Last week we looked at the nature of the three branches of government as a way to introduce the topics prior to digging into how each is set up in the Texas Constitution. The goal was to highlight the uniqueness of state institutions in general, how they differ from those on the national level and how Texas' institutional design are different from those of other states.
This allows us to look through the content of Articles 3,4, and 5 of the Texas Constitution - which will certainly be one of the highlights of your college experience. OK that's a lie, but you will at least understand what critics are talking about when they they discuss problems within the Texas Constitution. It is poorly designed and repetitive, but that's to be expected when a document has been amended piece by piece almost 500 times. But it provides the basis for the state legislature, so its essential to understand how it does so.
In addition to glancing through Article 3 of the Texas Constitution, we will also look at the bill making process in Texas by walking through online information provided by the legislature. Since the legislature is now in session, we're in a perfect position to follow the process as it goes forward. We've mentioned a handful of bills that have been introduced in the legislature, we'll see how they are going.
We will also look more in-depth at area city councils and other quasi-legislative institutions and local elected boards. Much of this will include looking at the websites associated with local institutions and becoming familiar with who these elected officials are.
These are the three sections we will cover this week - and the three you will be assessed over as well:
- The Legislature - Texas Constitutional Design
- Texas Bill Making
- Local City Councils
You might also want to follow the blog posts under these labels:
- 81st Session
- 82nd Session
- 83rd Session
