question
What is the level of popularity of the commissioner system of city government in Texas today?
answer
No city in Texas today has a pure commissioner system, but a handful claim a variation of the system.
question
In Texas, ________ create(s) special purpose districts.
answer
Texas voters in the areas that will be covered
question
Which of the following is the most common form of local government in Texas?
answer
special purpose districts
question
In large Texas counties, the ________ prepares the county budget.
answer
auditor
question
The mayor-council form of government is most common in
answer
smaller general-law cities.
question
What is the main difference between a home-rule city and a general-law city?
answer
A general-law city is chartered for localities with a population of fewer than 5,000 persons.
question
The chief law-enforcement officer in county governments is the
answer
sheriff
question
Why are Texas counties important?
answer
They provide the main form of government in rural areas.
question
In most Texas cities that use the council-manager form of government today,
answer
there is a professional city manager, a mayor that is elected at large, and a city council that is elected by single-member districts.
question
The commissioner form of city government was developed as a response to the
answer
hurricane at Galveston in 1900.
question
What was the effect of Dallas shifting from an at-large to a single-member district system in 1991?
answer
The change was responsible for the election of a significant number of African American and Hispanic council members.
question
What is an at-large election?
answer
an election in which voters elect officials from the entire geographical area rather than from a smaller district within the area
question
How are most special purpose districts in Texas administered?
answer
They are run by a board elected by residents within the district.
question
One of the most important social services provided by counties is
answer
indigent health care.
question
If you want to know how many people serve on a city's governing body, which document do you need to consult?
answer
the city's home-rule charter
question
In the case Avery v. Midland County, the U.S. Supreme Court held that
answer
The principle of one person, one vote applied to county commissioners' courts.
question
In Texas, what is the name of the officer who presides over the county commissioners' court?
answer
county judge
question
What type of government is called hidden government because people often do NOT know it exists?
answer
special purpose districts
question
Special purpose districts were initially designed to help develop poor and rural areas of Texas. However, many people are now concerned that the system is being abused because
answer
real estate developers have figured out a way to develop the infrastructure for new developments but pass the costs on to future owners of the property.
question
In a strong-mayor council form of government, who controls the legislative agenda of the city council?
answer
the mayor
question
What is the function of the twenty-four councils of government in Texas today?
answer
They are a regional board meant to coordinate local planning and economic development.
question
Commissioner forms of government were at the height of their popularity
answer
in 1918, during the Progressive era.
question
A 2014 survey-based research study finds that elected officials may primarily use incentives -- even if they are not particularly effective -- for which of the following reasons?
answer
As a political tool in pursuit of electoral success
question
In the commissioner form of government,
answer
the legislative and executive functions are performed by the elected commission.
question
Dallas operates under which style of city government?
answer
council-manager
question
The law enforcement budget at the county level is approved by the
answer
county commissioners' court.
question
What are the main sources of revenue for special purpose districts in Texas?
answer
property taxes and user fees
question
San Antonio operates under which style of city government?
answer
council-manager
question
The chief financial officer for a city is called the
answer
city controller
question
Which city governments have officials who act as both executives and legislators?
answer
commissioners
question
Former governor Rick Perry used to use radio advertisements in an effort to recruit businesses primarily from which of the following states?
answer
California
question
As the number of urban areas grew in the state in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the management of local affairs became such a growing burden on the state legislature that it passed the
answer
home-rule charter
question
What is the main difference between a special purpose district and a county?
answer
A special purpose district provides only one specific service within a geographic region.
question
Across the United States, which form of government for cities with over 10,000 residents has been the most popular?
answer
council manager
question
According to the Dillon Rule doctrine,
answer
general-law cities and towns are much more constrained than home-rule cities, and cannot take any action unless explicitly authorized by a law passed by the state.
question
Who is responsible for setting the county's budget and tax rate?
answer
commissioners' court
question
The debate over preemption between local self-governance and control by the state government echoes which of the following:
answer
debates between the state governments and the federal government about which level of government should make governing decisions
question
Existing evidence suggests that incentives have ___ on a business' decision to build or relocate in a particular locality.
answer
Marginal effects
question
A school district is
answer
a special purpose district.
question
The weak-mayor form of government is similar to the __________________ because they both ________________.
answer
plural executive; divide power among multiple people who can present the positions of their constituencies
question
If you live outside city limits, water, sewer, sanitation, and electricity services are offered by
answer
municipal utility districts (MUDs).
question
Which of the following is a source of often unanticipated costs faced by county governments?
answer
the financial burden of capital murder trials
question
What is the most important expenditure of most county commissioners' courts?
answer
roads and bridges
question
Cities and towns in Texas often see rapid population growth. Such growth requires school districts to quickly expand. In this type of situation, school districts use __________________ to borrow the necessary funds to achieve this goal.
answer
capital appreciation bonds (CABs)
question
What is a key problem with counties in Texas?
answer
Many of them are too small and underpopulated to function well.
question
Which of the following Texas cities received the largest amount of foreign direct investment between 2014 and 2016?
answer
Houston
question
A ________ form of government is one in which public policies are developed by the city council and executive and administrative functions are assigned to a professional city manager.
answer
council manager
question
Special purpose districts in Texas are
answer
democratic in theory but often not in practice.
question
In smaller counties, the sheriff performs which of the following jobs?
answer
the tax assessor/collector.
question
In Texas, county governments are responsible for which of the following tasks?
answer
administration of social services
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