The Texas Legislature Chapter 23 American Government 9th Edition to accompany Comprehensive, Alternate, Texas, and Essentials Editions O’Connor and Sabato Pearson Education, Inc. © 2008

The Texas Legislature Serves the following functions: To represent the people in government To legislate To budget and tax To perform constituent casework To consider constitutional amendments for the Texas and U.S. constitutions To confirm the governor’s appointees To redistrict itself and the U.S. congressional districts in Congress To impeach and remove from office corrupt officials

The Origins of the Legislative Branch Predecessors were: Mexican legislatures A series of elected conventions Congress of the Republic of Texas Bicameral Congress Convened in 1836 with 30 representatives and 14 senators Senators served three-year terms; House members elected for one-year terms Nine Congresses for the Republic of Texas, one year each in length Anglos dominated legislature Dissolved in 1846 Legislature of State of Texas convened in 1846

The State Constitution and the Legislative Branch of Government Today the bicameral Texas legislature consists of a Senate of 31 members and a House of 150 members. Senate ranks 40th in size among the states House ranks 8th in size among the states 1876 Texas Constitution set the size of the Senate but allowed the House to grow to max of 150 in 1921 Both must pass a bill for it to become a law. Differing duties as well

Constitutional Provisions Affecting Legislators Length of Terms Representatives elected for two-year terms Senators for four-year terms Senate elections are staggered: 15 seats up and then 16 seats two years later After redistricting, all senators must run, draw lots to see who serves a two-year term versus a four-year term Temporary Acting Legislators Appointed if a representative or senator goes into military service Compensation Among the lowest paid in the nation Last raise was in 1974 Ethics Commission in 1991 raised per diems

Sessions of the Legislature Biennial legislature Meets in regular session every two years Were common in the 19th and 20th century Concept of the citizen legislature Regular session The biennial 140-day session of the Texas legislature, beginning in January of odd-numbered years Special (called) session A legislative session of up to 30 days, called by the governor, during an interim between regular sessions

Legislative Membership: Representing the Public Variables that affect members’ elections include Their districts and any redistricting that occurs No term limits

Redistricting Single-member district An election system for legislative bodies in which each legislator runs from and represents a single district, rather than the entire geographic area encompassed by the government Controversies in Texas over redistricting 2001 legislature and governor could not reach an accommodation Legislative Redistricting Board (4 Republicans and 1 Democrat) approved plans that favored Republicans Lawsuits resulted but plan was approved with modifications In 2004 the U.S. Supreme court upheld Pennsylvania redistricting plans but suggested that partisan issues in redistricting could be so extreme as to render plans unconstitutional. Sent the Texas plan to the lower courts for reconsideration given their 2004 decision Upheld and sent back to the Court Most of the plan was approved.

Reelection Rates and Turnover Membership Early on, few legislators sought a second term. Now most incumbents seek reelection and most are successful. Nationally, state legislative turnover is about 21% in House and 17 percent in the Senate. Texas rate is lower on average although it varies by election year Election after redistricting most volatile

Personal and Political Characteristics of Members Occupation Many lawyers, businesspeople and professionals, but number of teachers, preachers, public organizers and former legislative aides is increasing. The pay is low and the job is part-time. Education Generally a very educated group Religion Baptists dominated, but by the 1990s Catholics were the largest group, followed by Baptists, Methodists, and Episcopalians.

Personal and Political Characteristics of Members Gender Anglo males have dominated; recently women and minority members have increased in number. (2005= 22.5% women) Race 2007 – More racial diversity found among Democratic members of Texas House and Senate Age Most Texas legislators are in their forties or fifties in age. House members tend to be younger relative to Senate members.

Personal and Political Characteristics of Members Political Party Historically, Democrats have won far more seats in the Texas legislature than have Republicans. Republicans have grown in power.They won majority in Texas Senate in 1996, 1998, 2000 and 2002. They won a majority in the House in 2002 and 2004. In 2005, Democrats controlled 24 state senate seats, Republicans controlled 24. One equally divided Ideology Democrats tend to be liberals and populists; Republicans tend to be libertarians and conservatives.

Ideological Voting Patterns in the Texas House of Representatives

How the Texas Legislature is Organized Leaders President of the Texas Senate Pro-Tempore Speaker of the Texas House Committees Legislative Party Caucuses An organization of legislators who are all of the same party, and which is formally allied with a political party

Leadership and Opposition in the House Texas Constitution requires that members of the House choose a leader (called the Speaker). 20th-century norm is for the Speaker to serve two terms 1973 Dirty Thirty Reforms Speaker voting is open and public. Some fear of retaliation 2003 First Republican speaker in more than 130 years

The Speaker’s Race The campaign to determine who shall be the speaker of the Texas House for a given biennium Vast amounts of money raised Much of this money used to to help elect legislators who will be pledged to the speaker candidate Pledge cards Delay scandal in 2003 Sharpstown scandal Speaker has a team The leadership team in the House, consisting of the speaker and his/her most trusted allies among the members, most of whom the speaker appoints to chair House committees Speaker’s lieutenants and team

House Leadership and the Political Parties Until 2003, Republicans controlled the House during only one session, in1870. Personal and factional groupings have dominated the selection process, with the conservative Democratic faction normally winning.

The Speaker’s Influence Over Committees Speakers have the ability to stack important committees with legislators from the faction that controls the House. Reforms in the 1970s

House Opposition and Political Parties Opposition to the Speaker and the Speaker’s team was traditionally NOT organized along party lines. This is changing now But coalitional approach still used Ex: Craddick in 2003

Organizing in the House Through Nonparty Caucuses Nonparty legislative caucus An organization of legislators that is based on some attribute other than party affiliation House Study Group House Research Organization Texas Conservative Coalition Texas Conservative Coalition Research Institute Legislative Study Group

Leadership and Opposition in the Senate Role of the Lieutenant Governor Political stepping stone One of the most powerful lieutenant governors in the United States Coalition Building in the Senate Small body, with weak political parties Leadership and opposition are typically organized on an ad hoc basis Heavily influenced by personal relationships Conservative faction dominated

Leadership and Opposition in the Senate Senate Two-Thirds Rule The rule in the Texas Senate requiring that every bill win a vote of two-thirds of the senators present to suspend the Senate’s regular order of business, so that the bill may be considered Tends to protect the opposition Makes leadership-opposition blocs more fluid in the Senate Greater protection of minority rights than in the Texas House

The Law-Making and Budgeting Function of the Legislature Bill: a proposed law Joint resolution A legislative document that either proposes an amendment to the Texas Constitution or ratifies an amendment to the U.S. Constitution Simple resolution A legislative document proposing an action that affects only the one chamber in which it is being considered, such as a resolution to adopt House rules or to commend a citizen Concurrent resolution A legislative document intended to express the will of both chambers of the legislature, even though it does not possess the authority of law

How a Bill Becomes a Law Bill must be read on three separate days in each chamber Must pass both chambers in the exact form Legislator files a bill or resolution and clerk assigns it a number No requirement that a bill be introduced in both chambers Bill then goes to committee Committee holds hearings, most of them public hearings Open to all and votes must be taken in open meetings If it goes to subcommittee, the subcommittee chair decides to have a public hearing or a formal meeting. At this point the House and Senate diverge in the legislative process.

How a Bill Becomes a Law House Senate House Calendars Committee 1993 Reforms Senate Intent Calendar Notice of Intent Bottleneck Bill Killer Bees 2/3s Rule

The Bill Reaches the Floor Quorum The minimum number required to conduct business First Reading Texas Constitution requires three readings of a bill by the legislature; first reading is when the bill is introduced, its caption is read aloud, and it is referred to committee Second Reading Occurs when debate and consideration of amendments occur before the whole chamber Third Reading The final reading in a chamber unless the bill returns from the other chamber with amendments Filibuster is a formal way of halting action on a bill by means of long speeches or unlimited debate in the Senate.

The Bill Reaches the Floor An amendment must be germane to the bill (related to the topic), but this is a matter of interpretation by the speaker of the House or Senate president. In the chamber in which the bill originated, when the final vote on a bill on third reading is favorable, the bill is considered engrossed. An engrossed bill is then sent to the other chamber by a staff messenger. It then goes through the referral and committee process and may or may not make it to the floor of the second chamber.

Two Bills into One: The Final Stages Many bills are amended in the second chamber, so an additional step is needed to get both bills into one form. The original chamber could simply vote to concur with the amendments placed on the bill or, It may vote to NOT concur and request a conference committee to adjust the differences If approved, it is an enrolled bill and goes to the governor He may sign it, ignore it (and it goes into effect anyway) or veto it

The Budgeting Process Biennial legislative sessions necessitate biennial budgets 1931 the Texas legislature designated the governor as the state’s chief budget officer, but the same law gave the State Board of Control responsibility for preparing the budget 1951 the budget function went to the governor’s office and stayed there Legislative Budget Board was also created Both prepare budgets for the legislature to consider.

The Budgeting Process Balanced budget required by the Texas constitution Deficit spending: government spending in the current budget cycle that exceeds government revenue. Debt: the total outstanding amount the government owes as a result of borrowing in the past Budget execution authority: The authority to move money from one program to another program or from one agency to another agency.

How Legislators Make Decisions Growth of legislative staff Efforts to increase information Technical assistance/staffing Specialized information Legislative Council A joint legislative committee that provides legal advice, bill drafting, copyediting and printing, policy research, and program evaluation services for members of the legislature Legislative Budget Board Joint legislative committee that prepares the state budget and conducts evaluations of agencies’ programs Political assistance Lobbyists Ethics of Lobbying

The Legislator and the Governor Strong players in the legislative process Have things that legislators want: Emergency declaration for their bills Adding their bills to a call for a special session Signing their bills Special Sessions Party loyalty Veto power