POLS 1337 Lecture 5I.Overview of Texas LegislatureComparisons with CongressCongress- 435 House of Reps seats- 100 Senate seats- 25 Years old (House)- 30 years old (senate)- Elections 2 years (House)- Elections 6 years, 1/3 seats up for re-election every 2 yrs. (Senate)TX Legislature- 150 House of Reps. Seats- 31 Senate Seats- 21 years old (house)- 26 years old (Senate)- Elections 2 years (House)- Elections 4 years, ½ seats up for re-election every other year. After redistricting every seat is up (Senate)II.Green, Gray, and Gold LegislaturesNational Conference of State Legislatures’ Ratings of Professionalism- Rates the professionalism of each state’s legislators - Based on salary- Staff assistant- Time spent in legislative sessionsThese notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor’s lecture. GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes, not as a substitute.Green = Full-time, well paid, large staffStates: California New York Pennsylvania Alaska Florida Illinois Massachusetts Michigan Ohio WisconsinGray= HybridStates: Alabama Arizona Arkansas Colorado Connecticut Delaware Hawaii Indiana Iowa Kentucky Louisiana Maryland Minnesota New Jersey Missouri Nebraska North Carolina Oklahoma Oregon South Carolina Tennessee Texas Virginia WashingtonGold= Part-time, low pay small StaffStates: Georgia, Idaho Kansas Maine Mississippi Nevada New Mexico Rhode Island Vermont West Virginia Montana New Hampshire North Dakota South Dakota Utah Wyoming- Gray States Average: $43,429- Gold States Average: $19,197*Texas Legislators make approximately $7,200 (below poverty line). Legislators must have another source of income to liveIII.Legislative SessionsDifferences between TX Legislative Sessions and Other StatesTexas- Sessions last for 140 days, only once at the beginning of each odd numbered year- Only the Governor may call in session (special sessions, last 30 days if needed)Other States- Most states meet every year- Legislatures may hold special sessions by calling it into action themselves (Gov. not needed)Before the Session BeginsPre-filing Bills: Members may pre-file bills beginning the 1st Monday after Nov. elections- Before 82nd session (2011) 394 bills pre-filed- Before 83rd session (2014)257 bills pre filedSpeaker of the HouseCurrent: Joe Straus (R-San Antonio)- Oversees committee assignments- Assigns bills to committees- Serves as presiding officerLieutenant Governor “Vice Governor”Current: David Dewhurst (R-Houston)- Presides over the Senate- Breaks ties- Appoints senators to committeesBills in the 83 rd SessionDay 60 (Mar. 8): Lawmakers filed over 6,500 bills & resolutionsIssues with the most attention: House- Education- Taxation- Special Districts/Authorities- Vehicles/Traffic- Crimes/Criminal ProcedureSenate- Education- Special Districts/Authorities- Taxation- Occupational Regulation- County Government- Insurance- HealthEnd of SessionApril is the time when lawmakers are very hard at work (7 days a week) until the session endsSession ends: Midnight May 27TH (Memorial Day)Unfinished business (Bills) go dead if not decided upon before deadlineGhost VotingKEYE Austin Report: A news report showing the issues underlying the accuracy of each legislatures vote. Video recording shows legislatures voting for others (which is not supposed to happen). Overall grand jury investigation produces no