and social characteristics that affect their political perspectives Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. ELECTING LEGISLATORS Geographic Districting Single-member districts Generally equal in population Average Texas house district = 171,000 Average Texas senate district = 800,000 Reynolds v. Sims One person, one vote Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
ELECTING LEGISLATORS Geographic Districting Gerrymandering Cracking Packing Pairing Alternative to gerrymandering Gerrymandering: The practice of drawing district lines in such a way as to give candidates from a certain party, ethnic group, or faction an advantage. Cracking: A gerrymandering technique in which concentrated political party voters in one geographical area are split into several districts so that their voting power in any one district are negligible. Packing: Gerrymandering technique in which members of a party are concentrated into one district, thereby ensuring that the group will influence only one election rather than several. Pairing: Placing two incumbent officeholders and parts of their political bases in the same elective district through redistricting. Why is there relatively strong support for a redistricting commission in Texas? Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Texas House of Representatives Districts, 84rd Legislature, 2015-16 Figure 7.3 Texas Legislative Council, Plan H309. How likely is it that Democratic members of the house of representatives, or their constituencies, will have an impact on the lawmaking process in Texas during the next several legislative sessions? Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Texas Senate Districts, 84rd Legislature, 2015-16 Figure 7.4 Texas Legislative Council, Plan S172 What districting practices were used to create the senate districts, and how will it affect senate lawmaking ability? Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
U.S. Congressional Districts, 114th Congress, 2015-2016 Figure 7.5 Texas Legislative Council, Plan C235. How will the U.S Supreme Court decision to nullify the provision requiring Texas to have their district lines reviewed impact congressional elections in years to come? Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
legislative organization Powers of the Presiding Officers Lieutenant Governor Presiding officer of Texas Senate Elected in statewide, partisan elections Not officially a senator Member of both legislative and executive branches Succeeds governor if unable to serve Must sign all bills and joint resolutions Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. Lieutenant Governor Lt. Governor Dan Patrick defeated incumbent David Dewhurst in the 2014 Republican primary and was elected to an office with power that rivals or exceeds that of the governor. Source: Bob Daemmrich/Alamy Why do you suppose the Texas senate has written rules that give so much power to its presiding officer? Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
legislative organization Powers of the Presiding Officers Speaker of the House Elected by majority of House members (usually from majority party) Is a representative Controls house procedures Appoints committee chairs Must sign all bills and join resolutions Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
legislative organization The Legislative Committees Standing Subcommittees Joint Ad-hoc Conference Interim Standing committees: Permanent committees that function throughout the legislative session: there are two types: substantive and procedural. Subcommittees: Subdivisions of standing committees that consider specialized areas and categories of proposed legislation. Joint committee: Committee that includes members of both Senators and Representatives. Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
the legislative process The Standing Committees Most of legislative work in both houses House Committee Membership Appointed by speaker, including leadership of procedural committees Senate Committee Membership Appointed by lieutenant governor, although seniority plays a role Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
the legislative process Scheduling House Calendars Committees Scheduling controlled by House Committee on Calendars OR House Committee on Local and Consent Calendars Major/controversial legislation controlled by Speaker and Calendar Committee chair What political factors affect legislators’ decisions to support or oppose legislation? Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
the legislative process Scheduling Senate Calendar System which advances bills automatically Suspension of the rule Blocking bill Two-thirds Rule Floor action Suspension of the rule: The setting aside of the rule of chronologically ordering bills so that other bills can be considered. Blocking bill: The first bill placed on the senate calendar in each session, which is usually a bill that will never be considered by the full senate. Floor action: Refers to action by the entire house or the entire senate to debate, amend and vote on legislation. Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
the legislative process Senate Floor Action Lieutenant governor presides Little debate on bills Filibuster rare Committee of the whole Voting by show of fingers Filibuster: A prolonged debate by a senator to delay passing of a bill. Committee of the whole: The entire 31-member senate acts as a committee. Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
the legislative process House Floor Action Speaker presides Floor leaders lead debate; responsible for passing or defeating bills Point of order Chubbing Electronic voting (recorded votes) Floor leaders: The legislators who are responsible for getting legislation passed or defeated. Point of order: A formal objection that rules of procedure are not being followed on the house floor. Chubbing: Includes debating earlier bills for the maximum allotted time, asking the bill’s sponsor trivial questions, and proposing so many amendments and raising so many points of order that the house does not get around to the bill to which they ultimately object. Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
the legislative process Conference Committees Resolves differences in similar bills Five members from each house appointed May strengthen, weaken or not reach compromise on a bill Conference committee report Compromise version of bill Conference committee report: A compromise between the house and senate versions of a bill reached by a conference committee and then delivered to each house. Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
the legislative process Introduction to the Senate Assignment to a committee House committee action Senate committee action House calendars House floor Senate calendar Conference committee Senate floor Final passage Introduction to the house The governor How a Bill Becomes a Law Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. how a bill becomes a law As a bill works its way through the legislative process, what factors determine whether a bill becomes a law? Figure 7.7 This diagram takes a bill step by step through the legislature from introduction in the Texas House to signing by the governor. Bills may also originate in the Texas Senate. As a bill works its way through the legislative process, what factors determine whether a bill becomes a law? Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Institutional TOOLS OF LEADERSHIP The Legislative Budget Board The Legislative Council The Legislative Audit Committee The Sunset Advisory Commission Legislative Budget Board (LBB) A ten-member board responsible for creating the state’s initial budget and providing planning, analysis, and impact of the budgeting process. Legislative Council Provides research support, information, and bill-drafting assistance to legislators. Legislative Audit Committee Appoints and supervises the state auditor who, with the consent of the senate, heads the State Auditor’s Office. Sunset Advisory Commission Recommends keeping, abolishing, reorganizing, or giving a new scope and authority to an agency. Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
TX Sen Wendy Davis—Abortion Bill—Never Give Up Click picture to view video Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
video discussion questions What is the purpose of a filibuster? How can the threat of a filibuster be an effective tactic for legislators? How would you describe Senator Davis’ constituency? Would you guess she represents an urban or a rural area? Republican or Democrat? Copyright © 2016 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.