American National Government Exam Practice Tests
Course Introduction
American National Government explores the foundational principles, structures, and functions of the U.S. government. The course examines the Constitution, federalism, and the roles played by the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Students analyze the processes of policy making, civil rights and civil liberties, political parties, elections, and the influence of interest groups and the media. Through critical discussion and evaluation of contemporary issues, the course provides a comprehensive understanding of how the American political system operates and affects the lives of its citizens.
Recommended Textbook
Government by the People 2011 National Edition 24th Edition by David B. Magleby
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28 Chapters
3979 Verified Questions
3979 Flashcards
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Page 2
Chapter 1: Constitutional Democracy
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155 Verified Questions
155 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Thomas Jefferson believed in all of the following EXCEPT
A)popular control.
B)representative processes.
C)accountable leadership.
D)the common sense of the people.
E)government by special interests.
Answer: E
Q2) Describe the Antifederalists and evaluate their objections to the Constitution.Do you believe their fears were warranted? Why or why not?
Answer: NOT ANSWER
Q3) Shays' Rebellion, in large part, destroyed the faith in government under the Articles of Confederation.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q4) Constitutional democracy means government by representative politicians.
A)True
B)False Answer: True
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Chapter 2: Constitutional Foundations
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130 Verified Questions
130 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The distribution of constitutional authority among the three branches of the national government is known as
A)bicameralism.
B)federalism.
C)divided government.
D)autocracy.
E)separation of powers.
Answer: E
Q2) Law that is higher than human law is dubbed _____ law.
A)statutory
B) universal
C) natural
D) supreme
E) constitutional
Answer: C
Q3) A writ of certiorari is a court order directing an official to perform an official duty.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
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Page 4
Chapter 3: American Federalism
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106 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Republicans have consistently favored
A)fewer strings, less federal supervision, and delegation of spending discretion to the states.
B)more detailed, federally supervised spending.
C)more strings, less federal supervision, and federally supervised spending.
D)delegation of spending discretion to the states and more federally supervised spending.
E)None of the above
Answer: A
Q2) Funds appropriated for specific purposes, such as school lunches or the building of highways or airports, which are allocated by formula and subject to detailed federal conditions are called
A)revenue grants.
B)project grants.
C)categorical-formula grants.
D)block grants.
E)revenue sharing grants.
Answer: C
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Chapter 4: Political Culture and Ideology
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101 Verified Questions
101 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) As a political force, the Christian Coalition
A)has become much less prominent in recent years.
B)has become slightly less prominent in recent years.
C)has become slightly more prominent in recent years.
D)has become much more prominent in recent years.
E)has never been of much importance.
Q2) Liberals outnumber conservatives, and the proportion of liberals increased in the 1980s and 1990s.
A)True
B)False
Q3) In contrast to contemporary liberals, conservatives want to keep government limited EXCEPT in the area of defense.
A)True
B)False
Q4) A nation's political culture is comprised of
A)widely shared beliefs toward government.
B)shared values of how citizens relate to government.
C)shared values of how citizens relate to one another.
D)widely shared behavior toward government.
E)All of the above
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Chapter 5: The US political Landscape
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232 Verified Questions
232 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) In The Federalist, No.10, this person offered both a definition of and explanation for the existence of factions.
A)John Adams
B)Lydia Darragh
C)James Madison
D)Abigail Adams
E)Benjamin Franklin
Q2) Socioeconomic status is a division of the population based on A)wealth, ethnicity, and religion.
B)occupation, race, and class.
C)education, bourgeoisie, and race.
D)income, occupation, and education.
E)class, wealth, and education.
Q3) Political information includes the impact of proposed laws.
A)True
B)False
Q4) The median income of Asian Americans is well above the national median.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 7: Political Parties
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120 Verified Questions
120 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The party now known as the Democratic Party was originally led by A)Jefferson.
B) Washington.
C) Hamilton.
D) Adams.
E) Burr.
Q2) Television, radio, the Internet, and telephones have weakened the role of candidates and increased the importance of parties.
A)True
B)False
Q3) "Grand Old Party" refers to the Democrats.
A)True
B)False
Q4) With the 2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act in effect, soft money contributions to the national committees are banned.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 8: Public Opinion, Participation, and Voting
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115 Verified Questions
115 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) People who are rarely interested in politics or public affairs and seldom vote are called political know-nothings.
A)True
B)False
Q2) What percentage of the United States population has indicated that they are interested in politics "only now and then" or "hardly at all"?
A)2%.
B)8%.
C)25%.
D)33%.
E)52%.
Q3) The reason most commonly cited for people NOT voting in elections is A)being too busy.
B)forgetting.
C)not caring who wins.
D)not having transportation.
E)being out of town.
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Page 9
Chapter 9: Campaigns and Elections
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120 Verified Questions
120 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Soft money refers to
A)money raised in unlimited amounts by political parties for party-building purposes.
B)money contributed by political candidates to their own campaigns.
C)money contributed to political candidates from other candidates.
D)money contributed to a candidate that is limited in amount and fully disclosed.
E)None of the above
Q2) The caucus method of selecting a delegate depends largely on party organization. A)True
B)False
Q3) An election with no incumbent running is called A)a toss-up.
B)gerrymandering.
C)party polling.
D)an open seat.
E)a referendum.
Q4) There is a way to run for president that avoids the primary election process. A)True
B)False
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Chapter 10: The Media and US politics
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134 Verified Questions
134 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The role media played in the Watergate scandal is a good example of investigatory journalism.
A)True
B)False
Q2) America has been getting most of its news from the newspaper for the past 40 years.
A)True
B)False
Q3) The media have a tendency to focus more attention on candidates in the lead.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Selective perception is the process by which we pick our political attitudes, values, and beliefs.
A)True
B)False
Q5) The institution least dependent on the press is Congress.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 11: Congress
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168 Verified Questions
168 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Powers given explicitly to Congress in the Constitution are called
A)enumerated powers.
B)unlisted powers.
C)elastic powers.
D)expansive powers.
E)implied powers.
Q2) The residents of a congressional district or state are called constituents.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Federal judges are nominated by the president and appointed to their positions with the advice and consent of the Senate.
A)True
B)False
Q4) If the president does not sign a bill within ten days of receiving it and Congress has adjourned, the bill
A)must be reintroduced.
B)returns to Congress for another vote by both chambers.
C)goes to the Supreme Court for action.
D)dies through a pocket veto.
E)becomes law.
Page 12
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Chapter 12: The Presidency
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139 Verified Questions
139 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court presides over impeachment trials in the U.S.Senate.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The president's annual statement to Congress and the nation is called the Budget Address.
A)True B)False
Q3) Overriding a presidential veto requires a two-thirds vote in both chambers of Congress.
A)True
B)False
Q4) The percentage of times a president wins on key votes in Congress is known as A)the victory quotient.
B)the success proportion.
C)presidential power.
D)the support score.
E)the popularity proportion.
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Page 13
Chapter 13: The Federal Bureaucracy
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141 Verified Questions
141 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The general goal of "police patrol" oversight is to detect criminal activity among federal employees.
A)True
B)False
Q2) In addition to regular full-time employees, about 7.6 million people work for the federal government
A)in the armed forces.
B)in the civil service.
C)under contracts to private firms.
D)under federal grants to colleges, universities, and state and local governments.
E)in the postal service.
Q3) Except for individuals who are extraordinarily close to the president, senior presidential appointees are selected through a four-step process which includes all of the below EXCEPT
A)selection by the White House Presidential Personnel Office.
B)the White House clearance process.
C)delivery of the nominee's name to the Senate Clerk.
D)House of Representatives confirmation.
E)Senate confirmation.
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Page 14
Chapter 14: The Judiciary
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163 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) An opinion that agrees with the majority in a Supreme Court ruling but differs on the reasoning is a(n)
A)concurring opinion.
B)opinion of the Court.
C)dissenting opinion.
D)per curiam opinion.
E)senatorial courtesy.
Q2) An adversary system of justice is one in which
A)the police bring charges.
B)judges are political appointees.
C)the court is a neutral referee.
D)justice is based on majority vote.
E)None of the above
Q3) If a Supreme Court justice agrees with the majority decision but differs on the reasoning, he or she files a minority opinion.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Precedent is NOT needed to maintain legal consistency over time.
A)True
B)False
Page 15
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Chapter 15: Civil Liberties
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163 Verified Questions
163 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Government prohibition of a speech or publication before it is made or published is referred to as
A)prior restraint.
B)judicial review.
C)sedition.
D)exclusion.
E)sequestering.
Q2) Gitlow v.New York was a revolutionary decision because it protected freedom of speech from violations by state and local governments.
A)True
B)False
Q3) The due process clause, interpreted to mean that the states could not abridge the First Amendment freedoms, is part of the
A)Third Amendment
B)Eighteenth Amendment
C)Fourteenth Amendment
D)Ninth Amendment
E)Second Amendment
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Chapter 16: Civil Rights
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145 Verified Questions
145 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) One of the most controversial debates surrounding affirmative action is whether the program promotes or denies equality.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The women's rights movement was originally aligned with the abolition movement. A)True
B)False
Q3) According to Table 16-2 the Civil Rights Act of 1957
A)makes it a federal crime to prevent persons from voting in federal elections.
B)bars discrimination in employment or in public accommodations on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, and created the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
C)authorizes the appointment of federal examiners to register voters in areas with a history of discrimination.
D)prohibits job discrimination against workers or job applicants aged 40 through 65 and prohibits mandatory retirement.
E)prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, or national origin in the sale or rental of most housing.
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17
Chapter 17: Public Policy
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122 Verified Questions
122 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Redistributive policy in the United States tends to benefit
A)the rich.
B)individuals who are most active politically.
C)everyone equally.
D)the less fortunate.
E)None of the above
Q2) Which is described as the list of issues that the federal government pays attention to?
A)Lobbying
B)Public policies
C)Policy agenda
D)Nondecisions
E)None of the above
Q3) Head Start programs for preschoolers are an example of what type of public policy?
A)Distributive
B)Reverse distributive
C)Redistributive
D)Cost-benefit
E)None of the above
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Page 18
Chapter 18: Making Economic Policy
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153 Verified Questions
153 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) A loss of tax revenue due to federal laws that provide special tax incentives or benefits to individuals or businesses is known as a(n)
A)appropriations limit.
B)tax expenditure
C)budget shortfall.
D)windfall profit.
E)tax haven.
Q2) A general tax on sales transactions, sometimes exempting such items as food and drugs, is called a(n) __________ tax.
A)sin
B)expenditure
C)sales
D)income
E)value-added
Q3) Dumping is the practice of selling products below the cost of manufacturing or below their domestic price with the intention of driving other producers out of the market and then raising prices to profitable levels.
A)True
B)False
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Page 19
Chapter 19: Making Social Policy
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116 Verified Questions
116 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Social insurance is defined as
A)programs such as unemployment insurance, disaster relief, or disability payments that provide benefits to all eligible citizens.
B)programs such as Medicaid and welfare under which applicants must meet eligibility requirements based on need.
C)the many programs that the federal government provides to protect Americans against economic and social misfortune.
D)aid to the poor.
E)programs in which eligibility is based on prior contributions to government, usually in the form of payroll taxes.
Q2) The first financial security systems in the United States were for A)farmers.
B)orphans.
C)widows.
D)immigrants.
E)veterans.
Q3) Aid to the poor is called public assistance.
A)True
B)False
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Page 20
Chapter 20: Making Foreign Defense Policy
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127 Verified Questions
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Sample Questions
Q1) State Department policy priorities include all BUT which of the following?
A)Promoting protective tariffs
B)Protecting American citizens' abroad
C)Negotiating treaties
D)Promoting U.S.commercial interests
E)Granting visas to foreign visitors
Q2) The Department of Defense is responsible for all of the foreign policy formulations in America.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Who gives consent to treaty ratification in the United States?
A)The president, by executive order
B)The House and the Senate jointly, by majority vote
C)The House, by two-thirds vote
D)The Senate, by two-thirds vote
E)Congress by two-thirds vote
Q4) Realism is a theory of international relations that focuses on the tendency of nations to operate from self-interest.
A)True
B)False
Page 21
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Chapter 21: State and Local Politics
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Sample Questions
Q1) How many U.S.workers are employed by state and local governments?
A)12 million
B)19 million
C)30 million
D)7 million
E)4 million
Q2) Lack of citizen interest in, and participation in, local politics is often referred to as
A)hometown blues.
B)grassroots apathy.
C)community disinterest.
D)disillusionment.
E)rational abstention.
Q3) At what level of government are redistributive policies least likely found?
A)The local level
B)The state level
C)The federal level
D)About equally at the local and federal level
E)About equally at all levels of government
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Chapter 22: State Constitutions
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Sample Questions
Q1) How many states allow constitutional amendments to be proposed by initiative petitions?
A)3
B)12
C)18
D)35
E)All 50
Q2) The 1902 Alabama constitution was designed to
A)give women as few rights as possible.
B)make sure abortion is never legal, despite federal law.
C)make Christianity the center of the state's legal statutes.
D)preserve gun ownership laws.
E)repress African Americans.
Q3) In the nineteenth century, _____________ state constitutional conventions were held.
A)63
B)1
C)144
D)823
E)650
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Chapter 23: Parties and Elections in the States
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Sample Questions
Q1) The Help America Vote Act
A)allowed people to register to vote when renewing their drivers' licenses.
B)provided funding to states to update their voting machines.
C)was vetoed by President Bush.
D)was found to be unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 2004.
E)was passed with the primary aim of combating disenfranchisement.
Q2) Which U.S.constitutional amendment established the voting age at 18?
A)Twenty-Fourth
B)Twenty-Fifth
C)Twenty-Sixth
D)Twenty-Seventh
E)Twenty-Eighth
Q3) The election that brought Republicans to power in many states and mobilized voters with the "Contract with America," was in reaction to the unpopular policies of
A)Richard Nixon.
B)Lyndon Johnson.
C)Ronald Reagan.
D)Bill Clinton.
E)George W.Bush.
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Page 24
Chapter 24: State Legislatures
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is one of the two rules by which lobbyists live?
A)Better to support the loser than the wrong winner
B)Misleading information is the best kind
C)Always create permanent allies
D)It's easier to kill a bill than to pass it
E)Today's opponent is tomorrow's opponent
Q2) In what case did the Supreme Court rule that "the fundamental principle of representative government in this country is one of equal representation of people, without regard to race, sex, economic status, or place of residence within a state"?
A)Baker v.Carr
B)Reynolds v.Sims
C)Johnson v.Voting Rights Act
D)Warren v.Buffett
E)Turner v.Tennessee
Q3) Despite recent lobbyist-related scandals, bribery is NOT a widespread problem in most states.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 25: State Governors
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is NOT one of the reasons governors have had more managerial control over their states in recent years?
A)Systems analysis
B)Customer focus
C)Performance measurement and management
D)Strategic planning
E)Lack of legislative oversight
Q2) Highway spending accounted for what percentage of state spending in 2007?
A)Less than 2
B)7
C)18
D)21
E)25
Q3) Most governors are females under the age of 30.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Most states elect the governor at the same time as the Presidential election.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 26: Judges and Justice in the States
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Sample Questions
Q1) More than 85% of all state and local judges are selected by means of a merit plan.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The public defender system is
A)a certification by a public prosecutor that there is evidence to justify bringing named individuals to trial.
B)a formal written statement from a grand jury charging an individual with an offense; also called a true bill.
C)an arrangement whereby the judge assigns a member of the bar to provide counsel to a particular defendant.
D)to serve the public good; a term used to describe work that lawyers (or other professionals) do for which they receive no fees.
E)an arrangement whereby public officials are hired to provide legal assistance to people accused of crimes who are unable to hire their own attorneys.
Q3) All states have a court of last resort.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 27: Local Governments and Metropolitics
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Sample Questions
Q1) The number of people of color serving in city councils across the country has almost doubled in the last two decades.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Some larger suburban areas have begun to resemble city governments.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Today most people live in metropolitan areas, which include large cities and their suburbs, rather than in the small towns so beloved in fact and fiction.
A)True
B)False
Q4) One defining attribute of what are now called "edge cities" is
A)higher crime rates than the inner cities.
B)higher taxes than either the suburbs or the inner cities.
C)more residential space than office space.
D)more office space than residential space.
E)All of the above.
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28
Chapter 28: Making State and Local Policy
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Sample Questions
Q1) Publicly funded colleges and universities usually can control all of the following EXCEPT
A)areas of teaching emphasis.
B)internal procedures.
C)hiring and promotion.
D)gross revenue.
E)teaching loads.
Q2) The federal government has supported highway construction since 1916.
A)True
B)False
Q3) State governments and the federal government contribute equally to spending on public schools.
A)True B)False
Q4) Workfare programs are designed to help welfare recipients pay for expenses that go along with work like transportation and clothing.
A)True B)False
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Chapter 29: Staffing and Financing State and Local Governments
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Sample Questions
Q1) _______________ limited the activities of federal, state, and local employees whose salaries were supported by federal funds.
A)Civil Service Reform Act of 1978
B)Hatch Act of 1939
C)Hatch Act of 1942
D)Civil Service Reform Act of 1883
E)None of the above
Q2) Out of hundreds of disputes, courts have decided that states may collect sales tax from interstate sales and income tax from people and corporations within the states, even if the income was earned from interstate business.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Fiscal capacities can be defined as
A)limits placed on state spending by the U.S.Congress.
B)the potential borrowing power of a state or municipality.
C)the revenues a state brings in within a fiscal year.
D)the economic resources a state may tax.
E)None of the above
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