The Legislative branch

I. C.13 Legislative and Executive branch of N.C.

II. E.O.C. review III. West Wing??????

Bicameral legislature Senate and House of Representatives The Senate has 50 members and the house

has 120 members. Member of both houses are elected by

popular vote. There are 50 senate districts and 120

districts for the house. Both senators and representatives are

elected to two year terms.

The legislative branch in N.C. is called the general assembly.

The powers of the general assembly are: To make statutory laws that apply to

everyone in the state. To enact local or special laws that only

apply to certain counties or cities. These laws can determine how much

money the state government will spend and how state expenses will be paid for. (taxes)

The general assembly is in charge of oversight, which allows the legislature to review how well the current laws are working.

The General Assembly elects members to the N.C. Board of Governors and the state community college system.

These people can vote to increase tuition to colleges and in N.C.

The general assembly can also impeach judges and members of the Council of State.

N.C. House: 21 years old, have lived in the district for one year before the election.

N.C. Senate: 25 years old, have lived in the state for two years before the election and one year in the district.

The house has a speaker who presides over the house and makes key appointments.

The lieutenant governor is the president over the senate and is only a tie breaker.

The president pro tempore in the senate makes all key appointments for the senate and is the actual leader of the senate.

The General Assembly meets in the Legislative Building in Raleigh

In odd years the legislature meets for a “long session” which usually last from January to June.

In even numbered years they meet for a “short session” which lasts for about 6 weeks in May.

2005: State Lottery2006: a new minimum wage of $7.25

an hour

1. What is the purpose of legislative oversight?

What are the qualifications for members of the general assembly?

3. What are some of the responsibilities of our legislature?

Our chief executive is the Governor. Qualifications: 30 years old, a U.S. citizen for at least 5

years, and must have lived in N.C. for at least two years before the election.

The term is 4 years. The state constitution limits the governor to two consecutive terms.

However you may leave office and run again.

Carries out laws, prepares a budget as Executive/Administrative

Propose laws and approves and vetoes legislation. In charge of military forces of the state and

Commander in Chief. Offers pardons; grants paroles as Judicial leader Greets important visitors and represents the state as

Ceremonial Leader Leads the his/her political party of the state as Party

Leader.

Qualifications: Same as governor and has a four

year term.The Lieutenant Governor and

Governor run on separate tickets unlike the President and Vice President.

So, they can be from different political parties.

The Governor appoints 10 head administrators to oversee separate departments. These people are referred to as a cabinet.

The cabinet reports directly to the Governor.

The council of state is elected by N.C. voters. These people head 8 state agencies:

Attorney general Commissioner of agriculture Commissioner of insurance Commissioner of labor Secretary of State Superintendent of Public Instruction State Auditor State Treasurer

The council operates independently of the Governor.

So the agencies will sometimes work at cross-purposes or even in conflict with each other.

It gives the voters the chance to elect dept. heads that share their views on education, agriculture, etc….

It gives the attorney general and auditor more freedom to investigate wrong doings in other agencies b/c they do not have to answer to the governor.

Few voters know anything about the Council of the State.

Having the governor appoint these dept. heads would create greater coordination in state gov’t.

Who is our current Governor? Governor-elect?

How is the Council of State different from the Cabinet?

1. What are the two types of trial courts in North Carolina’s Judicial system?

2. How are civil and criminal trials different?

3. Please turn to page 393 in your textbook and read about the Leandro case. When you are finished reading please answer the following question: Why was the Leandro case filed?