1	State Legislatures A. State legislatures are the oldest part of our government, predating the Constitution; A purpose of the Constitution was to restrain state legislatures and strengthen the national government B. Now, state legislatures are vital parts of state government, a counter balance to governors and bureaucracies C. Their plural nature hurts their public image and power D. They make laws and balance conflicting political powers
2	The legislative branch A. Organization of state legislatures 1. All states except Nebraska have a bicameral legislature 2. States range from “citizen legislatures” (New Hampshire) to professional (California) 3. Most state legislatures meet every year from January through May or June for a fixed number of days 4. Special sessions have been developed to get around the limitation of days in session 5. The organization and procedures of state legislatures are similar to the U.S. Congress
3	The legislative branch 6. As in Congress, the committee system prevails 7. Although the formal structures and procedures of legislatures are similar from state to state, their actual operations are not 8. Striking differences exist among state legislatures, often stemming from historical or ethnic traditions, regional differences, urban-rural or east-west factional splits
4	Legislative committees 1. The influence of committees has increased in recent decades 2. Functions of standing committees or interim committees a. Studying pending legislation carefully b. Conducting public hearings on proposed bills and resolutions c. Debating and modifying initial proposals d. Screening, eliminating, or burying undesirable legislation e. Grading legislation in terms of desirability f. Confirming key administrative personnel g. Monitoring or overseeing administrative practices and regulations
5	Who are the state legislators? A. The typical American state legislator is a 48-year-old white male Protestant businessman or lawyer of Anglo-Saxon origin who has had previous political experience at the city or county level B. Lawyers are the largest occupational group C. Women and minorities are still underrepresented but growing in numbers D. Legislators are better educated and have better jobs than the average person; come from middle- and upper income groups; hardworking, public-spirited citizens
6	What do state legislators do? A. They enact the laws that create state parks, specify salaries for state officials, draw up rules governing state elections, levy state tax rates, set worker’s compensation policies, determine the quantity and quality of state correctional, mental health, and educational institutions, and oversee welfare programs B. State legislatures have functions within the larger federal system: ratifying proposed amendments to the U.S. Constitution, petitioning Congress to call for a constitutional convention to propose amendments to the U.S. Constitution, and approving interstate compacts C. State legislators participate in amending their state’s constitutions by proposing amendments for voter ratification, have authority to impeach and try state officials, and exercise some appointive powers D. Legislators are ombudsmen and spend increasing amounts of time on casework or constituency services
7	What influences state legislators? 1. Political parties a. The role of political parties in the governance of legislatures and in policy making varies widely from state to state b. Party unity on policy matters is typically found in states with a highly competitive two party system c. The party caucus is a principal instrument for legislative decision making in about half the states d. In one-party states, parties are less important in conducting and shaping legislative business
8	Lobbyists and interest groups a. To lobby is to influence public officials, especially members of legislative bodies, to enact certain laws b. States usually define a professional lobbyist as someone who is paid to influence legislators on behalf of a client or clients c. Most lobbyists are regular employees of corporations, unions, or trade associations; many are members of law firms; others are former state employees d. Some of the most effective lobbyists are retired state legislators
9	Lobbyists and interest groups e. In states with an obvious major economic interest, legislators pay close attention to the needs of that interest, regardless of whether the group employs lobbyists f. The most effective lobbying requires generating grassroots mail and arranging for face-to face constituent persuasion g. In recent years, states have regulated lobbying activities, conflicts of interest, and campaign finance—but regulation may infringe on constitutional rights
10	Other influences a. The influences on state legislators vary from issue to issue b. Most legislators consider themselves trustees of their constituents; others view themselves as delegates c. On issues that are of keen local interest, legislators take constituents into careful account when they vote—but few interests spark local interest d. Legislators depend on their colleagues on other committees to inform them about issues e. The actions taken by other states often fuels legislation f. Over the past generation, state legislators have had federal mandates that required state funds to match federally stipulated programs such as Medicaid; recently some mandate relief
11	Modernization and reform A. Term limits—problem or solution 1. Term limits are the most talked about legislative “reform” of the past decade 2. Proponents argue that the rotation principle is old and cherished and that citizen-legislators should be encouraged, career politicians discouraged 3. Opponents argue that term limits are a solution in search of a problem that does not exist a. Critics think that term limits will have the unintended consequence of increasing the power of various unelected officials b. They contend that term limits will not help legislators draft better laws or write better tax measures; will lose experience and expertise
12	The politics of drawing legislative district lines A. Redistricting helps some, hurts others 1. Gerrymandering: drawing lines to help a party, incumbent, or a group 2. Malapportionment: districts of unequal populations B. Attempts to correct underrepresentation were unsuccessful until Baker v. Carr, 1962 1.The U.S. Supreme Court held that voters do have standing to challenge legislative apportionment and that such questions should be considered by the federal courts 2. Arbitrary and capriciously drawn districts deprive people of their constitutional rights of representation, and federal judges may take jurisdiction over such cases
13	The politics of drawing legislative district lines C. One person, one vote 1. Wesberry v Sanders (1964): the Supreme Court announced that as far as congressional representation is concerned, “as nearly as practicable one man’s vote in a congressional election is to be worth as much as another’s” 2. Reynolds v Sims (1964), the Court held that equal representation applied to both chambers of state legislatures; no federal analogy for state senates 3. The Supreme Court has been especially strict with population equality for congressional districts, but less insistent upon absolute equality for state legislative districts
14	New rules for redrawing the districts 1. In the 1970s and 1980s minorities began to press for redistricting to compensate for past districting that had diluted minority influence at the polls, under Voting Rights Act of 1965 2. In the 1990s the Supreme Court began to put restraints on state legislatures’ plans to create majority-minority districts, ruling that legislative districts drawn primarily for racial reasons are unconstitutional
15	Direct legislation: policy making by the people A. Initiative: The initiative permits a designated minimum number of voters to propose a law by petition 1. It becomes law if approved by a majority of the voters at a subsequent election 2. Direct initiative: after successful petition, it becomes a ballot measure 3. Indirect initiative: after successful petition, on ballot only if legislature fails to act B. Referendum 1. A referendum permits a majority of the voters to veto legislation or reject constitutional amendments 2. Much local action on school bonds, fluoridation, etc.
16	Direct legislation: policy making by the people C. Recall 1. Recall is the means by which voters may remove elected public officials before the end of a term 2. No reasons are cited in recall; can remove officials for policy differences
17	The debate over direct democracy 1. Political scientists differ over the desirability of direct legislation 2. Direct democracy may have weakened our legislatures; some observers are beginning to think this may be happening in California 3. A new problem is the number of issues on the ballot; confusing to voters 4. Voters insist that citizens ought to occasionally have the right to vote directly on policy issues
18	The debate over direct democracy 5. A serious problem has arisen in Western states, in which political consulting firms will gather signatures and put nearly anything you want on the ballot 6. A problem with the initiative process is that it can be used to target minorities, such as limitations on illegal immigrants and affirmative action 7. Most of the perceived flaws of the populist processes of direct democracy are also the flaws of democracy 8. Supporters of populist democracy say they have not given up on the legislative process