Government 2306
Chapter 21 Outline – “The Texas Constitution”
I.
The Constitutional Legacy
 Our present-day state constitution was an outgrowth of the _______
____________________________period in Texas.
 It was a very detailed, restrictive document that was designed to protect
the people of Texas by ________________________________________.
 Distrust in government and corrupt politicians developed the Constitution
of 1876. It included…
i.
–
ii.
–
iii.
–
iv.
–
v.
 A total ________ of the present constitution has been attempted, but, as
yet, has ________________________________.
 The desires of certain special _____________, ___________________,
& ______________ have made it difficult for a new constitution to happen.
 During the history of Texas there have been _____ different constitutions;
each was written in a distinct, historical setting, but each contributed to the
state and local governments that exist in Texas today.
 See Table 21-1. The Seven Texas Constitutions p. 726.
A.
The Texas Constitution differs in important ways from many other
similar documents.

Experts believe that a constitution should be brief and include
general principles rather than specific legislation. (Def)

Details of the government are the purpose of statutory law. (Def)

Experts also believe that constitutions should grant direct ________
for _________ __________ in the government.
A good example is the US Constitution, with ____ amendments and
_________, concise words outlining the broad basic principles of
government authority.
The Texas Constitution, however, is an __________,
____________ document of __________+ words, a piecemeal of
_______+ amendments!


B.
The Various Texas constitutions have reflected the region’s political
and social context.
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1.
The Constitution of Coahuila y Tejas, 1827
o Our first Constitution provided for a unicameral legislature,
with _____ deputies, including ____ from Texas. (Def)
o The executive included a governor and lieut. Governor
i.
–
ii.
–
iii.
–
iv.
–
v.
–
vi.
–
o The threat of increased ________ ____________ in Texas
led to the Mexican government demanding more ________
AND the ___________ ________________.
o Elements of the Mexican legal system are found in Texas
i.
ii
iii.
iv.
o Lack of a _______ ____________ system from Mexico was
a cause of the Texas Revolution, and the question of
education being a _____ or ________ responsibility.
2.
The Constitution of the Republic of Texas, 1836
o With the rise of the dictator, Santa Anna, the liberal, Mexican
Constitution of ______ was voided, and his new government
because a unitary system. (Def)
o Federalism in Mexico was no more! (Def)
o Revolution and a call for independence came at _________
_______________________, March 2, 1836. Both a Texas
________________________________ from Mexico and a
_________________ of the Republic of Texas were written.
o The new Constitution was adopted March 16, 1836, which
drew from the _________________, and the constitutions of
several _____________ states.
o It created a bicameral Congress and an elected president.
(Def)
.
o It also included…
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i.
–
ii.
iii.
–
–
iv.
–
o Independence was soon won but Texas had many
problems…
i.
–
ii.
–
iii.
–
iv.
–
o Even so, this period of history made Texas unique and it is
celebrated in 7th grade ____________________________,
to this very day!
3.
The Constitution of 1845
o After the Texas Revolution, many Texans wanted immediate
_____________ into the US, but the issue of ____________
and the balance of power in the US delayed the action.
o The desire for __________ ____________ and the increase
of population in Texas, led Pres._____________________to
work for immediate annexation.
o Terms of annexation allowed for Texas to divide itself into as
many as _____different states
o The constitution of 1845 was twice as long as the one it
replaced. It included…
i.
–
ii.
–
iii.
–
iv.
–
v.
–
o The constitution also protected ______________ from
foreclosure, guaranteed separate ___________ rights for
married _________, and established the permanent
_____________________________.
o ____________ was recognized, anyone ever participating in
a _________ was band from holding public office, and statechartered banks were _______________.
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4.
The Civil War Constitution, 1861
o With the outbreak of the Civil War and Texas secession, the
constitution was again _____________.
o If was basically the same document, EXCEPT…
i.
–
ii.
–
o The two-party system was destroyed over the issues of
___________&____________ and Texas remained a ______________, Democratic state until the 1980s.
o The argument over “______________” was used to explain
Texas’s right to leave the US and join a confederacy. (Def)
5.
The Constitution of 1866
o The presidential reconstruction plan of Pres. ____________
was a plan with minimal requirements:
i.
–
ii.
–
iii.
–
o Texas simply amended the Constitution of ______ by
included the ________________ listed above.
o The constitution did not allow freemen to have __________
& __________ rights; they could not __________ against
whites in court, they did not have the right to ________.
o This “mild” reconstruction was short lived, because the
Presidential plan was replaced by a more _________ plan
by Radical Reconstructionists. (Def)
6.
i.
–
ii.
iii.
–
--
The Reconstruction Constitution , 1869
o This new constitution included the requirements of the
Radical Republican Congress…
i.
–
ii.
–
iii.
–
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–
–
–
iv.
v.
vi.
o The leadership of Texas was under the control of a Radical
Republic Governor ___________, after a contested election.
o Davis and the Republican legislature passed such laws as…
i.
–
ii.
–
iii.
–
iv.
--
o The Texas voter _________ the legislature in 1872, and it
___________ many of the oppressive laws.
o In 1873 they elected a Democrat, __________________ for
governor, who defeated _________________..
o At first Davis refused to accept the defeat, but when _____
__________refused to help his old friend retain the office by
force, he gave in.
o _______________ was ending and the Constitution of ____
was doomed…
7.
The Constitution of 1876: retrenchment and reform
o The _______________ majority called for a new
constitutional convention, Sept. 6, 1875. (____ Democrats
and _____ Republicans, all men).
o A delegate who represented the conservative, frontier spirit
was Col. ______________________.
o About half of the delegates were members of the Grange.
(Def)
o Corruption and scandal under both Gov. _______ and Pres.
_______, as well as economic hard times; lead the
delegates to seek to restore control of their government to
___________________..
o The new constitution placed strict controls on ___________,
the ______________, the __________, and esp. the
__________.
o The voters of Texas approved the now constitution in a vote
of ____________ to ___________.
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1.
Popular sovereignty
o (Def)
2.
Social Contract theory
o (Def)
o Both 1 and 2 may be found in the ____________ and the
first two sections of the ___________________.
o See Table 21-2, page 736.
3.
Limited government
o (Def)
4.
Separation of powers
o (Def)
o After seeing Gov. Davis take his power to the extreme, the
executive branch was _____________ ______________.
o The governor shares executive power with several other
independently _________, statewide __________________.
o He/she also has limited legislative powers as well…
i.
–
ii.
o All members of the judiciary are ____________ ________—
from the JPs to the Texas Supreme Court.
o The highest court in Texas was farther weakened by being
divided into the ______________________ (civil cases) and
the _______________________________ (criminal cases).
II.
Weaknesses and Criticisms of the Constitution of 1876
 Although it has served Texas longer than any other constitution, it has
also been the most _______________,
A.
Some criticisms are institutional in nature.
1.
The Executive branch
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o The governor lacks _________&_______________ over the
executive branch, & shares authority and responsibility with
others.
o The real weakness comes from…
i.
–
ii.
–
iii.
–
iv.
-o There are also many state _________&_______________
that set policy and have become powerful over the years.
o Membership on these commissions is, __________. ____
_______ terms, which makes it difficult for a governor to
appoint a commission majority during his term.
2.
Legislative Branch
o The Framers of the Texas Constitution created a _____
_________, _____-________ legislature; they did not
foresee that these representatives would be easy prey for
special _____________ __________.
o In 1972 the voters changed the length of the governor’s term
and other statewide elected officials from ___-year to ____year terms.
o But voters continue to reject _________, _______ sessions,
and increasing the ______ of lawmakers to make them more
professional.
3.
Judicial Branch
o Although most judges are _________ by the public, they
have a lot of autonomy, power, and influence over the
__________.
B.
Other criticized features touch on practical politics and fundamental
rights.
1.
Education
o The _______________, state school system of the
Reconstruction Constitution was so __________ that
__________ authorities were given the main responsibility of
running public education.
o This has caused big differences in local _____ bases and
____________ in public education.
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2.
Budgeting and finances
o The Constriction requires a ___________ __________,
which restricts the legislatures choices over spending.
o ____-year budgets by the legislature becomes a lot of
guesswork; but since 1985, the legislature may move funds
between _________&______________, which helps some.
o The Constitution also provides for “___________________”
for specific purposes. For example, ___ of state gasoline tax
goes for the construction of roads and __ goes to education.
o The state CAN issue general obligation ________, with voter
approval, to build various public facilities, this requires a
________________ _______________!
o This debt is in the billions, and must be paid off in the next
20 years.
3.
Individual Rights.
o Historically, the Constitution of 1876, _______ the growth of
civil rights with things like..
i.
–
ii.
--
III.
Provisions of the 1876 Constitution
 -Our current Constitution had ____ articles until Art. 13 was
deleted, making _____articles.
 - Statutory constitutions (def)
 - The US Constitution and earlier Texas constitutions only
incorporated the basic structure of government, allowing the
legislature to provide the details, thru the laws they passed.
1.
Article I contains the Texas Bill of Rights, which included…




-
2.
Article 2 establishes…
3.
Article 3 establishes…
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




Article 4.establishes…
4.




-
5. Article 5 created the judicial system with two supreme
Courts.
   6.



Article 7 created the Texas public school system.
-
7.
Article 9…
8.
Several articles also limit the power of the legislature to ____
and _____________ (fiscal policies).
9.
Article 17 establishes the process for amendments




A.
-
10.
In the 1980s, amendment elections were moved to _____
numbered years, in the month of ____________. This
reduced the number of ____________who participated.
11.
Having a ________________constitution means that it has
been amended many times (__________times in 2006).
Criticisms of the 1876 Constitution
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1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.




The legislature is a part-time citizen legislature
-
7.
8
9.
III.
Restrictions of the local governments

-

-

-
Constitution Revision
 The Constitution can be changed in 2 methodslll
 Piecemeal revision (def)
 Comprehensive revision (def)
A.
Piecemeal Revision Efforts
1.
2.
3.
4.
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5.
6.
B.
1.
Comprehensive Revision Efforts

-

-

The 1974 Constitutional Convention
a.
b.
A Constitution Revision Commission (def)
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
There are 5 reasons why the legislative failed…
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.
2.
The 1975 Constitutional Amendments
a.
b.
c.
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d.
Why did this happen?
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
3.
The 1999 Constitutional Revision Effort
a.
Sen. Bill Ratliff and Rep. Rob Junell proposed sweeping
changes in the Constitution.
b.
c.
Among changes in the proposed constitution…
i.
increase the terms of legislators to 4 and 6 years
ii.
__________limits on legislatures
iii.
–
iv.
–
v.
–
vi.
–
vii.
–a merit system for the selections of judges
viii.
–a single supreme court
ix.
–
x.
–
xi.
–
xii.
–
The legislature did not take the ____________ of Ratliff and
Junell __________________…
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