Question

1) Should Texas adopt a full-time legislative model instead of a part-time model? Why or why not? Be sure to use information from the readings notes to support your answer.

2)Should Texas remove the governor's line-item veto power and only give him the option of a full veto? Why or why not? Be sure to use information from the readings to support your answer.

3)Does Texas provide too much authority and power to local government? Should some things be more regulated by the state than the local governments? Why or why not? Be sure to use information from the readings to support your answer.

please answer at least 6 sentences each. Thank you guys so much.

Answer 1

1) Texas should consider adopting a full-time legislature because, Firstly, the number of bills that die every session is too many.Many of these bills died due to the time constraint of the legislative session, which is limited to 140 days in every odd number year, as well as thirty-day special sessions called as needed by the governor. Large state population demands more than just a part-time commitment.A part-time legislature made sense when the Texas Legislature first convened , when the population was less than 150,000. The same cannot be said now, as Texas is the second most populous state in the country. It would better facilitate the passage of legislation beneficial to the state.

2)The governor makes policy recommendations that lawmakers in both the state House and Senate chambers may sponsor and introduce as bills. The governor also appoints the Secretary of State, as well as members of boards and commissions who oversee the heads of state agencies and departments

The governor has the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Texas Legislature.The Governor has line-item veto power, enabling the governor to veto individual components (or lines) of a bill. The Governor of Texas’ ine-item veto power applies only to spending measures, only to a bill that “contains several items of appropriation.” When a bill contains several items of appropriation, the Governor “may object to one or more of such items, and approve the other portion of the bill.” Ibid. Thus, the Governor may line-item veto one or more “items of appropriation” without vetoing the entire appropriations bill.The governor must sign or veto legislation within 10 days of transmittal (excluding Sunday), or it becomes law without his/her signature. There is no “pocket veto” for the Governor of Texas.For legislation transmitted with less than 10 days left in the session, the governor has 20 days after adjournment to act, or the legislation becomes law without being signed.This latter provision allows a Governor to veto legislation after the Legislature has adjourned, with no opportunity for the Legislature to override a veto.In practice, a Governor’s vetoes are rarely challenged. So there is no need to remove the governor's line-item veto power.

3) Home Rule, as it sounds, gives local governments governing authority to make a wide range of legislative decisions that have not been addressed by the state.Home Rule charters permit local governments to conservatively pass ordinances as they see fit, provided they abide by the state laws and constitutions.They contend that local government can better serve the people, and yet the states continue to use their authority to bar local policy from becoming law. But Local governments should appreciate the state’s role and develop a relationship with it conducive to good local governance across the state. The states depend on local governments to dispense local services distributed through their budgets for public safety and infrastructure, and rightfully so they commend local governments to focus on what they do best.