1. Structure of MS Government
Chapter 6

2. Structure of MS Government
Three Branches
Legislative – makes/passes the laws
Bicameral – 2 houses
House of Representatives
Senate
Executive – enforces the laws
By signing the bill or by veto (rejecting it)
Governor and Lieutenant Governor
Judicial – determines if the law is constitutional and the laws meaning
Ex: Supreme Court

3. Structure of MS Government
Checks and Balances – a system to ensure that one branch does not have more power than another
No one can serve in more than one branch at the same time

4. Legislature

5. Legislature House of Representatives 122 members based on districts
Requirements
21 years old
Registered voter
Live in MS for 4 yrs. and their district for 2 yrs.
Speaker of the House
Is the leader
The most powerful person in the house
Duties
Appoint committee members
Refer bills to a committee

8. Legislature Senate 52 members Requirements 25 years old
Registered Voter
Live in MS for 4 yrs. in their district for 2 yrs.
Lieutenant governor
Leader of the Senate
Duties are the same as the speaker of the House except they only vote if there is a tie

11. Legislative Both Houses Elected to 4 year terms No term limits
Serve January to May

12. Executive Members of this branch work full time Governor Requirements
30 years old
US citizen for 20 years
Resident of MS for 5 years
Can serve up to 2, 4 year terms
Can influence a bill in the following ways
Work with members of Congress
Accept or reject it (by signing or by veto)

14. Executive Lieutenant Governor Same qualifications as the Governor
Has no term limits
Main job it to be over the Senate
If the governor dies he/she becomes governor

15. Executive Secretary of State State Treasurer State Auditor
Keeps the state’s records (ex: elections)
Manages the 16th section land
16th section is set aside for public schools
4 year terms
State Treasurer
Manages the states money
4 year term
State Auditor
Checks the financial accounts of state agencies
State Attorney General
Lawyer for the state

16. Judicial Contains the court system
Jurisdiction – an area that a court serves
There are two types of cases
Civil – suing, divorces, adoptions, and other family matters
Criminal – murder, robbery, and other crimes
There are two types of courts in MS
Circuit court – criminal cases with a judge and jury
Chancery court – civil court with a single judge making the decisions
To be a judge in the chancery and circuit courts: 26
Practicing lawyer

17. Judicial Court of Appeals MS Supreme Court
Created to relieve the burden of the MS Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of MS sends cases for them to hear
Their decision is final
They do not determine guilt or innocence
MS Supreme Court
The highest court in MS
Has nine justices that serve 8 year terms
Does not determine innocence or guilt

18. Judicial
Performance Commission – judges can be impeached and removed from office with 3/5 vote from Congress
Impeached – charged with a crime
MS Judicial Performance Commission – disciplines judges for bad conduct not serious enough for impeachment
All state judges are elected

19. Federal Courts in MS Federal courts in MS only deal with US law
Northern District
Southern District
All Federal Judges are appointed for life

20. US Senate
Every state elects 2 senators
Serve 6 year terms (no limits)

21. US House of Representatives
Each state elects a specific number based on their population
MS has 4
Census – population count taken every 10 years
Serve 2 year terms with no limits