The Texas Legislature
Geographic Districts
• There are 150 seats in the Texas House of
Representatives with a discrete district for each.
• There are 31 single member districts in the state
senate.
• Each house and senate seat must contain equal
populations within their respective houses.
• Both houses of the legislature are redistricted
every ten years based on census data and politics.
Qualifications for Membership
Formal
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Texas Senate
A U. S. citizen
A registered voter
At least 26 years of
age
• Have lived in Texas
for five years and the
district for one year.
• Texas House
• A U.S. citizen
• At least 21 years of
age
• Have lived in Texas
for two years and the
district for one year
Qualifications for Membership
Informal
• Informal Qualifications
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Conservative
Anglo
Protestants
Male
Business/Attorney
Sessions and Salaries
• Biennial Session
– Legislature meets on the second Tuesday in
odd-numbered years.
• Meets for 140 days
• Special Sessions
– Governor may call a thirty day special session.
Sessions and Salaries
• 7,200 annual salary
• $125 per diem for regular and special
sessions
• Travel Allowance
• Legislators usually have other jobs.
The Presiding Officers
• Lieutenant Governor
– Elected statewide
– Four year term
– Presiding officer of the Senate
• Speaker of the House
– Elected by a majority vote of the house
membership
– Election occurs on the first day of the session
The Legislative Committees
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Standing committees
Subcommittees
Ad Hoc Committees
Conference Committees
Interim Committees
The Legislative Staff
• House members receive $7,500 monthly for
office expenses
• Senate members receive $22,000 for office
expenses
• Legislative staff members lack expertise
when compared to the lobby staff.
• House Research Organization
• Legislative Council
Legislative Process
Procedural Powers of the Presiding Officers
• Appoint committee chairs
• Assigns bills to committee
• Schedules legislation for floor action
• Recognize members on the floor for amendments
and points of order
• Interpret the procedural rules when needed
• Appoint the chairs and members of the conference
committees
Legislative Process
Institutional Powers of the Presiding Officers
• Appoint the members and serve as chair(lieutenant
governor) and vice-chair(speaker) of the
– Legislative Budget Board, and the
– Legislative Council.
– Legislative Audit Committee.
• Serve on and appoint the members of the Sunset
Advisory Commission
Legislative Process
• Procedural Tools of Leadership
• Committee Membership
– The presiding officers exercise influence by
appointing committee membership.
• Selection of Committee Chairs
– The presiding officers appoint the committee
chairs.
• Committee Jurisdiction
– The presiding officers assign bills to
committees.
• Presiding Officers May Oppose A Bill
– A bill may be a threat to the officer’s backers
and financial supporters.
– The backers of a bill may have been
uncooperative thus the officers may punish
them.
– The bill’s opponents may have more bargaining
power.
– The bill’s backers may feel the passage of the
bill might financially cripple a favorite
program.
• Committee Powers and Functions
– Committees are “little legislatures”.
– Committees are extensions of the presiding
officers.
• In committee the bills may be
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rewritten
pigeonholed
Edited
tagging
• Division of Labor
– Bills are marked up in each committee.
• Pigeonhole
– Committees may also chose not to consider a bill.
• Discharge petition
• Tagging
• Bureaucratic Oversight
– Committees may also hold hearing to see that
bureaucrats are carrying out public policy.
– Several factors make bureaucratic oversight difficult:
• short legislative session
• movement of members from one committee to
another
• short term for legislators when compared to top
administrators.
• The Calendar
– Scheduling a bill is crucial to passage and success.
• House Calendars
– The speaker of the house does not have direct control
over the calendar, but does control committee
membership.
• The Senate Calendar
– The senate calendar is used only in theory.
– Most bills are considered by a suspension of the rules.
– The lieutenant governor must recognize a senator to
make this motion
– The presiding officer or eleven senators could prevent
any bill from becoming law.
• The Floor of the House
– As bills reach the House floor, a loudspeaker
system allows votes for or against.
• Floor leaders: representatives who are trying to get a
bill passed.
• The Floor of the Senate
– The Senate floor is similar to the house with
one exception, the filibuster.
– Senate rules allow a senator to speak
unlimitedly to try to prevent a vote on a bill.
– The presiding officer controls those who speak.
The Conference Committee
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Resolves difference between both houses
A temporary committee
Five members from each house
Members appointed by the presiding officer
• How a Bill Becomes Law
– Introduction to the Senate
– First Reading and Assignment to committee
– Second and Third Readings: Senate Committee
Action
– Senate Calendar
– Senate Floor
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Introduction to the House
First Reading and Assignment to Committee
Committee action
Committee on House calendars
Second and Third Readings: House Floor
Action
• Conference Committee
• Floor Action
• The Governor
• Nonprocedural Tools of Leadership Tools
• The Legislative Budget Board: Members and
presiding officers influence the budgeting process.
• The Legislative Council: The presiding officers
appoint committee membership which oversees
bill drafting and research.
• The Legislative Audit Committee: The presiding
officers, members of this committee, audit agency
expenditures.
• The Sunset Advisory Commission: This
commission with the presiding officers as
members reviews state agencies.
Restraints on the Powers of the
Presiding Officers
• Personality
– leadership style
• The Team
– legislator coalitions
• The Lobby and Bureaucracy
– coalition of presiding officers, bureaucrats and lobby insures
success
• The Governor
– the threat to veto and line-item veto give power
• The Political Climate
– scandal may limit the power of the presiding officers.
• Political or Economic Ambition
– political credits, interest group support, and presiding officer’s role
may serve as a stepping stone to other offices.