State and Local Government Pre-Test Questions
Course Introduction
This course explores the structure, functions, and processes of state and local governments within the United States. Students will examine the constitutional foundations, political institutions, and policy-making roles of states, counties, cities, and special districts. Key topics include federalism, the relationship between state and federal governments, intergovernmental relations, electoral systems, and the influence of political parties and interest groups at the subnational level. The course also covers fiscal management, public administration, and contemporary issues such as urban planning, education policy, and public safety, providing students with a comprehensive understanding of how state and local governments shape citizens' daily lives.
Recommended Textbook
Governing California in the Twenty-First Century 5th Edition by J. Theodore Anagnoson
Available Study Resources on Quizplus
10 Chapters
301 Verified Questions
301 Flashcards
Source URL: https://quizplus.com/study-set/273
Page 2
Chapter 1: California Government: Promise and Practice
Available Study Resources on Quizplus for this Chatper
30 Verified Questions
30 Flashcards
Source URL: https://quizplus.com/quiz/4474
Sample Questions
Q1) What is one of the major problems California faces to balance the budget?
A) Legislators do not attend the necessary budget meetings, thereby causing serious delays.
B) California's constitution requires citizen approval of the budget before the legislature can pass a budget bill.
C) California requires a two-thirds vote to raise or lower taxes.
D) Legislators have used filibusters to stop the budget committee.
Answer: C
Q2) What are the major factors that continue to fuel a crisis in California and how can they be changed?
Answer: Answer will vary
Q3) The proportion of immigrants over age five who speak English at home is A) 40 percent.
B) 61 percent.
C) 72 percent.
D) 90 percent.
Answer: B
To view all questions and flashcards with answers, click on the resource link above. Page 3
Chapter 2: The Constitution and the Progressive Legacy
Available Study Resources on Quizplus for this Chatper
30 Verified Questions
30 Flashcards
Source URL: https://quizplus.com/quiz/4475
Sample Questions
Q1) During the Progressive era, what railroad company was known for bribing California officials?
A) Penn Central
B) Amtrak
C) Union Pacific
D) Southern Pacific
Answer: D
Q2) Which one of the following was a suggestion by the California Constitutional Revision Commission?
A) Require all judges in California to be elected by the people.
B) Allow property taxes to be raised by 1 percent every 10 years.
C) Have the governor and the lieutenant governor run as a team.
D) Make it easier to terminate public employment.
Answer: C
Q3) In California, the initiative
A) is used to recall elected leaders.
B) is used to suspend laws passed by the legislature.
C) is used by the legislature to introduce new laws.
D) allows citizens to propose laws.
Answer: D
To view all questions and flashcards with answers, click on the resource link above. Page 4
Chapter 3: Interest Groups and the Media in California
Available Study Resources on Quizplus for this Chatper
30 Verified Questions
30 Flashcards
Source URL: https://quizplus.com/quiz/4476
Sample Questions
Q1) Because political campaigns require highly focused political messages, the media of choice to reach large numbers of citizens are
A) local newspapers.
B) national magazines.
C) highway billboards.
D) electronic media.
Answer: D
Q2) Interest groups make political contributions to candidates for public office through organizations that are called
A) political parties.
B) political action committees.
C) corporate network groups.
D) interest group networks.
Answer: B
To view all questions and flashcards with answers, click on the resource link above. Page 5
Chapter 4: Parties and Elections in California
Available Study Resources on Quizplus for this Chatper
31 Verified Questions
31 Flashcards
Source URL: https://quizplus.com/quiz/4477
Sample Questions
Q1) In California, Proposition 34, passed in 2000, established a law regarding A) campaign finance reform.
B) property taxes.
C) blanket primaries.
D) education spending.
Q2) What two reforms did the Progressive movement implement to reduce the power of political parties?
A) the line-item veto for the governor and Proposition 13
B) presidential primaries and partisan primaries
C) California History Month and the filibuster
D) campaign finance laws and elimination of the governor's power to appoint mayors and sheriffs
Q3) What groups comprise the California electorate, and which are most and least likely to vote?
Q4) The reforms of the Progressive movement had what effect on the power of political parties in California?
A) They increased party power.
B) They decreased party power.
C) They did not impact party power.
D) It is too soon to state what their effects have been on political parties.
To view all questions and flashcards with answers, click on the resource link above. Page 6
Chapter 5: The California Legislature
Available Study Resources on Quizplus for this Chatper
30 Verified Questions
30 Flashcards
Source URL: https://quizplus.com/quiz/4478
Sample
Questions
Q1) What factors make the California legislature weaker in comparison to Congress?
A) the Speaker of the House, presidential recess appointments, and congressional staffers
B) logrolling, the vice president of the United States, filibusters
C) term limits, low media coverage, and the line-item veto
D) oversight, gerrymandering, court decisions
Q2) The leader of the California Assembly is called the
A) majority leader.
B) speaker.
C) majority pro tem.
D) governor.
Q3) How many members serve in the California Assembly?
A) 40
B) 60
C) 75
D) 80
Q4) Why have Californians typically distrusted the California legislature? Has the distrust lessened, and if so, what has led to the turnaround?
Q5) What are the major differences between the U.S. Congress and the California legislature?
To view all questions and flashcards with answers, click on the resource link above. Page 7
Chapter 6: The Governor and the Executive Branch
Available Study Resources on Quizplus for this Chatper
30 Verified Questions
30 Flashcards
Source URL: https://quizplus.com/quiz/4479
Sample Questions
Q1) Why did Arnold Schwarzenegger's popularity fade away in 2005?
A) He nominated Gray Davis to serve on the California Supreme Court and attended the Democratic National Convention as a keynote speaker.
B) He attended high-end fundraisers in Hollywood and allowed oil companies to drill off the coast of Santa Barbara, thereby causing a major oil spill.
C) He pursued a costly special election, and antagonized the members of his own party with his moderate positions on many issues.
D) His Terminator Five movie was a box office failure thereby causing an economic downfall for the entertainment industry.
Q2) Describe the informal powers of the governor of California. How have these powers been used?
Q3) All of the following are among the formal powers of the governor EXCEPT
A) vetoing legislation.
B) drawing up the budget.
C) developing a vision for the state.
D) organizing the executive branch.
Q4) How is the bureaucracy in California organized? How does it relate to the governor?
To view all questions and flashcards with answers, click on the resource link above. Page 8
Chapter 7: The California Judiciary
Available Study Resources on Quizplus for this Chatper
30 Verified Questions
30 Flashcards
Source URL: https://quizplus.com/quiz/4480
Sample Questions
Q1) What kind of caseload do the California courts have? How do the courts expedite the disposition of civil and criminal cases?
Q2) How did the U.S. Supreme Court rule in Gonzales v. Raich (2005)?
A) The Supreme Court ruled that California's term limits for members of the House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate is unconstitutional because the U.S. Constitution overrides state laws.
B) The Supreme Court ruled that California's law that denies educational, social, and medical services to illegal immigrants is unconstitutional because the law conflicts with federal powers.
C) The Supreme Court ruled that California's Compassionate Use Act (CUA) is legal because the activity involves intrastate commerce, thereby not warranting federal intervention.
D) The Supreme Court ruled that the commerce power gives Congress the authority to regulate and to punish the manufacture and cultivation of marijuana despite California law that allows for compassionate use.
Q3) Discuss an example of the conflict between federal and state law that California courts have to adjudicate.
To view all questions and flashcards with answers, click on the resource link above. Page 9
Chapter 8: The State Budget and Budgetary Limitations
Available Study Resources on Quizplus for this Chatper
30 Verified Questions
30 Flashcards
Source URL: https://quizplus.com/quiz/4481
Sample Questions
Q1) What arguments do liberals and conservatives make about taxes in California?
Q2) Which proposition instituted a majority vote requirement to pass the budget?
A) Proposition 13
B) Proposition 198
C) Proposition 140
D) Proposition 25
Q3) Who are the Big 5?
A) the President, Vice President, Speaker of the House, Secretary of Defense, and Secretary of Foreign Affairs
B) the governor, Assembly speaker, Senate president pro tempore, the Assembly minority leader, and the Senate minority leader
C) the senators from the five largest constituencies in the state
D) the longest serving justices on the California Supreme Court
Q4) What was the intent of Proposition 13? What impact did it have in California?
Q5) The California Constitution requires that the governor and the legislature
A) pass a balanced budget.
B) engage in deficit financing.
C) reduce the rate of inflation.
D) ignore the Federal Reserve Bank.
To view all questions and flashcards with answers, click on the resource link above. Page 10
Chapter 9: Local Government
Available Study Resources on Quizplus for this Chatper
30 Verified Questions
30 Flashcards
Source URL: https://quizplus.com/quiz/4482
Sample Questions
Q1) What role do special districts play in California? Cite an example of a special district and its mandated purpose.
Q2) In California, what is the general purpose of local governments, such as cities and counties?
A) manage interstate highways, regulate foreign trade, and maintain weapons and training for security agencies such as Homeland Security
B) fight fires, clean streets, and protect the health, safety, welfare, and overall quality of life of all who live within their jurisdiction
C) regulate banks, alcohol and gun sales, print currency, and exchange intelligence information with various law enforcement agencies
D) protect the border, regulate interstate commerce, negotiate with foreign countries, and monitor the sale of prescription drugs, alcohol, and guns
Q3) Which California city did NOT declare bankruptcy?
A) Vallejo
B) Stockton
C) San Bernardino
D) Irvine
To view all questions and flashcards with answers, click on the resource link above.
11
Chapter 10: Public Policy in California
Available Study Resources on Quizplus for this Chatper
30 Verified Questions
30 Flashcards
Source URL: https://quizplus.com/quiz/4483
Sample Questions
Q1) What are some of the proposed solutions to the growing shortage of water in California?
Q2) What is a major reason why some residents of Duroville cannot live in a public housing project?
A) The project requires residents to participate in an alcohol rehab program, and many residents fail to complete the program.
B) The project requires residents to have homeowner's insurance and many residents cannot afford the monthly premiums.
C) The project requires residents to be in the U.S. legally, and many residents of Duroville are not.
D) The project requires residents to have a minimum monthly income of $2,000 to qualify and many residents do not have jobs that issue tax forms.
Q3) The Affordable Care Act has had what effect in California?
A) during the first six months over a million people purchased health insurance
B) little or no impact
C) less people have health insurance now than in 2012
D) driven the cost of health insurance down by over 50 percent
Q4) What is the condition of California's infrastructure? What can be done about it?
To view all questions and flashcards with answers, click on the resource link above.
Page 12