Texas Legislature Outline (Chapter 26)

Texas Legislature Outline 2302 (Chapter 26)

Use Texas Homeowners Insurance as an example throughout the chapter.

Cost

Access

Regulate Insurance Market

Market Forces

Structure

Bicameralism

150 House members in the Texas House

31 Senate members in the Texas Senate

Senate

Confirm or reject the governor’s appointments (2/3 vote)

Removal of governor or elected official (2/3 vote)

House

Initiate legislation to raise taxes

Impeach the governor or elected official

Both

Both must agree before any measure can pass the legislature (majority vote)

Both must vote by a 2/3 margin to pass a constitutional amendment

Both must agree by 2/3 margin to override a veto.

Approach policy issues differently because of Structural differences in the two legislative chambers.

Texas Senate Districts 673,000, heterogeneous district (larger and diverse district), so more moderate. Elected every 4 years. Evaluate policy from a long range perspective.

Texas House Districts 139,000, more homogeneous district so don’t have to be as moderate. Elected every 2 years. Shorter term perspective.

Session Frequency and Length - Texas Constitution Legislature will meet in regular session every other year (2005, 2007). Meet for 140 days.

Texas Constitution empowers the governor to call special sessions of the legislature, which may last for 30 days. (Redistricting legislation) The Texas Legislature has no such power.

Legislative activity in Texas tends to concentrate at certain times such as the deadline for submitting bills and the end of the session, but lawmakers work on legislation throughout the session. Although 80% of the votes for final passage of bills come in the last two weeks of the session, most of the measures passed have been under legislative consideration for months. The Texas House and Senate have adopted rules to prevent a last-minute rush of legislative activity.

Membership -More diverse but not cross section of the state’s population. But members have to run to get elected.

Compensation $600/month $7,200 per year. Not as much as other states but additional monies provided through nonsalary compensation. Generous retirement benefits. Some think too low and only people who are wealthy or have another job will run for office, making the office left reflective of the population. Others say it is important to have a citizen-legislature whose members are relatively immune from outside pressure. More willing to take chances.

Legislative Turnover

Redistricting changes the geography of legislative district.

More often the result of voluntary retirement than election defeat. Some resign to become well-paid lobbyist (Both Democrats and Republicans)

Term Limits

Arguments/For Term Limits p.737/ 738

Organization

Lieutenant Governor and Speaker of the House are the presiding officers and foremost political leaders of the Texas legislature.

Lieutenant Governor

Presides in the Senate, elected statewide for a four- year term. Voted in the same general election year in which the governor is chosen. Unlike the president and vice president of the United States, the governor and the lieutenant governor do not run as a formal ticket.

Elected statewide and not from a distinct district so he can only vote in case of a tie in the Senate.

Vacancy filled by Senate

Speaker of the House

Presides in the House, state representative who is selected by the members of the House to serve as speaker. Voted in general election every two years. Elected from a specific district and therefore can vote on all legislation (but seldom does). After a house representative is elected to House, all the members of the House get together and select the Speaker. (Public rather than secret ballot)

Exercising extraordinary authority in their respective chambers.

Control many of the legislative procedures of the House and the Senate

Assign bills to committee and

Once committees have done their work, they have considerable influence over which bills are scheduled for debate.

Recognize members for debate

Rule on points of order

Interpret rules

LBB Legislative Budget Board –Agency created by the legislature to study state revenues and budgetary needs between legislative sessions and prepare budget and appropriations bills to submit to the legislature.

LRB Legislative Redistricting Board - (Speaker, lieutenant governor, comptroller, land commissioner, and attorney general). Redrawing the boundaries of Texas House and Senate seats when the legislature is unable to agree on a redistricting plan.

Considerable control over committee membership –appoint legislative committee chairs, subcommittee chairs, most committee members, and some subcommittee members.

The Lieutenant Governor and the Speaker seldom act in an arbitrary or dictatorial fashion. Most of their powers have been given to them because of changes in the House and Senate rules, adopted by the majority in each chamber and these powers can just as easily be withdrawn.

Both the Lieutenant Governor and Speaker attempt to keep their members in the legislature happy and try to bestow favors (committee assignments).

Both the Lieutenant Governor and Speaker exercise a collective rather than individual. Leadership team that support the respective leaders and work to organize the full chamber to support the leadership’s position.

Committees

Senate

Finance

State Affairs

Jurisprudence

Business and Commerce

House

Appropriation

State Affairs

Ways and Means committees

Business and Industry

The lieutenant governor and Speaker make most committee assignments. In the House, the Speaker appoints committee chairs, vice chairs, and all of the members of the Appropriations committee and the Calendar Committee. At least half the members to the standing committees.

U.S. Congress -Seniority important. All the committee chairs will be of the majority party. Also select to interim and select committee.

Texas legislature - Seniority is not as important. Committee chairs will be chosen by Lieutenant and Speaker but they may appoint committee chairs that are not of the majority party. ( Rodney Ellis Democrat on a major committee).

Legislative Assistance

Legislative Council – Helps members’ draft bills and assists committees

House Research Organization (HRO) and Senate Research Center ( SRC) research issues, help draft legislation, prepare technical analyses of bills pending in the legislature. Publish daily floor reports explaining and presenting arguments for and against proposed legislation.

Legislative Process

State Senator Mike Jackson of La Porte filed the insurance reform bill that eventually became law in November 2002 two months before the beginning of the regular session of the 78^th Legislature.

After 60 days of the session, members can only introduce local bills or measures declared an emergency by the governor unless they obtain the approval of four/fifths of the members of their chambers.

Once a bill is introduced, the secretary of the Senate or the chief clerk of the House assigns the measure a number, indicating the chamber of origin and order of introduction. For example, HB 45 stands for house bill and SR102 stands for Senate Resolution 102 and SB 33 is Senate Bill 33. Senator Jackson’s insurance reform bill was SB 14.

Committee Action

The lieutenant governor and the Speaker w/chamber parliamentarian assign newly introduced measures to committee. The legislative leadership matches a bill with the committee that specializes in the subject matter it addresses. The lieutenant governor assigned SB 14 to the Senate Business and Commerce Committee. After the measure passed the Senate and went to the House, the Speaker referred it to the House Insurance Committee.

The House State Affairs and the Senate Affairs Committee will receive major pieces of regardless of subject matter.

Public Hearings are conducted.

The Senate Business and Commerce Committee and the House Insurance Committee separately conducted hearings on SB 14 taking testimony from spokespersons for consumer organizations, insurance companies homeowners associations and the TDI (Texas Dept. of Insurance. A total of 72 people testified on SB 72, including 33 from the insurance industry.

After the hearings are complete, the committee meets for mark up, which the process in which legislators go over a piece of legislation line by line, revising, amending, or rewriting it. Major legislation is almost always rewritten in committee, with the final product reflecting a compromise among the various groups and interests involved. Committee members eventually vote whether to recommend the revised measure to the entire House or Senate for passage.

The Senate Business and Commerce committee passed SB 14 by a 6 to 2 vote; the House Insurance Committee approved it 6 to 0. The report included the revised text of the measure, a detailed analysis of the bill, and a fiscal note, which is an analysis of a legislative measure indicating its cost to state government.

Floor Action

From Committee Legislation goes to the Floor.

In House, measures go to the Calendar Committee and placed on the calendar. Legislation is then considered in order of priority but by a 2/3 margin, they can consider a measure outside of the sequence. Done on Monday and early in the session. P.744/745

The Calendars Committee placed SB 14 on the Major State Calendar. This calendar includes measures of statewide effect that do not merit emergency designation.

The House calendar system becomes more important as a legislative session wears on. By the end of the session, measures placed on low-priority calendars risk failure for lack of action.

In the Senate, suspending the rules to consider legislation out of order is standard practice. Although Senate rules require that bills emerging from a committee be placed on a single calendar for consideration in order, the procedure is almost never followed.

Blocking Bill stands in front of all legislation

Need 2/3 of the Senate to vote to consider the legislation. If you do not have the 2/3 the measure will not come up for a vote. You only need a majority to pass it once it gets around the Blocker bill. If you get 11 senators (one-third plus one) you can block the Senate action on a bill they oppose. (Redistricting)

This bill had the popular support of the citizens, the lieutenant governor, and the Speaker of the House so there was no problem of getting the 2/3 of the members to discuss the matter. There was no danger of getting 11 senators (one-third plus one) to block the Senate action on a bill they oppose.

A Conference Committee drafted the final version of SB 14

Conference Committee includes five members from each chamber (House and Senate) appointed by the presiding officers.

Governor

Sign

Veto

Sign without signature and it becomes law after 10 days. If 10 days before the Legislature is ready to adjourn, it becomes law after 20 days.

Waits until Legislature goes home and casts a veto. (Pocket veto) Very successful, because the Legislature is not allowed to reconvene to override the governors veto. Most bills that clear the legislature pass in the last two weeks of the session and governor can wait to cast his veto. Governor signed the SB 14.

Legislative Policymaking

Legislative Leadership

Interest Group -Insurance groups consumer groups; Lobbyist;

Constituency -Votes high enough for profile.

Political Parties- Both parties wanted this bill

Political Ideology -Regulation vs. Market Forces

Policy Process and SB 14