The zip code you can use 78222/ Texas
Purpose: The purpose of this assignment is to emphasize the importance of the Texas Legislature, and to introduce you to your members of the Texas Legislature and the work they have done.
Please follow this format:
Copy the question in bold font and then type the answer below it in regular font. Do this for each individual question.
Put a blank line in between your answers.
Do not highlight any portion of your assignment.
Do not give your assignment file a long name.
Do not include spaces when naming your assignment file.
Instructions:
This assignment has 2 parts, so please follow the steps below carefully. The questions you need to answer for the assignment are found within each part of the assignment, and will be labelled as such.
Part A: Who Represents You in the Texas Legislature
Step #1: Watch the following video:
My Vote Don’t Count
Step #2: Find out which Texas House and Senate districts you live in.
a) Go to this website, and type your full address.
b) Write down your Texas House and Senate districts numbers.
Step #3: Find out who is your State Representative.
a) Go to the website of the Texas House of Representatives. From there, click on Members.
b) Find your district number by clicking on the District # drop down menu.
c) Once you have found your State Representative, click on his/her picture to get his/her background information and the district’s information.
Question 1:
Which Texas House district do you live in? Who represents you? What party does he/she belong to?
I highly encourage you to go through their website, so you can read about what they have done and how they have represented you.
(This question is worth 5 points.)
Step #4: Find out who is your State Senator.
a) Go to the website of the Texas Senate. From there, click on Senators.
b) Choose Members from the drop down menu.
c) Find your State Senate District and Senator and click on his/her picture to get their background information and the district’s information.
Question 2:
Which Texas Senate district do you live
in? Who represents you? What party does he/she belong to?
I highly encourage you to go through their website, so you can read about what they have done and how they have represented you.
(This question is worth 5 points.)
Part B:
Step #1:
Question 3: Choose ONE of the following bills:
(This question is worth 10 points in total.)
** Remember to pay close attention to the Legislative Session information. ***
Advice: Don’t bother using Google to complete this assignment. These are controversial bills, so you are better off reading what the bill actually says yourself. Don’t get frustrated if you don’t fully understand what the bill is saying after your first attempt. Take the time to dissect the bill.
OPTION #1:
Bill: HB3
Legislative Session: 88(R) – 2023
** Remember to pay close attention to the Legislative Session information. ***
a) The key provisions of this bill are found on pages 6 to 16 of the PDF file (i.e. enrolled version of the bill). What is the minimum number of armed security officers that must be present in each school/campus during regular school hours? What training is required for those who are not commissioned peace officers? What duties are they prohibited from performing? What is the exemption? (This part of the question is worth 5 points.)
b) According to this bill, what type of training will be required of school district employees who regularly interacts with students? What documentations must a parent/guardian and/or the student’s former school provide before the student can be enrolled? (This part of the question is worth 2 points.)
c) Who is/are the primary author(s) of this bill? (This part of the question is worth 1 point.)
d) When was it introduced? (This part of the question is worth 1 point.)
e) When did this bill become law or become effective? (This part of the question is worth 1 point.)
OPTION #2:
Bill: SB14
Legislative Session: 88(R) – 2023
** Remember to pay close attention to the Legislative Session information. ***
a) According to this bill, what treatments and procedures are prohibited from being given and performed on children? What are the exceptions? List all of them. (This part of the question is worth 5 points.)
b) What will happen to a physician who breaks this law? (This part of the question is worth 2 points.)
c) Who is/are the primary author(s) of this bill? You need to include all the primary authors, and not just the first one on the list. (This part of the question is worth 1 point.)
d) When was it introduced? (This part of the question is worth 1 point.)
e) When did this bill become law or become effective? (This part of the question is worth 1 point.)
Step #2: Do the steps below to look up the information you need for the bill you chose in Step #1.
A) Go to this website. From there, click on Bill Lookup.
B) Type the bill name AND choose the correct Legislature (i.e. legislative session) using the drop down arrow. Then click Submit. R stands for regular session. S stands for special session. It is very important that you choose the correct legislative session, since different bills are introduced in each session.
C) Click on the Text tab and choose the Enrolled version of the bill. This is what the final bill looked like when it passed both houses of the Texas Legislature. Click on the PDF version to read the bill. Here are some tips on how to read Texas bills.
D) Click on the Authors tab. This will give you the name of the legislator(s) who introduced the bill and any legislators who sponsored (i.e. supported it being introduced).
E) Click on the Actions tab.
F) Stay on the Actions tab. Scroll to the very bottom and find the Read First time date. This is the date the bill was introduced in the Legislature.
G) Stay on the Actions tab. Scroll to the top and find the Effective On date. This is the date the bill became law.
Bonus Question (2 points):
This portion of the assignment is optional. You will not be penalized if you get it wrong. Partial credit is possible.
Bill: SB3
Legislative Session: 87(2) – 2021
1. According to this bill, how are teachers supposed to teach political/controversial topics? When and if extra credit is assigned, what cannot be counted towards extra credit?
2. Describe what happens to someone who breaks this new law. Who will punish them? Is it the state OR some other entity? If it’s the state, what charges will be brought up against them (e.g. misdemeanor, felony)? If it’s some other entity, what will happen to those that break the law?
